FORM 2
THE PATENT ACT 1970
(39 of 1970)
AND
The Patents Rules, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See section 10 and rulel3)
1. Title of the invention:
"A DETACHABLE PLODDER EXTENSION ASSEMBLY FOR
PRODUCING AESTHETIC MODIFICATIONS IN SOAPS"

2. Applicant (s):
(a) Name: Godrej Consumer Products Limited.
(b) Nationality: Indian company incorporated under the Indian Companies
Act, 1956
(c) Address: Pirojshanagar, Eastern Express Highway, Vikroli (East),
Mumbai - 400079, Maharashtra, India.
3. Preamble to the description:
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.

Technical field:
The present invention relates to a novel apparatus used in extrusion process for the preparation of soap which permits the production of soap bars having comparable striated aesthetic quality on both sides of the soap log. The invention further relates to soap compositions that exhibit aesthetic modifications when passed through the extended apparatus without modifying conventional plodder.
Back ground and prior art:
The size of the market for consumer soap is extraordinarily large. The aesthetics of soap plays a large role in the buying decisions of the consumer and consequently is assuming a more important role in manufacturing. Bar soap constitutes a substantial portion of the consumer market in India. Considering size of the market, and the volume of continuing sales, a marketing advantage which not only distinguishes one brand from another but also makes the brand more appealing to the consumer's senses is desired by industries to extract even small competitive advantages in a voluminous market.
The aesthetics of the soap has proven to be of particular importance to the consumer. The soap industry has tried to capture the attention of the consumer by improving the aesthetic characteristics of soap. In the past, bar soap have consisted of white rectangular bars which were of plain appearance and inexpensive to make. Coloured bars of soap were then developed through the injection of dyes into the soap to produce a distinctly colour soap that attached the consumer's attention. Soap has further been moulded into shapes, perfumed, and coloured all in an attempt to render it more appealing to the consumer. Various soap brands have attracted the consumer with marbled colourations. However, these designs are old in the art and fail to attract the attention of the consumer as they did upon their introduction to the market and now commend a smaller portion of the consumer market than when they were introduced. Consequently, methods of making a visually attractive soap bar that would attract the consumer's attention are highly desirable.

In order to highlight the aesthetic design in soap, a number of solutions have been suggested by the art.
U.S. Patent No. 5,246361 teaches a method and apparatus for producing striated soap bars produced in a dual extrusion process.
The making of soap by introducing coloured liquid to admix with soap filaments in a worm plodder prior to extrusion of the billet is disclosed in U.S. Pate. No. 3,485, 905.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,784,533 teaches a method and apparatus in which soap is first extruded through a nozzle having an opening and then glossed as it passes through the opening in order to impart gloss. Again, there is no orifice or port in the middle where the soap is extruded into two or more bars and no recognition of how such an orifice might affect flow patterns and the aesthetics of the inner log face.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,868,208 teaches a nozzle plate assembly for obtaining an improved surface finish on high speed extrusions without requiring trimming.
WO 01/9I990A discloses an apparatus and method for making striated soap. The apparatus comprises two aperture plates connected by tubes and a plurality of plugs fitted in to various apertures.
In all the above cited prior arts the conventional plodding equipments have been
either modified or re designed to get the different surface patterns. These equipments
have to be used exclusively for making aesthetic design or striated or variegated
soaps.
Thus it could be greatly desirable to provide an apparatus for making aesthetic design
in soaps and can be detached depending upon the requirement of manufacture of soap.

Objectives of the invention:
The object of the invention is to provide a novel apparatus used in extrusion process for the preparation of soap which permits the production of soap bars having comparable striated aesthetic quality on both sides of the soap log.
Another object of the invention is to provide soap compositions that exhibit aesthetic design when passed thru the extended apparatus without modifying conventional plodder.
Summary of the invention:
In accordance with the above objectives, the present invention discloses a novel apparatus used in extrusion process for the preparation of soap which permits the production of soap bars having comparable striated aesthetic quality on both sides of the soap log.
Accordingly, in one aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for extruding soap which comprises an extended plodder assembly including a nosecone 9 and a nozzle plate 8 situated on the upper side of the nosecone, wherein, the nozzle plate comprises plurality of apertures/perforations/openings, to enable the soap stream passes through the nozzle plate to provide noodles shape stream; which is then extruded/compacted in the extended nosecone, without disturbing aesthetic designs. In another aspect, the invention provides soap compositions that exhibit aesthetic modifications when passed through the extended apparatus without modifying conventional plodder.
In yet another aspect of the invention, the Nose cone assembly can be readily inserted or removed from a conventional soap plodder, thus can be used as and when required

