WO2014103838A1 - Production device for stretchable sheet and production method - Google Patents

Abstract

A production device for a stretchable sheet, that produces a stretchable sheet having individual threadlike elastic members that are in an elongated state being interposed and bonded between a pair of continuous sheets, in a state in which said threadlike elastic members are arranged along an intersecting direction that intersects the continuation direction of the continuous sheets. The production device for a stretchable sheet comprises: a bonding mechanism (21) that feeds the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12) along the continuation direction for the continuous sheets (11, 12), and clamps and bonds the continuous sheets (11, 12) in the thickness direction thereof; a conveyance mechanism (31) that conveys a continuous body (13a) of threadlike elastic members towards between the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12) clamped and bonded by the bonding mechanism (21); a winding mechanism (41) that feeds out the continuous body (13a) of threadlike elastic members and winds same, in an elongated state, on to the conveyance mechanism (31); and a cutting mechanism (51) that, after the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12) have been clamped by the bonding mechanism (21), cuts the continuous body (13a) of threadlike elastic members at a position further on the end side in an intersecting direction than the continuous sheets (11, 12), and generates individual threadlike elastic members (13, 13, …). At least one continuous sheet (11) out of the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12) has a bonding section that bonds the continuous body (13a) of threadlike elastic members at each end section, in the intersecting direction, of the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12). The bonding mechanism (21) has: reference clamping sections (21AL) provided corresponding to each bonding section position, and clamping the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12) and the continuing body (13a) of threadlike elastic members, in the thickness direction and at a prescribed reference pressure; and weak clamping sections (21AM) provided at positions further on the end side in the intersecting direction than the reference clamping sections (21AL), and which clamp the pair of continuous sheets (11, 12) and the continuous body (13a) of threadlike elastic members, in the thickness direction and at a lower pressure than the reference pressure.

Description

Stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing method

The present invention provides a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus in which individual thread-like elastic members in an extended state are interposed between a pair of continuous sheets and are joined along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet, And a manufacturing method.

Conventionally, stretchable sheets have been used as functional parts of absorbent articles such as disposable diapers. Then, as shown in the schematic perspective view of FIG. 1A, in the manufacturing process, the stretchable sheet is generated in the form of a continuous sheet 10m as the intermediate part. Further, in the stretchable sheet 10m of the intermediate part, for example, the individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13... Stretched between the pair of continuous sheets 11, 12 intersect with the continuous direction of the continuous sheets 11, 12. It is in a state of being interposed and joined in a state along the CD direction.

This intermediate product stretchable sheet 10m manufacturing apparatus 120 has a pair of upper and lower parts which are driven and rotated while the corresponding continuous sheets 11 and 12 are wound around the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da, respectively. A transport mechanism 131 that transports the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member between the rolls 21u and 21d and the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 that are overlapped and joined by the pair of upper and lower rolls 21u and 21d. A winding mechanism 141 for winding the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member around the transport mechanism 131 while feeding the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member.

The conveyance mechanism 131 includes a pair of belt- shaped conveyance units 132 and 132 provided at respective positions closer to the end side in the CD direction than the continuous sheets 11 and 12 as main bodies. Then, the pair of belt- like conveyance units 132 and 132 conveys the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member wound around itself in the wound state with the longitudinal direction as the conveyance direction.

Here, in this winding state, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is stretched in the CD direction between the pair of belt- like conveyance units 132 and 132. That is, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is provided on the upper portions of the pair of belt- like transport portions 132 and 132 from above, and on the lower portions of the pair of belt- like transport portions 132 and 132, respectively. The transfer portions 13ac extended from below are alternately provided in the transport direction.

Moreover, the passing portion 13ac immediately after winding is in an inclined state with respect to the CD direction. For this reason, while the transfer portion 13ac is being transferred toward the pair of rolls 21u and 21d, the belt- like transfer portions 132 and 132 are respectively configured to gradually correct this inclination and eliminate the inclination gradually. A pair of upper and lower endless belts 133u and 133d arranged side by side in the vertical direction is a main body. That is, by making a difference in the respective conveyance speed values between the pair of endless belts 133u, 133d, each spanning portion 13ac that is slanted with respect to the CD direction at the beginning of winding is positioned substantially parallel to the CD direction. It has corrected even to. And thereby, each spanning part 13ac which became substantially parallel to this CD direction is interposed between the continuous sheets 11 and 12, and is joined. Then, in order to change each spanning part 13ac of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member into individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13,... The continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is cut by 181 and 181, and the above-described stretchable sheet 10m is generally generated as the continuous sheet 10m as described above.

However, if the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is cut, as shown in FIG. 1A, the individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13... From each edge 10mew, 10mew in the width direction of the continuous sheet 10m in the CD direction. The ends 13e and 13e may protrude, and the appearance may be a problem. For this reason, in Patent Document 1, after cutting the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member by the blade members 181 and 181 as described above, as shown in FIG. 1B, each of the width direction of the continuous sheet 10m is further cut by the cutting mechanism 185. It is disclosed to cut off the end portions 10me and 10me.

JP 2012-90836 A

However, when the respective end portions 10me and 10me of the continuous sheet 10m are cut out as in the method of Patent Document 1, the waste increases and the product yield also deteriorates.

Here, as shown in the schematic plan view of the continuous sheet 10m in FIG. 2A, the portion 13p of the thread-like elastic member 13 (hereinafter also referred to as the protruding portion 13p) that can protrude from each end edge 10mew, 10mew is as shown in FIG. 2B. Based on the contraction force of the projecting portion 13p, if the edge 10mew, 10mew of the continuous sheet 10m is contracted to the center side and accommodated in the continuous sheets 11, 12, the end 10me of the continuous sheet 10m is accommodated. It seems that the appearance can be improved while removing it.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to improve the appearance of the stretchable sheet without cutting off the end in the width direction.

The main invention for achieving the above object is:
An apparatus for producing a stretchable sheet in which individual thread-like elastic members in an elongated state are interposed between a pair of continuous sheets and are joined in a state along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet. And
A joining mechanism for sandwiching and joining the pair of continuous sheets in the thickness direction of the continuous sheet while conveying the continuous sheet along the continuous direction of the continuous sheet;
A transport mechanism that transports the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are sandwiched and joined by the joining mechanism;
A winding mechanism that winds the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member in an extended state around the transport mechanism while feeding out the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member;
After the pair of continuous sheets are clamped by the joining mechanism, the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members is cut at a position closer to the end side in the intersecting direction than the continuous sheet to generate the individual thread-like elastic members. A cutting mechanism,
At least one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets has a joining portion that joins the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member to each end portion in the intersecting direction of the pair of continuous sheets,
The joining mechanism is
A reference clamping unit that is provided in correspondence with the position of the joint, and clamps the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member in the thickness direction with a predetermined reference pressure;
A weak pinch that is provided at a position closer to the end in the intersecting direction than the reference pinching portion and pinches the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the filamentous elastic member in the thickness direction with a pressure smaller than the reference pressure. An apparatus for producing a stretchable sheet, comprising: a pressure part.
Also,
This is a method for producing a stretchable sheet in which an individual thread-like elastic member in an extended state is interposed between a pair of continuous sheets in a state along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet. And
With the joining mechanism, the pair of continuous sheets are pressed and joined in the thickness direction of the continuous sheet while being conveyed along the continuous direction of the continuous sheet;
Transporting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member by a transport mechanism toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are clamped and joined by the joining mechanism;
Winding the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member in an extended state around the transport mechanism while feeding out the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member;
After the pair of continuous sheets are clamped by the joining mechanism, the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members is cut at a position closer to the end side in the intersecting direction than the continuous sheet to generate the individual thread-like elastic members. And having
At least one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets has a joint portion that joins the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member to each end portion in the intersecting direction of the pair of continuous sheets,
The joining includes
Clamping the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member in the thickness direction with a predetermined reference pressure by a reference clamping part that the joining mechanism includes corresponding to the position of the joined part;
The pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member are pressed at a pressure lower than the reference pressure by the weak pinching portion corresponding to the position on the end side in the intersecting direction from the reference pinching portion. A method for producing a stretchable sheet, comprising: pressing a continuous body in the thickness direction.
Other features of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the appearance of the stretchable sheet without excising the end in the width direction.

1A and 1B are schematic perspective views of a conventional manufacturing apparatus 120 for a stretchable sheet 10. FIG. 2A is a schematic plan view of the continuous sheet 10m before the protruding portion 13p of the thread-like elastic member 13 of each edge 10mew, 10mew of the continuous sheet 10m contracts, and FIG. 2B shows the protruding portion 13p contracted. And it is a schematic plan view of the continuous sheet 10m which shows the state accommodated in the continuous sheet 10m. 3A is a schematic plan view of the stretchable sheet 10 manufactured by the manufacturing apparatus 20 of the first embodiment, and FIG. 3B is a view taken along the line BB in FIG. 3A. It is a schematic perspective view of the manufacturing apparatus 20 of the elastic sheet 10 of 1st Embodiment. 3 is a schematic central cross-sectional view of a winding part 46. FIG. It is explanatory drawing of an example of an application pattern, Comprising: It is a schematic plan view of the continuous sheet 11 (12). FIG. 7A is a schematic side view of the joining mechanism 21 provided with the reference clamping part 21AL and the weak clamping part 21AM, and FIG. 7B is a view taken along the line BB in FIG. 7A. FIG. 8A is a schematic side view of the joining mechanism 21 according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 8B is a BB arrow view in FIG. 8A. It is a schematic side view of the joining mechanism 21 which concerns on 3rd Embodiment.

