JP7498051B2 - Manufacturing method of sheet mask - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a sheet-type mask having a mask body folded in two.

In the above technical fields, Patent Document 1 discloses a manufacturing method in which a sheet forming the mask body and a sheet forming ear loops that are more stretchable than the sheet forming the mask body are joined together, then the ear loops are stretched using a roll gear, and finally, the mask is cut into a mask shape. Patent Document 2 discloses a manufacturing method for a sheet-type mask having a mask body and ear loops, in which ear loops formed in a separate process are joined to the mask body to manufacture the sheet-type mask.

JP 2013-236798 A JP 2018-204146 A

Conventionally, sheet-type masks containing functional materials that generate hot steam, etc., have been manufactured with the aim of providing a relaxing effect to the wearer.

However, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, when trying to perform stretch processing on the belt-shaped sheet for the ear hooks, the ear hooks could not be placed inside the mask body. Also, in the technology described in Patent Document 2, there is no process for imparting stretchability to the ear hooks, so it is not possible to impart stretchability to the ear hooks.
Therefore, the present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a sheet mask in which the mask can be transported stably even after the mask body is punched out because the ear loops are positioned on the inside.

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a sheet-type mask in which a pair of ear hook members are arranged on the inner side of a mask body folded in half.
The manufacturing method of the present invention preferably includes a stretching process step of stretching the belt-shaped sheet for forming the ear hook member.
The manufacturing method of the present invention preferably includes an ear-hook member forming step of cutting the strip-shaped sheet that has been subjected to stretch processing to form the ear-hook members.
The manufacturing method of the present invention preferably includes an earhook member joining process for joining the earhook members formed in the earhook member forming process to one side of the band-shaped mask body continuous body for forming the mask body continuous body.
The manufacturing method of the present invention preferably includes a bifold mask continuous body forming step of folding the mask main body continuous body to which the ear hook members are joined in half at the widthwise center to form a bifold mask continuous body.

According to the manufacturing method of the sheet mask of the present invention, even after the mask body is punched out, the ear loops are positioned on the inside, so transportation is stable.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a sheet-type mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is worn. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a state before being worn of a sheet-type mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a heating element of a sheet mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing all steps of a manufacturing apparatus used in a method for manufacturing a sheet mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of an ear-hook member forming section and an ear-hook member joining section of a manufacturing apparatus used in a method for manufacturing a sheet-type mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view illustrating the overall configuration of an expansion processing unit of a manufacturing apparatus used in a method for manufacturing a sheet-type mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the tooth grooves of a gear roll of a manufacturing device used in a method for manufacturing a sheet mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the location of a base sheet that is stretched by a manufacturing device used in a method for manufacturing a sheet mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of a folding and joining section and a cutting and dividing section of a manufacturing apparatus used in a method for manufacturing a sheet-type mask according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The manufacturing method of the sheet mask of the present invention will be described below with reference to Figs. 1 to 9. The manufacturing method of the sheet mask of this embodiment is a manufacturing method of a mask in which a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are arranged on the inner side of the mask body 2 folded in half. First, the sheet mask 1 manufactured by the manufacturing method of the sheet mask of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2.

The sheet mask 1 is a sheet-like mask having a pair of ear hooks 3, 3 arranged on the inner side of a mask body 2 folded in half.
A heating element 4 is optionally disposed inside the folded mask body 2.
Inside the folded mask body 2, a volatile functional material is optionally placed together with or separately from the heating element 4.
The sheet-like mask 1 is manufactured in a state where the mask body 2 is folded in half and a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are arranged on the inner side thereof.
When in use, the mask body 2 is opened in a folded state, the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 arranged on the inner side are folded outward, and the folded pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are hung on the wearer's ears. In this type of sheet-like mask 1, the mask body 2 has a three-dimensional shape when in use, and a space is formed between the mask body 2 and the wearer's mouth when worn, improving the comfort of use.

