WO2021007688A1

WO2021007688A1 - Skin material for automotive interior and manufacturing method thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2021007688A1
Application number: PCT/CN2019/095712
Authority: WO
Inventors: Li Feng; Fei SHE
Original assignee: Freudenberg & Vilene Nonwovens (Suzhou) Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2019-07-12
Filing date: 2019-07-12
Publication date: 2021-01-21
Also published as: CN114341426A

Abstract

A skin material for automotive interior and a manufacturing method thereof are provided. The skin material includes: a non-woven fabric substrate(101); a binder (103) with additive, coated on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate(101); a digital printing design(105) including a pigment ink on the binder(103) with additive; and a protection coating layer(107) coated on the digital printing design (105), wherein the additive is adapted to prevent diffusion of the pigment ink. In the skin material, the pigment ink may be prevented from diffusing and permeating, and pattern design may be more flexible.

Description

SKIN MATERIAL FOR AUTOMOTIVE INTERIOR AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF

FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to automotive decoration field, and more particularly, to a skin material for automotive interior and a manufacturing method thereof.

BACKGROUND

In some existing solutions, a skin material for automotive interior is manufactured with a pattern formed using ink by a screen printing process. However, the screen printing is inflexible for design change, and has high slot sizes and technical limitation for superior pattern design. In some existing solutions, a skin material for automotive interior is manufactured with a pattern formed using ultraviolet rays (UV) ink which needs to be irradiated by a UV irradiation lamp.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment, a skin material for automotive interior is provided, including: a non-woven fabric substrate; a binder with additive, coated on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate; a digital printing design including a pigment ink on the binder with additive; and a protection coating layer coated on the digital printing design, wherein the additive is adapted to prevent diffusion of the pigment ink.

In some embodiments, the binder may include a resin.

In some embodiments, the binder may further include a foamer, a pH regulator and water.

In some embodiments, the additive may include a sodium alginate.

In some embodiments, the additive may further include at least one selected from a group consisting of a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose.

In some embodiments, the binder includes a resin, a pH regulator and water, the additive includes a sodium alginate, a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the sodium alginate has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 25%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 30 to 80%, the urea has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 8%, the sodium carboxymethyl cellulose has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.

In some embodiments, the pigment ink may include a pigment, water, a resin, an adhesive and a PH regulator.

In some embodiments, the pigment has a mass concentration within a range from 0.1%to 5%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.

In some embodiments, the protection coating layer may include a resin, water, an adhesive and a PH regulator.

In some embodiments, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.

In some embodiments, the skin material may further include a water gathering film coated on the protection coating layer.

In some embodiments, the water gathering film may include fluorocarbon.

In some embodiments, the skin material may be applied to an automobile ceiling, a door side, a pillar garnish and/or a rear package.

In an embodiment, a method for manufacturing a skin material for automotive interior is provided, including: providing a non-woven fabric substrate; performing a pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate, wherein the pre-treatment includes coating a binder and additive on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate; applying a digital printing design including a pigment ink on the binder and additive; and coating a protection coating layer on the digital printing design, wherein the additive prevents diffusion of the pigment ink.

In some embodiments, the binder and additive may be coated in the form of foam.

In some embodiments, performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate may include: coating the binder and the additive on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate simultaneously.

In some embodiments, performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate may include: coating the binder on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate; and coating the additive on the binder.

In some embodiments, the method may further include: forming a water gathering film on the protection coating layer by spraying.

In some embodiments, the additive may include a sodium alginate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other features of the present disclosure will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only several embodiments in accordance with the disclosure and are, therefore, not to be considered limiting of its scope, the disclosure will be described with additional specificity and detail through use of the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a structural diagram of a skin material for automotive interior according to an embodiment; and

Figure 2 is a flow chart of a method for manufacturing a skin material for automotive interior according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. In the drawings, similar symbols typically identify similar components, unless context dictates otherwise. The illustrative embodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented here. It will be readily understood that the aspects of the present disclosure, as generally described herein, and illustrated in the Figures, can be arranged, substituted, combined, and designed in a wide variety of different configurations, all of which are explicitly contemplated and make part of this disclosure.

In some existing solutions, a skin material for automotive interior is manufactured with a pattern formed using ink by a screen printing process. However, the screen printing is inflexible for design change, and has high slot sizes and technical limitation for superior pattern design. In some existing solutions, a skin material for automotive interior is manufactured with a pattern formed using UV ink which needs to be irradiated by a UV irradiation lamp.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a new skin material for automotive interior, which employs a pigment ink and a digital printing process.

Figure 1 is a structural diagram of a skin material 100 for automotive interior according to an embodiment.