At least the following matters will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.
An apparatus for producing a stretchable sheet in which individual thread-like elastic members in an elongated state are interposed between a pair of continuous sheets and are joined in a state along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet. And
A joining mechanism for sandwiching and joining the pair of continuous sheets in the thickness direction of the continuous sheet while conveying the continuous sheet along the continuous direction of the continuous sheet;
A transport mechanism that transports the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are sandwiched and joined by the joining mechanism;
A winding mechanism that winds the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member in an extended state around the transport mechanism while feeding out the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member;
After the pair of continuous sheets are clamped by the joining mechanism, the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members is cut at a position closer to the end side in the intersecting direction than the continuous sheet to generate the individual thread-like elastic members. A cutting mechanism,
At least one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets has a joining portion that joins the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member to each end portion in the intersecting direction of the pair of continuous sheets,
The joining mechanism is
A reference clamping unit that is provided in correspondence with the position of the joint, and clamps the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member in the thickness direction with a predetermined reference pressure;
A weak pinch that is provided at a position closer to the end in the intersecting direction than the reference pinching portion and pinches the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the filamentous elastic member in the thickness direction with a pressure smaller than the reference pressure. An apparatus for producing a stretchable sheet, comprising: a pressure part.

According to such a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus, the joining mechanism has a reference pinching portion corresponding to the position of the joining portion in the pair of continuous sheets, and is closer to the end side in the cross direction than the joining portion. The position has a weak clamping part. And in a weak clamping part, a continuous body of a pair of continuous sheet and a thread-like elastic member is clamped with a pressure smaller than a reference | standard clamping part. Therefore, it is possible to achieve a fragile joint at the end side of the joint portion while firmly joining the pair of continuous sheets and the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member at the joint portion. Then, based on the contraction force of the end portions of the individual thread-like elastic members after cutting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members, the end portions are smoothly and quickly contracted from the edge of the continuous sheet to the center in the crossing direction. Can be retracted to the side, thereby being quickly accommodated in the continuous sheet. As a result, individual thread-like elastic members can be prevented from protruding from the edge of the stretchable sheet. Therefore, it is possible to improve the appearance of the stretchable sheet while not having to cut off the ends of the pair of continuous sheets.

An apparatus for producing such an elastic sheet,
The joining mechanism is
A first roll that conveys the one continuous sheet by rotating while driving one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets around the outer peripheral surface;
The outer peripheral surface of the first roll is provided facing the outer peripheral surface, and the other continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets is driven and rotated while being wound around the outer peripheral surface. A second roll for conveying
The conveyance mechanism conveys the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are sandwiched and joined by the first roll and the second roll,
The first predetermined portion on the outer peripheral surface of the first roll and the second predetermined portion on the outer peripheral surface of the second roll function as the reference pinching portion in cooperation with each other,
In the outer peripheral surface of the first roll, a third predetermined portion on the end side in the intersecting direction with respect to the first predetermined portion, and on the outer peripheral surface of the second roll in the end direction in the intersecting direction with respect to the second predetermined portion. It is desirable that the fourth predetermined portions function as the weak clamping portion in cooperation with each other.

Such a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus has a first roll and a second roll that are driven and rotated as a joining mechanism. The outer peripheral surface of the first roll and the outer peripheral surface of the second roll have a first predetermined portion and a second predetermined portion as the reference pressing portion, and a third predetermined portion as the weak pressing portion and A fourth predetermined portion is included. Therefore, the stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus can be realized easily and reliably.

An apparatus for producing such an elastic sheet,
The interval between the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion is preferably smaller than the interval between the third predetermined portion and the fourth predetermined portion.

According to such a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus, since the size relationship of the intervals is set as described above, the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion are combined with each other to reliably serve as the reference pressing portion. The third predetermined portion and the fourth predetermined portion can be made to cooperate with each other and function reliably as the weak pinching portion.

An apparatus for producing such an elastic sheet,
When the first roll and the second roll sandwich the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member, the added value of the amount by which the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion are elastically dent-deformed is: It is desirable that the third predetermined portion and the fourth predetermined portion be smaller than an added value of the amount of elastic dent deformation.

According to such a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus, since the magnitude relationship of the amount of elastic dent deformation is set as described above, the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion are made to cooperate with each other to obtain a reference clamping pressure. The third predetermined portion and the fourth predetermined portion can be made to cooperate with each other and function reliably as the weak pinching portion.

An apparatus for producing such an elastic sheet,
After cutting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member by the cutting mechanism, and after the individual thread-like elastic member portions protruding from the edges in the intersecting direction of the continuous sheet contract, It is desirable to have a clamping mechanism that clamps in the thickness direction with a large pressure.

According to such a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus, after the shrinkage of the portion of the thread-like elastic member protruding from the edge of the continuous sheet, further clamping is performed at a pressure larger than the reference pressure. Therefore, the state of the stretchable sheet can be reliably fixed to the state where the thread-like elastic member is accommodated in the pair of continuous sheets.

An apparatus for producing such an elastic sheet,
The pair of continuous sheets are joined by an adhesive,
In the pair of continuous sheets, it is desirable that the area corresponding to the reference pinching portion has a larger application amount of the adhesive per unit area than the region corresponding to the weak pinching portion.

According to such a stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus, the area of the pair of continuous sheets that corresponds to the reference pinching portion has a coating amount per unit area of the adhesive that is larger than the region that corresponds to the weak pinching portion. Many. Therefore, it is possible to achieve a more fragile bonded state at the end portion than the bonded portion while securing a stronger bonded state at the bonded portion.

Also,
This is a method for producing a stretchable sheet in which an individual thread-like elastic member in an extended state is interposed between a pair of continuous sheets in a state along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet. And
With the joining mechanism, the pair of continuous sheets are pressed and joined in the thickness direction of the continuous sheet while being conveyed along the continuous direction of the continuous sheet;
Transporting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member by a transport mechanism toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are clamped and joined by the joining mechanism;
Winding the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member in an extended state around the transport mechanism while feeding out the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member;
After the pair of continuous sheets are clamped by the joining mechanism, the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members is cut at a position closer to the end side in the intersecting direction than the continuous sheet to generate the individual thread-like elastic members. And having
At least one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets has a joining portion that joins the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member to each end portion in the intersecting direction of the pair of continuous sheets,
The joining includes
Clamping the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member in the thickness direction with a predetermined reference pressure by a reference clamping part that the joining mechanism includes corresponding to the position of the joined part;
The pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member are pressed at a pressure lower than the reference pressure by the weak pinching portion corresponding to the position on the end side in the intersecting direction from the reference pinching portion. A method for producing a stretchable sheet, comprising: pressing a continuous body in the thickness direction.

According to such a method for producing an elastic sheet, the joining mechanism has a reference clamping portion corresponding to the position of the joining portion in the pair of continuous sheets, and is closer to the end side in the cross direction than the joining portion. The position has a weak clamping part. And in a weak clamping part, a continuous body of a pair of continuous sheet and a thread-like elastic member is clamped with a pressure smaller than a reference | standard clamping part. Therefore, it is possible to achieve a fragile joint at the end side of the joint portion while firmly joining the pair of continuous sheets and the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member at the joint portion. Then, based on the contraction force of the end portions of the individual thread-like elastic members after cutting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members, the end portions are smoothly and quickly contracted from the edge of the continuous sheet to the center in the crossing direction. Can be retracted to the side, thereby being quickly accommodated in the continuous sheet. As a result, it is possible to prevent individual thread-like elastic members from protruding from the edge of the stretchable sheet. Therefore, it is possible to improve the appearance of the stretchable sheet while not having to cut off the ends of the pair of continuous sheets.

=== First Embodiment ===
FIG. 3A is a schematic plan view of the stretchable sheet 10 manufactured by the manufacturing apparatus 20 of the first embodiment. FIG. 3B is a view taken along arrow BB in FIG. 3A.
The stretchable sheet 10 is a continuous sheet 10 that is continuous in a continuous direction, and is used as a part of a disposable diaper, for example. That is, the stretchable sheet 10 is an intermediate product before becoming a final product. And this elastic sheet 10 is used as a functional component which provides elasticity to a side flap, a waist part, etc. of a diaper, for example.

The stretchable sheet 10 includes a pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 that are overlapped and joined in the thickness direction, and a plurality of thread-like elastic members 13 that are interposed between the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12. 13 and so on. A plurality of thread-like elastic members 13 are arranged at intervals in the continuous direction along the width direction perpendicular to the continuous direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12. Each thread-like elastic member 13 is joined to at least one continuous sheet 11 (12) in an expanded state. Therefore, the stretchable sheet 10 is given stretchability in the width direction by the thread-like elastic members 13, 13. That is, if each thread-like elastic member 13, 13... Shrinks, the continuous sheets 11 and 12 also shrink in the width direction and become a plurality of wrinkles. However, the shrinkage force of the thread-like elastic members 13, 13. If the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are pulled against each other, the wrinkles are extended and the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are expanded.

In the example of FIG. 3A, the thread-like elastic members 13, 13,... Are arranged in the continuous direction with a constant arrangement pitch P0 with respect to the continuous sheets 11, 12, but the arrangement pitch P0 is limited to such an equal pitch. It is not a thing. For example, the arrangement pitch P0 may change periodically.

3A, the end portion 13e of the thread-like elastic member 13 does not protrude from the respective end edges 11ee and 12ee in the width direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12, that is, the thread-like elastic member 13 has a full length. It is accommodated in the continuous sheet | seats 11 and 12 over this, Thereby, it has become the elastic sheet 10 with a favorable appearance.

Such a thread-like elastic member 13 is, for example, a plurality of elastic filaments joined together to form a bundle, and the elastic filament is, for example, a synthetic resin fiber such as polyurethane fiber or PTT fiber. A specific example of the thread-like elastic member 13 is “Lycra (trademark) DuPont”. The diameter of the thread-like elastic member 13 is, for example, 0.2 mm to 0.5 mm in a natural length state that is a non-extended state, and 0.1 mm to 0.00 mm in a state that is extended up to three times the natural length. 3 mm.