When the sheet mask 1 has a heating element 4, in the state of use, the pair of heating elements 4, 4 are preferably arranged symmetrically about a fold line 25a extending in the up-down direction X at the center of the width direction (left-right direction) Y of the mask body 2.
In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, each heating element 4 is formed in a rectangular shape. Each heating element 4 is arranged in the right region and the left region adjacent to each other in the width direction Y symmetrically with respect to the folding line 25a of the mask body 2 in the used state. Each heating element 4 is arranged in each of the right region and the left region of the mask body 2 in the used state, and is arranged in positions adjacent to each other in the width direction Y symmetrically with respect to the wearer's nose as the center line.

In the sheet-like mask 1, it is preferable that the mask body 2 folded in half has a folded side 25 that is folded in half, an opening side 26 on the opposite side in the width direction Y of the folded side 25, and an upper edge side 27 and a lower edge side 28 that connect the folded side 25 and the opening side 26.
As shown in FIG. 2, it is preferable that the folded side 25 of the mask body 2 when folded in half has a shape curved outward in the width direction Y.
The curved upper and lower parts of the folding side 25 include a folding side joint 24 that maintains the folded state in two, and it is preferable that the folding side joint 24 is formed by joining the overlapping mask bodies 2 that are folded in two.
It is preferable that the fold side joint 24 has a nose side fold joint 24a arranged at an upper part in the vertical direction X and a chin side fold joint 24b arranged at a lower part in the vertical direction X.

The nose-side fold joint 24a is preferably formed to have a shape that follows the bridge of the wearer's nose toward the tip of the nose when the sheet mask 1 is worn.
It is preferable that the chin side fold joint 24b is formed so that the line extending from the tip of the wearer's nose to the tip of the chin when the sheet mask 1 is worn is raised outward.

In the mask body 2 of the sheet-like mask 1, the length of the opening side 26 in the up-down direction X is preferably shorter than the length of the folded side 25 in the up-down direction X.
1, the upper edge side 27 is formed in a shape that follows the shape of the cheekbones of the wearer when the sheet mask 1 is worn, so as to be in close contact with the cheekbones. The lower edge side 28 is shaped to cover the entire chin of the wearer when the sheet mask 1 is worn. The mask body 2 having such a shape has a three-dimensional shape that covers the wearer's nose to mouth when in use.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, each ear hook member 3 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape that is elongated in the width direction Y.
Each ear hook member 3 is disposed on the inner side of the mask body 2 when the mask body 2 is folded in half.
It is preferable that each earhook member 3 is joined at an earhook joint 23 to the opening side 26 of the mask body 2, where the outer portion 3s in the width direction Y is folded in half.
The ear-hook joints 23 are preferably disposed in the vertical direction X over the entire area of the opening side 26 of the mask body 2 .

In the sheet-type mask 1, it is preferable that the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are stored within the mask body 2 in a state in which the mask body 2 is folded in half and in contact with the inner surface of the surface sheet 20t of the mask body 2.
As shown in Fig. 1, the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 can be used by opening the mask body 2 folded in half so that the top sheet 20t is exposed. Each ear hook member 3 is folded outward around the inner joint boundary line 23a of the ear hook joint 23 as an axis.
In addition, each ear hook member 3 is formed with a horizontal cut line 31a extending in the width direction Y and a vertical cut line 31b connected to the horizontal cut line 31a and extending in the up-down direction X. When the sheet-like mask 1 is worn, it is preferable that the horizontal cut line 31a and the vertical cut line 31b are opened to accommodate the wearer's ears.

Next, a description will be given of each heating element 4 optionally contained in the sheet mask 1. In the sheet mask 1, each heating element 4 is preferably formed by applying or spraying a heating composition 41 onto one surface of the non-breathable sheet 40b arranged on the non-skin-facing side, and covering the layer of the applied or sprayed heating composition 41 with the breathable sheet 40t arranged on the skin-facing side.
The heat generating composition 41 preferably contains oxidizable metal powder and electrolyte, which are non-volatile functional materials, and water, which is a volatile functional material. Heat is generated by utilizing the oxidation reaction of the oxidizable magnetic powder upon contact with air. Typically, the volatile functional material is volatilized by the heat.
It is also preferable that the sheet mask 1 contains a fragrance as a volatile functional material together with or separately from the heating element 4.

