A hierarchical sandwich core in the form of a honeycomb, i.e. having repetitive and periodic lattice materials. The sandwich core can be made up of a macroscopic honeycomb structure with sandwich cell walls having a mesoscopic cellular core. The longitudinal axis of cells of the mesoscopic honeycomb cell can be perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cells of the macroscopic honeycomb structure. Alternatively, if a foam core is used having mesoscopic cells the shape of the mesoscopic cells can be made during the foaming process so that they are elongate in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cells of the macroscopic honeycomb structure.

Disclosed are a honeycomb cell shock-protection paper pad structure, and a fabrication method and a fabrication apparatus, for overcoming springing back of a stretched honeycomb cell paper shock-protection pad. The honeycomb shock-protection paper pad structure includes paper strips that have an unconnected site of which upper and lower ends are formed with folded-edge bend portions and a connected site that is formed with a central bend portion. A shape-fixing method includes stretching a cellular-form shock-protection paper pad for extension, bending upper and lower ends of the paper strips of the stretched honeycomb cell shock-protection paper pad toward one side, and conducting shape-fixing rolling with paired rollers. A shape-fixing apparatus includes a chassis portion, an edge scraper portion including flexible upper and lower scraper blades mounted obliquely on the chassis portion, and a shape-fixing roller portion including rigid shaping paired roller mounted on the chassis portion.

Disclosed are a honeycomb cell shock-protection paper pad structure, and a fabrication method and a fabrication apparatus, for overcoming springing back of a stretched honeycomb cell paper shock-protection pad. The honeycomb shock-protection paper pad structure includes paper strips that have an unconnected site of which upper and lower ends are formed with folded-edge bend portions and a connected site that is formed with a central bend portion. A shape-fixing method includes stretching a cellular-form shock-protection paper pad for extension, bending upper and lower ends of the paper strips of the stretched honeycomb cell shock-protection paper pad toward one side, and conducting shape-fixing rolling with paired rollers. A shape-fixing apparatus includes a chassis portion, an edge scraper portion including flexible upper and lower scraper blades mounted obliquely on the chassis portion, and a shape-fixing roller portion including rigid shaping paired roller mounted on the chassis portion.

An extensible slit sheet paper product is produced having an expandable slit pattern that forms open cells upon expansion of the paper product. The paper product is an extensible paper having an extensibility in the range from 1-9% in the machine direction and 1-5% in the cross direction. The expansion produces an array of hexagonal cells. The expanded extensible paper can be used to wrap an object for shipping by wrapping and cushioning the object in the expanded slit sheet material. The extensible, expandable slit sheet paper can be wrapped around itself to produce a void fill product.

According to the present disclosure there is provided a method of forming a first structure (150), comprising the steps of: providing one or more slots (124) in a material, thereby to define a plurality of strips (122) of the material, the slots (124) defining a series of connecting elements (128) connecting adjacent strips (122) of the material, the connecting elements (128) being spaced apart along a first direction (130), forming the material to provide: an array of oppositely oriented channels (152), each channel (152) extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and the array itself extending in the first direction, each channel comprising a base, and sides extending from the base; and a first, non-continuous, outer plane; and a second, non-continuous, outer plane, such that the first structure is foldable along each of the series of connecting elements about the first direction to bring the first outer plane of a first strip toward, and optionally into contact with, the first outer plane of a second, adjacent strip.

A method of forming a structural honeycomb includes cutting and folding a substrate sheet according to predetermined cutting and folding patterns and fold angles that cause the sheet to form a honeycomb having cells that each have at least one face abutting, or nearly abutting, the face of another cell. The honeycomb is then stabilized by joining abutting, or nearly abutting, faces to hold the honeycomb together. The honeycomb may have a prespecified three-dimensional shape. The folding pattern may include corrugation, canted corrugation, or zig-zag folds. Joining may employ fixed and/or reversible joinery, including slotted cross section, tabbed strip, angled strip, integral skin, sewn, or laced. At least some folds may be partially-closed to create bends and twists in the honeycomb structure. Some surfaces of the honeycomb may be covered with a skin or face sheet. The substrate sheet may have flexible electronic traces.

An apparatus for the manufacture of a panel of individual cellular compartments from an elongate sheet of flexible material. The apparatus comprises first and second rod banks and a feed head reciprocally moveable longitudinally and generally parallel along the rod banks. The feed head applies the flexible material about the exterior side surfaces of the rods of one of the rod banks when moving in one direction, and applies the flexible material about the exterior surfaces of the rods of the other of the rod banks when moving in the opposite direction, to thereby apply sequential layers of the flexible material to the exterior surface of the rods of the rod banks in an alternating fashion. The sequential layers of flexible material are secured to one another at points of contact along the length of the rods to form successive rows of conjoined compartments that form a panel.

Structures including a curved corrugated wall fabricated from a plurality of layers formed of one or more shaped strips and methods of forming the structures are described. A shaped strip used in the fabrication includes a variable profile across the width of the strip with a first edge of a strip defining a series of cell profiles of a first geometric shape and a second, opposite edge of the strip defining a series of cell profiles of a second, different geometric shape, with each cell transitioning from the first profile to the second profile across the width of the strip. The geometry of the cell profiles at either end of each cell can be designed with respect to one another to allow for radial orientation of the strip about an axis with little or no deformation or stress on the strip edges.

In the preferred embodiments, the present invention provides substantially improved slit sheet cushioning products by advantageously combining novel paper properties with novel slit patterns for improved features and characteristics. In some illustrative and non-limiting example embodiments, cushioning products of the present invention can include, e.g., a novel slit sheet material in combination with extensible paper employed as, e.g., a cushioning pad or as cushioning within an envelope product, wherein the cushioning product can be substantially more resilient, but, yet, e.g., thinner for better utilization of space.

An inflatable game ball and a method of constructing an inflatable game ball is described. Panel segments are formed from an outer panel portion and an inner panel portion having different sizes, with the inner panel portion being smaller than the outer panel portion. The inner panel portion and the outer panel portion are joined so that peripheral edges of the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion are aligned. Multiple panel segments are attached together to form a cover. Due to the differences in sizes between the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion, when an inflatable bladder within an interior of the cover is inflated to a fully inflated condition, variations in the dimensions of the ball caused by stretching of the cover may be reduced or minimized. In one embodiment, an alignment guide can assist with aligning the peripheral edges of the panel portions.