On the other hand, the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 are continuous sheets having substantially the same dimension in the width direction, and are made of nonwoven fabric, woven fabric, film, or the like. Then, both the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 may be made of the same material, or may be made of different materials depending on the case. In addition, about the material types, such as a nonwoven fabric, a woven fabric, and a film, the existing thing can be used suitably. For example, for non-woven fabrics and woven fabrics, single fibers made of thermoplastic resins such as polyethylene or polyethylene terephthalate, composite fibers with a sheath core structure, or combinations thereof can be used, and films can be used. Even if it exists, the thing made from the thermoplastic resin illustrated above etc. can be used.

Further, an adhesive is interposed between the pair of continuous sheets 11, 12, and at least one of the pair of continuous sheets 11, 12 and the pair of continuous sheets 11, 12 is continuous by this adhesive. The sheet 11 (12) and the respective thread-like elastic members 13, 13... Are joined and integrated. As such an adhesive, for example, a hot melt adhesive can be used. In addition, as an application pattern of the adhesive on the surface of the continuous sheet 11 (12), a plurality of strip-shaped application areas AL, AM, AS,... 6), or a spiral pattern in which a plurality of spirally coated areas along the continuous direction are discretely arranged in the width direction, or a so-called solid in which the adhesive is applied without gaps over the entire predetermined area. A paint pattern may be used.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the manufacturing apparatus 20 for the stretchable sheet 10.
As shown in FIG. 4, the manufacturing apparatus 20 includes a joining mechanism 21 that superposes and presses a pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 in the thickness direction while transporting along a continuous direction, and a joining mechanism 21. A conveying mechanism 31 that conveys a continuous body 13a of a thread-like elastic member toward a pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 that are overlapped in the thickness direction and pressed and joined, and a continuous body of a thread-like elastic member After the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 are pinched by the winding mechanism 41 and the joining mechanism 21 while the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is wound around the conveyance mechanism 31 while the feeding mechanism 31 is unwound, the thread-like elastic member Are cut at a position closer to the end side in the width direction than the continuous sheets 11 and 12 to generate individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13.

The transport mechanism 31 includes a pair of belt-shaped transport units 32 and 32 as main bodies, and each belt-shaped transport unit 32 is disposed at each position on the end side in the width direction from the continuous sheets 11 and 12, respectively. Each of the belt- like transport units 32 and 32 can transport the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member along the longitudinal direction thereof, that is, transport the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member with the longitudinal direction as the transport direction. To do.
Therefore, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member wound around the pair of belt- like transport portions 32 and 32 by the winding mechanism 41 is sequentially transported toward the joining mechanism 21 in this wound state. And in this winding state, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is stretched across the pair of belt- like transport portions 32, 32 in the width direction. That is, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member includes an upper spanning portion 13ac (hereinafter also referred to as an upper spanning portion 13ac) that is spanned from above on each of the upper portions of the pair of belt-shaped transport portions 32 and 32, and A pair of belt- like conveyance sections 32, 32 has a crossover portion 13ac (hereinafter also referred to as a lower crossover portion 13ac) that is stretched from below to the lower portions of the belt-shaped conveyance sections 32, 32 alternately.

Moreover, the passing portion 13ac immediately after winding is inclined obliquely with respect to the width direction. Therefore, in order to gradually correct this inclination and substantially eliminate this inclination while the transfer portion 13ac is being transferred toward the joining mechanism 21, the belt- like transfer portions 32 and 32 are each provided with a predetermined device. Is given. That is, each of the belt- like conveyance units 32 and 32 intersects with both the conveyance direction of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member and the width direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 (corresponding to the vertical direction in the example of FIG. 4). A pair of endless belts 33u and 33d arranged side by side as a main body, and by making a difference in each conveyance speed value between the pair of endless belts 33u and 33d, the winding is inclined with respect to the width direction at the beginning. Each spanned portion 13ac is corrected to a posture substantially parallel to the width direction. As a result, the spanning portions 13ac that are substantially parallel to the width direction are overlapped on the respective surfaces of the continuous sheets 11, 12 while being interposed between the continuous sheets 11, 12 by the joining mechanism 21. Combined, pinched and joined. Incidentally, the upper portions of the pair of belt- like conveyance portions 32, 32 correspond to the pair of upper endless belts 33u, 33u, respectively, and the lower portions of the pair of belt- like conveyance portions 32, 32 are also the lower portions of the pair. This corresponds to the endless belts 33d and 33d.

And the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member joined to the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 in this way is more end in the width direction than the continuous sheets 11 and 12 after the clamping force of the joining mechanism 21 related to the joining. Are cut by the cutting mechanisms 51, 51 at the respective positions on the side, whereby the spanning portions 13ac, 13ac... Of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic members are changed to individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13,. .

Here, after being cut by the cutting mechanism 51, the end portion 13e which is the portion 13e protruding from the end edges 11ee and 12ee of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 among the individual thread-like elastic members 13 is mainly itself. Accordingly, the end 13e is accommodated in the continuous sheets 11 and 12. And in this 1st Embodiment, although the predetermined device is given with respect to the joining mechanism 21 in order to ensure this accommodation, this is mentioned later.

Hereinafter, each of the configurations 21, 31, 41, and 51 will be described. In the following description, the continuous direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 is also referred to as “MD direction”, and the direction orthogonal to the MD direction, that is, the width direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 is referred to as “CD direction”. " The thickness direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 is orthogonal to both the continuous direction and the width direction.

For convenience of explanation, the three directions orthogonal to each other are defined as the vertical direction, the front-rear direction, and the left-right direction. In this example, the up-down direction is parallel to the vertical direction, and the front-rear direction and the left-right direction are parallel to the horizontal direction. The CD direction and the left-right direction are the same direction. Furthermore, the conveyance direction of the continuous body 13a of the filamentous elastic member by the conveyance mechanism 31 is parallel to the front-rear direction. Incidentally, the CD direction (left-right direction) corresponds to the “crossing direction” according to the claims, and the MD direction corresponds to the “continuous direction” according to the claims.

<<< joining mechanism 21 >>>
The joining mechanism 21 includes a pair of upper and lower rolls 21u and 21d that are driven and rotated about rotation axes C21u and C21d facing the CD direction. Then, one continuous sheet 11 of the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 is wound around the upper roll 21u as the first roll at a predetermined winding angle, and the lower roll 21d as the second roll is wound around the lower roll 21d. The other continuous sheet 12 is wound at a predetermined winding angle. Both of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are held in a state in which there is almost no relative slip between the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the rolls 21u and 21d to be wound, thereby driving the rolls 21u and 21d. With the rotation, the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are transported along the rotation directions Dcu and Dcd of the rolls 21u and 21d substantially integrally with the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the corresponding rolls 21u and 21d.

When the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the pair of rolls 21u and 21d pass through the closest position Pn (hereinafter also referred to as the nip position Pn), the upper continuous sheet 11 and the lower continuous sheet 12 are The two layers are overlapped in the thickness direction and sandwiched between the layers, and thereby, the two are joined together by an adhesive applied in advance to at least one of the surfaces to be overlapped. As described above, immediately before the joining, between the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12, the extended portion 13ac of the continuous body 13a of the stretched yarn-like elastic member is in the CD direction (width direction). Since it is put in along, the three parts of the upper and lower continuous sheets 11 and 12 and the spanning portion 13ac of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member are joined and integrated at the time of joining.

By the way, the drive rotation of the pair of rolls 21u and 21d is performed using, for example, a servo motor (not shown) as a drive source. The rotation speed of the servo motor is controlled by an appropriate control device (not shown). Under the control of the rotation speed, the production speed value (m / min) of other devices in the absorbent article production line. ) (For example, in proportion), the peripheral speed values (m / min) of the rolls 21u and 21d are changed. For example, if the speed of the other device increases, the peripheral speed value (m / min) of the rolls 21u and 21d is increased by an amount corresponding to the speed, and conversely, if the other device decelerates, the amount corresponding to that increases. The peripheral speed value (m / min) is decelerated. Thereby, the joining mechanism 21 can always supply the elastic sheet 10 at a supply speed value (m / min) required by another device.

<<< Conveyance mechanism 31 >>>
As shown in FIG. 4, the transport mechanism 31 has belt-shaped transport units 32 and 32 on the left and right in the CD direction, respectively. Each belt-shaped transport unit 32 is disposed so as to straddle the joining mechanism 21 in the front-rear direction while the longitudinal direction thereof is directed in the front-rear direction, and thereby, the elastic thread is straddled across the joining mechanism 21 along the front-rear direction. A conveyance path for the continuous body 13a is formed.

Each belt-like transport unit 32 has a pair of upper and lower endless belts 33u and 33d. Each endless belt 33u, 33d is wound around a pair of pulleys 34u, 34u, 34d, 34d disposed at both ends in the front-rear direction. At least one of the pulleys 34u and 34d is connected to servo motors 35u and 35d serving as drive sources, so that the rotational speed value can be set for each of the endless belts 33u and 33d.

Further, by setting the orientations of the pulleys 34u, 34u, 34d, and 34d, the circular orbits of the endless belts 33u and 33d are positioned on the end side in the CD direction, and the end side track Tr1 is more in the CD direction than the end side track Tr1. The center side track Tr2 is located on the center side. In the end-side track Tr1, the endless belts 33u and 33d move forward in the front-rear direction, while in the center-side track Tr2, move backward, and are thus wound around the pair of belt- like conveyance units 32 and 32. The continuous body 13a of the filamentous elastic member is held by the endless belts 33u, 33d, 33u, and 33d that move on the end-side track Tr1, so that it is conveyed forward in the front-rear direction and finally reaches the joining mechanism 21. It has become.
Incidentally, the direction of the belt surfaces of the endless belts 33u and 33d is basically the direction in which the normal direction of the surfaces is parallel to the CD direction, but in some cases, for example, greater than 0 ° and less than 60 ° from the CD direction. It may be inclined in the angle range.

