TEXON MATERIALES SL (ES)
JOHNSON SUSAN GWYNNETH (GB)
| US5824613A | 1998-10-20 | |||
| US4603075A | 1986-07-29 | |||
| US5607798A | 1997-03-04 | |||
| GB1600745A | 1981-10-21 | |||
| US4594283A | 1986-06-10 |
| 1. | A method of making a shoe insole comprising a nonwoven bonded fibre fabric in which at least 60% by weight of the insole is polypropylene and the remainder is a bonding agent of lower melting point than the polypropylene, the method comprising procuring a nonwoven fibre web in which at least 5 % by weight of the web is provided by bonding fibres which comprise a bonding agent of lower melting point than polypropylene and the remainder of the fibres comprise polypropylene, attaching the web to a woven fabric comprising polypropylene by needle punching, and subjecting the web attached to the fabric to heat whereby to melt the bonding agent thus to bond adjacent polypropylene fibres to one other and thereby form said nonwoven bonded fibre fabric. |
| 2. | A method according to claim 1 wherein the fibres which comprise a bonding agent are bicomponent fibres consisting of polypropylene and polyolefin bonding agent. |
| 3. | A method according to claim 2 wherein the fibres are of the core/sheath type with a core comprising polypropylene and a sheath of polyolefin bonding agent. |
| 4. | A method according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the bonding fibres comprise between 100% and 30% by weight of the total fibres in the web, the balance being polypropylene fibres. |
| 5. | A method according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the bonding agent is polyethylene. |
7. A method according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the web is heated by exposing it to hot air at a temperature greater than the softening point of the bonding agent and less than that of the polypropylene.
8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the material is passed through the nip between calender rolls, the rolls being heated to a temperature greater than the softening point of the bonding agent and less than the softening point of the polypropylene.
9. A method according to any one of the preceding claims wherein some, at least, of the bonding fibres are formed from re-cycled scrap material according to any one of claims 10 to 14.
10. A material suitable for use in the manufacture of shoe insoles comprising a non-woven bonded fibre fabric in which at least 60% by weight of the material is polypropylene comprising a non-woven fibre web attached to a woven polypropylene fabric by needle punching and a bonding agent of lower melting point than the polypropylene.
11. A material according to claim 10 wherein the bonding agent is a polyolefin.
12. A material according to claim 11 wherein the polyolefin is polyethylene. 13. A material according to any one of claims 10 to 12 wherein the woven polypropylene fabric is a woven polypropylene tape scrim.
14. A material according to any one of claims 10 to 13 made by a method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.
15. A shoe insole comprising a material according to any one of claims 10 to 14.
Statement under Article 19 Amended claim 1 was previously claim 4 but has been amended to remove the original reference to claims 1 to 3.
Claims 2-9 were previously claims 5-12.
Claims 10-14 were previously claims 14-18.
A new claim 15 has been added.
Original claims 1-3 and claim 13 have been deleted.
The amendments to the claims will necessitate changes on pages 2-5 of the specification.