JP2954847B2 - Artificial leather and its manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to artificial leather having the same breathability and texture as natural leather, and a method and apparatus for producing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, natural leather products are expensive, and artificial leather alternatives have been actively developed. However, in reality, artificial leather having the same texture and air permeability as natural leather has not yet been developed.

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional configuration of a conventional artificial leather. This artificial leather 30 includes a breathable base cloth 31,
It has a leather substrate 33 composed of a breathable porous layer 32 having a leather-like uneven surface formed on a base cloth 31. On the leather base material 33, a film layer 35 containing urethane resin is laminated via an adhesive layer 34, and the film layer 35 has a leather-like uneven surface.

[0004] Such artificial leather 30 is shown in Figs.
It is manufactured by the manufacturing method shown in FIG. That is, a film material 38 to be the film layer 35 is supplied onto the transfer paper 39 sent out by the metal roller 36. The transfer paper 39 has an uneven shape obtained by inverting the leather-like uneven surface. A blade 37 is provided on the roller 36 at a predetermined interval.
A film material 38 is applied thereon. By drying this, a film layer 35 having a leather-like uneven shape on the transfer paper 39 is obtained as shown in FIG.
Next, an adhesive 34 is applied on the film layer 35, and the adhesive 34 is superimposed on the porous layer 32 of the leather base material 33 as shown in FIG. The artificial leather 30 of FIG. 4 is obtained by peeling off.

[0005]

In the artificial leather shown in FIG. 4, since the adhesive 34 and the film layer 35 do not have air permeability, they have a problem that when used as leather shoes or the like, they are more stuffy than natural leather. .

Further, since the main component of the film layer 35 is urethane resin, it is hard, and there is a problem that a soft texture like natural leather cannot be obtained.

[0007] The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide an artificial leather having the same air permeability and texture as natural leather. It is. Another object of the present invention is to provide a manufacturing method and a manufacturing apparatus thereof.

[0008]

The artificial leather according to the present invention comprises a leather substrate having a breathable base fabric and a breathable porous layer formed on the base fabric and having a leather-like uneven surface. And a film layer formed on the projections of the irregular surface of the porous layer.

Further, the base cloth may be constituted by a nonwoven fabric entangled with a polyurethane sponge, and the porous layer and the film layer may be constituted by polyurethane.

[0010] The method for producing artificial leather according to the present invention is the method for producing artificial leather described above, wherein the film material for forming the film layer on a transfer paper having an uneven shape obtained by inverting a leather-like uneven surface is provided. Coating and filling the film material into the concave portion of the uneven shape, the transfer paper is overlapped so that the coated surface of the film material is in contact with the leather substrate, the leather substrate and the By applying heat and pressure to the transfer paper, the shape of the leather-like uneven surface of the transfer paper is pressed and transferred onto the leather base material, and the film material filled in the uneven recesses of the transfer paper Transferring onto a convex portion having the shape of the leather-like uneven surface transferred onto the leather base material.

An apparatus for producing artificial leather according to the present invention is an apparatus for producing artificial leather for performing the above-described production method,
A coating device having a roller having flexibility to send out the transfer paper, and a blade for filling the concave portion of the uneven shape of the transfer while scraping the film material supplied on the transfer paper by being pressed by the roller; A main roller for heating the leather base material and the transfer paper on which the transfer paper is superimposed such that a surface of the leather base material coated with the film material is in contact with the leather base material and the main base roller; A transfer device including a belt for surface-pressing a transfer paper, an auxiliary roller for holding the belt, and a pressure roller for pressing the leather base material and the transfer paper between the main roller and the main roller; It is characterized by.