The rotation speeds of the servo motors 35u and 35d for driving the endless belts 33u and 33d are controlled by an appropriate control device. Then, under this rotational speed control, the servomotors 35u, 35d allow the upper endless belt 33u to define the transport speed value (m / min) of the transport mechanism 31 and the lower endless belt 33d. The circumferential speed value (m / min) is changed in conjunction with (for example, in proportion to) the circumferential speed value (m / min) that is the rotational speed value (m / min) of the joining mechanism 21. Therefore, the peripheral speed values (m / min) of the rolls 21u and 21d of the joining mechanism 21 are changed to correspond to the change in the production speed value (m / min) of another apparatus in the absorbent article production line. Even in this case, the conveyance speed value (m / min) of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is promptly changed to the speed value corresponding thereto.

<<< winding mechanism 41 >>>
As shown in FIG. 4, the winding mechanism 41 includes a thread-like elastic member from a coil body 13C of a thread-like elastic member (a continuous body 13a of a thread-like elastic member wound around a suitable winding member such as a bobbin in a coil shape). The continuous body 13a is wound around the rear end portion 31b of the transport mechanism 31 while being fed out. Therefore, the winding mechanism 41 includes a feeding part 43 that feeds the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member from the coil body 13C of the thread-like elastic member that is rotatably supported by the reel mechanism 42, and a thread-like elasticity that is fed from the feeding part 43. And a winding portion 46 that winds the member continuous body 13 a around the rear end portion 31 b of the transport mechanism 31.

The feeding portion 43 feeds the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member from the coil body 13C attached to the reel mechanism 42 and sets the tension of the continuous body 13a within a predetermined tension range, and then the winding speed of the winding portion 46. In conjunction with the value (m / min), the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is supplied to the winding section 46 at a predetermined supply speed value (m / min) corresponding to the winding speed value.

Here, the above-described tension range is determined in advance based on the minimum tension within a range in which the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member does not loosen, and is, for example, 0.0298N to 0.098N. Thus, basically, the ratio of the winding speed value of the winding section 46 to the supply speed value of the feeding section 43 is the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member at the time of winding around the transport mechanism 31. The expansion magnification is. Therefore, by adjusting the supply speed value in conjunction with the winding speed value, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member can be wound around the transport mechanism 31 almost always at the target extension magnification. Incidentally, the expansion ratio is an index indicating how many times the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is extended from its natural length. For example, the length LS in the extended state is divided by the natural length L0. The divided value (= LS / L0).

As a specific configuration example of the feeding portion 43, an upstream position in the supply route of the continuous body 13a of the filamentous elastic member from the coil body 13C of the reel mechanism 42 to the winding portion 46, that is, close to the coil body 13C. And a supply roll 45 provided at a position downstream of the tension controller 44 in the supply route, that is, at a position close to the winding portion 46 in the supply route. Here, the tension controller 44 performs feedback control of the feed amount from the coil body 13C so that the tension of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member at the nearest downstream position falls within a predetermined tension range. As a configuration example, it has a sensor 44s for measuring the tension at the nearest downstream position, and a feeding drive pulley 44p provided at a position upstream of the travel route from the measurement position of the sensor 44s. . Then, a servo motor (not shown) as a drive source of the feeding drive pulley 44p is controlled by an appropriate control device so that the measured value of the tension output from the sensor 44s falls within the preset tension range. The

FIG. 5 is a schematic central sectional view of the winding portion 46. As shown in FIG. 5, the winding portion 46 includes a bottomed cylindrical member 46 a disposed in the vicinity of the rear end portion 31 b of the transport mechanism 31 as a main body. A cylinder axis C46a of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a is an axis C46a set at a position substantially the same as the center position of the cross section defined by both the vertical direction and the CD direction of the transport mechanism 31. In addition, the axis C46a is set substantially parallel to the front-rear direction. The bottomed cylindrical member 46a is driven to rotate around the cylinder axis C46a. For example, a servo motor 49m is used as the drive source. That is, in the example of FIG. 5, a small-diameter cylindrical body 47 protrudes backward from the bottom 46ab of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a coaxially with the cylinder axis C46a, and is provided integrally with the small-diameter cylindrical body 47. 49p is fixed on the same axis, and the drive pulley 49p receives the drive rotation operation of the drive rotation shaft 49s of the servo motor 49m via the timing belt 49b. Thus, the bottomed cylindrical member 46a is driven to rotate.

Further, pulleys 48p, 48p, and 48p are provided at a plurality of positions in the bottomed cylindrical member 46a to hang the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member. These pulleys 48p, 48p, and 48p are configured such that a continuous body 13a of a thread-like elastic member that is supplied from the feeding portion 43 to the bottomed cylindrical member 46a in a running state is set to a front end portion 46af of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a. This is a guide member that guides to the insertion portion 48 t to 31.
Specifically, the pulleys 48p, 48p, and 48p are respectively a front end position on the inner peripheral side of the small-diameter cylindrical body 47, a rear end position of the cylindrical portion 46at of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a, and a front end position of the cylindrical portion 46at. Further, at the front end position, a loading pulley 48t is separately provided as the above-described loading portion 48t.
Then, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member supplied from the feeding portion 43 is wound around the pulleys 48p, 48p, 48p in the above order, so that the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is as follows. To the charging section 48t. That is, first, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member supplied from the feeding portion 43 passes through the inner peripheral side of the small-diameter cylindrical body 47 and reaches the front end position of the small-diameter cylindrical body 47. Thus, the traveling direction is changed outward in the radial direction of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a and travels along the bottom 46ab of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a. And this traveling leads to the rear end position of the cylindrical portion 46at of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a, but the traveling direction is again changed forward by the pulley 48p at the rear end position to the front end position of the cylindrical portion 46at. It reaches. And finally, it is guided by the pulley 48p at the front end position to the input portion 48t at the same position.

In addition, the input pulley 48t, which is the input portion 48t, has its own rotation axis C48t set in parallel with the cylinder axis C46a of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a. Therefore, the pulley 48t can smoothly and quickly feed the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member toward the rear end portion 31b of the transport mechanism 31 positioned on the inner peripheral side of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a.

Further, regarding the position in the front-rear direction, the front end portion 46af of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a overlaps the rear end portion 31b of the transport mechanism 31. That is, the rear end portion 31b of the transport mechanism 31 is inserted into the bottomed cylindrical member 46a from the front end portion 46af of the bottomed cylindrical member 46a. Therefore, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member thrown from the feeding portion 48t at the front end position to the rear end portion 31b of the transport mechanism 31 can be reliably wound around the outer periphery of the rear end portion 31b of the transport mechanism 31. .

Incidentally, the rotational speed of the servo motor 49m for driving and rotating the winding portion 46 is controlled by an appropriate control device. Then, under the rotational speed control, the servo motor 49m links the winding speed value (m / min) of the winding section 46 with the transport speed value (m / min) of the transport mechanism 31 described above (for example, Change proportionally). Therefore, the peripheral speed values (m / min) of the rolls 21u and 21d of the joining mechanism 21 are changed to correspond to the change in the production speed value (m / min) of another apparatus in the absorbent article production line. Thus, even when the influence reaches the transport speed value of the transport mechanism 31, the arrangement pitch in the transport direction (front-rear direction) of the transfer portions 13ac, 13ac... On the transport mechanism 31 is always constant. Can be maintained. As a result, the arrangement pitch P0 of the respective thread-like elastic members 13, 13... On the continuous sheets 11, 12 can always be kept constant regardless of the production speed value of the other apparatus.

<<< Cutting mechanism 51 >>>
As shown in FIG. 4, the cutting mechanisms 51, 51 have rotary blades 52, 52 respectively disposed at positions closer to the end in the CD direction than the transport mechanism 31 so as to correspond to the belt- like transport units 32, 32. It is. Each of the rotary blades 52 and 52 is driven and rotated around the center of the circle, and the edge of the outer peripheral edge of the rotary blade 52 from the end in the CD direction to the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member at the position in charge thereof. By pressing, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is cut at a position closer to the end side in the CD direction than the continuous sheets 11 and 12, and the individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13. . That is, the continuous portion 13ac of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member stretched in the CD direction between the pair of belt- like transport units 32, 32 arranged in the CD direction is connected to the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member by cutting the rotary blade 52. As a result, the span portion 13ac is assembled to the continuous sheets 11 and 12 as individual thread-like elastic members 13.

Incidentally, the cutting mechanism 51 is not limited to the rotary blade 52 described above. For example, instead of the rotary blade 52 described above, a fixed blade may be provided, or an ultrasonic cutter that cuts the cutting target while vibrating the blade edge with the generated ultrasonic vibration may be provided. A laser that burns off the object may be provided. Furthermore, it may be configured such that it can be sheared so as to be cut with a scissors, or may be configured so as to be cut with pinching.

<<< Consideration for accommodating the end portions 13e and 13e in the CD direction of the individual thread-like elastic members 13 in the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 >>>
Prior to the description of this device, an adhesive application pattern applied to join the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 will be described. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an example of this application pattern. In FIG. 6, the continuous sheet 11 (12) is shown in a schematic plan view.

As shown in FIG. 6, in this example, the adhesive is applied in a so-called stripe pattern, that is, a pattern in which a plurality of strip-shaped application areas AL, AM, AS,. Further, such a stripe pattern has a plurality of types of strip-shaped application regions AL, AM, AS having different width dimensions. That is, a wide band application area AL that is a wide band application area, an intermediate width band application area AM that is narrower than the wide band application area AL, and a narrow band application that is narrower than the intermediate width band application area AM. And an area AS.

Incidentally, the width dimension of the wide band-shaped coating area AL is selected from a range of 15 to 17 mm, for example, and is 15 mm in this example, and the width dimension of the intermediate width band-shaped coating area AM is selected from a range of 3 to 5 mm. In this example, the width is 5 mm, and the width dimension of the narrow band application region AS is selected from the range of 0.5 to 1.5 mm, and in this example, 1 mm.

