WO1999002274A1

WO1999002274A1 - Deposition of beads of material

Info

Publication number: WO1999002274A1
Application number: PCT/GB1998/002005
Authority: WO
Inventors: Alan Francis Dale
Original assignee: Alan Francis Dale
Priority date: 1997-07-08
Filing date: 1998-07-08
Publication date: 1999-01-21
Also published as: GB9714429D0; EP0993343A1

Abstract

A device for depositing a bead of material including a bead-depositing nozzle. The nozzle includes a first nozzle part (5) having a passageway and a second nozzle part (6) having a passageway. The first nozzle part is connected to the second nozzle part so that, in use, material passes, in a direction along a first axis, into an inlet end of the first nozzle part, then through the passageways of the first and second nozzle parts and then, in a direction along a second axis, out of an outlet end of the second nozzle part. One of the nozzle parts has a ball-shaped end with an exterior surface (12) that is generally ball-shaped, and the other of the nozzle parts has a socket-shaped end, with an interior surface (16) so shaped and arranged that the ball-shaped end is accommodated therein. Thus the angle of inclination of the second axis relative to the first axis is alterable.

Description

Deposition of beads of material

The present invention relates to the field of deposition of beads of material from a device which may for example include a cartridge or sachet of material and may be powered or may be manually operable. Such devices include those commonly referred to as mastic guns or caulking guns. Specifically the invention relates to a device for depositing a bead of material, to nozzles for use with such a device , and to a kit for producing such nozzles and to methods of depositing a bead of material. It will be understood that the bead of material is an elongate strip of material that is deposited along a path on a surface. It is commonly desired for the bead of material to have constant cross-section. For many years it has been common practice to deposit a bead of material, which may for example be a sealant or an adhesive, from a device commonly referred to as a mastic gun. A cartridge of material is loaded into the gun or alternatively, a sachet of material is loaded into a cylindrical housing, that is then loaded into the gun. A nozzle is provided on the front of the cartridge or the housing. The gun, which may be powered manually or by some other source of power, drives a piston in the rear of the cartridge or behind the sachet towards the nozzle thereby forcing material out of the reservoir through the nozzle. The device used to deposit a bead is necessarily fairly large in order to accommodate a cartridge or sachet of material and in order to facilitate easy gripping of the device. Also, it will usually be designed to be gripped in a particular orientation.

Commonly, the nozzle, through which the material that forms the bead to be deposited passes, is formed from a conical member which is formed or cut with an outlet end. The nozzle is aligned axially with the cartridge or housing, and is either an integral part of the cartridge or housing or is secured to the cartridge or housing by means of a screw fit.

Difficulties can arise for an operator when the access to the region in which a bead is to be laid is restricted or awkward for the operator. It is sometimes necessary, in order to lay a bead in a given location to position the nozzle in relation to that location in a particular way. The position of the rest of the gun, which is aligned along the same axis as nozzle, is therefore determined by the desired orientation of the nozzle. When access is restricted by an obstacle it is sometimes inconvenient or not possible to position the gun and therefore the nozzle in the desired orientation. It is known to provide an angled nozzle on a gun for a particular application, the end portion of the nozzle being orientated at an angle to the axis of the gun. Such a device is described in WO 95/04605. However, the orientation of the nozzle remains in fixed relation to the gun and would be only of limited use in some circumstances. When presented with a situation in which such an angled nozzle might be of some use, the operator of the gun would have to remove the conventional straight nozzle and attach an angled nozzle, such an operation being time consuming and potentially messy if material has been deposited through the former nozzle.

It is also known to provide a nozzle including a flexible section comprising a plurality of bellows-like folds. For such bellows-like flexible nozzles to be useful in practice they are generally relatively long to facilitate bending of the end of the nozzle relative to the cartridge by a significant angle. Furthermore such bellows-like nozzles are relatively expensive to manufacture as their convoluted shape does not lend itself to a simple injection moulding manufacturing process.

