Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
  • A63H9/00—Special methods or compositions for the manufacture of dolls, toy animals, toy figures, or parts thereof
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
  • A63H17/00—Toy vehicles, e.g. with self-drive; ; Cranes, winches or the like; Accessories therefor
  • A63H17/002—Toy vehicles, e.g. with self-drive; ; Cranes, winches or the like; Accessories therefor made of parts to be assembled
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
  • A63H17/00—Toy vehicles, e.g. with self-drive; ; Cranes, winches or the like; Accessories therefor
  • A63H17/26—Details; Accessories
  • A63H17/262—Chassis; Wheel mountings; Wheels; Axles; Suspensions; Fitting body portions to chassis
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C51/00—Shaping by thermoforming, i.e. shaping sheets or sheet like preforms after heating, e.g. shaping sheets in matched moulds or by deep-drawing; Apparatus therefor
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C51/00—Shaping by thermoforming, i.e. shaping sheets or sheet like preforms after heating, e.g. shaping sheets in matched moulds or by deep-drawing; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C51/26—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
  • B29C51/266—Auxiliary operations after the thermoforming operation
  • B29C51/267—Two sheets being thermoformed in separate mould parts and joined together while still in the mould
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29L—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASS B29C, RELATING TO PARTICULAR ARTICLES
  • B29L2031/00—Other particular articles
  • B29L2031/52—Sports equipment ; Games; Articles for amusement; Toys
  • B29L2031/5209—Toys
  • B29L2031/5218—Dolls, puppets

Definitions

• the invention refers to the manufacturing of plastic material items, particularly - though not exclusively - of toys and the like intended for example to be associated to or incorporated in confectionary products, typically chocolate eggs. State of the prior art
• toys such as model automobiles, puppets, small robots and the like are made up of a single full body, i.e. solid, or separate parts joinable and assemblable to each other and, such parts being solid also in this case, made by means of injection moulding of plastic material.
• the external surface of the toy is decorated with images correlated thereto (for example, in case of model automobiles, the image of the body and, in the case of a puppet or robot, a similar image) usually after the injection process, generally through manual painting processes.
• the present invention has the object of overcoming the abovementioned problems, and implementing a method for manufacturing an item, particularly a toy, made of plastic material which on one hand requires the use of a considerably low amount of plastic material, also allowing providing the toy with a motorisation or animation mechanism, and on the other allowing decorating the toy in a simple and inexpensive manner, and also without the colouring substances representing a source of risks of contamination for the user.
• the method according to the invention is essentially characterised in that it comprises the following operations: providing at least one sheet made of thermoformable plastic material,
• thermoforming said at least one sheet in such a manner to obtain a half-shell with said printed decoration visible from outside and having a projecting perimeter edge complementary to said protruding peripheral edge of said plate,
• the abovementioned at least one sheet is transparent or translucent and the related decoration is printed on the face intended to form the internal surface of the respective half-shell.
• the method according to the invention can be used for example for manufacturing a model automobile: in such case, the half-shell defined the body, and the plate - typically obtained by means of injection moulding - bears the wheels and the mechanism for actuation thereof.
• both are moulded with respective decorations and hence thermoformed to form two half-shells that are joined from opposite parts to the plate, in such case formed on both faces with respective protruding peripheral edges couplable with the projecting perimeter edges of the two half-shells.
• the method according to the invention can in such case be used for example for manufacturing a puppet or animated robot. Items made following the method according to the invention are manufacturable in a particularly inexpensive manner and they are also considerably lighter with respect to the ones made by means of the current injection moulding technologies.
• FIG. 1 schematically represents a step of the manufacturing method according to a first embodiment of the invention
• figure 2 represents the final toy obtained by means of the method according to figure 1
• figure 3 schematically shows a step of the manufacturing method according to a second embodiment of the invention
• figure 4 schematically shows the toy obtained by means of the method of figure 3.
• FIG. 1 The embodiment that shall now be described referring to figures 1 and 2 regards the manufacturing of a model automobile, particularly intended to be associated to a confectionary product for example enclosable in a chocolate egg as a "surprise”.
• the first step of the manufacturing method consists in providing a sheet made of thermoformable plastic material, typically flat and typically of the type intended for use in the food production industry, preferably transparent or translucent.
• a decoration correlated to the toy to be manufactured is printed on a face of the thermoformable sheet, by means of conventional printing processes for example in a four-colour process.
• the decoration shall represent its body.
• the subsequent step consists in thermoforming the sheet thus moulded in such a manner to obtain a half- shell 1 whose configuration corresponds to that of the toy automobile body.
• the decoration previously painted on the sheet before its thermoforming shall be arranged on the internal surface of the half-shell 1.
• the half-shell 1 is thermoformed in such a manner to have, along its perimeter, a peripheral edge 2 projecting outwards.
• a generally flat plate 3 is prearranged, also made of plastic material and for example made by means of injection moulding, in such a manner to have a substantially rigid configuration.
• the plate 3 is formed, on its upper surface, with a protruding peripheral edge 4 projecting upwards and complementary to the projecting perimeter edge 2 of the half-shell 1.
• a motorisation mechanism schematically indicated with 5, for example made up of a spring-driven motor, as well as - in the case of the illustrated example - two pairs of wheels 6, 7 two of which are actuated by the mechanism 5.
• the last step of the method consists in coupling the half-shell 1 onto the plate 3, engaging the projecting perimeter edge 2 into the protruding peripheral edge 4 and joining them permanently, for example by means of welding or equivalent systems.
• the method provides for the thermoforming of two sheets previously print-decorated on a respective face, in such a manner to attain two half-shells 1 each of which has a perimeter edge 2 projecting outwards.
• the plate 3 also in this case generally flat and generally rigid is in turn formed with a protruding peripheral edge 4 projecting from opposite parts on both of its faces.
• the plate 3 has a spring mechanism 5 and moveable parts actuated thereby, for example in form of hands 6 and feet 7.
• the toy acquires the final animated robot configuration illustrated in figure 4.
• the decoration of the half-shells 1, resembling the robot shall be conveniently inaccessible but visible from outside due to the transparency of the sheets used for thermoforming the two half-shells 1.
• the decorations may be provided for on the external surfaces of the half-shells 1, in such case made starting from thermoformable sheets neither transparent nor translucent.
• the configuration of the item obtained through the method according to the invention may widely vary with respect to that described and illustrated, and have widely varying shapes, compatibly with the characteristics of the forming method.

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• Toys (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=40293306

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Family Cites Families (7)

• 2008
  • 2008-03-31 IT ITTO20080248 patent/ITTO20080248A1/it unknown
• 2009
  • 2009-03-23 WO PCT/IB2009/051207 patent/WO2009122320A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2009-03-23 EP EP09728499A patent/EP2285459A1/en not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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