An automated manufacturing method and system and in-mold coated plastic article produced thereby are provided. The system includes a combination compression and injection mold and a plurality of program-controlled manipulators. An automatic sprayer supported on a first manipulator sprays at least a portion of a mold surface with an in-mold coating composition. An end effector supported on a second manipulator picks up a heated blank of moldable plastic sheet material from an oven and places the heated blank in the mold. An inner portion of the heated blank is forced into an article-defining cavity of the mold and into contact with at least a portion of the composition. The composition and the inner portion cure and bond to one another and a plastic compatible with the plastic of the sheet is injected into the mold so as to form the coated plastic article.

The invention relates, among other things, to a method of making a thin panel (10) for outdoor applications, comprising, among other things, the following steps: a) providing a deep-drawable film (10) of a transparent plastic, b) deep-drawing the film (11) in a mold (34), c) mounting a structure (19) having solar cells (32) on an inner face (16) of the deep-drawn film (12), d) placing the deep-drawn film (12) with mounted structure (19) in a cavity (33) of a mold (34) having in particular at least two mold halves (13, 14), e) introducing a liquid polyurethane casting compound (24) into the cavity (33) of the mold (34) and spreading the polyurethane casting compound (24) over an inner face (18) of the structure (19) and/or over the inner face (16) of the film (12), f) curing the polyurethane casting compound, in particular with the mold closed, to form a reinforcement layer (30), or comprising the following steps j) and k) instead of the steps e) and f): j) introducing a granular particle foam mass into the cavity (33) of the mold (34) and spreading over an inner face (18) of the structure (19) and/or over the inner face (16) of the film (12), k) baking and curing the particle foam mass, in particular with the mold closed, to form a reinforcement layer (30).

A method of making a light sensor module includes connecting a light sensing circuit to an interconnect on a substrate, and forming a cap. The cap is formed by producing a cap substrate from material opaque to light to have an opening formed therein, placing the cap substrate top-face down, dispensing a light transmissible material into the opening, compressing the light transmissible material using a hot tool to thereby cause the light transmissible material to fully flow into the opening to form at a light transmissible aperture, and placing the cap substrate into a curing environment. A bonding material is dispensed onto the substrate. The cap is picked up and placed onto the substrate positioned such that the light transmissible aperture is aligned with the light sensing circuit, with the bonding material bonding the cap to the substrate to thereby form the light sensor module.

An automated manufacturing method and system and in-mold coated plastic article produced thereby are provided. The system includes a compression mold and a plurality of program-controlled manipulators. An automatic sprayer supported on a first manipulator sprays at least a portion of a mold surface with an in-mold coating composition. An end effector supported on a second manipulator picks up a heated blank of moldable plastic sheet material from an oven and places the heated blank between upper and lower mold halves of the mold. An inner portion of the heated blank is forced into an article-defining cavity of the mold and into contact with at least a portion of the in-mold coating composition. The in-mold coating composition and the inner portion of the heated blank cure and bond to one another so as to form the coated plastic article.

A multilayer plate with composite material and a method thereof are described. The multilayer plate includes an aluminum-based thin sheet and a composite material layer. The aluminum-based thin sheet includes a first passivation layer, an aluminum-based metal layer, and a second passivation layer sequentially. The aluminum-based thin sheet includes a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface. The first and second surfaces are set with micro holes. A diameter of the micro holes in the second surface is ranging from 0.5 μm to 10 μm. The composite material layer includes a thermoplastic polymer and a fiber material. The composite material layer has a third surface and a fourth surface opposite each other. The second surface is adjacent to or connected to the third surface. At least one portion of the thermoplastic polymer fills into the micro holes in the second surface.

A method for manufacturing a composite includes providing a first template including a cutout for a first layer of the composite, disposing the first layer in the cutout, and disposing a tablet, provided with an adhesive, on the first layer such that the first layer adheres to the tablet. Next, the tablet is removed, together with the first layer adhered thereto, from the cutout, and an adhesive is applied to a side of the first layer facing away from the tablet. A second template is provided that includes a cutout for a second layer of the composite, and then the second layer is disposed in the cutout. The tablet, together with the first layer adhered thereto, is disposed on the second layer disposed in the cutout of the second template, and the tablet is removed, together with the composite produced from the first and second layers, from the second template.

Methods of producing polymer-metal hybrid components that are bonded by C—O-M bonds at the interface using at least one of the hot pressing, rolling, and injection molding methods to create chemical bond formation conditions at the polymer and metal interface. When the thermal cycle and compressive pressure specified herein is combinationally created at the polymer and metal interfaced, strong C—O-M bonds forms at the interface and strongly bonds the metal and polymer together through the reaction carbonyl groups (C═O) in polymer and the metal surface. For polymers lacking enough carbonyl groups, new functional groups can be in-situ generation through introducing distributed air pockets at the polymer-metal interface for forming 3-dimensional distributed C—O-M bonds at the interface.

Waterproof, breathable garments and methods of making are provided. The garments may include a laminate of a seamless ePTFE membrane and at least one textile. The garment is conformable over a range of sizes, and may be shaped to fit numerous sizes and shapes of forming molds. The ePTFE membrane may shrink to fit, or, alternatively, be stretched to fit, a mold having a desired size to form a garment. Such a conformable ePTFE membrane may allow for forming multiple sizes of garments with various sizes and shapes of molds. In embodiments where the ePTFE membrane is seamless and continuous, the garment eliminates the need for a waterproof seam tape, which is conventionally used to make garments waterproof.

An automated manufacturing method and system and in-mold coated plastic article produced thereby are provided. The system includes a compression mold and a plurality of program-controlled manipulators. An automatic sprayer supported on a first manipulator sprays at least a portion of a mold surface with an in-mold coating composition. An end effector supported on a second manipulator picks up a heated blank of moldable plastic sheet material from an oven and places the heated blank between upper and lower mold halves of the mold. An inner portion of the heated blank is forced into an article-defining cavity of the mold and into contact with at least a portion of the in-mold coating composition. The in-mold coating composition and the inner portion of the heated blank cure and bond to one another so as to form the coated plastic article.

A building panel has a deep drawn transparent film having an inner face and a structure having solar cells on the inner face of the deep-drawn film. The structure has an inner face turned away from the film and an outer face on or closely juxtaposed with the inner face of the film. A reinforcement layer constituted as a mass of foamed granular particles is spread over the inner face of the structure in direct contact with the inner face of the structure without the interposition of an adhesive and is heat cured to the film.