In the state where the sheet-like mask 1 is in use, the mask body 2 preferably includes a breathable top sheet 20t arranged on the wearer's skin-facing side and a breathable back sheet 20b arranged on the wearer's non-skin-facing side. As shown in Fig. 1, the top sheet 20t and the back sheet 20b typically have contours that match the contour of the mask body 2 in use.
In the mask body 2 of the embodiment shown in Fig. 3, a pair of heating elements 4, 4 are arranged between a top sheet 20t and a back sheet 20b. The pair of heating elements 4, 4 are formed to a size that allows them to be entirely covered by the top sheet 20t and the back sheet 20b in use. The pair of heating elements 4, 4 are arranged such that the breathable sheet 40t is arranged on the top sheet 20t side and the non-breathable sheet 40b is arranged on the back sheet 20b side. The volatilized volatile functional material passes through the ventilation holes of the breathable sheet 40t in the direction of the upward arrow.

Next, a method for manufacturing the sheet mask 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 4 to 9. The sheet mask 1 is manufactured using a manufacturing apparatus 100 shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 4 shows the overall configuration of the manufacturing apparatus 100. Fig. 5 shows the ear hook forming section 110 of the manufacturing apparatus 100 shown in Fig. 4. In the following description, the conveying direction in which the sheet mask 1 is conveyed (the direction corresponding to the up-down direction of the sheet mask 1 (mask body 2)) is the MD (Machine Direction) direction, and the width direction perpendicular to the MD direction (the direction corresponding to the axial direction of the sheet mask 1 (mask body 2)) is the CD (Cross Direction) direction.

The method for manufacturing the sheet-like mask 1 preferably includes an ear-hook member forming step and a sheet-like mask forming step. In the ear-hook member forming step, the ear-hook members 3 are formed, and in the sheet-like mask forming step, the sheet-like mask 1 is formed using the formed ear-hook members.
The sheet-type mask 1 is preferably manufactured by a manufacturing apparatus 100 including an ear-hook member forming section 110 and an ear-hook member joining section 130 .
It is preferable that the manufacturing apparatus 100 further includes an expansion processing section 200 .

The expansion/contraction processing section 200 is preferably located most upstream of the ear hook member forming section 110. That is, the ear hook members are preferably formed by subjecting the base sheet 30, which has been subjected to expansion/contraction processing by the expansion/contraction processing section 200, to forming processing of the ear hook members.
The stretching process is preferably performed in a direction perpendicular to the width direction of the base sheet 30, which is a strip-shaped sheet, that is, in a direction parallel to the conveying direction of the base sheet 30. The base sheet 30 that has been subjected to the stretching process has a wavy shape (a shape in which pleats are formed) and exhibits stretchability in the width direction.
The base sheet 30 may be a nonwoven fabric containing an elastic resin and, if necessary, further containing a non-elastic resin.
Examples of the nonwoven fabric that can be used include air-through nonwoven fabric, spunbond nonwoven fabric, meltblown nonwoven fabric, and spunlace nonwoven fabric.
The elastic resin constituting the nonwoven fabric may be, for example, a thermoplastic elastomer or rubber.
The thermoplastic elastomer can be one or more selected from styrene-based elastomers such as styrene-butadiene-styrene block copolymer (SBS), styrene-isoprene-styrene block copolymer, styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene block copolymer, and styrene-ethylene-propylene-styrene block copolymer; polypropylene-based elastomers such as propylene-α-olefin copolymer; olefin-based elastomers such as ethylene-propylene copolymer and ethylene-α-olefin copolymer; polyester-based elastomers; and polyurethane-based elastomers.
On the other hand, examples of the non-elastic resin constituting the nonwoven fabric include polyolefins such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), polyesters, and polyamides.
Examples of PE include high-pressure low-density polyethylene, linear short-chain branched polyethylene polymerized with C4 (butene-1), C6 (hexene-1) or C8 (octene-1) as a comonomer using a Ziegler-Natta catalyst or a metallocene catalyst, and medium-low pressure high-density polyethylene.
Examples of PP include homo PP, random PP and block PP using ethylene copolymers, and low crystallinity PP having different stereoregularities such as isotactic, syndiotactic, and atactic, which are a combination of these.
As the polyester, one or more selected from polyethylene terephthalate, polytrimethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polyethylene naphthalate, and polybutylene naphthalate can be used.
When a plurality of resins are used, a single fiber may contain the plurality of resins, or a single fiber may contain a plurality of types of fibers made of a single resin.
In addition to the above-mentioned forming materials, the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 preferably contain heat-fusible fibers from the viewpoint of fusing to the top sheet 20t of the mask body 2. As the heat-fusible fibers, the same kind of fibers as those used for the top sheet 20t and the back sheet 20b of the mask body 2 can be used.

