| 摘要 |
A method and apparatus for making a dome-shaped sealing element for a vaginal speculum from an annular workpiece of closed cell polyethylene foam sheet material is described. The apparatus comprises a mould defining an open ended cavity having a circular cross-sectional shape smaller in diameter than the outside diameter of the workpiece, a loading station wherein said workpiece may be applied to the mould to rest on the mould to cover a mouth of said cavity, an insertion station wherein a plunger with a convex head forces the workpiece into said cavity so as to cause the workpiece to adopt a domed shape with a concave side directed towards the mouth of the cavity, a heating station wherein a radiant heating arrangement heats the concave side of the workpiece in the mould cavity to soften a surface layer thereof, a cooling station wherein the said surface layer is allowed to cool in the mould cavity, and an unloading station wherein a plunger with a concave head pushes the shaped workpiece from the cavity, a conveyor arrangement to shift the mould from station to station, and a control arrangement to effect coordinated operation of the conveyor arrangement and the respective plungers and radiant heating arrangement.
|