It is an object of the invention to provide a device for depositing a bead of material which overcomes or mitigates one or more of the problems referred to above. It is also an object of the invention to provide a nozzle for use with a device for depositing a bead of material , which overcomes or mitigates one or more of the problems referred to above.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a method of producing a nozzle for use in a device for depositing a bead of material and to provide a kit for use in such a method, which overcomes or mitigates one or more of the problems referred to above.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a method of depositing a bead of material which overcomes or mitigates one or more of the problems referred to above.

According to the invention there is provided a device for depositing a bead of material including a bead-depositing nozzle, the nozzle including a first nozzle part having a passageway and a second nozzle part having a passageway, the first nozzle part being connected to the second nozzle part so that, in use, material passes, in a direction along a first axis, into an inlet end of the first nozzle part, then through the passageways of the first and second nozzle parts and then, in a direction along a second axis, out of an outlet end of the second nozzle part, wherein one of the nozzle parts has a ball-shaped end, with an exterior surface that is generally ball-shaped, and the other of the nozzle parts has a socket-shaped end, with an interior surface so shaped and arranged that the ball-shaped end is accommodated therein, whereby the angle of inclination of the second axis relative to the first axis is alterable.

An operator of the device is able to alter the orientation of the second nozzle part relative to the first nozzle part and therefore the rest of the gun, according to a given situation in which there is restricted access. When the operator wishes to change the orientation of the depositing end of the nozzle relative to the rest of the gun, he does not need to replace the nozzle with a different shaped nozzle. Furthermore the provision of a ball and socket type joint allows the device to be relatively compact and facilitates the manufacture of a versatile nozzle at relatively low cost.

Whilst ball and socket joints are known in other technical fields their uses are generally limited to applications where the rigidity of the ball and socket joint is not important. In the context of the present invention it is necessary for the orientation of the second nozzle part relative to the first nozzle part to remain practically unchanged, once the operator starts to deposit a bead of material.

Whilst the second nozzle part may be mounted for pivoting movement about only one fixed axis relative to the first nozzle part, it is preferable for the second nozzle part to be able to swivel on the first nozzle part. A bead depositing outlet attached to (or integral with) the second nozzle part may then be movable to any point on a region of the surface of a notional sphere having its centre in the region of the ball and socket joint and a radius equal to the distance between the centre of swivelling and the bead depositing outlet.

Advantageously, the nozzle has a depositing section defining a bead depositing outlet and the torque required to move the second nozzle part relative to the first nozzle part is greater than that effected when a force of five Newtons, and preferably of, ten Newtons is applied to the nozzle at the bead depositing outlet perpedicular to the second axis. The joint between the first and second nozzle parts is therefore strong enough to hold the second part in a fixed orientation relative to the first part when the nozzle is being used to deposit a bead of material.

The force required to change the orientation should preferably be significantly greater than the forces imposed on the nozzle during normal usage. However, the joint should advantageously be weak enough to allow the orientation of the second part to be altered by hand. For example, the force required on the nozzle in the region of the bead depositing outlet should not be greater than, say, 500N and preferably not greater than 100N.

Advantageously, the first and second nozzle parts are connected by means of an interference fit. The interference between the mutually contacting surfaces of the first and second nozzle parts should be great enough to hold the parts together during deposition of material but not so great as to prevent manual movement of the parts relative to each other. The interference fit may be so great as to prevent the average operator from rotating the second nozzle part about its central axis, whilst, of course, still allowing the average operator to pivot manually the second nozzle part relative to the first nozzle part.

Advantageously the first and second nozzle parts are removably connected. By that it should be understood that the parts may be manufactured separately and then connected together prior to use. The force required to remove one nozzle part from the other may be low enough that the average operator is able manually to disconnect and reconnect the parts. Alternatively the force required may be so great that the parts are best con- nected by means of separate machinery, such as, for example, a press. Preferably, in that case the force required to remove one nozzle part from the other would be so great that the average operator would be unable manually to disconnect the parts and the device would then be supplied to the user with the first and second nozzle parts already connected. For example, the force required to remove one nozzle part from the other may be greater than 250N and is preferably greater than 500N.