And these three types of belt-shaped application areas AL, AM, AS interpose a belt-shaped non-application area ANL, ANM, ANS, which is a belt-shaped area to which no adhesive is applied, between the adjacent belt-shaped application areas in the width direction. However, the stripe pattern is formed by arranging in the width direction in an appropriate combination.
The stripe pattern also has a plurality of types of regions ANL, ANM, and ANS having different width dimensions with respect to the strip-shaped non-application regions ANL, ANM, and ANS. That is, the wide strip-shaped non-coated region ANL, which is the wide strip-shaped non-coated region ANL, the intermediate-width strip-shaped non-coated region ANM having a narrower width dimension than the wide-width strip-shaped non-coated region ANL, and the width dimension than the intermediate-width strip-shaped uncoated region ANM Has a narrow narrow band-shaped non-application region ANS.

Incidentally, the width dimension of the wide band-shaped non-application area ANL is selected from the range of, for example, 10 to 12 mm, and in this example is 10 mm, and the width dimension of the intermediate width band-shaped non-application area ANM is from the range of 3 to 5 mm. In this example, it is 5 mm, and the width dimension of the narrow band non-application area ANS is selected from the range of 0.5 to 1.5 mm, and in this example is 1 mm.

In the example of FIG. 6, the above-described three types of belt-shaped application regions AL, AM, AS, and three types of stripe patterns are symmetrical with respect to the center position CL in the width direction of the continuous sheet 11 (12). The strip-shaped non-application areas ANL, ANM, and ANS are appropriately selected and arranged in the width direction.
For example, when the surface of the continuous sheet 11 (12) is divided into a pair of halves by dividing the surface of the continuous sheet 11 (12) at the center position CL in the width direction, the edge 11ee in the width direction is formed on one half surface (the left surface in FIG. 6). From (12ee), there is an intermediate width strip-shaped non-application region ANM, an intermediate width strip-shaped application region AM exists next to the center side, and a wide strip-shaped non-application region ANL exists next to the center side. Next, there is a wide strip application area AL, a narrow strip non-application area ANS is present next to the center side, a narrow strip application area AS is present next to the center side, and the width Both the narrow-band non-application area ANS and the narrow-band application area AS are alternately and repeatedly arranged up to the center position CL in the direction. Further, on the other half surface (the right surface in FIG. 6), the strip-shaped coating areas AL, AM, AS, and the strip-shaped non-pattern are arranged in the same order as described above from the edge 11ee (12ee) on the half surface toward the center position CL. The application areas ANL, ANM, and ANS are arranged side by side.

In this example, the basis weights (g / m ² ) of the adhesives of these three types of strip-shaped application areas AL, AM, and AS are set to the same value. However, in some cases, the basis weights (g / m ² ) of the respective band-shaped application areas AL, AM, AS may be different from each other.
For example, the basis weight of the wide strip-shaped application area AL may be made larger than the basis weight of the intermediate-width strip-shaped application area AM. In this way, the elastic band 13 is firmly bonded to the continuous sheet 11 (12) in the wide band application area AL, but is weak in the intermediate width band application area AM located on the end side in the width direction. Thus, it is possible to improve the accommodation of the end portions 13e, 13e of the thread-like elastic member 13 into the continuous sheets 11, 12. This capacity will be described later. Further, the basis weight of the narrow strip application area AS may be set to an arbitrary value between the basis weight of the wide strip application area AL and the intermediate width strip application area AM. Even in the application area AS, the thread-like elastic member 13 can be sufficiently firmly joined to the continuous sheet 11 (12), whereby vertical stripes of wrinkles are formed in the central portions 11c and 12c in the width direction of the continuous sheet 11 (12). Can be reliably formed.

The basis weight (g / m ² ) of the adhesive in each of the above-described belt-shaped application areas AL, AM, AS is selected from a range of 1 to 40 (g / m ² ), for example. Here, when it is less than 1 (g / m ² ), the thread-like elastic member 13 is not sufficiently fixed, and the thread-like elastic member 13 is peeled off from the continuous sheet 11 (12), and the thread-like elastic member 13 is detached. In addition, it is not desirable because a desired expansion / contraction function is hardly exhibited. Further, if it exceeds 40 (g / m ² ), the adhesive oozes out from the surface of the pair of surfaces of the continuous sheet 11 (12) where the thread-like elastic member 13 is not joined, and the production line is contaminated. It becomes difficult to peel off from an appropriate roller member around which the continuous sheet 11 (12) is wound, or it adheres to other parts of the diaper and impairs the function of the diaper. This is not desirable because it causes trouble.

Here, the function of each strip-shaped coating area AL, AM, AS will be described. First, the main function of the wide band application area AL located at each end portion 11e (12e) in the width direction on the surface of the continuous sheet 11 (12) is to join the thread-like elastic member 13 and the continuous sheet 11 (12). Thus, the stretchability is imparted to the continuous sheet 11 (12). That is, the elastic elastic members 13 are joined to the continuous sheet 11 (12) by the wide band-shaped application areas AL positioned at the end portions 11e (12e), so that the elastic properties of the elastic elastic member 13 are continuous. 11 (12), the stretchability is imparted to the continuous sheet 11 (12). Therefore, the wide band-shaped application area AL having such a function is indispensable in terms of imparting stretchability to the continuous sheet 11 (12), that is, indispensable for constituting the stretchable sheet 10. The adhesive in the wide band-shaped application area AL corresponds to a “joining portion for joining a continuous body of thread-like elastic members” according to the claims.

On the other hand, on the surface of the continuous sheet 11 (12), the functions of the plurality of narrow strip application regions AS, AS... Arranged in the center region 11c, 12c in the width direction are mainly as described above. ) Is formed on the stretchable sheet 10 along the continuous direction (MD direction). Therefore, the function is not to impart stretchability to the continuous sheet 11 (12) through joining with the thread-like elastic member 13, and thus the width-band-like application areas AS, AS... Constitute the stretchable sheet 10. It is not essential to do.

Similarly, the function of the intermediate width band-shaped application area AM located on the end side in the width direction with respect to the wide band-shaped application area AL is mainly the function of the edges 11ee, 12ee of the pair of continuous sheets 11, 12. It is to seal. Therefore, this application area AM is not intended to impart stretchability to the continuous sheet 11 (12) through joining with the thread-like elastic member 13 as in the above-described narrow band application area AS. The application area AM is also not essential when configuring the stretchable sheet 10.

Therefore, from the viewpoint of imparting stretchability to the continuous sheet 11 (12), it is sufficient to sandwich the continuous sheets 11 and 12 with a large pressure at least at the position of the wide band-shaped application region AL, and in that case, the stretched state The thread-like elastic members 13, 13... Are firmly joined to the continuous sheets 11, 12, and finally the stretchable sheet 10 is surely given stretchability.

On the other hand, as described above, from the viewpoint of improving the appearance of the stretchable sheet 10, it is necessary to accommodate the end portions 13 e and 13 e of the individual thread-like elastic members 13 in the continuous sheets 11 and 12. For that purpose, in the intermediate width belt-shaped coating region AM located on the end side in the width direction with respect to the wide belt-shaped coating region AL, the bonding between the thread-like elastic members 13, 13... And the continuous sheet 11 (12) is fragile. It is necessary to keep it. Therefore, from this point of view, it is preferable that the pair of rolls 21u and 21d of the joining mechanism 21 sandwich the continuous sheets 11 and 12 with a small pressure at the position of the intermediate width strip-shaped application region AM.

Therefore, in the first embodiment, the pair of rolls 21u, 21d of the joining mechanism 21 is provided with a reference clamping unit 21AL that clamps with a large reference pressure at a position corresponding to the above-described wide band-shaped application region AL, At a position corresponding to the above-described intermediate width band-shaped application region AM in the same pair of rolls 21u and 21d, that is, at a position closer to the end side in the CD direction than the reference pinching portion 21AL, a weak pressure smaller than the above-described reference pressure is applied. A weak clamping part 21AM for clamping is provided (FIG. 7B).

As a result, when the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 pass through the nip position Pn of the pair of rolls 21u and 21d in FIG. 7A, the reference clamping portion 21AL of the rolls 21u and 21d has a large reference pressure. While the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 and the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member are clamped, the weak clamping part 21AM of the rolls 21u and 21d has a pair of continuous pressures with a weak pressure smaller than the reference pressure of the reference clamping part 21AL. The sheets 11 and 12 and the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member are clamped.
Therefore, in the wide band application area AL, the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 and the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member are firmly joined, but the intermediate width band located on the end side in the CD direction from the wide band application area AL. In the application area AM, a fragile joint can be obtained.

Then, when the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is cut after passing through the nip position Pn of the pair of rolls 21u and 21d, and each spanned portion 13ac is changed to the individual thread-like elastic member 13, the individual thread-like shape Each end 13e, 13e of the elastic member 13 can be smoothly and quickly contracted based on its contraction force, and can be retracted from the end edge 11ee (12ee) of the continuous sheet 11 (12) to the center in the width direction. Thus, the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are accommodated. That is, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the individual thread-like elastic members 13, 13... Do not protrude from the end edges 10 ee, 10 ee of the stretchable sheet 10, and as a result, the stretchable sheet 10. Can be improved in appearance.

FIG. 7A is a schematic side view of the joining mechanism 21 provided with the reference clamping part 21AL and the weak clamping part 21AM, and FIG. 7B is a view taken along the line BB in FIG. 7A. In FIG. 7B, the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are shown only at the nip position Pn, and the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are not shown in other places, in order to prevent the complication of the drawing. Also, in the lower part of FIG. 7B, the application pattern of the above-mentioned adhesive, that is, a stripe pattern, is shown corresponding to the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the rolls 21u and 21d.