Brief description of Drawings:
Reference is next made to the drawings, in which:
Figure 1 represents schematic view of conventional soap plodding equipment
Figure 2 depicts a schematic perspective view of soap plodder utilized in the invention;
Figure 3 represents an enlarged view of a nozzle p/ate of the soap p/odder;
Figure 4 represents another enlarged view of an extended nose cone.
Detailed description of the invention:
The invention will now be described in detail in connection with certain preferred and optional embodiments, so that various aspects thereof may be more fully understood and appreciated.
The subject of the present invention provides a novel apparatus whereby soap can be extruded in an extrusion process to produce a bar of comparable aesthetic quality on both inner and outer log faces of the extruded bars. It is believed that the milled and compressed soap forced through a nozzle plate with circular shape holes and discharged through invented extrusion nose cone as a continuous bar. The radial depth of the longitudinal striations and their spacing width and shape may be determined by the number, shape of perforations/apertures in nozzle plate.
FIG. I shows mainly diagrainmatically a conventional type soap plodder 1 wherein milled soap is compressed and compacted by a rotating worm 2 and forced through a terminal converging cone 3 from which it is discharged through extrusion nozzle 4 as a continuous bar. The extrusion nozzle imparts the desired shape and cross section to the extruding bar, usually rectangular or circular.

Referring now to Fig-2 there is shown an apparatus designated diagrammatically a conventional type soap plodder 5 wherein soap containing the striating agent is compressed and compacted by a rotating worm 6 and forced through a terminal converging cone 7 from which it is discharged through designated extrusion, a perforated nozzle plate 8 as a continuous noodles stream. As per the preferred embodiment, the soap stream further extruded/compacted through the invented nose cone 9 to form a bar which is cut into suitable billets and formed by suitable dyes and molds into bars. The extrusion nozzle plate imparts the desired longitudinal striations to the extruding bar.
As shown in the fig-3 the nozzle plate has plurality of perforations/openings/apertures in the range of 20 to 50 % of the plate, preferably in the range of 25% to 30%. If the apertures are below 20%, the back pressure increases in the nose cone and above 50% aesthetic design does not formed. By changing the shape of nozzle plate apertures, various aesthetic designs in soaps can be made.
The diameter of the aperture of the nozzle plate 8 is in the range 2 mm to 20 mm. The greater the diameter, lesser the aesthetic designs and also lesser the diameter, lesser the aesthetic design. The pitch between the apertures of the nozzle plate 8 also plays a role in aesthetic designs. The pitch between the circular apertures is in the range 2 mm to 10 mm.
In Figure 4, a preferred detailed embodiment of the nose cone for use in the present invention is shown. The ratio of the length of the nose cone to opening diameter of extended nose cone is in the range of 1: 2. to 1:3. Increase in length of the nose cone, leads to a more compact soap and aesthetic design disappears. While decrease in length of the nose cone, soap does not become compact.
Finally, in another aspect of the invention, nose cone can be readily inserted or removed from a conventional soap plodder, thus can be used as and when required.
The following examples, which include preferred embodiments, will serve to illustrate the practice of this invention, it being understood that the particulars shown are by

way of example and for purpose of illustrative discussion of preferred embodiments of the invention.
EXAMPLES: Example 1
Examples of formulations used for making aesthetic modifications in soap are now described. In a process for making aesthetic modifications in soap through the use of the nose cone as previously disclosed, the following compositions were used for making aesthetic modifications in soaps:
Example-1

Soap Base (80/20 Palm/Coconut or Palm kernel soap) 98.5%
Coated Mica 0.5%
Colour Sufficient quantity
Fragrance 1%
Example-2

Soap Base(80 Palm / Coconut or Palm Kernel soap) 97.5%
Coated Mica 0.5%
Glycerine 1%
Colour Sufficient quantity
Fragrance 1%
All the above soap compositions produced soap bars with distinct aesthetic designs, which could be extruded through the extended nose cone without developing significant back pressure which disturbs aesthetic designs.

The advantages of the present invention are:
1. The apparatus can be attached to conventional soap manufacturing unit to get aesthetic designs in soaps.
2. The apparatus used in extrusion process for the preparation of soap which permits the production of soap bars having comparable striated aesthetic quality on both sides of the soap log.
3. Uniform colour delivery on soap bars.
4. No effect of re-circulation of soap on aesthetic modification.
It will be evident to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative examples and that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the present embodiments and examples be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

We claim,
1. A detachable plodder extension assembly for producing aesthetic modifications in soaps comprising a cone shape assembly which includes an extruding nosecone 9 and a nozzle plate 8 situated on the upper side of the nosecone, wherein, the nozzle plate comprises plurality of apertures/perforations/openings, to enable the soap stream passes through the nozzle plate to provide noodles shape stream; which is then extruded/compacted in the extended nosecone 9, without disturbing aesthetic designs.
2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the nozzle plate has 20 to 50 % of circular apertures/perforations/openings.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein circular apertures has diameter in the range of 2 mm to 20 mm.
4. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the ratio of the length of nose cone to opening diameter of extended nose cone is independently in the range of 1:2 to 1:3.
5. The apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the pitch between the circular
apertures are in the range of 2 mm to 10 mm.
6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle plate aperture may be in variety of shapes to provide various aesthetic designs in soaps.
7. The apparatus according to any of preceding claims, wherein said nose cone can be readily inserted or removed from a conventional soap plodder.
Dated this 10th day of December, 2008