The stretching section 200 preferably has a gear roll 201 and a gear roll 202 disposed opposite the gear roll 201. The strip-shaped base sheet 30 is transported between the gear roll 201 and the gear roll 202, and is sandwiched between the gear rolls 201 and 202 from above and below, and stretched, thereby being subjected to stretching processing. A typical embodiment is shown in FIG. 5. The gear teeth of the gear rolls 201 and 202 are arranged along the rotation direction of the gear rolls 201 and 202. The gear rolls 201 and 202 are disposed so as to mesh with each other, and the base sheet 30 passes between the gear rolls 201 and 202.
The stretching process is preferably performed so that the base sheet 30 stretches in the width direction, taking into account specifications assuming that the mask will be worn.

The expansion processing section 200 has a pair of nip rolls 203. The pair of nip rolls 203 are preferably disposed upstream of the gear rolls 201 and 202.
In addition to this, or instead of this, the expansion processing section 200 has a pair of nip rolls 204, and it is preferable that the pair of nip rolls 204 are arranged downstream of the gear rolls 201 and 202.
From the viewpoint of controlling the tension of the base sheet 30 during the stretching process, it is preferable that the stretching section 200 includes both a pair of nip rolls 203 and a pair of nip rolls 204. A typical embodiment including both is shown in FIG.
From the viewpoint of preventing sagging of the base sheet 30, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 203 and/or 204 is different from the rotation speed of the gear rolls 201 and 202.
Specifically, with respect to the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 203 and the rotation speed of the gear rolls 201 and 202, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the gear rolls 201 and 202 is higher from the viewpoint of preventing sagging of the base sheet 30.
With respect to the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 204 and the rotation speed of the gear rolls 201 and 202, from the viewpoint of preventing sagging of the base sheet 30, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 204 is higher.
In addition, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the nip roll 203 and the rotation speed of the nip roll 204 are different from each other.
Specifically, with respect to the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 203 and the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 204, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 204 is higher from the viewpoint of preventing sagging of the base sheet 30.
From the viewpoint of transporting the base sheet 30 without causing slack, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 204 is 100% or more of the rotation speed of the pair of nip rolls 203 .
On the other hand, from the viewpoint of suppressing neck-in of the base sheet 30, it is preferably set to 105% or less.
In this specification, the "rotational speed" refers to the peripheral speed of the roll.
The nip rolls are typically smooth surfaced rolls and are not heat controlled, i.e., no intentional heating is applied to the nip rolls.

In the expansion processing section 200, it is preferable that either the gear roll 201 or the gear roll 202 has a guide roll that forms a wrap angle with respect to the base sheet 30. The guide roll is provided on one or both of the upstream and downstream sides of the gear rolls 201 and 202 so as to be adjacent to the peripheral surface of the gear roll 201 or the gear roll 202.
From the viewpoint of suppressing twisting of the base sheet 30, it is preferable that the guide rolls are provided on both the upstream side 205 and the downstream side 206. This typical embodiment is shown in FIG.
In this way, by providing the guide rolls 205, 206 that provide a wrap angle, the base sheet 30 is wrapped around the guide rolls 205, 206 that provide a wrap angle before and after the gear rolls 201, 202, so that the teeth of the gear rolls 201, 202 firmly grip the base sheet 30 in the conveying direction of the base sheet 30.
From the viewpoint of suppressing twisting of the base sheet 30, the embrace angle (α) of the gear rolls 201, 202 is preferably 10° or more.
From the viewpoint of suppressing neck-in of the base sheet 30, the embrace angle (α) of the gear rolls 201 and 202 is preferably 300° or less.