[0012]

According to the artificial leather of the present invention, a leather base material is constituted by a gas-permeable base cloth and a gas-permeable porous layer, and the porous layer has a leather-like uneven surface. Only the film layer is directly laminated without an adhesive. That is, since there is no non-breathable adhesive layer on the surface of the breathable leather base material and the non-breathable film layer does not cover the entire surface of the breathable leather base material, natural leather The same air permeability as above is maintained. In addition to this, it is not necessary to form a film layer on the entire surface of the leather substrate as in the conventional case, and the thickness of the film layer can be reduced, so that the obtained artificial leather does not become hard and is bent. However, the softness of the leather base material is not impaired, and a soft texture close to that of natural leather can be obtained. Furthermore, since the artificial leather of the present invention has a film layer, the strength is increased as compared with an artificial leather in which only a leather substrate is printed.

[0013] Further, when the base fabric is formed of a nonwoven fabric entangled with a polyurethane sponge, and the porous layer and the film layer are formed of polyurethane, a texture closer to that of natural leather can be obtained.

The method for producing artificial leather according to the present invention is for producing the above-mentioned artificial leather.

In the production method of the present invention, first, in the coating step, only the concave portions of the irregular shape obtained by inverting the leather-like irregular surface of the transfer paper are filled with the film material for forming the film layer.

Next, in the transfer step, the transfer paper is superposed so that the surface coated with the film material is in contact with the leather base, and the heating and pressurization of the leather base and the transfer paper thus superimposed are performed. Done. By this heating and pressing operation, the shape of the leather-like uneven surface of the transfer paper is transferred onto the leather base material.
Further, by the heating and pressurizing operation, the film material filled in the concave and convex portions of the transfer paper is transferred only onto the convex portions of the leather-like concave and convex surface transferred onto the leather base material. By such a heating and pressing operation, a leather-like uneven surface can be formed on the leather substrate without using an adhesive.

An apparatus for producing an artificial leather according to the present invention is for implementing the above-described method for producing an artificial leather. The above-described coating process is performed by a coating device, and the transfer process is performed by a transfer device. The coating device has a flexible roller and a blade pressed by the roller, and the transfer paper is sent out by the roller. A film material for forming a film layer is supplied on a transfer paper, and a blade scrapes the film material while being pressed by a roller. As a result, the film material is filled in the concave and convex concave portions obtained by inverting the leather-like concave and convex surface of the transfer paper.

The transfer paper in which the film material is filled in the concave and convex portions is superimposed on the leather base material such that the surface coated with the film material is in contact with the leather base material. The transfer device has a main roller and a belt for heating, an auxiliary roller for holding the belt, and a pressure roller. The rollers and the belt heat and press the transfer paper and the leather base material. Is performed. The transfer paper and the leather base material are surface-pressed to a main roller heated to a predetermined temperature by a belt held by an auxiliary roller. Thereby, the leather-like unevenness of the transfer paper is transferred onto the porous layer of the leather base material. The transfer paper and the leather base material are further pressed by the main roller and the pressure roller, whereby the transfer of the transfer paper onto the leather-like uneven shape porous layer can be ensured. At the same time, the film material is transferred as a film layer only on the protrusions of the transferred uneven surface. As described above, by using the coating device and the transfer device, a leather-like uneven surface can be formed on a leather base material without using an adhesive.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional configuration of the artificial leather of the present embodiment. The artificial leather 10 of the present embodiment has a leather base material 3, and the leather base material 3 contains a breathable base fabric 1 made of a nonwoven fabric entangled with a polyurethane sponge, and a polyurethane resin formed on the base fabric 1. And a gas permeable porous layer 2. The porous layer 2 has a leather-like uneven surface, and the film layer 5 is formed only on the convex portions 6 of the uneven surface. In the artificial leather 10 of the present embodiment, the base cloth 1
In addition, since the porous layer 2 has air permeability, the non-air permeable film layer 5 has a concave portion 7 on the uneven surface of the artificial leather 10.
Since it is not formed, the air permeability is maintained like natural leather.

The artificial leather 10 of the present embodiment can be manufactured by a manufacturing apparatus schematically shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), and FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b) are shown in FIG. 2 (a). And (b)
1 shows a method of manufacturing the artificial leather 10 performed by the manufacturing apparatus.

