CN-121985992-A - Paint mixing container and apparatus

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a paint mixing container comprising a cup comprising a base portion and a side wall portion and having an opening opposite the base portion, the opening being surrounded by a rim formed by an end of the side wall portion remote from the base portion. The sidewall portion includes at least one elongated recess extending through the base portion and from the base portion toward the rim. The present disclosure also relates to a paint mixing apparatus comprising at least one port portion configured to receive a paint mixing container, at least one guide element, wherein the at least one port portion is movably connected to the at least one guide element to permit translational movement of the received paint mixing container, at least one drive unit operatively coupled to the port portion, wherein the drive unit is configured to (i) rotate the port portion or the paint mixing container received therein and (ii) move the port portion in translational movement along at least a portion of the at least one guide element. The present disclosure also relates to a mold for forming the container by injection molding, a method of forming the container by injection molding, and a method for mixing paint.

Inventors

• I. Logue Ferrer Dalmau
• A. Depenu
• P. P.H.J. Gritz
• M. W. Essex
• G. J. Vanderriel
• M. Bijismar

Assignees

• PPG工业俄亥俄公司
• EMM国际有限责任公司

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20240718

Priority Date

20230726

Claims (15)

1. 1. A container for mixing paint, the container comprising: A cup comprising a base portion and a side wall portion enclosing a container volume, and having an opening opposite the base portion, the opening being surrounded by a rim formed by an end of the side wall portion remote from the base portion, characterized in that the side wall portion comprises at least one elongate recess extending through the base portion and extending from the base portion towards the rim, wherein the at least one elongate recess has a curved cross section and protrudes from an adjacent portion of the side wall portion into the container volume.
2. 2. The container of claim 1, wherein, The cup comprises at least two, preferably at least three, elongated recesses, wherein the elongated recesses are preferably symmetrically arranged about a central longitudinal axis of the cup, and/or The at least one elongated recess extends from the base portion to at least half the height of the cup, for example up to 100% of the height of the cup, and/or The cup has a cylindrical, tubular or frustoconical or truncated tubular basic shape, preferably wherein the tubular or truncated tubular basic shape has a polygonal cross section with four or more sides.
3. 3. The container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, The edges being rounded or polygonal with four or more sides, preferably rounded, and/or The at least one elongated recess protrudes into the container volume to a protrusion depth of at least 5mm, such as in the range of 5mm to 10 mm, and/or the at least one elongated recess has a width of 5mm to 10 mm, and/or The at least one elongated recess has a semi-sinusoidal cross-sectional shape, wherein the at least one elongated recess extends linearly from the base portion towards the rim, and/or The at least one elongated recess extending linearly from the base portion toward the rim, and/or The at least one elongated recess defines a corresponding hollow space on an outer surface of the cup.
4. 4. The container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, The cup comprises a plurality of, preferably at least two, spacers arranged on the outer surface of the cup, preferably wherein the plurality of spacers are located in corresponding hollow spaces formed by one or more elongated recesses on the outer surface of the cup, preferably at or near the end of the elongated recesses remote from the base portion, more preferably wherein at least one spacer is a protrusion, such as a fin, extending from the outer surface of the cup, and/or The base portion and the side wall portion are joined by a rounded edge, preferably wherein the rounded edge has a curvature with a radius in the range of 5mm to 15mm, and/or The container volume is in the range of 0.1L to 2.0L, such as 0.2L to 1.5L or in the range of 0.3L to 1.0L.
5. 5. A container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the container comprises a flexible liner insertable into the cup to conform to the inner surface of the cup and having a support lip to engage with the rim of the cup, and/or wherein the rim of the cup comprises a support lip, preferably wherein the cup is a rigid support container into which the liner is insertable with its support lip detachably connected to the rigid support container.
6. 6. A container according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a lid detachably connected to the rim of the cup to close the opening of the container, preferably wherein the lid comprises an outlet for paint configured to allow coupling to paint applicator apparatus, and/or wherein a filter is mounted inside the lid.
7. 7. The container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, At least one component of the container comprises means for pressure equalization, and/or -The container or at least one part of the container is disposable and/or made of a plastic material, preferably a thermoplastic material, more preferably polypropylene, more preferably wherein the container or at least one part of the container is made of a plastic material comprising 25 to 100%, more preferably 40 to 100% recycled plastic material, and/or -The base portion of the paint cup comprises a centre point remote from the side wall portion, and the paint cup further comprises at least one second recess protruding into the container volume, wherein the at least one second recess is located at the centre point of the base portion, wherein optionally the base portion protrudes further into the containable volume.