The interior surface of the socket-shaped end, when disconnected from the ball-shaped end, is preferably generally cylindrical. If the first and second nozzle parts, when releasably connectable, are pushed together the socket-shaped end deforms to accommodate the ball- shaped end, the joint formed being an interference fit joint. An advantage of the socket-shaped end being generally cylindrical is that it is simple and cheap to manufacture by moulding. Preferably, the nozzle part having the ball-shaped end is the first nozzle part.

Advantageously, the exterior surface of the ball- shaped end has a recess . The interaction between the interior surface of the socket-shaped end with the recess provides a stiffness of the joint that is sufficient to prevent the second nozzle part moving relative to the first nozzle part when using, under normal circumstances, the device to deposit a bead of material. There may be more than one recess. The recess is preferably a circumferential groove. The interior surface of the socket-shaped end engages in the recess as it reverts towards its original shape. The engagement increases the force required to alter the orientation of the second nozzle part in relation to the first nozzle part. A protruding portion, such as a circum erential rib, may be provided on the ball-shaped end instead of or in addition to a recess.

Advantageously, the nozzle is so shaped and arranged that the first and second axes are not mutually parallel when the passageway at the end of the socket-shaped end is aligned with the passageway at the end of the ball- shaped end. For example, the ball and socket joint may be off-set. For example, the first nozzle part may be so shaped that the central axis at the inlet of the first nozzle part is inclined to the central axis at the outlet of the first nozzle part. For example, the first nozzle part may include an elbow joint. Because the first and second nozzle parts have passageways for the passage of material and because the socket shaped end must accommodate the ball-shaped end, the socket shaped end can be rotated about the ball-shaped end over only a limited range of angles. Typically, the maximum angle obtainable between the second axis and the axis of the passageway at the outlet of the first nozzle part might be of the order of 20°. If the first and second axes are parallel when the passageways in the region of the ball and socket joint are aligned, then the maximum angle obtained between the first and second axes might be 20°. However, if the first and second axes are inclined with respect to each other (when the passageways of the ball and socket joint are parellel) then the maximum angle obtainable between the first and second axes can be greater. For example, if the angle (hereinafter called the median angle of inclination) of inclination between the first and second axes is 25 (when the passageways of the ball and socket joint are parallel), then the range of angles obtainable between the first and second axes could be about 5 to 45°. Preferably the median angle of inclina- tion is greater than 10 . Preferably the median angle of inclination is greater than the maximum angle obtainable between the axes of the passageways at the ends of the socket-shaped and ball-shaped ends.

The first nozzle part may be an integral part of a cartridge, or the like, of the material to be deposited. The second nozzle part can then simply be attached directly to the cartridge, or the like. If the second nozzle part has an integral bead depositing outlet the user need attach only one nozzle part to the cartridge, or the like.

Alternatively, the nozzle includes a third nozzle part having a passageway and an inlet end and an outlet end, wherein the inlet end of the first nozzle part is connected to the outlet end of the third nozzle part. The third nozzle part may be either a separate part or an integral part of a cartridge, or the like, of the material to be deposited.

Preferably the interior surface of the inlet end of the first nozzle part and the exterior surface of the outlet end of the third nozzle part are so shaped and arranged that the inlet end of the first nozzle part is received in and secured to the outlet end of the third nozzle part.

The interior surface of the inlet of the first nozzle part preferably tapers in a direction towards its outlet end. The interior surface of the first nozzle part preferably has at least one protruding portion. The tapered interior surface of the inlet end of the first nozzle part aids the securing of it to the third nozzle part, as does the provision of a protruding portion. Preferably, each protruding portion is a rib that extends in a direction with a component in the direction of the axis of the first nozzle part. Therefore the first nozzle part can be secured to the third nozzle part with (undesirable) rotation of the first nozzle part (and therefore the second nozzle part) relative to the third nozzle part being restricted. Preferably, each of the ribs extend in a direction that is substantially parallel to the axis of the first nozzle part. The nozzle may include a fourth nozzle part having a passageway and an inlet end and an outlet end, wherein the inlet end of the fourth nozzle part is connected to the outlet end of the second nozzle part.