As described above, in this example, the portion 21ALP that opposes the wide band-shaped application area AL of the continuous sheet 11 (12) on each of the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d functions as the reference pinching portion 21AL. In addition, on each of the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d, a portion 21AMP facing the end side in the CD direction with respect to the portion on the end side in the CD direction with respect to the wide band-shaped application region AL of the continuous sheet 11 (12) It is made to function as part 21AM. In the following description, the portion 21ALP that functions as the reference pinching portion 21AL in the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d is referred to as a “reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP”, and is similarly weakly pinched in the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d. The part that functions as the part 21AM is referred to as a “weak pinching part responsible part 21AMP”.

Hereinafter, the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B.
First, for both the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d, the material of the outer peripheral portions 21uaa and 21daa is the same over the entire area in the CD direction in which the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are in contact, so that the outer peripheral portions 21uaa, The elastic modulus (N / m ² ) of 21 daa is a substantially constant value over the entire area in the CD direction where the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are in contact.
The lower roll 21d is a flat roll having a substantially constant outer diameter over the entire area in the CD direction where the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are in contact. The upper roll 21u has a position in the CD direction. Rolls having different outer diameter dimensions are used. And in the said upper roll 21u, the outer diameter dimension of the weak clamping part responsible part 21AMP is set smaller than the outer diameter dimension of the reference clamping part responsible part 21ALP.

Therefore, in the case of the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP, while the portion of the wide band application area AL in the continuous sheets 11 and 12 is clamped with a large reference pressure, in the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP, the continuous sheet 11 is pressed. , 12, the portion on the end side in the CD direction with respect to the wide band-shaped application region AL can be clamped with a weak pressure smaller than the reference pressure. As a result, in the wide band-shaped application area AL, the above-mentioned intermediate width band-shaped application area belonging to the end-side portion is firmly bonded to the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 and the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member. In AM, the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 and the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member can be brought into a fragile bonded state.

The lower roll 21d is a mere flat roll as described above, but the portion of the outer peripheral surface 21da of the lower roll 21d that faces the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP of the upper roll 21u is the lower roll 21d. The reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP in FIG. The pair of reference clamping unit portions 21ALP and 21ALP cooperate with each other to function as the reference clamping unit 21AL described above. Similarly, a portion of the outer peripheral surface 21da of the lower roll 21d that faces the weak clamping unit responsible portion 21AMP of the upper roll 21u is a weak clamping unit responsible portion 21AMP of the lower roll 21d. And a pair of these weak clamping part charge parts 21AMP and 21AMP mutually cooperate, and it functions as the above-mentioned weak clamping part 21AM.
Incidentally, the correspondence with the constituent elements described in the claims is as follows. First, the reference pinching part responsible portion 21ALP of the upper roll 21u corresponds to the “first predetermined portion” recited in the claims, and the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP of the lower roll 21d corresponds to the “first Corresponds to “2 predetermined parts”. Further, the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP of the upper roll 21u corresponds to the “third predetermined part” recited in the claims, and the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP of the lower roll 21d is referred to as “first” Corresponds to “4 predetermined parts”.

By the way, in the above-mentioned example, the outer diameter dimension of the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP is set smaller than the outer diameter dimension of the reference clamping part responsible part 21ALP in the upper roll 21u, and thereby the lower roll 21d Used a flat roll. That is, there is no difference in the outer diameter between the reference clamping part responsible part 21ALP and the weak clamping part responsible part 21AMP of the lower roll 21d, but the invention is not limited to this.
In other words, the distance between the reference clamping unit responsible portion 21ALP of the upper roll 21u and the reference clamping unit responsible portion 21ALP of the lower roll 21d is such that the weak clamping unit responsible portion 21AMP and the lower roll 21d of the upper roll 21u are weakly sandwiched. Any configuration other than that described above may be used as long as it is smaller than the interval between the pressing portion responsible portion 21AMP.
For example, in the lower roll 21d, the outer diameter dimension of the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP is set smaller than the outer diameter dimension of the reference clamping part responsible part 21ALP, thereby using a flat roll for the upper roll 21u. Furthermore, the outer diameter dimensions of the weak pinching portion responsible portions 21AMP and 21AMP may be made larger than the outer diameter size of the reference pinching portion responsible portions 21ALP and 21ALP for both the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d. You may set small.

In addition, a well-known structure can be used suitably for the mechanism which adjusts the pressure (N / m < ² >) at the time of pinching of the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d. As an example of such a configuration, a housing (not shown) that forms the outer shape of the joining mechanism 21, and one of the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d that is fixed to the housing 21u (21d) cannot move up and down and rotate. A first bearing member (not shown) that rotatably supports the axis C21u (C21d) and a second bearing member (not shown) that rotatably supports the other roll 21d (21u) about the rotation axis C21d (C21u). And a lifting mechanism (not shown) such as a hydraulic cylinder or a feed screw mechanism that is installed in the housing and supports the second bearing member so as to be vertically movable. And according to this structure, the pressure at the time of pinching of the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d can be adjusted by adjustment of the up-and-down raising / lowering amount of the 2nd bearing member by an raising / lowering mechanism.

Also, the appropriate values of the reference pressure of the reference clamping portion responsible portion 21ALP and the weak pressure of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP may vary depending on the basis weight, type, application pattern, and the like of the adhesive to be used. For this reason, each set value of the reference pressure and the weak pressure is determined by an actual machine experiment or the like. For example, in an actual machine experiment, the elastic sheet 10 is actually manufactured by the manufacturing apparatus 20 while swinging at a plurality of levels using the basis weight of the adhesive, the coating pattern, and the like as parameters. While confirming the accommodation state of the end portions 13e and 13e of the thread-like elastic member 13, the magnitudes of the reference pressure and the weak pressure are determined.

Incidentally, the pressure (N / m ² ) at the time of clamping described above is a pressure acting on the surface to be clamped when the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are clamped in the thickness direction, respectively. is there. For example, the reference pressure (N / m ² ) is a pressure (N / m ² ) acting on the surface clamped by the reference clamping unit responsible portions 21ALP and 21ALP during clamping, and in other words, It is a clamping force (external force) acting per unit area on the surface clamped by the reference clamping unit 21ALP and 21ALP during clamping. Further, the weak pressure (N / m ² ) is a pressure acting on the surface to be sandwiched between the weak clamping unit responsible portions 21AMP and 21AMP at the time of clamping, and in other words, the weak clamping pressure at the time of clamping. This is the clamping force (external force) that acts per unit area on the surface that is clamped by the section responsible portions 21AMP and 21AMP. In addition, the said pressure (N / m < ² >) can be measured, for example with a pressure sensitive paper.

By the way, in the above description, the portion 21ASP between the pair of reference pinching portion responsible portions 21ALP and 21ALP in the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u (hereinafter, central portion responsible portion 21ASP) has been described in detail. There was no (FIG. 7B). Therefore, here, the central portion responsible portion 21ASP will be described. The central portion responsible portion 21ASP clamps the portions 11c and 12c located on the central side of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 with respect to the wide band-shaped application area AL. That is, in the continuous sheets 11 and 12, the portions 11c and 12c in which the narrow strip-shaped application area AS and the narrow strip-shaped non-application areas ANS are alternately arranged are pinched. Thus, when the central portions 11c and 12c in the width direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are joined to the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member, the portion of the thread-like elastic member 13 of the portions 11c and 12c contracts. A vertical stripe-shaped ridge along the continuous direction is formed.

In this example, the outer diameter dimension of the central portion responsible portion 21ASP is an arbitrary value between the outer diameter size of the reference clamping portion responsible portion 21ALP and the outer diameter dimension of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP (for example, the reference clamping portion). It is set to an intermediate value between the outer diameter dimension of the pressure part responsible portion 21ALP and the outer diameter dimension of the weakly pinched pressure portion responsible portion 21AMP). As a result, an appropriate pressure is ensured at the time of pinching even in the central portion in charge portion 21 ASP while preventing the pinching at a large reference pressure to be performed in the adjacent reference pinching portion portion in charge 21ALP. Like to do.
However, the outer diameter size of the center portion responsible portion 21ASP is not limited to the above. For example, it may be the same diameter as the outer diameter dimension of the reference clamping part portion 21ALP or may be larger than the outer diameter dimension. In some cases, the outer diameter of the central portion responsible portion 21ASP may be the same as the outer diameter size of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP, or may be smaller than the same outer diameter size. However, as described above, the adhesive in the wide band-shaped application area AL of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 that is clamped by the reference clamping unit responsible portion 21ALP is surely used as a joint for joining the thread-like elastic member 13 to the continuous sheets 11 and 12. From the viewpoint of functioning, it is desirable that the outer diameter size of the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP is larger than the outer diameter size of the central portion responsible portion 21ASP.

Further, as described above, in this example, the basis weights (g / m ² ) of the adhesives in the respective strip-shaped application areas AL, AM, AS are set to the same value. However, the application amount (g / m ² ) per unit area of the adhesive in the region corresponding to the reference clamping part responsible portion 21 ALP and the adhesive per unit area in the region corresponding to the weak clamping part responsible portion 21 AMP. It differs from the coating amount (g / m ² ). The reason for this is as follows. First, the former reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP is opposed only to the wide band-shaped application area AL on the continuous sheets 11 and 12, and not to the band-shaped non-application areas ANL, ANM, ANS. All the portions located on the end side in the width direction of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 in the width direction of the continuous sheet 11 and 12 are opposed to the portion 21AMP in charge of the weakly pressing portion, that is, other than the intermediate width strip-shaped coating region AM. Further, both the intermediate width strip-shaped non-application region ANM and the wide width strip-shaped non-application region ANL are opposed to each other. Therefore, when the application amount per unit area in the region corresponding to the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP or the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP is considered, they are different from each other. As described above, since the basis weights of the wide band application area AL and the intermediate width application area AM are equal to each other, in this example, the unit area of the adhesive corresponding to the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP The per-coating amount (g / m ² ) is larger than the weak clamping portion 21AMP. And this is also effective to keep the intermediate band-shaped application area AM in a fragile bond while further enhancing the bonding action of the wide band-shaped application area AL due to the large reference pressure of the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP. It contributes to.