8. 8. A mold configured for forming a cup, the cup comprising a base portion and a sidewall portion enclosing a container volume, and the cup having an opening opposite the base portion, the opening being surrounded by a rim formed by an end of the sidewall portion remote from the base portion, wherein the sidewall portion comprises at least one elongated recess extending through the base portion and extending from the base portion towards the rim, the at least one elongated recess having a curved cross section and protruding from an adjacent portion of the sidewall portion into the container volume.
9. 9. Method for manufacturing a container for mixing paint according to any one of claims 1 to 7, comprising injection moulding at least one part of the container, in particular the cup, preferably using a mould as defined in claim 8.
10. 10. A paint mixing apparatus, the paint mixing apparatus comprising: At least one port configured to receive a paint mixing container, At least one guide element, wherein the at least one port portion is movably connected to the at least one guide element to permit translational movement of the housed paint mixing container, At least one drive unit operatively coupled to the port portion, Wherein the drive unit is configured to (i) rotate the port portion or a paint mixing container housed therein and (ii) move the port portion in translational motion along at least a portion of the at least one guide element.
11. 11. The paint mixing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein, The port portion comprises a holder into which a paint mixing container according to any one of claims 1 to 7 can be inserted, wherein the holder is preferably configured to accommodate paint mixing containers of different sizes and/or not to accommodate paint mixing containers other than the paint mixing container according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and/or -The port portion comprises at least one retaining element for securing the paint mixing container in the port portion, preferably wherein the at least one retaining element comprises a resilient member configured to engage a mating structural element on an outer surface of the paint mixing container, wherein the mating structural element preferably comprises a hollow space on an outer surface of a cup of the paint mixing container, the hollow space corresponding to an elongated recess on a sidewall portion of the cup.
12. 12. The paint mixing apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 11, wherein, The guide element is a linear guide element, and/or The paint mixing apparatus is configured to rotate a paint mixing container received in the port portion about a central longitudinal axis of the paint mixing container, and/or -The port portion movably connected to the at least one guiding element has a stroke length of 5 cm to 20 cm, preferably 10 cm to 15 cm, and/or -The drive unit comprises a first drive coupled to the port portion, configured to rotate the port portion or a paint mixing container housed in the port portion, and a second drive configured to move the port portion along at least a portion of the length of the guiding element, preferably wherein the first drive is configured to reverse the direction of rotation and/or adjust the speed of rotation according to a predetermined rotation procedure, and/or wherein the second drive is configured to reverse the direction of movement of the port portion along at least a portion of the length of the guiding element and/or adjust the speed of movement and/or adjust the length of movement according to a predetermined translation procedure.
13. 13. The paint mixing apparatus of any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the paint mixing apparatus: Comprising a housing accommodating the at least one port portion, the at least one guiding element and the at least one drive unit, preferably wherein the housing comprises a transparent viewing portion and/or a reversibly openable or detachable portion for accessing the port portion, and/or Comprising at least one sensor for detecting the paint mixing container mounted in the port and/or for detecting the closure or correct mounting of the reversibly openable or removable portion of the housing, and/or Comprising means for fixing the paint mixing device to a table top and/or wall, and/or Having a width of 25 cm to 70 cm, preferably 30 cm to 50 cm, and/or Having a depth of 15 cm to 50 cm, preferably 20 cm to 40 cm, and/or Having a height of 20 cm to 50 cm, preferably 25 cm to 40 cm, and/or Comprising a control unit for controlling the operation of the drive unit, and/or Comprising user control means and/or an interface for communication with external electronic devices, such as an interface for wired communication and/or an interface for wireless communication.
14. 14. A method for mixing paint, comprising: Providing one or more paint components to be mixed in a desired amount into a paint mixing container, preferably into a paint mixing container as defined in any one of claims 1 to 7, Optionally closing the paint mixing container with a cap, and The paint mixing container is preferably subjected to (i) rotational movement and (ii) translational movement in at least one spatial direction for mixing the paint components using the paint mixing apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 13.
15. 15. The method of claim 14, wherein, The rotational movement and the translational movement occur at least partially overlapping in time, and/or -Subjecting the paint mixing container to both the rotational movement and the translational movement during mixing of the paint components, and/or The rotational movement comprises rotating the paint mixing container about its central longitudinal axis, and/or The translational movement comprises a linear translational movement, wherein the linear translational movement preferably comprises repeatedly moving the paint mixing container in a back and forth manner in a linear path, and/or The length of the linear path preferably has a length in the range of 5 cm to 20 cm, such as 10 cm to 15 cm, and/or The direction of rotation is reversed at least once during the mixing step, and/or -The rotational movement has a maximum speed of 500 rpm to 2000 rpm, the translational movement has a maximum speed of 50.000 mm/min to 100.000 mm/min, a rotational acceleration of 40 rpm 2 to 150 rpm 2 , and/or a translational acceleration of 40 rpm 2 to 150 rpm 2 , and/or Mixing is carried out for a duration of 30 seconds to 5 minutes.