Referring to Figure 1, the skin material 100 for automotive interior includes a non-woven fabric substrate 101, a binder with additive 103, a digital printing design 105 and a protection coating layer 107. The skin material 100 may be applied to an automobile ceiling, a door side, a pillar garnish and/or a rear package.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the digital printing design 105 includes a pigment ink. The pigment ink possesses good water resistance, light resistance and corrosion resistance.

In some embodiments, the binder 103 may be coated on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate 101, for example, an upper surface of the non-woven fabric substrate 101, to enhance the adhesion between the non-woven fabric substrate 101 and the digital printing design 105.

In some embodiments, the binder 103 may include a resin. In some embodiments, the resin may include acrylic resin, polyurethane resin or mixtures. The resin may improve physicochemical properties of the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate 101, such as abrasive resistance, weather fastness or chemical resistance, so as to enhance quality of the skin material 100.

In some embodiments, the binder 103 further includes a pH regulator and water. The PH regulator makes the binder 103 be lightly alkaline and thus easier to be adhesive with fibers of the non-woven fabric substrate 101. In some embodiments, the binder 103 further includes a foamer. A foaming process facilitates the binder being coated on the non-woven fabric substrate 101 evenly.

To prevent the pigment ink contained in the digital printing design 105 from diffusing, the binder 103 is formed with additive. In some embodiments, the additive includes a sodium alginate. With the sodium alginate, capillarity occurs among fibers in the non-woven fabric substrate 101. The sodium alginate may enable the pigment ink contained in the digital printing design 105 be distributed on the non-woven fabric substrate 101 evenly and prevent the diffusion and permeation of the pigment ink. Accordingly, tinting strength and tinctorial yield of digital printing, color lustre of a pattern in the digital printing design 105, and finish of a profile of the pattern may be improved, which ensures good quality of the digital printing design 105.

In some embodiments, the additive further includes at least one selected from a group consisting of a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose. The urea and the sodium carboxymethyl cellulose may further prevent the diffusion of the pigment ink, and improve abrasive resistance and weather fastness of the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate 101.

In some embodiments, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the sodium alginate has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 25%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 30 to 80%, the urea has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 8%, the sodium carboxymethyl cellulose has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%, the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%, and the foamer has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.

In some embodiments, the resin has a mass concentration of 15%, the sodium alginate has a mass concentration of 10%, the water has a mass concentration of 60%, the urea has a mass concentration of 5%, the sodium carboxymethyl cellulose has a mass concentration of 2%, the pH regulator has a mass concentration of 3%, and the foamer has a mass concentration of 2%.

In some embodiments, the digital printing design 105 includes the pigment ink and the pattern on the binder with the additive 103.

In some embodiments, the pigment ink includes a pigment, water, a resin, an adhesive and a PH regulator. The pigment is selected depending on practical color requirements of the skin material 100. The resin may improve physicochemical properties of the digital printing design 105, such as abrasive resistance, weather fastness or chemical resistance. The adhesive is used to ensure a suitable shape and injection speed of drops from nozzles during a digital printing process for forming the digital printing design 105, so as to obtain better printing quality. The PH regulator makes the pigment ink be lightly alkaline, prevents hydrolyzation of the pigment ink, and reduces corrosion of the nozzles.

In some embodiments, the content of the adhesive in the pigment ink is relatively essential to properties of the digital printing design 105. On one hand, the content of the adhesive in the pigment ink may not be too great. Compared with the existing screen printing techniques, the content of the adhesive in embodiments of the present disclosure is relatively small so as to prevent nozzles from being blocked during the digital printing process. On the other hand, the content of the adhesive in the pigment ink may not be too small. If the pigment ink has too few adhesive, the adhesion of the pigment ink may be weak and accordingly the digital printing design 105 may possess poor abrasion resistance and light fastness, which causes the skin material to fade easily.

In some embodiments, the pigment has a mass concentration within a range from 0.1%to 5%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%. With the configuration, the bonding between the digital printing design 105 and the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate 101 may be enhanced, abrasive resistance, weather fastness and chemical resistance of the skin material may be improved, and corrosion to nozzles and an ink feeding system used in the digital printing process caused by the ink may be reduced.

In some embodiments, the pigment has a mass concentration of 2%, the water has a mass concentration of 70%, the resin has a mass concentration of 20%, the adhesive has a mass concentration of 5%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration of 3%.

The protection coating layer 107 coated on the digital printing design 105 is adapted to prevent the digital printing design 105 from being damaged. In some embodiments, the protection coating layer 107 includes a resin, water, an adhesive and a PH regulator. The resin may improve physicochemical properties of a surface of the digital printing design 105, such as abrasive resistance, weather fastness or chemical resistance. The PH regulator makes the protection coating layer 107 be lightly alkaline and facilitates the adhesion among the protection coating layer 107, the digital printing design 105, the binder with additive 103 and the non-woven fabric substrate 101. The adhesive is used to ensure a suitable slurry output during a rotary screen printing process which may be performed to form the protection coating layer 107.