Furthermore, if the radii of the gear rolls 201 and 202 are the same, it does not matter which side the base sheet 30 is wrapped around, but if the radii are different, it is more advantageous to wrap the base sheet 30 around the gear roll with the larger radius. Furthermore, a larger curvature of the gear rolls 201 and 202 is more advantageous for stretching, and a larger radius is more effective for stretching processing.

The tooth groove portion 211 provided on the gear roll 201 and the tooth groove portion 221 provided on the gear roll 202 typically have a shape as shown in Fig. 7. A groove having the same shape as that shown in Fig. 7 is formed in the base sheet 30. The tooth groove portions 211, 221 are provided at a predetermined interval (predetermined pitch) in the circumferential direction of the gear rolls 201, 202.
Here, P represents the pitch, which is preferably 2 mm or more, and more preferably 2.5 mm or more.
Also, P is preferably 10 mm or less, and more preferably 3 mm or less.
D represents the amount of depression, and is preferably 1 mm or more, and more preferably 3 mm or more.
Also, D is preferably 20 mm or less, and more preferably 4 mm or less.
In addition, the radius of curvature of the tip of the tooth groove portion 211 is preferably smaller than the radius of curvature of the base of the tooth groove portion 211 .
Specifically, the radius of curvature of the tip of the tooth groove portion 211 is preferably 0.05 or more and 0.2 or less.
The radius of curvature of the root of the tooth groove portion 211 is preferably 0.4 or more and 0.6 or less.
Typically, the tooth gap portion 221 has a shape similar to that of the tooth gap portion 211 .

Here, the stretch ratio of the base sheet 30 can be changed by changing the values of P and D. If it is desired to increase the stretch ratio of the base sheet 30, it is advisable to narrow P, increase D, and reduce the tip width of the tooth groove. The relationship between the stretch ratio and P and D is expressed by the following formula.

Stretching ratio (%)={[(P ² +4D ² ) ^1/2 /P]−1}×100
The stretch ratio of the base sheet 30 is preferably 150% or more, and more preferably 180% or more, in consideration of specifications assuming that the mask will be worn.
In addition, in consideration of the specifications assuming that the mask will be worn, the stretch ratio of the base sheet 30 is preferably 250% or less, and more preferably 200% or less.

The portion of the base sheet 30 that is stretched by the stretching unit 200 does not have to be the entire base sheet 30, and it is preferable that at least a portion of the width direction (CD direction) of the base sheet 30 is stretched. This allows the base sheet 30 to be held in a place that is not stretched and transported in the MD direction, improving the grip of the base sheet 30. A typical example of this is shown in Figure 8. The base sheet 30 is transported from right to left on the page.

The ear hook member forming section 110 preferably has a cutting section 111 and a re-pitch section 112. The cutting section 111 typically has a cutter roll 111a having a plurality of cutter blades (not shown) on its circumferential surface, and a cutter anvil roll 111b disposed opposite the circumferential surface of the cutter roll 111a. An embodiment including these is shown in FIG. 5.
It is preferable that the cutter roll 111a has a plurality of cutter blades in the circumferential direction, each having a pattern (see FIG. 4) for forming a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 arranged side by side in the width direction Y.
The cutter roll 111a and the cutter anvil roll 111b rotate in the direction of the arrows shown in FIG.
It is preferable that the cutter anvil roll 111b rotates while sucking the base sheet 30.

The repitch section 112 is typically disposed downstream of a nip portion between the cutter roll 111a and the cutter anvil roll 111b, and has a transfer roll 112a disposed opposite the cutter anvil roll 111b.
The transfer roll 112a preferably rotates faster than the cutter anvil roll 111b.
In addition, it is preferable that the transfer roll 112a is capable of sucking and adsorbing the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 cut by the cutter roll 111a.
The transfer roll 112a rotates in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG.

