MOULD FOR COSMETIC PRODUCTS AND ITS USE IN A PROCESS FOR MOULDING SAID PRODUCTS

Abstract

Disclosed is a mould for a cosmetic product, including at least one hollow body having a chamber delimited by a wall with a moulding surface and an access opening, the chamber being adapted to receive the cosmetic product in liquid form, the body possibly including a margin, extending radially from the opening and at least partially around it, the mould further including, possibly, a rigid support component, around the perimeter of the hollow body, the mould being characterised in that at least the body is made of a flexible polymer material. Also disclosed is a process for the manufacture of a cosmetic product using the aforementioned mould.

Claims

1. A mould (1) for a cosmetic product (P), comprising at least one hollow body (2) having a chamber (C) delimited by a wall (6) with a moulding surface (S) and an access opening (5), said chamber (C) being adapted to receive the cosmetic product (P) in liquid form, said body possibly comprising a margin (3), extending radially from said opening (5) and at least partially around it, said mould (1) further comprising, possibly, a rigid perimeter support component (4), wherein at least said body (2) is made of a flexible polymer material.

2. The mould (1) according to claim 1, wherein said polymer material is a film or a layer with a thickness of between 0.1 mm and 3 mm.

3. The mould (1) according to claim 2, wherein said material is transparent.

4. The mould (1) according to claim 2, wherein said polymer material is thermoformable or even of a thermoplastic type.

5. The mould (1) according to claim 4, wherein said material is chosen from polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene terephthalate-glycol, polyethylene, polycarbonate, polystyrene, silicone, or polyurethane.

6. The mould (1) according to claim 4, characterised in that the moulding surface (S) is obtained by means of a thermoforming process of said film.

7. The mould (1) according to claim 1, wherein the support component (4) can be removably coupled with the hollow body (2).

8. The mould (1) according to claim 1, wherein the support component (4) is of a piece with the hollow body (2).

9. The mould (1) according to claim 1, wherein the support component (4) is made of metal.

10. The mould (1) according to claim 1, further comprising a closing element (10) which rests on a positioning edge (9) present on the wall (6) of the chamber (C), along the inner face.

11. The mould (1) according to claim 1, wherein the moulding surface (S) has at least one area on which a decorative element is traced.

12. A process for moulding a cosmetic product (P) capable of giving said product (P) a pod-like shape wherein is engaged a mould (1) according to claim 1, said process comprising at least one step of filling the mould (1) with the product (P) and at least one step of extracting the product (P) from the mould.

13. The process according to claim 12, wherein during this process the step of extracting the product (P) from the mould (1) comprises the application of a thrust exerted on the outer wall of the chamber (C).

14. The process according to claim 13, wherein the thrust is exerted manually or using automatic means.

15. The mould (1) according to claim 1, wherein said polymer material is thermoformable or even of a thermoplastic type.

16. The mould (1) according to claim 3, wherein said polymer material is thermoformable or even of a thermoplastic type.

17. The mould (1) according to claim 2, wherein the support component (4) can be removably coupled with the hollow body (2).

18. The mould (1) according to claim 3, wherein the support component (4) can be removably coupled with the hollow body (2).

19. The mould (1) according to claim 4, wherein the support component (4) can be removably coupled with the hollow body (2).

20. The mould (1) according to claim 5, wherein the support component (4) can be removably coupled with the hollow body (2).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0081] Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become more evident from the following description of a preferred but non-exclusive embodiment of a support element as shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0082] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the mould according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0083] FIG. 2 shows a side view of the mould shown in FIG. 1, in cross-section along a transversal plane A-A;

[0084] FIG. 3 shows a plan view of the mould shown in FIG. 1;

[0085] FIG. 4 shows a side view of the mould shown in FIG. 1, in cross-section along a transversal plane A-A, complete with the closing element;

[0086] FIGS. 5a and 5b show a plan and perspective view of the closing element for the mould, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0087] FIG. 6 shows a view of the moulding process line according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0088] With reference to the accompanying drawings, the reference number 1 is used to indicate the mould for poured type cosmetic products as a whole.

[0089] FIGS. 1 and 2 show a mould 1 comprising a hollow body 2 with a substantially circular opening 5. Near this opening 5 there is a positioning edge 9 and a margin 3 extending radially from the opening. The mould also comprises a rigid support component 4.

[0090] In the context of the present invention, relative terms such as upper, lower and horizontal refer to the mould or pod in their position of use, which for the mould means oriented substantially in its filling position, as illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0091] The opening 5 usually has a circular or oval shape, but any other shape is possible.

[0092] The wall 6 of the hollow body 2 has a bowl-like shape so as to form a concave chamber C, and is connected to the margin 3 that extends radially and on a plane between the opening 5 and the support component 4.

[0093] As can be seen in FIG. 2, the wall 6 at the bottom of the hollow body 2 has a portion 7 the inner face of which has a decorative element 8 in relief or recessed. This decorative element 8 is a partial mould of the decorative element that one wishes to reproduce on the surface of the cosmetic product.

[0094] As can be seen in FIG. 4, the hollow body 2 is closed by a closing element 10 in the form of a substantially circular plate, the two faces of which are defined as the inner surface 11 and outer surface 12 (FIGS. 5a and 5b).

[0095] These internal and external references refer to the condition of use of the closing element in which the inner surface 11 is destined to be stably coupled with the cosmetic product P and the outer surface 12 will be fixed to a make-up case housing (not illustrated).