In some embodiments, for the protection coating layer 107, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.

In some embodiments, the skin material may further include a water gathering film coated on the protection coating layer 107, to enhance waterproofness and pollution resistance of the skin material. In some embodiments, the water gathering film includes fluorocarbon.

From above, the additive is coated on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate along with the binder, which may prevent the pigment ink from diffusing and permeating. As a result, tinting strength and tinctorial yield of digital printing, color lustre of a pattern in the digital printing design, and finish of a profile of the pattern may be improved, which ensures good quality of the digital printing design.

Further, the protection coating layer prevents the digital printing design from being damaged, and further improves physicochemical properties of the digital printing design.

Further, the conventional screen printing is replaced by the digital printing process, which is more flexible for design change and provides convenience for superior pattern design.

In an embodiment, use of any one of the above-mentioned skin materials as a headliner facing material, pillar facing material, door trim facing material, a rear package and/or a cargo screen is provided.

Figure 2 is a flow chart of a method 200 for manufacturing a skin material for automotive interior according to an embodiment.

Referring to Figure 2, in S201, a non-woven fabric substrate is provided.

In some embodiments, a needle punching process is performed to non-woven fibers to form the non-woven fabric substrate.

In some embodiments, in the needle punching process, several needle looms are employed. For example, four needle looms may be employed.

In S203, a pre-treatment is performed on the non-woven fabric substrate, wherein the pre-treatment includes coating a binder and additive on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate.

In some embodiments, the binder and additive may be coated in the form of foam.

In some embodiments, performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate includes: coating the binder and the additive on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate simultaneously.

In some embodiments, performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate includes: coating mucilage on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate; and drying the mucilage using a drying cylinder, to form the binder and the additive on the non-woven fabric substrate. A drying temperature may be within a range from 130℃ to 180℃, and a speed of the drying cylinder may be within a range from 5 m/min to 20m/min.

In some embodiments, performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate includes: coating the binder on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate; and coating the additive on the binder.

In some embodiments, the binder may include a resin. In some embodiments, the resin may include acrylic resin, polyurethane resin or mixtures. The resin may improve physicochemical properties of the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate, such as abrasive resistance, weather fastness or chemical resistance, so as to enhance quality of the skin material. In some embodiments, the binder further includes a pH regulator and water. The PH regulator makes the binder be lightly alkaline and thus easier to be adhesive with fibers of the non-woven fabric substrate. In some embodiments, the binder further includes a foamer.

To prevent the pigment ink contained in the digital printing design from diffusing, the additive is also coated. In some embodiments, the additive includes a sodium alginate. With the sodium alginate, capillarity occurs among fibers in the non-woven fabric substrate. The sodium alginate may enable the pigment ink contained in the digital printing design be distributed on the non-woven fabric substrate evenly and prevent the diffusion and permeation of the pigment ink. Accordingly, tinting strength and tinctorial yield of digital printing, color lustre of a pattern in the digital printing design, and finish of a profile of the pattern may be improved, which ensures good quality of the digital printing design.

In some embodiments, the additive further includes at least one selected from a group consisting of a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose. The urea and the sodium carboxymethyl cellulose may further prevent the diffusion of the pigment ink, and improve abrasive resistance and weather fastness of the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate.

In S205, a digital printing design including a pigment ink is applied on the binder and the additive.

In some embodiments, the digital printing design includes the pigment ink and a pattern on the binder and the additive.

In some embodiments, the pigment ink includes a pigment, water, a resin, an adhesive and a PH regulator. The pigment is selected depending on practical color requirements of the skin material. The resin may improve physicochemical properties of the digital printing design. The adhesive is used to ensure a suitable shape and injection speed of drops from nozzles during a digital printing process for forming the digital printing design, so as to obtain better printing quality. The PH regulator makes the pigment ink be lightly alkaline, prevents hydrolyzation of the pigment ink, and reduces corrosion of the nozzles.

In some embodiments, the pigment has a mass concentration within a range from 0.1%to 5%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%. With the configuration, the bonding between the digital printing design and the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate may be enhanced, abrasive resistance, weather fastness and chemical resistance of the skin material may be improved, and corrosion to nozzles and an ink feeding system used in the digital printing process caused by the ink may be reduced.

The digital printing process includes an injecting process. Specifically, the pigment ink in the nozzles is applied with a high-frequency mechanical force or an electromagnetic thermal shock, so as to enable relatively small drops of the pigment ink to jet from the nozzles. The drops will reach designated pattern under the control of a computer system. In some embodiments, the applying frequency may be within a range from 5000 times/sto 20000 time/s, a number of the drops jetting from the nozzles every second may be within a range from 5000 to 20000, and a volume of each drop may be within a range from 50 pL to 500 pL.