In the cutting section 111, it is preferable that the band-shaped base sheet 30 is first conveyed to a nip portion between the cutter roll 111a and the cutter anvil roll 111b while being sucked by the cutter anvil roll 111b.
In the nip portion, it is preferable to press the cutter blade of the cutter roll 111a against the peripheral surface of the cutter anvil roll 111b to cut the base sheet 30 and form a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 arranged side by side in the width direction Y.
In addition, in the ear-hook member forming section 110, it is preferable to use a base sheet 30 on which horizontal cut lines 31a and vertical cut lines 31b to be used for hanging the ears when worn are already formed.

In the ear hook member forming section 110, it is preferable to introduce the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 produced by cutting into the ear hook member joining section 130 described later with a gap in the conveying direction X. Therefore, in the re-pitch section 112, it is preferable to convey the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 while sucking them with the cutter anvil roll 111b. Next, it is preferable to transfer the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 to the transfer roll 112a at the nip between the cutter anvil roll 111b and the transfer roll 112a. Then, due to the difference in rotation speed between the transfer roll 112a and the cutter anvil roll 111b, it is preferable to transfer only the pair of ear hook members 3a, 3a and another pair of ear hook members 3b, 3b adjacent to the pair of ear hook members 3a, 3a in the MD direction to the transfer roll 112a. In the cutting section 111, the trim (not shown) formed by cutting the base sheet 30 is preferably discharged in the re-pitching section 112 without being transferred to the transfer roll 112a.

As described above, when a pair of ear hook members 3a, 3a is formed in the ear hook member forming section 110, the next pair of ear hook members 3b, 3b is formed at a predetermined interval, and the formed pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are sequentially introduced into the sheet mask 1 forming process.

The pair of formed ear-hook members 3, 3 are joined to a belt-shaped sheet member constituting the mask body 2. Here, the belt-shaped sheet member is a member including one main body sheet or a laminate in which main body sheets are stacked.
In the embodiment shown in Figure 4, the sheet member used is a mask body continuous body 20 in which the heating element 4 is sandwiched between the two main body sheets by disposing the heating element 4 between the main body sheet of the top sheet 20t and the main body sheet of the back sheet 20b.

The ear hook forming portion 110 preferably has an ear hook joining portion 130 .
The ear-hook member joining section 130 preferably has a joining anvil roll 132 and an ultrasonic seal 133. A typical example is shown in Fig. 5. The ultrasonic seal 133 and the joining anvil roll 132 fix the ear-hook members 3 to the mask body continuous body 20, which is a sheet member, by thermal fusion.

The joining anvil roll 132 is typically a metal roll, and as shown in FIG. 5, is located downstream of the nip between the transfer roll 112a and the cutter anvil roll 111b. The joining anvil roll 132 is located opposite the peripheral surface of the transfer roll 112a. The ultrasonic seal 133 is located opposite the joining anvil roll 132 via the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 and the mask body continuum 20.

It is preferable that a joining pattern (not shown) for a pair of selvedge members 3, 3 is formed on the peripheral surface of the joining anvil roll 132.
It is preferable that the joining anvil roll 132 adsorbs the pair of selvage members 3, 3 at the nip portion between the joining anvil roll 132 and the transfer roll 112a.
The bonding anvil roll 132 rotates in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 5. The ultrasonic seal 133 may be a known ultrasonic oscillator.

At the ear-hook member joining section 130, it is preferable to transport the mask body continuous body 20 so that the outer portion 3s of the ear-hook member 3 is positioned on both side portions 20s, 20s along the transport direction X of the mask body continuous body 20 being transported.
It is also preferable to transport the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 while suctioning them using the joining anvil roll 132, and transport the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 to a position where they overlap on the mask body continuous body 20.
Here, when the pair of ear hook members 3, 3 are transported to a position where they overlap on the mask body continuous body 20, it is preferable to join each side portion 20s of the mask body continuous body 20 and the outer portion 3s of each ear hook member 3 between the ultrasonic seal 133 and the joining anvil roll 132 to form an ear hook joint 23.
In addition, the process of intermittently arranging a pair of ear hook members 3, 3 on the mask body continuous body 20 and the process of forming the ear hook joint portion 23 may be performed simultaneously or at different times.

