GB2165184A - Panelling - Google Patents

Abstract

Panelling is provided with at least one surface that can be cut in order to provide a decorative or other pattern in relief. The panelling comprises a base layer (1) of fabricated material, such as chip-board, and, at or near a front surface of the panelling, a layer of wood (2) at least 2mm thick. A thin veneer of wood (3) can be secured to the front face of the wood layer Decorative or other patterns (5) and (6) are cut into the layer. The panelling may be used in the manufacture of coffins. Principally for other purposes the panelling may be provided with a similar layer of wood on the rear surface as well. Such double-faced panelling may be used for making doors, for example. Thin layers of adhesive (4) may be used to secure together the components of the panelling, and the techniques used in securing the components together may be similar to those used in the manufacture of plywood. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Panelling This invention relates to panelling. The panelling with which the invention is concerned has been developed for use in the construction of coffins but it is to be understood that it is of much more general application and may, for example, be used in the manufacture of furniture, doors and other articles.

At one time it was the general practice to make coffins from wood, and it was customary for the side walls to be ornamented in such a way that each generally flat portion was provided with a decorative border or frame around a plain central area. In recent years, however, the cost of wood suitable for coffin manufacture has become so high that it is now more usual to make coffins from less expensive materials. Nevertheless it is considered desirable for coffins to look as if they are made from solid wood, so use has been made of fabricated panelling such as chip-board or fibreboard veneered with wood. While the appearance of such panelling is generally satisfactory the pannelling suffers from the disadvantage that it cannot be ornamented by being machined or cut away as removal of the veneer reveals the fabricated material beneath.Attempts have been made to impress a pattern on the veneer but they have not been very satisfactory because the impressions have been relatively shallow, owing to the hardness of the fabricated material behind the veneer, and the veneer has tended to split and splinter.

An object of the present invention is to provide a form of panelling such as to enable those problems to be overcome or at least reduced.

From a first aspect the present invention consists in panelling in the form of a laminated structure comprising a base layer of fabricated material and, at or near a front surface of the panelling, a layer of wood at least 2 mm thick, the arrangement being such that a decorative or other pattern can be formed by machining, carving or otherwise cutting into the layer of wood.

For convenience the surface of the panelling with said layer of wood is referred to herein as the front surface, the other surface of the panelling being referred to as the rear surface.

From a second aspect the present invention consists in panelling in accordance with the first aspect of the present invention and in which a decorative or other pattern has been formed in the panelling by machining, carving or otherwise cutting into the layer of wood.

From a third aspect the present invention consists in a coffin, casket or the like incorporating panelling in accordance with the second aspect of the present invention.

While the layer of wood, may constitute an outer lamina of the panelling, a preferred form of panelling also includes a relatively thin veneer outside the wood layer. The veneer is preferably no more than 1 mm thick and may be significantly less than 1 mm thick. The veneer is preferably made of wood and may be made of a decorative wood, preferably a hardwood, such as oak or mahogany.

The wood layer may be made of a wood different from that which the overlying veneer is made and is preferably of a different appearance from the veneer so that in use those parts of the wood layer that are revealed contrast in appearance to the neighbouring parts of the veneer.

While it would be possible to provide two or more superimposed veneers outside the wood layer, in general this is not considered desirable as the appearance of the panelling where the veneers have been cut through into the wood layer could well mislead anyone looking at the panelling into thinking that the panelling was made from or incorporated plywood.

The layer of wood is preferably constituted by at least one sheet of wood cut from the surface of a rotating log of wood. The maximum thickness of a sheet of wood that can be cut in this manner is normally about 3 mm. If the layer of wood comprises a single sheet of that kind, therefore, it is unlikely that it can be much more than about 3 mm in thickness. Nevertheless, the layer is preferably significantly thicker than 2 mm being preferably at least 2.5 mm thick. It may well be thicker than that and may for example being 2.8 mm or 3 mm thick so as to enable it to be cut relatively deeply and so provide a visually effective pattern.

If desired, a yet thicker layer of wood may be provided, and such a layer may be formed from two or more sheets of wood, secured together, each sheet being cut from the surface of a rotating log of wood. Two sheets can thus provide a layer of wood greater than 3 mm thick, a typical thickness being between 5 mm and 6 mm.

The base layer is preferably at least 5 mm thick and may be considerably thicker than that, for example 8 or 11 mm thick. It preferably comprises chip-board or fibre-board.

The panelling is preferably made by a method similar to that in which veneered chip-board or veneered fibre-board is made. In a preferred method an adhesive in liquid form is applied to both faces of a layer of wood which is then sandwiched between a base layer and a veneer. The assembled laminae are preferably held firmly together in a press while the adhesive is caused or allowed to set. The adhesive may be of the kind requiring heat to cause it to set but is preferably of the coidsetting kind.

