A synthetic nonwoven fabric having bonded fibers forming channels surrounding unbonded fibers forming raised slip resistant spots. The fabric is made by extruding hot polymer through a spinneret die onto a moving belt to form a sheet of random fibers, which sheet undergoes a calendering process between a pair of heated rollers, one of which rollers having a plurality of cavities defined in its surface. The resulting fabric can be laminated and otherwise combined with other layers as desired to provide an end product having good slip resistant properties.

A method of creating projections in a substrate is presented. A first device is provided with an outer surface defining recesses, where each recess has a first portion proximate the outer surface with a first perimeter and first depth and a second portion distal the outer surface with a second perimeter and second depth. The first perimeter is larger than the second perimeter and the first depth is less than the second depth. The first portion of the recesses substantially surrounds the second portion of the recesses. The method also includes forming a nip between a source of vibration energy and the outer surface and conveying the substrate through the nip to create precursor projections. The method also includes heating portions of the precursor projections and applying pressure to the heated portions to flatten the portions and increase a perimeter of the portions to form the projections.

Aspects disclosed herein relate to improvements regarding the formation of touch fasteners on nonwoven materials or other thermoplastic and non-thermoplastic materials employing ultrasonic formation technologies. Such improvements may be applied to rotary sonotrodes or blade sonotrodes. These improvements may include raised or recessed features in the functional surface of the sonotrode, methods and arrangements of pre-heating and/or cooling the functional surface of the sonotrode, varying or fixing the surface speed of the rotary sonotrode relative to a molding roller to form touch fasteners at desired spacing intervals, and the inclusion of supplementary material with the substrate. Various molding rollers are also disclosed.