[0096] The thickness of the plate is typically constant and is preferably between 0.5 mm and 2.5 mm. Preferably the thickness is around 1 mm

[0097] As illustrated in FIGS. 5a and 5b, the plate 10 has a perimeter edge 13 that is slightly raised so as to protrude from the inner surface 11. This edge 13 rests on the positioning edge 9.

[0098] In the central area of the plate 10 there are two openings 14 placed in a specular manner with respect to an axis of symmetry (not shown in the figures).

[0099] In the embodiment shown, said openings 14 have a substantially ring-like shape with the two sides along the longer axis, straight and parallel to one another.

[0100] Advantageously, according to the invention, the edge 14a of the openings 14 is raised and protruding from inner surface 11.

[0101] The height or extension of the edge 14a of the openings and of the perimeter edge 13 is preferably between 1 mm and 3 mm, and more preferably it is around 2 mm

[0102] Along the circumferential edge of the plate 10 there is also provided a plurality of relief holes 15, preferably numbering between 1 and 40. As mentioned above, said holes 15 allow all the air inside the mould to flow out during filling with the liquid cosmetic product, thereby helping to reduce or eliminate the presence of bubbles or air pockets inside the pod and at the interface with the support element.

[0103] On the outer surface 12 of the plate 10, on the other hand, there are cavities or recesses 16. Said cavities 16 help to distribute the adhesive material A that is applied to the outer surface 12 to fix the support element to the case.

[0104] The closing element 10 is preferably made of ABS by means of a moulding procedure. According to one preferred variant, the mould of the closing element 10 is configured so as to obtain an inner surface 11 that is rough or in any case not entirely smooth.

[0105] The surface thus obtained adheres more strongly to the lower surface of the pod of cosmetic product once it has solidified.

[0106] Preferably, the closing element 10 is colourless and transparent or translucent. In this way, during the visual quality control inspection it is possible to identify any air bubbles trapped between the inner surface 11 and the bottom of the cosmetic product.

[0107] The margin 3 has a variable width L, and in particular moulds can be produced whose width L is inversely proportional to the size of the opening.

[0108] The mould according to the present invention measures a few centimetres per side, typically between 5 cm and 20 cm.

[0109] The variation in the width L of the margins as a function of the size of the opening makes it possible to have moulds with the same overall dimensions, but with different sizes for the chamber and the opening. This is advantageous in that it makes it possible, as mentioned above, to be able to use the same support component while varying the dimensions of the chamber to produce cosmetic products of different sizes.

[0110] The hollow body 2 with its margin 3 are produced using a film of PET, or an equivalent material, by means of a process for thermoforming said film.

[0111] The process of thermoforming the film to produce said part of the mould involves several steps. In particular, the first step of the process involves cutting a square sheet from a roll of PET film.

[0112] In the next step the sheet is applied to a vacuum device and is then subjected to heating, where it is heated to a temperature of between 100 C. and 250 C., preferably between 170 C. and 225 C., and generally at 200 C. for a period of time of between 15 and 250 seconds, preferably between 130 and 180 seconds, and typically 160 seconds. At the end of this step, the sheet is applied to a generally male matrix with the required shape and size for the mould to be produced. The film is then made to adhere to the matrix, and then cooled, by means of the formation of a vacuum for a period of time of between 5 and 15 seconds, preferably between 7 and 13 seconds, and typically 10 seconds. Preferably a negative pressure of between 0.2 bar and 1 bar is applied, and typically 0.6 bar.

[0113] FIG. 2 shows the frame 4 comprising two parts 4, 4, typically overlying one another. Each of these has a passing central cavity 17, in which the hollow body can be housed, and a supporting plane 18 surrounding this central cavity 17 wholly or in part.

[0114] Said two parts 4, 4 of the frame 4 act by tightening between them the peripheral portion of the margin 3. More specifically, this margin 3 is placed between the two supporting planes 18 of the two halves of the frame 4.

[0115] Said parts of the frame 4 are joined to one another either by snap-fitting or by coupling means not shown in the figures.

[0116] The advantage of this type of frame is that it is easy and quick to disassemble and can be of a standard size so as to be able to replace the hollow body 2 with another hollow body 2 of a different size, depending on production needs.

[0117] The support component 4 is made of steel or aluminium.

[0118] A further advantage of this mould is that, when required, it is not necessary to replace the entire mould, but only a portion thereof, i.e. the hollow body, which results in further savings on the product costs of the cosmetic product.

[0119] FIG. 7 shows a schematic view of the main steps making up the moulding process for the cosmetic product, carried out on a production device indicated as a whole by the reference number 100.

[0120] In this moulding process, there is a phase of filling the mould 1 by means of a filling device 110, then a phase of cooling the cosmetic product in a cooling tunnel 120 until it solidifies, following which the mould is conveyed to a pod-removal station 130 where it is turned through 180, so that the closing element 10 is facing downwards. In the subsequent pod-removal phase, extraction of the product P from the mould 1 is achieved by means of the manual application of a thrust/pressure exerted on the moulding surface S of the body 2. The cosmetic product thus extracted is whole, and can therefore be sent to the packaging line, while the mould, without any pod fragments, is ready to be re-used for another production cycle.

[0121] The invention has been thus described by way of non-limiting example, according to certain preferred embodiments. Technical experts in the sector will be able to find numerous other embodiments and variants, all of which fall within the scope of protection of the following claims.