Advantageously, the exterior surface of the outlet end of the second nozzle part has a screw thread and the interior surface of the fourth nozzle part has a screw thread, whereby the fourth nozzle part is able to be screwed onto the second nozzle part. The fourth nozzle part is conveniently a conventional nozzle commonly supplied with cartridges of material.

At least one of the first and second nozzle parts may be made of a thermoplastic polymer. The present invention further provides a nozzle for use in a device as described above.

The present invention yet further provides a method of producing a bead depositing nozzle for use in a device as described above, the method comprising the steps of providing a first nozzle part and a second nozzle part, each nozzle part having an inlet and an outlet end, and connecting the second nozzle part to the first nozzle part, the first and second nozzle parts being so shaped and arranged that when connected they form a ball and socket joint, whereby in use, material passes through the bead-depositing nozzle from the inlet end of the first nozzle part to the outlet end of the second nozzle part.

The method may comprise the steps of providing a first nozzle part, a second nozzle part and a third nozzle part, each nozzle part having an inlet and an outlet end, connecting the inlet end of the first nozzle part to the outlet end of the third nozzle part, and connecting the second nozzle part to the first nozzle part, the first and second nozzle parts being so shaped and arranged that when connected they form a ball and socket joint so that the angle of inclination of the axis of the second nozzle part relative to the axis of the first nozzle part is alterable, whereby in use, material passes through the bead-depositing nozzle from the inlet end of the third nozzle part to the outlet end of the second nozzle part.

The step of providing a third nozzle part preferably includes the steps of providing a frusto-conically shaped hollow member with an outlet end, the hollow member and the first nozzle part being so shaped that if the outlet end of the hollow member is inserted into the inlet end of the first nozzle part as far as practically possible a part of the outlet end of the hollow member protrudes out of the outlet end of the first nozzle part, inserting the hollow member into the inlet end of the first nozzle part as far as practically possible, thereby indicating the part of the frusto conically- shaped hollow member that should be cut off to enable the third nozzle part to be formed, cutting the hollow member thereby forming the third nozzle part.

The present invention yet further provides a kit of parts for use in the method as described above. The kit may comprise a first nozzle part having an inlet end and a ball- shaped outlet end, and a second nozzle part having a socket-shaped inlet end and an outlet end. The kit may additionally comprise a frusto-conically shaped hollow member.

Conveniently, the frusto-conically shaped hollow member may be a conventional nozzle. Commonly, a conv- entional nozzle provided with a device is of reasonable length chosen to be long enough for most applications and the nozzle is then in some cases cut to define an outlet opening of the desired shape and size. Cutting the frusto-conically shaped hollow member by using the first nozzle part mitigates the likelihood of the frusto- conically shaped hollow member being cut too short and therefore making the member redundant.

The present invention yet further provides a method of depositing a bead of material, the method using a device, and/or a nozzle as defined above.

Whilst the present invention is principally concerned with a device and method for depositing a bead of material incorporating a nozzle having a ball and socket joint, there are certain aspects of the above-described invention that provide benefits when incorporated in a device without a ball and socket jointed nozzle.

Thus, in its broadest aspect, the present invention also provides a device for depositing a bead of material including a bead-depositing nozzle, the nozzle including a first nozzle part having a passageway aligned along a first axis and a second nozzle part having a passageway aligned along a second axis, the first nozzle part being connected to the second nozzle part so that, in use, material passes from an inlet end of the first nozzle part to the outlet end of the second nozzle part, wherein the angle of inclination of the second axis relative to the first axis is alterable.

The first nozzle part may be pivotally attached to the second nozzle part. As will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art, many of the features described above with reference to the invention, when incorporating a ball and socket joint, may be incorporated into this broadest aspect of the invention.

