A machine for manufacturing a mask includes a plurality of carriers mounted to a belt so as and having a plurality of molding cavity inserts. A feed station supplies material from a roll so as to form a sheet of material on to the carriers. A shell forming station is configured to press a molding core inserts into the molding cavity inserts so as to form a shape of the mask. A welding station generates a predetermined ultrasonic vibration at a predetermined frequency and a predetermined amplitude so as to weld the sheet of material. A cutting station cuts out the mask from the sheet of material. A mask grabbing apparatus is configured to grab the mask and position the mask for retrieval.

A linear wall or ceiling panel comprising and formed from a woven or non-woven fibrous material. Preferably, the material is thermoformable and non-woven and comprises at least one of the group consisting of: bi-core polyester fibers: two different types of fibers having different melting points; a mixture of bi-core polyester fibers and non-bi-core (single core) polyester fibers. The panel is preferably shaped to provide means for mounting the panel to a carrier. Optionally, an end portion may be provided to cover the open longitudinal end of the linear panel.

A stretchable structure of an absorbent article has a first sheet layer of a nonwoven fabric; a second sheet layer of a nonwoven fabric and opposed to one side of the first sheet layer. A plurality of elongated elastically stretchable members are provided along the stretchable direction at intervals from each other between the first sheet layer and the second sheet layer. The first sheet layer and the second sheet layer have sheet bonded portions bonded via a hot melt adhesive disposed in a striped pattern that is intermittent in the longitudinal direction of the elastically stretchable members and continuously elongated in the direction intersecting with the elastically stretchable members. One of the first sheet layer and the second sheet layer is a spunbond nonwoven fabric, and the other sheet layer is an air-through nonwoven fabric whose surface on the spunbond nonwoven fabric side is a fluffy surface.

A process for producing a stable fabric comprising: 1) providing a first fabric formed from reinforcing fibers, 2) providing an elastic nonwoven web produced from elastic fibers, having softening temperature lower than said reinforcing fibers, on at least lone side of said first fabric to form a structure, 3) heating said structure to a temperature between the softening temperature and melting temperature of said nonwoven web, and 4) cooling said structure to thereby provide a stable two-dimensional fabric. In the preferred embodiment, the structure of step 2) is put into a mold prior to heating step 3), heating said structure in the mold according to step 3), cooling said structure in the mold according to step 4) and thereby providing a three-dimensional shaped article. A product is also provided produced by these processes.

Laminated light-blocking decorative articles are prepared by applying an aqueous foamed opacifying composition to a decorative fabric, drying, laminating a non-woven fabric to the resulting dry foamed opacifying layer, and densifying that layer to have a thickness that is at least 20% less than before densifying. This operation can be carried out so that non-woven fabric, decorative fabric, and aqueous foamed opacifying composition are supplied in a single-pass, in-line operation to make any quantity of laminated light-blocking decorative article. The applied aqueous foamed opacifying composition has 35%-70% solids and a foam density of 0.1-0.5 g/cm.sup.3. It is composed of (a) porous particles, (b) a binder material, (c) two or more additives comprising at least one foaming surfactant and at least one foam stabilizer, (d) an aqueous medium, and (e) at least 0.0001 weight % of an opacifying colorant that absorbs electromagnetic radiation having a wavelength of 380-800 nm.

A machine (1) and a method for thermobonding using an emission of electromagnetic waves (13), for example microwaves, to activate one or a plurality of adhesive layers located between a support and one or a plurality of layers of flexible covering, through a bed of particles (4) fluidized by a humidified gas. A multi-layer upholstery item including at least one non-permeable layer and produced in a single operation is also described.

In a manufacturing method, resin in a molten state which becomes a film raw material is caused to hang down from a discharge port of a discharger and the film-like film raw material is continuously discharged, a sheet is conveyed along a sheet pass line, a tip part of the film raw material is formed by cutting and removing an initially formed part of the initially formed film raw material, the tip part is overlapped on the sheet on the sheet pass line, the sheet and the film raw material in a mutually overlapping state are conveyed along the sheet pass line, and the sheet and the film raw material are introduced to a joining part from the sheet pass line.

An apparatus for manufacturing an elastic composite structure includes a first roller configured to transport a web layer in a machine direction and a laydown guide configured to guide a laydown pattern of a plurality of elastic threads. A rotary anvil comprises a first weld line having a first notch formed in a contact surface of the first weld line, the first notch having a first interior configured to receive a portion of a first elastic thread of the plurality of elastic threads and a portion of the web layer therein. The first notch comprises a facing surface defining at least a portion of the first interior. A smallest orientation angle of a first face axis normal to the facing surface with respect to a contact surface axis normal to the contact surface is a first angle that is less than 90 degrees.

A high-performance optical absorber includes: a texturized base layer, the base layer comprising one or more of a polymer film and a polymer coating; and a surface layer located above and immediately adjacent to the base layer, the surface layer joined to the base layer, the surface layer comprising a plasma-functionalized, non-woven carbon nanotube (CNT) sheet. A method using capillary force lamination (CFL) for manufacturing a high-performance optical absorber, includes: texturizing a base layer of the high-performance optical absorber, the base layer comprising one or more of a polymer film and a polymer coating; joining a surface layer of the high-performance optical absorber to the base layer, the surface layer comprising a non-woven carbon nanotube (CNT) sheet; wetting the joined surface layer and base layer with a solvent; drying the joined surface layer and base layer; and treating the resulting base layer with plasma, creating the high-performance optical absorber.

Methods for forming absorbent articles and side seam bonds of absorbent articles are described. In one embodiment, a method of forming absorbent articles may comprise advancing webs, coupling absorbent cores to the webs intermittently to form open absorbent article chassis, folding the absorbent article chassis, forming a first side seam bond first bond pair between a first region of the webs and a second region of the webs with a first ultrasonic horn, forming a second side seam bond of the bond pair between the first region and the second region with a second ultrasonic horn, the first bond being associated with a first absorbent article chassis and the second side seam bond being associated with a second absorbent article chassis, and cutting the folded absorbent article chassis between the first bond and the second bond to separate the first absorbent article chassis from the second absorbent article chassis.