Next, it is preferable to fold the continuous mask body 20 to which the ear hook members 3 are joined in half to form the continuous mask body 22. The mask body 20 is folded in half at the folding section 140.

In the bifold section 140, typically, a bifold guide (not shown) arranged in the center of the width direction Y of the mask body continuum 20 folds the joined mask body continuum 20 symmetrically in half along the fold line 25a at the center of the width direction Y with the ear hook members 3, forming the bifold mask continuum 22.

Next, in the folding side joint forming section 170, the folded mask continuum 22 is preferably fused at the fold portion close to the fold line 25a to form the folding side joint 24 that maintains the folded state. An example of this is shown in Figure 9.

Thereafter, in the cutting and dividing section 180 , the precursor of the sheet mask 1 is preferably transported to a nip section between a cutter roll 181 and an anvil roll 182 .
Next, it is preferable to cut the continuous bifold mask body 22 at a position including a part of the folded side joint 24 formed thereon, to intermittently form a bifolded sheet-like mask 1 having a nose side fold joint 24a and a chin side fold joint 24b.
At the same time, it is preferable to form a disposal area 10 other than the target sheet-like mask 1. It is preferable that the formed disposal area 10 has a continuous joint portion 24L formed at a position spaced apart from the fold-side joint portion 24 in the width direction Y.

After the sheet mask 1 is formed, a step of enclosing the formed sheet mask 1 in a non-breathable pillow-shaped package may be included.
This step is preferably performed from the viewpoint of preventing the evaporation of volatile functional materials such as water and fragrances when the sheet mask 1 contains such volatile functional materials, thereby allowing the sheet mask 1 to exhibit desired performance such as a humidifying function or a fragrance function when in use.
When the sheet mask 1 contains an oxidizable metal powder such as iron powder as a functional material, it is preferable to enclose the sheet mask 1 in a pillow-shaped package, since this prevents the oxidizable metal powder from reacting with oxygen and causing an oxidation reaction on the surface of the oxidizable metal powder to proceed. Also, in order to prevent the volatile functional material from generating heat, contact with oxygen can be blocked until just before the sheet mask 1 is used.
When the sheet-like mask 1 is enclosed in the narrow space of a pillow-shaped package, the mask 1 is transported stably because the ear loops are arranged on the inside of the mask 1, and the mask 1 can be easily enclosed in the package.

Next, the materials for forming the members used in the sheet-like mask 1 will be described. The front sheet 20t and the back sheet 20b of the mask body 2 of the sheet-like mask 1 are preferably formed to contain heat-sealing fibers from the viewpoint of fusing the sheets together. Examples of heat-sealing fibers include polyolefin fibers such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyvinyl alcohol, polyester fibers, polyethylene-polypropylene composite fibers, polyethylene-polyester composite fibers, low-melting point polyester-polyester composite fibers, polyvinyl alcohol-polypropylene composite fibers with hydrophilic fiber surfaces, and polyvinyl alcohol-polyester composite fibers. When composite fibers are used, either core-sheath type composite fibers or side-by-side type composite fibers can be used. These heat-sealing fibers can be used alone or in a mixture of two or more types.

The breathable sheet 40t of the heating element 4 is preferably formed to contain heat-sealing fibers. The heat-sealing fibers may be the same as those used for the top sheet 20t and back sheet 20b of the mask body 2.

The oxidizable metal particles constituting the heat generating composition 41 are made of a metal that generates heat from an oxidation reaction, and examples of such metals include powders or fibers of one or more types selected from iron, aluminum, zinc, manganese, magnesium, and calcium. Among these, iron is preferred from the standpoints of ease of handling, safety, production costs, storage properties, and stability, and iron powder is particularly preferred. Examples of iron powder include reduced iron powder and atomized iron powder. The volatile functional material generates hot steam through the oxidation reaction of the oxidizable metal.