By way of example certain illustrative embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a nozzle assembly, in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention, the view including part of a cartridge of material that, in use, is fitted to a mastic gun for dispensing material from that cartridge,

Fig. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a first nozzle part of the nozzle shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a further schematic perspective view of the first nozzle part shown in Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a schematic sectional side view of the first nozzle part shown in Figs. 2 and 3,

Fig. 5 is a sectional side view of a second nozzle part shown in Fig. 1, when disconnected from the rest of the nozzle,

Fig. 6 is a schematic sectional side view of the first and second nozzle parts shown in Figures 2 to 5 fixed together,

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of an unloaded mastic gun , and

Fig. 8 is a schematic side view of a first nozzle part in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 1 shows a nozzle assembly 1 for use with a gun designed to dispense a material, typically a sealant or an adhesive, and commonly referred to as a mastic gun. Such guns are commonplace and the design of the body of the gun itself is not a significant feature of the present invention. An example of such a gun is shown in perspective in Figure 7.

The nozzle assembly 1 shown in Figure 1 is designed to be used with a standard gun for dispensing material from a cartridge of sealant or adhesive. The cartridge of material has an externally screw threaded connecting portion 2. Conventionally, an internally threaded nozzle would be screwed onto the connecting portion 2 on the cartridge and the end of the nozzle would then be cut to the desired size and then used with a conventional mastic gun to deposit material .

According to this embodiment, a conventional tapering nozzle is then cut to size to form the conventional nozzle part 4, to enable a first nozzle part 5 and a second nozzle part 6 of the nozzle assembly 1 to be properly fitted. A suitable method of cutting a conventional nozzle to the correct size is described below.

The first nozzle part 5 is then pushed into the conventional nozzle part 4. With reference to Figs. 2 to 4 , the inlet end 8 of the first nozzle part 5 has an interior surface 10 that is ribbed with twelve equiangularly spaced longitudinally extending ribs 9. The interior surface 10 also tapers from the inlet end 8 of the first nozzle part 5 to its outlet end 11. The ribbed tapering interior surface 10 aids the securing of the first nozzle part 5 to the conventional nozzle part 4. The ribs 9 also restrict rotation of the first nozzle part 5 relative to the conventional nozzle part 4. As can be seen in Figs. 1 to 4 and 6, the outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5 has an exterior surface 12 that is generally in the shape of a ball. Of course, the actual shape of the outlet end 11 cannot be wholly spherical because of the necessary existence of a passageway 13 that, in use, material passes through. With reference to Fig. 5, the second nozzle part 6, when disconnected, has an inlet end 14 that is cylindrical with an internal diameter that is slightly less than the external diameter of the exterior surface 12 of the outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5. The inlet end 14 of the second nozzle part 6 is resilient to the extent that its shape is deformable by enough to accommodate the ball shaped outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5.

With reference to Fig. 6, the ball shaped outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5 is pushed into the inlet end 14 of the second nozzle part 6. As shown in Fig. 6, the shape of the interior of the inlet end 14 deforms to accommodate the ball shaped end of the first nozzle part 5. In the interests of clarity the degree of deformation is exaggerated in Fig.6. Thus a flexible joint, in the form of a ball and socket joint, is formed so that the orientation of the second nozzle part 6 relative to the first nozzle part 5 is alterable.

A depositing nozzle part 7 is then attached to the second nozzle part 6. The second nozzle part 6 has an outlet end 15 with an external screw thread that is able to receive a conventional nozzle with a standard internal screw thread. The assembled nozzle is then ready to use with a mastic gun.