The manufacturing apparatus and the manufacturing method will be described below in the order of the manufacturing steps. The manufacturing apparatus of this embodiment has a coating device 18 shown in FIG. 2A and a transfer device 19 shown in FIG. 2B. The applicator 18 has a rubber roller 16 and a blade 17, and the rotation of the roller 16 sends out a transfer paper 9 having an uneven surface which is the reverse of the leather-like uneven surface. On the roller 16, a blade 17 is interposed with the transfer paper 9 interposed therebetween.
And a film material 15 for forming the film layer 5 is supplied on the transfer paper 9.

The gap between the blade 17 and the roller 16 is smaller than the thickness of the transfer paper 9, so that the blade 17 presses the transfer paper 9 on the roller 16. In this embodiment, since the rubber having flexibility is used for the roller 16, the transfer paper 9 and the roller 16 are pressed by the blade 17 to be in a concave state.
Is sent out, the film material 15 is scraped off by the blade 17. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3A, the film material 15 is filled only in the concave and convex concave portions 14 of the transfer paper 9.

The film material 15 is usually 10 to 30%
Resin, 5 to 10% of a pigment, and a solvent. The composition of the film material 15 in this embodiment is 20% of polyurethane resin, 5% of pigment and 75% of solvent. The solvent used was a mixture of dimethylformamide, methyl ethyl ketone, and toluene.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, the transfer paper 9 in which the concave portions 14 are filled with the film material 15 has a surface on which the film material 15 is applied, that is, the upper surface in FIG. It overlaps so that it may contact the porous layer 2 of the base material 3. The transfer paper 9 and the leather substrate 3 thus superimposed are sent to a transfer device 19 shown in FIG. The transfer device 19 has a main roller 11, and the main roller 11 can be heated to a predetermined temperature. Further, the transfer device 19 has a belt 14 for pressing the transfer paper 9 and the leather base material 3 against the main roller 11, and the belt 14 includes auxiliary rollers 12a, 12b, 1
2c and the pressure roller 13. The width of the main roller 11 and the pressure roller 13 is about 1.7 m. As shown in FIG. 2B, the transfer paper 9 and the leather base material 3 are supplied between the auxiliary roller 12a and the main roller 11, and are pressed by the main roller 11 by the tension of the belt 14, and heated while being heated. It is sent to the pressure roller 13 side.

The pressure roller 13 holds the belt 14 and is pressed against the main roller 11 with a pressure of about 6 tons. By this pressure, the leather-like inverted unevenness of the transfer paper 9 is transferred to the leather base material 3, and at the same time, the film material 15 is formed as a film layer 5 on the projections 6 of the transferred uneven surface of the leather base material 3. Transcribed. Then, the transfer paper 9 and the leather base material 3 are cooled, and the transfer paper 9
By peeling, the artificial leather 10 of the present embodiment is obtained.

In the artificial leather 10 of this embodiment, there is no air-impermeable adhesive layer, and the air-impermeable film layer 5 is not formed in the recess 7 of the leather base material 3.
Breathability is maintained like natural leather. In addition to this
It is not necessary to form a relatively hard film layer 5 containing polyurethane conventionally on the entire surface of the leather substrate 3, and the thickness of the entire film layer 5 can be made smaller than before. Does not become hard, a texture close to that of natural leather can be obtained, and the amount of polyurethane resin used can be reduced.

In the apparatus and method for manufacturing the artificial leather 10 according to the present embodiment, the film material 15 is filled only in the concave and convex portions 14 of the transfer paper 9, so that the heating and heating in the subsequent transfer step are performed. By the pressure operation, a leather-like uneven surface can be formed on the leather base material 3 and the film layer 5 can be formed only on the convex portions 6 of the uneven surface. Therefore, a leather-like uneven surface can be formed on the leather substrate 3 without using an adhesive.

In this embodiment, the leather base material 3 is used without any treatment. However, it is possible to obtain an artificial leather having a two-tone appearance close to that of natural leather by applying a base print on the leather base material 3 in advance. it can.