When the panelling is to be used as part of a coffin or casket or the like, or in other applications in which the rear surface of the panelling is not seen or is not normally seen in use, that surface may have no additional lamina or Iaminae secured to it. When, however, the panelling is to be used for a purpose in which the rear surface is likely to be seen, as for example when the panelling is to be incorporated in a door, that surface is preferably covered by one or more additional laminae. For example a wood veneer may be secured to the rear surface. Alternatively a layer of wood at least 2 mm thick may be secured to the rear surface, and if desired this in turn may have a veneer se cured to it.In either of the latter cases a decorative or other pattern may be formed by cutting into the layer of wood, in a manner similar to or the same as that employed in forming a pattern in the front surface. If desired the panelling may have a symmetrical structure so that either surface may be considered to be the front surface.

The cutting of the wood layer may be effected in any suitable manner. For example it may be effected with the aid of a routing tool or a spindle moulder. Whatever method is used, however, it is preferred not to cut right through the wood layer and reveal the base layer.

The pattern may be of any desired nature or form. It may for example comprise one or more grooves. These may be of uniform width and uniform depth. The groove or each groove may comprise an endless, closed figure. There may be two or more spaced, parallel grooves. While the pattern may be solely decorative it is to be understood that the pattern may have some other signification; it may for example constitute letters or numbers.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a piece of panelling in accordance with the present invention, and Figure 2 is a section, to a larger scale, along the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

The panelling illustrated is of a kind intended for incorporation in a coffin and intended more particularly for use as a side wall of a coffin. It comprises a laminated structure made up of a base layer 1, a layer of wood 2 and a wood veneer 3.

The base layer 1 is made from conventional chipboard and may be 11 mm thick. The wood layer 2 comprises a sheet of wood that has been cut from the surface of a rotating log of wood. The layer is made from a decorative wood than can readily be machined, such as obeche. It is at least 2 mm thick and is preferably about 3 mm thick, a typical thickness being 2.8 mm. The veneer 3 is made from another decorative wood such as oak and is less than 1 mm thick.

In the manufacture of the panelling a cold-setting adhesive in liquid form is applied to both sides of the wood layer 2 by passing the layer between adhesive-bearing rollers. The layer is then sandwiched between the base layer 1 and veneer 3, and the assembled layers are held tightly together in a press until the adhesive has set. The layers of adhesive are indicated at 4 in Figure 2.

When the panelling is completed it may be machined to form a pattern. The pattern may for example comprise spaced, parallel grooves 5 and 6 each of uniform width and uniform depth. The grooves may be cut with the aid of a routing tool which cuts through the veneer 3 and cuts deeply into the wood layer 2, without cutting entirely through that layer.

For incorporation in a coffin or alternatively for other purposes a modified form of panelling may be employed. In one modification (not illustrated) the rear face 7 of the base layer 1 has a further wood veneer attached to it, while in other modification the rear face has a veneered layer of wood attached to it so that the front and rear of the panelling are the same. In any of these forms of panelling the veneer attached to the wood layer or to one of the wood layers may be omitted.

In another modification (not illustrated) the wood layer comprises two sheets of wood adhesively secured together and each similar to the layer 2 described above. The grains of the wood constituting the sheets may be mutually parallel or may be transverse to each other. The sheets may be secured together to form a completed wood layer before that wood layer is incorporated in the panel, or alternatively those sheets may be secured together at the same time that the layer is secured to the base layer.

Claims (13)

1. Panelling in the form of a laminated structure comprising a base layer of fabricated material and, at or near a front surface of the panelling, a layer of wood at least 2 mm thick, the arrangement being such that a decorative or other pattern can be formed by machining, carving or otherwise cutting into the layer of wood.

2. Panelling according to claim 1 in which the layer of wood comprises a sheet of wood cut from the outer surface of a rotating log of wood.

3. Panelling according to claim 1 in which the layer of wood comprises two or more sheets of wood secured together, each such sheet being cut from the outer surface of a rotating log of wood.

4. Panelling according to either of claims 2 and 3 in which the sheet of wood or each sheet of wood is not less than 2.5 mm thick.

5. Panelling according to any one of the preceding claims and which includes a relatively thin veneer outside the wood layer.

6. Panelling according to claim 5 in which the veneer is no more than 1 mm thick.

7. Panelling according to any one of the preceding claims in which the base layer is at least 5 mm thick.

8. Panelling according to any one of the preceding claims in which a decorative or other pattern has been formed by machining, carving or otherwise cutting into the layer of wood from the front thereof.

9. Panelling in the form of a laminated structure substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

10. A coffin, casket or the like incorporating panelling according to either of claims 8 and 9.

11. Panelling according to any one of claims 1 to 8 in which a wood veneer is secured to the rear surface of the panelling.

12. Panelling according to any one of claims 1 to 8 in which there is secured at or near a rear surface of the panelling a second layer of wood at least 2 mm thick, the arrangement being such that a decorative or other pattern can be formed by machining, carving or otherwise cutting into said second layer of wood.

13. Panelling according to claim 12 in which a relatively thin wood veneer is secured to the outside of said second layer of wood.