The particle size of the oxidizable metal particles constituting the heat generating composition 41 of the heat generating element 4 can be, for example, about 0.1 to 300 μm. The carbon component constituting the heat generating composition 41 has at least one of the functions of water retention, oxygen supply, and catalytic activity, and preferably has all three. As the carbon component, for example, one or more types selected from activated carbon, acetylene black, and graphite can be used. Among these, activated carbon is preferably used from the viewpoint of its ease of adsorbing oxygen when wet and of maintaining a constant moisture content in the heat generating element 4. More preferably, one or more types of fine powder or small granules selected from coconut shell charcoal, wood powder charcoal, and peat charcoal are used. Among these, wood powder charcoal is preferred because it is easy to maintain the moisture content of the heat generating element 4 within a desired range.

Although the present invention has been described based on the preferred embodiment, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment using the manufacturing apparatus 100 described above.
In the manufacturing method of the sheet-type mask 1 of the above-mentioned embodiment, the non-breathable sheet 40b is used for the back sheet 20b of the mask body 2, but the back sheet 20b may be a breathable sheet.

1 Sheet mask 2 Mask body 20 Mask body continuous body (sheet member)
20s Side portion of mask body continuous body 22 Two-fold mask continuous body 23 Ear hook joint portion 24 Folded side joint portion 24a Nose side fold joint portion 24b Chin side fold joint portion 25a Fold line 3 Ear hook member 4 Heating element 100 Manufacturing device 170 Folded side joint portion forming portion 171 Ultrasonic seal (sealing portion)
172 Anvil roll 180 Cutting and dividing section 200 Stretching section 201 Gear roll 202 Gear roll 203 Nip roll 204 Nip roll 205 Guide roll 206 Guide roll 211 Tooth groove section 221 Tooth groove section

Claims (9)

A method for manufacturing a sheet-like mask in which a pair of ear hooks are arranged on the inner side of a mask body folded in half, comprising:
a stretching process for stretching a portion of the belt-shaped sheet for forming the ear hook member , except for a central portion and both ends in a width direction, in a direction parallel to a conveying direction of the belt-shaped sheet ;
an ear-hanging member forming step of cutting the stretched belt-shaped sheet to form the ear-hanging members;
an ear-hanging member joining step of joining the ear-hanging members to one surface of a band-shaped mask body continuous body for forming the mask body continuous body;
a bi-folded mask continuous body forming step of folding the mask main body continuous body to which the ear hook members are joined in half at the center in the width direction to form a bi-folded mask continuous body;
A method for producing a sheet mask comprising the steps of: The method for manufacturing a sheet mask according to claim 1, wherein in the stretching process, the strip sheet is transported between a first gear roll and a second gear roll arranged opposite the first gear roll, and the stretching process is performed. In the stretching process,
The belt-shaped sheet is nipped by a first nip roll disposed upstream of the first gear roll and the second gear roll,
The method for producing a sheet-type mask according to claim 2 , wherein a rotation speed of the first nip roll is different from a rotation speed of the first gear roll and a rotation speed of the second gear roll. In the stretching process,
The belt-shaped sheet is nipped by a second nip roll disposed downstream of the first gear roll and the second gear roll,
The method for producing a sheet-type mask according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a rotation speed of the second nip roll is different from a rotation speed of the first gear roll and a rotation speed of the second gear roll. In the stretching process,
The belt-shaped sheet is nipped by a first nip roll disposed upstream of the first gear roll and the second gear roll,
The belt-shaped sheet is nipped by a second nip roll disposed downstream of the first gear roll and the second gear roll,
The method for producing a sheet-type mask according to claim 2 , wherein a rotation speed of the first nip roll and a rotation speed of the second nip roll are different from each other. In the stretching process,
6. The method for producing a sheet-like mask according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein a guide roll is provided at least one between the first gear roll and the first nip roll, and between the first gear roll and the second gear roll and the second nip roll, and the stretching process is performed while one of the first gear roll and the second gear roll has a hug angle with respect to the belt-like sheet. The method for manufacturing a sheet mask according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the stretching process is performed on at least a portion of the width of the strip sheet. The method for manufacturing a sheet mask according to any one of claims 1 to 7 further includes a functional material disposing step of disposing a volatile functional material inside the mask body continuum. a mask forming step of cutting the mask body continuous body to form a sheet-like mask;
an encapsulation step of encapsulating the formed sheet mask in a pillow;
The method for producing a sheet mask according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising:

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