In use, the orientation of the depositing nozzle part 7 can be altered to allow beads of material to be deposited more easily in areas with restricted access. The orientation of the depositing nozzle part 7 is alterable to suit a particular application simply and quickly. The angle between the second nozzle part 6 and the first nozzle part 5 may be as much as 20°. The resilience of the inlet end 14 of the second nozzle part 6 serves to grip the ball shaped outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5. The ball shaped outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5 has two circumferentially extending grooves 3 that contribute to the stiffness of the joint, by increasing the resistance to relative movement of the interior surface 16 of the inlet end 14 of the second nozzle part 6 and the exterior surface 12 of the ball shaped outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5. The stiffness of the joint between the first and second nozzle parts 5, 6 is sufficient to retain the first and second nozzle parts 5 , 6 in fixed relation to each other during normal use of the gun, but is not so great that the relative orientation of those parts cannot be manually altered. The force required to be applied at the outlet end of the depositing nozzle part 7 in order to move the second nozzle part 6 relative to the first nozzle part 5 has been found to be about 20N.

As mentioned above, a conventional nozzle has to be cut to size in order for it to form the conventional nozzle part 4 onto which, in the assembled nozzle, the first nozzle part 5 is attached. A conventional nozzle is relatively long and tapers from its inlet end to its outlet end at which cross-sectional area of the nozzle is relatively small, thereby enabling the user to cut the nozzle to a cross-sectional area suitable in respect of a given application. A conventional nozzle can therefore be so long that it protrudes through the outlet end 11 of the first nozzle part 5 thereby restricting the movement of the second nozzle part 6 in a direction away from the central axis of the first nozzle part 5.

To cut a conventional nozzle to a suitable length it is convenient to push the first nozzle part 5 onto the conventional nozzle and then mark the part of the conventional nozzle that protrudes through the outlet end of the first nozzle part 5. That protruding part can then be cut off leaving a nozzle part of a suitable length. Fig. 8 shows a first nozzle part 105 according to a second embodiment of the invention. The first nozzle part has an elbow joint 119, otherwise the nozzle assembly is similar to that described above with reference to the other figures. Thus the nozzle assembly is so arranged that the axis 120 of the passageway at the inlet of the first nozzle part is inclined at an angle 122 to the axis 121 of the passageway at the outlet of the second nozzle part (not shown in Fig. 8), when the passageway at the outlet of the first nozzle part is aligned with the passageway at the inlet of the second nozzle part. The angle 122 as shown in Fig. 8 is 25°. The angle between the axes of the depositing nozzle part and the conventional nozzle part is adjustable to an angle within the range between 5 and 45°. In the particular examples described the first and second nozzle parts are moulded from an acetal resin. Whilst only two embodiments of the invention have been described, it will be appreciated that many variations to that embodiment of the invention may be made.

Instead of employing a friction fit to provide releasable connection of the conventional nozzle part to the first nozzle part and of the depositing nozzle part to the second nozzle part other fastening mechanisms may be used, for example, employing a snap fit.

The second nozzle part and the depositing nozzle part could be provided as a single integral part. The first and second nozzle parts need not necessarily be releasably connectable.

The ball and socket joint could be off-set by providing a first nozzle part having an outlet from the ball-shaped end that is off-set from the central axis of the first nozzle part, as an alternative to the arrangement of Fig. 8.

Some conventional cartridges are provided with integral nozzles. The first, second and depositing nozzle parts illustrated in the Figures are equally well suited for use with such cartridges. In such a case, the integral nozzle is cut to size in the way described above with reference to the conventional nozzle part so that the first nozzle part may be connected to the cartridge and the nozzle assembly 1 is assembled by attaching the first, second and depositing nozzle parts in a similar manner to that described above.

The ball-shaped end of the first nozzle part 5 could be formed as an integral part of the cartridge, thus rendering the use of the conventional nozzle part 4 unnecessary. Of course, it would then not be necessary to perform a nozzle cutting step for the purpose of attaching the first nozzle part to the cartridge. The nozzle illustrated in the embodiment may alternatively be used with a device for depositing material from a sachet, rather than a cartridge.

