Process of making hollow products, especially toys or pet products, and hollow products made with the process

• US 9,844,703 B1
• Filed: 03/30/2016
• Issued: 12/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gramercy Products Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Daniel Troiano, Rishi Gupta
• Inventors: Gupta, Rishi, Troiano, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Steven
• Application Number:
  US15/084,881
• Time in Patent Office: 629 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 15/025 Toys specially adapted for animals
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2039/003 substantially hollow and pressureless
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2208/14 specially adapted for animals
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 39/00 Hollow non-inflatable balls , i.e. having no valves rigid balls A63B37/00
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 45/006 Joining parts moulded in separate cavities
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 65/02 by heating, with or without pressure
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 65/48 using adhesives , i.e. using supplementary joining material; solvent bonding
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 66/124 Tongue and groove joints
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 66/12443 having the tongue substantially in the middle
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 66/54 Joining several hollow-preforms, e.g. half-shells, to form hollow articles, e.g. for making balls, containers; Joining several hollow-preforms, e.g. half-cylinders, to form tubular articles
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 66/71 characterised by the composition of the plastics material of the parts to be joined welding bar compositions B29C65/125
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 66/73921 characterised by the materials of both parts being thermoplastics
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2021/00 Use of unspecified rubbers as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2021/003 Thermoplastic elastomers
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2031/54 Balls

Abstract

In the process of making a hollow product, especially a deformable toy ball, two halves made from an elastomeric material, a thermoplastic material, rubber, a blend of rubbers, or a thermoplastic elastomer are formed by injection molding with mating edges that engage with each other when the halves are assembled to form the product. The edge of one of the two halves is advantageously formed with a recess centered in the edge, in which a flange formed on the edge of the other of the two halves engages to provide a form-fitting connection between the two halves. The opposing edges are then bonded with each other by fusion or melting or by an adhesive applied to at least one of the edges prior to assembling the halves together. A deformable ball produced by the process is also described.

Claims

1. A deformable ball comprising:

a first hemispherical portion having a spherical outer surface and a spherical inner surface, with at least one opening interconnected therebetween, and a substantially flat mating surface, said substantially flat mating surface comprising an arcuate recess configured to form an inward facing step;

a second hemispherical portion having a spherical outer surface and a spherical inner surface, with at least one opening interconnected therebetween, and a substantially flat mating surface, said substantially flat mating surface comprising an arcuate protrusion protruding therefrom being configured to form an outward facing step;

wherein said inward facing step of said first hemispherical portion is configured to be engaged by, and be secured to, said outward facing step formed by said arcuate protrusion of said second hemispherical portion, in a form fitting relation; and

wherein said first hemispherical portion comprises a first flange and a second flange, each configured to be substantially perpendicular to a plane formed at a split line between said first hemispherical portion and said second hemispherical portion and to protrude inwardly toward a central portion of said ball, and to enage said arcuate protrusion of said second hemispherical portion on an opposite side as said engagement of said arcuate protrusion with said inward facing step of said first hemispherical portion.

2. The deformable ball according to claim 1, wherein said inward facing step of said first hemispherical portion is secured to said outward facing step of said second hemispherical portion using adhesive.

3. The deformable ball according to claim 1, wherein said inward facing step of said first hemispherical portion is secured to said outward facing step of said second hemispherical portion by being melted at a mating surface.

4. The deformable ball according to claim 1,

wherein said first hemispherical portion comprises a rectangular-shaped keyway;

and

wherein said second hemispherical portion comprises a protrusion correspondingly shaped to be received by said rectangular-shaped keyway of said first hemispherical portion.

5. The deformable ball according to claim 1, wherein an end of each of said first and second flanges terminates in a cylindrical pin.