=== Second Embodiment ===
In the first embodiment described above, by providing portions with different outer diameters at different positions in the CD direction on the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u, the pair of rolls 21u, 21d and the reference pinching portion 21AL are weakly pinched. In the second embodiment, a pair of portions having different elastic moduli (N / m ² ) is provided at different positions in the CD direction on the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u. The rolls 21u and 21d are mainly different in that a reference clamping part 21AL and a weak clamping part 21AM are provided. Therefore, the other points are generally the same as those in the first embodiment described above, and in the following description, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 8A is a schematic side view of the joining mechanism 21 provided with the reference clamping part 21AL and the weak clamping part 21AM, and FIG. 8B is a view taken along the line BB in FIG. 8A. In FIG. 8B, the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are shown only at the nip position Pn, and the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are not shown in other places, in order to prevent complication of the drawing. 8B shows the adhesive application pattern, that is, the stripe pattern, corresponding to the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the rolls 21u and 21d.

As shown in FIG. 8B, in the second embodiment, a flat roll is used for both the pair of upper and lower rolls 21u and 21d. In other words, the outer diameter dimensions of the outer peripheral surfaces 21ua and 21da of the rolls 21u and 21d are equal to each other at least in the entire area in the CD direction where the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are in contact.
Further, as the lower roll 21d, a roll having a substantially constant elastic modulus (N / m ² ) of the outer peripheral portion 21daa is used over the entire area in the CD direction where the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are in contact with each other. For 21u, rolls having different elastic moduli of the outer peripheral portion 21uaa are used depending on the position in the CD direction. The elastic modulus of the weak holding part responsible portion 21AMP in the on roll 21u (N / ^{m 2)} is set smaller than the elastic modulus of the reference holding part their part 21ALP (N / ^{m 2).}

If this is done, the amount of elastic compression deformation of the outer peripheral portion 21uaa of the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP of the upper roll 21u at the nip position Pn (the outer peripheral portion 21uaa of the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP is elastically dented. The amount of deformation) is smaller than the amount of elastic compression deformation of the outer peripheral portion 21uaa of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP (the amount by which the outer peripheral portion 21uaa of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP elastically dents). The clamping part responsible portion 21ALP can function as the reference clamping part 21AL, and the weak clamping unit responsible part 21AMP can function as the weak clamping part 21AM.
In other words, the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP is clamped with a large reference pressure in the wide belt-shaped application area AL of the continuous sheets 11 and 12, while the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP is the continuous sheet 11. , 12, the portion on the end side of the wide band application area AL can be clamped with a weak pressure smaller than the reference pressure.

Therefore, in the above-mentioned intermediate width belt-shaped application region AM belonging to the end side portion, the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 and the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member are in a fragile joined state, and as a result, individual thread-like elasticity The end portions 13e and 13e of the member 13 are quickly accommodated in the continuous sheets 11 and 12 by their contraction force.

As a material that can be used for the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP, an appropriate metal material such as steel can be exemplified. On the other hand, a material that can be used for the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP is more elastic than the metal material. A rubber material or a sponge-like resin member having a low rate can be exemplified, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

In this example, as the lower roll 21d, a roll having a substantially constant elastic modulus (N / m ² ) is used over the entire area in the CD direction where the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are in contact. Of the outer peripheral surface 21da of 21d, the portion facing the reference pinching part responsible portion 21ALP of the upper roll 21u becomes the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP for the lower roll 21d. The pair of reference pinching portion responsible portions 21ALP and 21ALP cooperate with each other to function as the reference pinching portion 21AL. Similarly, a portion of the outer peripheral surface 21da of the lower roll 21d that faces the weak clamping unit responsible portion 21AMP of the upper roll 21u is a weak clamping unit responsible portion 21AMP of the lower roll 21d. The pair of weak pinching part responsible portions 21AMP and 21AMP cooperate with each other to function as the weak pinching part 21AM.

In the above example, the upper roll 21u is set so that the elastic modulus of the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP is smaller than the elastic modulus of the reference clamping part responsible part 21ALP. A roll having a substantially constant value of elastic modulus of the portion 21daa was used over substantially the entire region in the CD direction. That is, although there was no difference in the elastic modulus between the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP and the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP of the lower roll 21d, the invention is not limited to this.
That is, the added value of the amount of elastic dent deformation (elastic compression deformation amount) of both the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP of the upper roll 21u and the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP of the lower roll 21d at the time of pinching is the same pinching pressure. If both the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP of the upper roll 21u and the weak clamping part responsible portion 21AMP of the lower roll 21d are smaller than the added value of the amount of elastic dent deformation (elastic compression deformation amount), Other configurations may be used.
For example, in the lower roll 21d, the elastic modulus of the weak pinching portion responsible portion 21AMP is set smaller than the elastic modulus of the reference pinching portion responsible portion 21ALP, so that the upper roll 21u has the outer peripheral portion 21uaa A roll whose elastic modulus is substantially constant over substantially the entire area in the CD direction may be used. Furthermore, for both the upper roll 21u and the lower roll 21d, the elastic modulus of the reference pressing part responsible portion 21ALP Alternatively, the elastic modulus of the weak clamping portion 21AMP may be set small.

Further, of the outer peripheral surface 21 ua of the upper roll 21 u, the elastic portion of the central portion portion 21 ASP that is the portion 21 ASP between the pair of reference pinching portion portions 21 ALP and 21 ALP is given as the elastic modulus of the reference pinching portion portion 21 ALP. Set to an arbitrary value between the elastic modulus and the elastic modulus of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP (for example, an intermediate value between the elastic modulus of the reference clamping portion responsible portion 21ALP and the elastic modulus of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP) is doing. As a result, an appropriate pressure is ensured at the time of pinching even in the central portion in charge portion 21 ASP while preventing the pinching at a large reference pressure to be performed in the adjacent reference pinching portion portion in charge 21ALP. Like to do.
However, the elastic modulus of the center portion responsible portion 21ASP is not limited to the above. For example, it may be the same value as the elastic modulus of the reference clamping portion 21ALP or may be larger than the elastic modulus. In some cases, the elastic modulus of the central portion responsible portion 21ASP may be equal to or smaller than the elastic modulus of the weak clamping portion responsible portion 21AMP. However, as described above, from the viewpoint of reliably functioning the adhesive in the wide band-shaped application region AL of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 that are clamped by the reference clamping portion 21ALP as a joining portion, preferably the above-described center The elastic modulus of the reference clamping part responsible portion 21ALP may be larger than the elastic modulus of the portion responsible portion 21ASP.

=== Third Embodiment ===
FIG. 9 is a schematic side view of the joining mechanism 21 according to the third embodiment. The difference from the first embodiment described above is that the continuous sheet 11 is cooperated with the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u with respect to the upper roll 21u that conveys the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 that are joined together. , 12 is additionally provided with a clamping mechanism 25. Other points are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment. Therefore, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

The pinching mechanism 25 includes a roll 26 (hereinafter referred to as a pinching roll 26) that rotates around a rotation axis C26 along the CD direction as a main body. The pinching roll 26 is provided with its outer peripheral surface 26a facing the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u, and the outer peripheral surface 26a of the pinching roll 26 is shared with the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u. Then, the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are clamped.

Here, the position where the continuous sheets 11 and 12 are clamped is a position downstream of the rotational direction Dcu of the upper roll 21u from the position where the cutting mechanism 51 cuts the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member, and At a position downstream of the rotational direction Dcu of the upper roll 21u from the position where the end portions 13e, 13e of the individual thread-like elastic members 13 projecting from the end edges 11ee, 12ee in the width direction of the continuous sheets 11, 12 are completed. is there. If the position is set in this way, the state of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 is surely brought into the state in which the thread-like elastic member 13 is accommodated in the continuous sheets 11 and 12 by the pinching force of the pinching mechanism 25. Can be fixed to. The position where the contraction is completed can be known by the above-described actual machine experiment or the like.

Further, at the time of pinching, the outer peripheral surface 21 ua of the upper roll 21 u and the outer peripheral surface 26 a of the pinching roll 26 allow the continuous sheets 11 and 12 to be moved in the thickness direction with a pressure (N / m ² ) greater than the reference pressure. Pinch from. Therefore, it can fix reliably by the above-mentioned accommodation state.

By the way, the contraction of the end portions 13e and 13e of the individual thread-like elastic members 13 is completed while the continuous sheets 11 and 12 move from the position at which the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic members is cut to the position of the pinching mechanism 25. Must be. On the other hand, the time required for this movement can vary according to the peripheral speed value (m / min) of the upper roll 21u.

Therefore, from the viewpoint of reliably performing pinching after completion of contraction, the pinching mechanism 25 is preferably configured as follows. First, it is configured such that the pinching roll 26 can reciprocate within a predetermined movement allowable range R26 along the outer peripheral surface 21ua of the upper roll 21u, and in conjunction with the peripheral speed value of the upper roll 21u, the rotation direction Dcu. It is preferable to change the position of the pinching roll 26 in FIG. More specifically, when the circumferential speed value of the upper roll 21u is the lower limit value of the assumed fluctuation range of the circumferential speed value, the pinching roll 26 is positioned at the upstream end P26 of the movement allowable range R26, and from there The pinching roll 26 may be moved to the downstream side in the rotation direction Dcu according to the increase in the peripheral speed value. And if it does in this way, the state of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 can be fixed after completion of the above-mentioned contraction irrespective of the peripheral speed value of upper roll 21u.

=== Other Embodiments ===
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, said embodiment is for making an understanding of this invention easy, and is not for limiting and interpreting this invention. Further, the present invention can be changed or improved without departing from the gist thereof, and needless to say, the present invention includes equivalents thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.