Claims

1. A device for depositing a bead of material including a bead-depositing nozzle, the nozzle including a first nozzle part having a passageway and a second nozzle part having a passageway, the first nozzle part being connected to the second nozzle part so that, in use, material passes, in a direction along a first axis, into an inlet end of the first nozzle part, then through the passageways of the first and second nozzle parts and then, in a direction along a second axis, out of an outlet end of the second nozzle part, wherein one of the nozzle parts has a ball-shaped end, with an exterior surface that is generally ball-shaped, and the other of the nozzle parts has a socket-shaped end, with an interior surface so shaped and arranged that the ball-shaped end is accommodated therein, whereby the angle of inclination of the second axis relative to the first axis is alterable.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle has a depositing section defining a bead depositing outlet and the torque required to move the second nozzle part relative to the first nozzle part is greater than that effected when a force of ten Newtons is applied to the nozzle at the bead depositing outlet perpendicular to the second axis.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first nozzle part is connected to the second nozzle part by means of an interference fit.

4. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the first and second nozzle parts are removably connected and when the first and second nozzle parts are disconnected the interior surface of the socket-shaped end is generally cylindrical.

5. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the nozzle part having the ball-shaped end is the first nozzle part.

6. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the nozzle is so shaped and arranged that the first and second axes are not mutually parallel when the passageway at the end of the socket shaped end is aligned with the passageway at the end of the ball shaped end.

7. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the nozzle includes a third nozzle part having a passageway and an inlet end and an outlet end, wherein the inlet end of the first nozzle part is connected to the outlet end of the third nozzle part.

8. A device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the interior surface of the inlet end of the first nozzle part and the exterior surface of the outlet end of the third nozzle part are so shaped and arranged that the inlet end of the first nozzle part is received in and secured to the outlet end of the third nozzle part.

9. A device according to claim 8 , wherein the interior surface of the inlet of the first nozzle part tapers in a direction towards its outlet end.

10. A device as claimed in claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the interior surface of the first nozzle part has at least one protruding portion.

11. A device as claimed in claim 10, wherein each protruding portion is a rib that extends in a direction with a component in the direction of the first axis.

12. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the nozzle includes a fourth nozzle part having a passageway and an inlet end and an outlet end, wherein the inlet end of the fourth nozzle part is connected to the outlet end of the second nozzle part.

13. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the exterior surface of the outlet end of the second nozzle part has a screw thread and the interior surface of the fourth nozzle part has a screw thread, whereby the fourth nozzle part is able to be screwed onto the second nozzle part.

14. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least one of the first and second nozzle parts are made of a thermoplastic polymer.

15. A nozzle for use in a device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims.

16. A method of producing a bead depositing nozzle for use in a device as claimed in any of claims 1 to 14, the method comprising the steps of providing a first nozzle part and a second nozzle part, each nozzle part having an inlet and an outlet end, and connecting the second nozzle part to the first nozzle part, the first and second nozzle parts being so shaped and arranged that when connected they form a ball and socket joint, whereby in use, material passes through the bead-depositing nozzle from the inlet end of the first nozzle part to the outlet end of the second nozzle part.

17. A method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the method includes the steps of providing a third nozzle part having an inlet end and an outlet end and connecting the inlet end of the first nozzle part to the outlet end of the third nozzle part, whereby in use, material passes through the bead-depositing nozzle from the inlet end of the third nozzle part to the outlet end of the second nozzle part.

18. A method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the step of providing a third nozzle part includes the steps of providing a frusto-conically shaped hollow member with an outlet end, the hollow member and the first nozzle part being so shaped that if the outlet end of the hollow member is inserted into the inlet end of the first nozzle part as far as practically possible a part of the outlet end of the hollow member protrudes out of the outlet end of the first nozzle part, inserting the hollow member into the inlet end of the first nozzle part as far as practically possible, thereby indicating the part of the frusto conically- shaped hollow member that should be cut off to enable the third nozzle part to be formed, cutting the hollow member thereby forming the third nozzle part.

19. A kit of parts for use in a method as claimed in any of claims 16 to 18.

20. A method of depositing a bead of material, the method using a device as claimed in any of claims 1 to 14.