This is an application based on and claiming priority to DE 10 2015 10 549 6 filed on May 29, 2015, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The present invention relates to a fender for a bicycle and a method for producing a fender.
Fenders for a bicycle are usually made of plastic, in particular of a polypropylene (PP). Polypropylene belongs to the polymer group of polyolefins and can be printed only with great effort. Injection molded articles made of polypropylene are frequently printed by way of the pad printing process. The quality and precision of pad printing is relatively poor. Furthermore, the article must be transported to the printer after the injection molding process which is relatively complex. Also, printed films having, for example, a label or decoration may be glued onto the fender. However, on the one hand, such films can detach from the fender. On the other hand, such films frequently do not give the fender a high-quality appearance, especially because the user recognizes that the films are different from the actual fender.
The problem addressed by the present invention is to provide a fender of the aforementioned type which is provided with high-quality decorations or information such as labels or other printed text. A method for producing such a fender is also disclosed.
This is achieved according to the invention with a fender having the characterizing features of claim 1 and with a method having the features of claim 6. The dependent claims relate to preferred embodiments of the invention.
According to claim 1, the fender body and the support means are firmly connected together by back-molding. Back-molding produces a firm connection between the support means and the fender body. Since the support means are firmly connected with the fender body directly during the injection molding process, costly reworking is no longer needed. In particular, subsequent printing of the fender is averted which results in cost savings.
The support means r may include a label and/or text and/or a decoration and/or a colored area and/or a transparent area. The fender can therefore be provided by way of the support means with labels, icons, backlight technology and multicolored two-dimensional decorations.
The support means may include at least one film or may be composed of at least one film, wherein the at least one film is in particular printed. A film has frequently a simple geometry such as an essentially two-dimensional shape. Thus, the film can be printed in high quality, for example, by using digital printing.
The fender body may be a curved component, preferably with a complex curvature, which is in particular at least in sections shaped as a partial torus. Despite the complex curvature of the fender, the solid connection with the support means produced by back-molding can give the fender an attractive appearance with high quality decorations, or with information such as labels or other printed text.
The fender body and the support means may be at least partially and/or in sections made of the same material, with this material being for example a polypropylene. Selecting identical material for the fender body and the support means ensures a high quality material connection.
The method contemplates the following method steps:
The support means which include at least one film or which may be composed of least one film are preferably printed before loading into the injection mold. Furthermore, the support means may be trimmed and/or reshaped before being loaded into the injection mold, wherein reshaping may take place in particular after printing. In this way, finished decorated fenders which may in particular have a complex curvature can be produced with the injection molding process.
Further features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show in:
In the figures, identical and functionally identical part e provided with identical reference symbols.
The exemplary embodiment of a fender according to the present invention illustrated in the figures includes a fender body 1 and film serving as support means 2, which is printed with a label. 3 However, more than one film, for example two or three films may be provided.
The fender body 1 has two lateral projections 4 which can be bent downward for attachment to the bicycle, thus producing a fender with an overall shape of a partial torus. However, this shape of a partial torus ay already be produced by the actual injection molding process.
For producing the finished fender depicted in
In particular, when the fender is to be provided with a complex curvature already during injection molding, for example a shape of a partial torus partially adapted to a wheel of a bicycle, the film is reshaped before being loaded into the injection mold so as to also have a corresponding curvature. In this way, the film can be in intimate contact with the correspondingly shaped mold.
Thereafter, the fender body is produced in the mold by an injection molding process and back-molded behind the film. Since the foil is also heated during injection molding, the film and the fender body 1 are materially connected, in particular when the film and the fender body 1 are made of the same material such as polypropylene.
After removal from the mold, a finished decorated fender is produced, as depicted for example in
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
102015108 549.6 | May 2015 | DE | national |