As described in the background, some existing solutions employ UV ink to form a skin material for automotive interior. To dry the UV ink, a UV irradiation lamp is needed to irradiate the UV ink. In embodiments of the present disclosure, the pigment ink including the resin may be dried through a heat curing process, without the usage of a UV irradiation lamp.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the digital printing process is employed, which is more flexible for design change and provides convenience for superior pattern design.

In S207, a protection coating layer is coated on the digital printing design.

The protection coating layer is adapted to prevent the digital printing design from being damaged. In some embodiments, the protection coating layer may be coated using a rotary screen printing process or by spraying.

In some embodiments, the protection coating layer includes a resin, water, an adhesive and a PH regulator. The resin may improve physicochemical properties of a surface of the digital printing design, such as abrasive resistance, weather fastness or chemical resistance. The PH regulator makes the protection coating layer be lightly alkaline and facilitates the adhesion among the protection coating layer, the digital printing design, the binder and the additive, and the non-woven fabric substrate. The adhesive is used to ensure a suitable slurry output during the rotary screen printing process.

In some embodiments, for the protection coating layer, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.

In some embodiments, the method may further include: forming a water gathering film on the protection coating layer by spraying. The water gathering film is adapted to enhance waterproofness and pollution resistance of the skin material. In some embodiments, the water gathering film includes fluorocarbon.

In some embodiments, the method may further include: following the formation of the water gathering film, drying the entirety of the non-woven fabric substrate, the binder and the additive, the digital printing design, the protection coating layer and the water gathering film by using a drying oven. During the drying process, a temperature in the drying oven may be within a range from 120℃ to 180℃, and a speed of the drying oven may be within a range from 10 m/min to 30 m/min.

The drying process following the formation of the water gathering film may take away Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs) and thus reduce the content of VOCs, so as to improve an odorant level of the skin material.

Based on the above processes, the skin material for automotive interior is formed.

While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

A skin material for automotive interior, comprising:

a non-woven fabric substrate;

a binder with additive, coated on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate;

a digital printing design comprising a pigment ink on the binder with additive; and

a protection coating layer coated on the digital printing design,

wherein the additive is adapted to prevent diffusion of the pigment ink.
The skin material according to claim 1, wherein the binder comprises a resin.
The skin material according to claim 2, wherein the binder further comprises a foamer, a pH regulator and water.
The skin material according to claim 2, wherein the additive comprises a sodium alginate.
The skin material according to claim 4, wherein the additive further comprises at least one selected from a group consisting of a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose.
The skin material according to claim 1, wherein the binder comprises a resin, a pH regulator and water, the additive comprises a sodium alginate, a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the sodium alginate has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 25%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 30 to 80%, the urea has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 8%, the sodium carboxymethyl cellulose has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.
The skin material according to claim 1, wherein the pigment ink comprises a pigment, water, a resin, an adhesive and a PH regulator.
The skin material according to claim7, wherein the pigment has a mass concentration within a range from 0.1%to 5%, the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.
The skin material according to claim 1, wherein the protection coating layer comprises a resin, water, an adhesive and a PH regulator.
The skin material according to claim 9, wherein the water has a mass concentration within a range from 50 to 90%, the resin has a mass concentration within a range from 5%to 30%, the adhesive has a mass concentration within a range from 3%to 15%, and the pH regulator has a mass concentration within a range from 1%to 5%.
The skin material according to claim 1, further comprising a water gathering film coated on the protection coating layer.
The skin material according to claim 11, wherein the water gathering film comprises fluorocarbon.
The skin material according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the skin material is applied to an automobile ceiling, a door side, a pillar garnish and/or a rear package.
A method for manufacturing a skin material for automotive interior, comprising:

providing a non-woven fabric substrate;

performing a pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate, wherein the pre-treatment comprises coating a binder and additive on a surface of the non-woven fabric substrate;

applying a digital printing design comprising a pigment ink on the binder and additive; and

coating a protection coating layer on the digital printing design,

wherein the additive prevents diffusion of the pigment ink.
The method according to claim 14, wherein the binder with additive is coated in the form of foam.
The method according to claim 14, wherein performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate comprises:

coating the binder and the additive on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate simultaneously.
The method according to claim 14, wherein performing the pre-treatment on the non-woven fabric substrate comprises:

coating the binder on the surface of the non-woven fabric substrate; and

coating the additive on the binder.
The method according to claim 14, further comprising: forming a water gathering film on the protection coating layer by spraying.
The method according to claim 14, wherein the additive comprises a sodium alginate.
The method according to claim 19, wherein the additive further comprises at least one selected from a group consisting of a urea and a sodium carboxymethyl cellulose.