[0029]

According to the artificial leather of the present invention, the leather base material is constituted by the air-permeable base cloth and the air-permeable porous layer, and the film layer has an adhesive only on the convex portions of the uneven surface. Since it is directly laminated without having to do so, the same breathability as natural leather is maintained. Therefore, even when the artificial leather of the present invention is used for products such as shoes, a feeling of use similar to that of natural leather can be obtained.

In addition, since the film layer is not formed on the entire surface of the leather substrate and the thickness of the entire film layer is small, the obtained artificial leather does not become hard, and the leather base is resistant to bending. The softness of the material is not impaired, and a texture close to that of natural leather can be obtained.

In the method for producing artificial leather according to the present invention,
Only the concave portion of the transfer paper is filled with the film material, and by the next heating and pressurizing operation, the shape of the leather-like uneven surface of the transfer paper is transferred onto the leather base material, and the unevenness on the leather base material is transferred. The film material is transferred as a film layer to the projections on the surface. Therefore, according to the production method of the present invention, the above-mentioned artificial leather having the same texture and air permeability as natural leather can be obtained in a simple process.

Further, in the artificial leather manufacturing apparatus of the present invention,
The blade is pressed by a flexible roller and the film material is filled into the leather-like concave and convex portions of the surface of the transfer paper, and the next heating and pressurizing operation changes the leather-like concave and convex shape of the transfer paper to the leather base. In addition to the transfer to the material, the film layer can be formed only on the projections of the uneven shape. Therefore, by using the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, artificial leather having the same feeling and air permeability as natural leather can be easily manufactured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an artificial leather according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2 (a) and (b) are schematic structural views showing a manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing the artificial leather of the embodiment of FIG.

3 (a) and 3 (b) are views showing a manufacturing method performed by the apparatus of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a conventional artificial leather.

FIG. 5A is a schematic configuration diagram showing a conventional manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing artificial leather, and FIGS. 5B and 5C are diagrams showing a conventional method for manufacturing artificial leather.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Base cloth 2 ... Porous layer 3 ... Leather base material 5 ... Film layer 6 ... Convex part 7 ... Concave part 9 ... Transfer paper 10 ... Artificial leather 11 ... Main roller 12a, 12b, 12c ... Auxiliary roller 13 ... Pressure roller 14 belt 15 film material 16 roller 17 blade 18 coating device 19 transfer device

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A leather base material having a gas-permeable base cloth, a gas-permeable porous layer formed on the base cloth and having a leather-like uneven surface, and a convexity of the uneven surface of the porous layer. An artificial leather comprising a film layer formed on a portion. 2. The artificial leather according to claim 1, wherein the base cloth is formed of a nonwoven fabric entangled with a polyurethane sponge, and the porous layer and the film layer are formed of polyurethane. 3. The method for producing artificial leather according to claim 1, wherein a film material for forming the film layer is applied on a transfer paper having an uneven shape obtained by inverting a leather-like uneven surface. An application step of filling the film material into the concave portions of the uneven shape, and superimposing the transfer paper so that the application surface of the film material is in contact with the leather base, heating the leather base and the transfer paper and By applying pressure, the shape of the leather-like uneven surface of the transfer paper is pressed and transferred onto the leather base material, and the film material filled in the uneven shape recesses of the transfer paper is transferred to the leather base material. A step of transferring onto the convex portion of the shape of the leather-like uneven surface transferred onto the artificial leather. 4. An apparatus for producing artificial leather for performing the production method according to claim 3, wherein the roller has flexibility to send out the transfer paper, and the roller is pressed by the roller and supplied on the transfer paper. A coating device having a blade that fills the concave portions of the uneven shape of the transfer while scraping the film material, and the transfer paper is superimposed such that a surface of the leather substrate coated with the film material is in contact with the coating device. A main roller for heating the leather base material and the transfer paper, a belt for pressing the leather base material and the transfer paper on the main roller, an auxiliary roller for holding the belt, and the leather base material And a transfer device having a pressure roller for pressing the transfer paper between the transfer roller and the main roller.