In the above-described embodiment, the configuration including the pair of upper and lower rolls 21u and 21d is exemplified as the joining mechanism 21, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, other configurations may be used as long as the pair of continuous sheets 11 and 12 can be stacked and joined while being conveyed.
For example, a configuration having a pair of upper and lower endless belts (not shown) that respectively circulate around the drive may be used. In this case, the endless belt is provided with the reference pinching portion 21AL and the weak pinching portion 21AM. That is, the reference pinching portion 21AL is provided corresponding to the wide band-shaped application area AL of the continuous sheets 11 and 12 on the outer peripheral surface of the endless belt, while the weak pinching portion 21AM is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the endless belt. It is provided so as to correspond to the end side in the CD direction with respect to the wide band-shaped application area AL of the continuous sheets 11 and 12. In addition, as an aspect which provides this reference | standard clamping part 21AL and weak clamping part 21AM, according to 1st Embodiment, between the weak clamping part 21AM and the reference clamping part 21AL from the outer peripheral surface of an endless belt Make a difference in the amount of protrusion, or follow the second embodiment to make a difference in the elastic modulus (N / m ² ) of the outer peripheral portion of the endless belt between the weak pinching portion 21AM and the reference pinching portion 21AL. And so on.

In the above-described embodiment, the conveyance mechanism 31 of the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member has a pair of belt- like conveyance portions 32 and 32, and each belt-like conveyance portion 32 has a pair of upper and lower endless belts 33u and 33d. However, it is not limited to this. That is, any other configuration may be used as long as the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is wound by the winding mechanism 41 and the wound continuous body 13a can be conveyed toward the joining mechanism 21. . For example, a screw-like conveyance unit may be used instead of the belt-like conveyance unit 32. That is, the screw-shaped transport unit has a pair of upper and lower round bar-shaped shaft members, and a spiral groove is formed on the outer peripheral surface of each round bar-shaped shaft member over substantially the entire length. Drive around. And a conveyance mechanism may be comprised by arrange | positioning the screw-shaped conveyance part which has this pair of upper and lower round rod-shaped shaft members in each position of the both sides of CD direction, respectively. Incidentally, in this case, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member is engaged with the spiral groove on the outer peripheral surface of the round bar-shaped shaft member, and the round bar-shaped shaft member is kept in the axial center while substantially maintaining this engaged state. By rotating and rotating around, the continuous body 13a of the thread-like elastic member wound around the pair of screw-like conveyance portions is conveyed in the conveyance direction.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the intermediate width band-shaped application area AM is provided on the end side in the width direction from the wide width band-shaped application area AL of the end portion 11 e (12 e) of the continuous sheet 11 (12). However, it is not limited to this. That is, in this example, since it was necessary to seal the edges 11ee and 12ee, the intermediate width band-shaped application region AM was provided, but there is no need to seal the edges 11ee and 12ee. In this case, the intermediate width band-shaped application area AM may not be provided. And if the intermediate width strip-shaped application region AM is eliminated in this way, the accommodation of the end portions 13e, 13e of the thread-like elastic member 13 into the continuous sheets 11, 12 can be further enhanced.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where both the MD direction as the continuous direction and the CD direction as the intersecting direction are orthogonal to each other is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, as long as these two are in a crossing relationship with each other, they may not be in an orthogonal relationship.

10 elastic sheet, 10ee edge,
11 continuous sheet, 11c center, 11e end, 11ee end edge,
12 continuous sheet, 12c center, 12e end, 12ee end edge,
13 thread-like elastic member, 13e end,
13a A continuous body of thread-like elastic member, 13ac spanning part, 13C coil body,
20 manufacturing equipment,
21 Joining mechanism,
21AL reference clamping part,
21ALP reference clamping part responsible part (first predetermined part, second predetermined part),
21AM Weak clamping part,
21AMP weak clamping part responsible part (third predetermined part, fourth predetermined part),
21ASP Central part in charge,
21u upper roll (first roll), 21ua outer peripheral surface, 21uaa outer peripheral portion,
21d lower roll (second roll), 21da outer peripheral surface, 21daa outer peripheral portion,
25 pinching mechanism, 26 pinching roll, 26a outer peripheral surface,
31 transport mechanism, 31b rear end,
32 belt-shaped transport unit,
33u upper endless belt, 33d lower endless belt,
34u pulley, 34d pulley,
35u servo motor, 35d servo motor,
41 winding mechanism, 42 reel mechanism,
43 Feeding section, 44 Tension controller,
44p Drive pulley for feeding, 44s sensor, 45 supply roll,
46 winding part, 46a bottomed cylindrical member, 46af front end part,
46at cylindrical part, 46ab bottom part,
47 Small-diameter cylindrical body, 48p pulley, 48t input part,
49b timing belt, 49p driving pulley,
49m servo motor, 49s drive rotation shaft,
51 cutting mechanism, 52 rotary blade,
Tr1 end side track, Tr2 center side track,
AL Wide band application area, AM Medium band application area, AS Narrow band application area,
ANL wide band non-application area, ANM intermediate width non-application area,
ANS Narrow strip-shaped non-application area,
CL center position, Pn nip position,
C21u rotation axis, C21d rotation axis, C26 rotation axis,
C46a cylinder shaft, C48t rotary shaft P26 upstream end, R26 allowable movement range,

Claims (7)

1. An apparatus for producing a stretchable sheet in which individual thread-like elastic members in an elongated state are interposed between a pair of continuous sheets and are joined in a state along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet. And
   A joining mechanism for sandwiching and joining the pair of continuous sheets in the thickness direction of the continuous sheet while conveying the continuous sheet along the continuous direction of the continuous sheet;
   A transport mechanism that transports the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are sandwiched and joined by the joining mechanism;
   A winding mechanism that winds the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member in an extended state around the transport mechanism while feeding out the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member;
   After the pair of continuous sheets are clamped by the joining mechanism, the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members is cut at a position closer to the end side in the intersecting direction than the continuous sheet to generate the individual thread-like elastic members. A cutting mechanism,
   At least one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets has a joining portion that joins the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member to each end portion in the intersecting direction of the pair of continuous sheets,
   The joining mechanism is
   A reference clamping unit that is provided in correspondence with the position of the joint, and clamps the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member in the thickness direction with a predetermined reference pressure;
   A weak pinch that is provided at a position closer to the end in the intersecting direction than the reference pinching portion and pinches the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the filamentous elastic member in the thickness direction with a pressure smaller than the reference pressure. An apparatus for producing a stretchable sheet, comprising: a pressure part.
2. It is a manufacturing apparatus of the elastic sheet according to claim 1,
   The joining mechanism is
   A first roll that conveys the one continuous sheet by rotating while driving one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets around the outer peripheral surface;
   The outer peripheral surface of the first roll is provided facing the outer peripheral surface, and the other continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets is driven and rotated while being wound around the outer peripheral surface. A second roll for conveying
   The conveyance mechanism conveys the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are sandwiched and joined by the first roll and the second roll,
   The first predetermined portion on the outer peripheral surface of the first roll and the second predetermined portion on the outer peripheral surface of the second roll function as the reference pinching portion in cooperation with each other,
   In the outer peripheral surface of the first roll, a third predetermined portion on the end side in the intersecting direction with respect to the first predetermined portion, and on the outer peripheral surface of the second roll in the end direction in the intersecting direction with respect to the second predetermined portion. The fourth predetermined portion functions as the weak pinching portion in cooperation with each other, and the stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus.
3. It is a manufacturing apparatus of the elastic sheet according to claim 2,
   An apparatus for manufacturing a stretchable sheet, wherein an interval between the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion is smaller than an interval between the third predetermined portion and the fourth predetermined portion.
4. It is a manufacturing apparatus of the elastic sheet according to claim 2,
   When the first roll and the second roll sandwich the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member, the added value of the amount by which the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion are elastically dent-deformed is: The stretchable sheet manufacturing apparatus, wherein the third predetermined portion and the fourth predetermined portion are smaller than an added value of an amount of elastic dent deformation.
5. It is a manufacturing apparatus of the elastic sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
   After cutting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member by the cutting mechanism, and after the individual thread-like elastic member portions protruding from the edges in the intersecting direction of the continuous sheet contract, An apparatus for manufacturing a stretchable sheet, comprising a clamping mechanism for clamping in the thickness direction with a large pressure.
6. It is a manufacturing apparatus of the elastic sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
   The pair of continuous sheets are joined by an adhesive,
   In the pair of continuous sheets, the stretchable sheet is characterized in that the amount of the adhesive applied per unit area is larger in the region corresponding to the reference pinching portion than in the region corresponding to the weak pinching portion. Manufacturing equipment.
7. This is a method for producing a stretchable sheet in which an individual thread-like elastic member in an extended state is interposed between a pair of continuous sheets in a state along a crossing direction intersecting the continuous direction of the continuous sheet. And
   With the joining mechanism, the pair of continuous sheets are pressed and joined in the thickness direction of the continuous sheet while being conveyed along the continuous direction of the continuous sheet;
   Transporting the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member by a transport mechanism toward the gap between the pair of continuous sheets that are sandwiched and joined by the joint mechanism;
   Winding the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member in an extended state around the transport mechanism while feeding out the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member;
   After the pair of continuous sheets are clamped by the joining mechanism, the continuous body of the thread-like elastic members is cut at a position closer to the end side in the intersecting direction than the continuous sheet to generate the individual thread-like elastic members. And having
   At least one continuous sheet of the pair of continuous sheets has a joint portion that joins the continuous body of the thread-like elastic member to each end portion in the intersecting direction of the pair of continuous sheets,
   The joining includes
   Clamping the continuous body of the pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member in the thickness direction with a predetermined reference pressure by a reference clamping part that the joining mechanism includes corresponding to the position of the joined part;
   The pair of continuous sheets and the thread-like elastic member are pressed at a pressure lower than the reference pressure by the weak pinching portion corresponding to the position on the end side in the intersecting direction from the reference pinching portion. A method for producing a stretchable sheet, comprising: pressing a continuous body in the thickness direction.

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