Description

Paint mixing container and apparatus Technical Field The present disclosure relates to a container for mixing paint, in particular for use with a spray gun in any kind of painting operation. The present disclosure also relates to a mold for forming the container and a process for forming the container, a paint mixing apparatus and a process for mixing paint with the paint mixing container. Background Paints are typically mixed from a variety of components in order to obtain a desired color or other optical properties (e.g., sparkle or other special effects) and/or certain application or curing characteristics. For example, in paint repair applications, such as in body shops for vehicle repairs, it is necessary to provide a paint that exactly matches the color and visual appearance of an object (such as a vehicle being repaired) and is then applied to the object. For this purpose, paint mixing containers having a cylindrical or conical cup-like shape are widely used, which generally have a volume of up to about 1 liter and a removable cap with an outlet that can be coupled to a spray gun to apply the mixed paint to the work piece to be painted. Generally, the paint components being dispensed are manually mixed or blended in a paint mixing cup, typically by using a mixing rod or a manual stirrer. However, such manual paint mixing requires valuable work time for the painter and is wasteful and polluting the working space due to splatter during mixing and/or drop from the used mixing rod or stirrer. Paint loss and associated contamination upon manual mixing can affect product quality and/or color accuracy and create unsightly workspaces that are unattractive for working therein or display to potential customers. Although mechanical mixing solutions involving automated mechanical agitators are known in the art, such devices do not overcome the problems of paint loss and workspace contamination. To avoid the above-mentioned drawbacks associated with manual paint mixing, automatic dispensing machines and mixers have been developed. However, such equipment is relatively expensive and is often burdensome for, for example, a small body shop. Now, a rolling mixer type shaker (e.g., collomix Rotogen a 1000) is often used to mix paint components dispensed to a paint mixing container. The rolling mixer comprises an inclined drive shaft. Thus, during mixing, the paint components are thrown relatively far upward, so that paint is at risk of being splashed from the paint mixing cup if filled to a higher level. To avoid such spillage, the paint cup may be closed with a cap. However, there is a subsequent risk that a part of the paint component adheres to the portion of the cap and/or returns only incompletely through the filter, which is usually integrated into the cap, so that the paint component cannot be completely homogenized, thereby affecting the properties of the resulting mixture, such as its hue. The use of well known mixing techniques, such as mechanical stirring mixing blades, may further provide unsatisfactory mixing results, especially when the paint to be mixed contains solid particles (such as "effect pigments"). Mechanical agitation using mixing blades is described, for example, in U.S. patent No. 5,094,543, incorporated herein by reference. The patent further describes a paint mixing container having a recess that is used to secure the container in a mixing apparatus known in the art. This is due to the well known techniques resulting in a rotational velocity gradient or even "calm zone" in the mixing vessel where the paint is hardly stirred at all. This may lead to, for example, accumulation or precipitation of solid particles (such as effect pigments) or accumulation of some other components of the paint without being properly distributed throughout the fluid. Thus, the mixed paint may contain an uneven distribution of some ingredients or may develop undesirable color or viscosity gradients. It is therefore desirable to provide a simple, inexpensive and easy to use solution that alleviates or avoids at least some of the aforementioned problems of the prior art. The present disclosure is therefore particularly aimed at providing an inexpensive and easy-to-use device which allows to achieve efficient homogeneous automatic mixing of paint components, without problems of spillage and contamination of the working space, to achieve improved homogenization of the mixed paint, and to enable the application of the obtained mixture directly to the substrate to be painted. Disclosure of Invention The present disclosure relates to a container for mixing paint, the container comprising a cup comprising a base portion and a side wall portion enclosing a container volume, and having an opening opposite the base portion, the opening being surrounded by a rim formed by an end of the side wall portion remote from the base portion. As a solution to the above object, the side wall portion comprises at least one elongated rece