Method and apparatus for manufacturing an article with a skin having a structured or grained surface

摘要

The process comprises the following steps: (1) Placing an elastic liner that has a pattern in the inside into the mold, so that the plain side is against the mold wall; (2) Application of liquid material to form the skin and hardening it; (3) Backing the skin with rigid foam by introducing and reacting the required materials; (4) Removing the component together with the elastic liner from the mold; (5) Pulling off the liner, leaving a patterned surface on the skin. An Independent claim is also included for an analogous process where the step of backing the skin by foaming is replaced by introducing a support body and bonding it to the skin by an adhesive layer. In both processes the mold can incorporate slides, entry ports for the various materials and any necessary heating arrangements. The elastic liner is made separately using a positive model (1) with the required surface pattern (2). It is placed in an outer mold (6) fitted with the required slides (5a, 5b) and entry port (4) so that the mold space (8) can be filled with liquid reagents. After curing an elastic liner with the surface pattern on the inside is obtained.