Resilient articles and methods of manufacturing thereof

1. An article, comprising:

a base material;

wherein the base material is or comprises ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA);

wherein the EVA is about 5% to about 30% by weight of the base material; and

a design material,

wherein the design material is directly applied on the base material; and

a protective material.

2. The article of claim 1 , wherein the design material comprises an ink.

3. The article of claim 2 , wherein the ink is UV cured or curable.

4. The article of claim 1 , wherein the protective material is or comprises a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating, and wherein the protective material is disposed of on top of the design material.

5. The article of claim 1 , wherein the base material further comprises an aesthetic background layer, which layer forms a background against which the design material is viewed.

6. The article of claim 5 , wherein the base material further comprises a UV cured or curable primer disposed of on top of the aesthetic background layer.

7. The article of claim 5 , wherein the aesthetic background layer is or comprises a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

8. A method of manufacturing an article, comprising steps of:

blending ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), a tackifier, and a filler at an elevated temperature to form a base material

wherein the EVA is about 5% and about 30% by weight of the base material;

calendaring the base material onto a web;

directly applying at least one design material on the base material; and

applying at least one protective material to the design material.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising a step of applying a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating onto the at least one design material on the base material.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising a step of applying a top coat material on the moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

11. The method of claim 8 , the step of forming base material further comprises applying an aesthetic background layer on top of the base material, which layer forms a background against which the design material is viewed.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the aesthetic background layer is a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the applying step comprises heated roll coating.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the hot melt coating does not break, cleave, crack, or crumble when it is embossed or its edges are rounded, beveled, or depressed.

15. The method of claim 14 , prior to the step of directly applying the at least one design material further comprising a step of finishing a top surface of the base material.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of finishing comprises sanding, corona treating, and/or flame treating.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the step of sanding comprises sanding with a surface having a grit of about 50 to about 500.

18. The method of claim 8 , further comprising steps of:

finishing a top surface of the base material prior to the step of applying the at least one design material on the base material, wherein the finishing step consists of a member selected from the group consisting of sanding with a sanding surface having a grit of about 50 to about 500, corona treating, and flame treating;

heated roll coating an aesthetic background layer on top of the base material, so that the aesthetic background layer forms a background against which the design material is viewed,

wherein the aesthetic background layer is a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating;

applying a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating onto the at least one design material on the base material; and

applying a top coat material on the moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

19. An article, comprising:

a base material;

wherein the base material is or comprises a polymer and/or a polymer mixture,

wherein the polymer and/or polymer mixture is substantially free of PVC resin,

wherein the polymer and/or polymer mixture characterized by a melt flow index as measured by ASTM D1238 in a range including: about 20 g/10 min to about 60 g/10 min, and

wherein the polymer and/or a polymer mixture comprises about 5% to about 30% by weight of the base material;

a design material,

wherein the design material is directly applied on the base material; and

a protective material.

20. The article of claim 19 , wherein the polymer and/or a polymer mixture is or comprises a polyolefin copolymer or thermoplastic polyolefin.

21. The article of claim 19 , further comprising an aesthetic background layer atop the base material, which layer forms a background against which the design material is viewed, and

wherein the design material comprises a primer, and a UV curable ink.

22. The article of claim 19 , wherein the protective material comprises a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating and a UV cured or curable top coat material disposed on the moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

23. An article, comprising:

a base material including an aesthetic background layer on a surface thereof, the base material comprising ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), a tackifier, and a filler,

wherein the EVA comprises 5-20% of the base material;

a design material directly applied on a surface the aesthetic background layer,

wherein the design material comprises a primer and a UV curable ink;

wherein the aesthetic background layer forms a background against which the design material is viewed; and

a protective material adhered to the UV curable ink.

24. The article of claim 23 , wherein the article is characterized by at least one of a Taber abrasion value greater than 2000 cycles, a tensile modulus of less than 1000 lbs./in, or its base material has a Delta E of less than 5 following Xenon arc exposure for at least 400 hours.

25. The article of claim 23 , wherein the design material comprises a photo-realistic image of a desired aesthetic.

26. The article of claim 23 , wherein a protective material is or comprises a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

27. The article of claim 26 , wherein the protective material further comprises a UV cured or curable top coat material disposed on the moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

28. The article of claim 1 , wherein the EVA is about 1% to about 20% by weight of the base material.

29. The article of claim 1 , wherein the EVA is less than about 15% by weight of the base material.

30. The article of claim 1 ,

wherein the base material includes an aesthetic background layer on a surface thereof, which layer forms a background against which the design material is viewed,

wherein the design material comprises a UV curable ink and a UV cured or curable primer disposed of on top of it, and

wherein the protective material is or comprises a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating adhered to the UV curable ink and a UV cured or curable top coat material disposed on the moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.

31. The article of claim 28 , wherein the article is characterized by at least one of a Taber abrasion value greater than 2000 cycles, a tensile modulus of less than 1000 lbs./in, or its base material has a Delta E of less than 5 following Xenon arc exposure for at least 400 hours.

32. The article of claim 1 , wherein the design material comprises a photo-realistic image of a desired aesthetic.

33. The article of claim 1 , wherein the base material is designed and engineered to be punched from a calendared web having a single thickness.

34. The article of claim 5 , wherein the aesthetic background layer is a white pad coating.

35. The article of claim 5 , wherein the aesthetic background layer is or comprises a moisture cured polyurethane hot melt coating.