GB2492158A

GB2492158A - Reinforced extruded plastic window or door frame component

Info

Publication number: GB2492158A
Application number: GB1110714.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Anthony Lee Hughes
Original assignee: Epwin Group PLC
Current assignee: Epwin Group PLC
Priority date: 2011-06-23
Filing date: 2011-06-23
Publication date: 2012-12-26
Also published as: GB201110714D0

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a reinforced component for use as a window or door frame member, comprising extruding a thermoplastic material to form a body 10 and encapsulating reinforcement rods 20 at the time of extrusion. The rods may be between 1 and 5mm in width and manufactured from glass fibre. An acrylic binding agent may be used to bond the thermoplastic material to the reinforcement rod. Preferably, between two and ten reinforcement rods 20 may be encapsulated. The component itself is also claimed, however it does not need to be manufactured via extrusion. The rods are preferably located in a peripheral region of the component. The thermoplastic material is preferably PVC-u.

Description

REINFoRcED WINDOW AND DOOR_COMPONENTS This invention relates to a reinforced component for a window or door structure, to a method of manufacturing such a component, and to a method of manufacturing a reinforced window or door structure.

Extruded PVC-U window or door components used in the manufacture of window and door frames must be structurally stiff in order to withstand the wind loads and other operational loads which are placed on the component during the lifetime of the window or door.

Short components, which have a low width to length ratio, have sufficient inherent stiffness to be useful in window or door frames without reinforcement. However, the longer the component is the less stiff it becomes, and so long components usually require reinforcement. It is common for reinforcement to be provided by a separate part, which part is then inserted into a hollow section of the component that needs reinforcing. For example, DE 20 2005 010 947 discloses a plurality of reinforcement members to be inserted within a hollow chamber of a window or door component, after manufacture of the component, for the improvement of both the thermal and stiffness properties of the component.

Conventionally, the reinforcement part is joined to the body of the component by a screw fixing.

This approach is employed in, for example, GB 2 144 472, which describes a thermoplastic or S thermosetting polymer reinforcement insert for pre-prepared window or door frame components.

Since the two components require separate manufacture and assembly by the window or door frame manufacturer, this method is time-consuming and therefore expensive.

Using a different approach, US 4,514,449 discloses a profile strip for windows and door frames, which has a core-shell structure with a core body of reinforced synthetic resin and an overlying shell body comprised of a resin which is not reinforced. These materials may be co-extruded.

The present invention provides a method for preparing inherently stiff, reinforced components which have an extruded thermoplastic material which forms a body, wherein a reinforcement rod is encapsulated into the thermoplastic material of the body at the time of extrusion. This approach negates the need for additional reinforcement after manufacture of the component while retaining the advantageous structural properties of the presence of a reinforcement rod. It can be seen that this method is easier than conventional approaches, and hence the components of the invention are cheaper to manufacture.

Accordingly, in a first aspect the present invention provides a method of manufacturing a reinforced component suitable for use in a window or door structure, which method includes extruding a thermoplastic material which forms a body; wherein a reinforcement rod is encapsulated by the thermoplastic material of the component body at the time of extrusion.

The method of the present invention results in a reduced time for the manufacture of a reinforced component for a window or door structure or part of any such structure, because the reinforcing rods are encapsulated into the component at the same time as the thermoplastic material of the component body is being extruded. In this way, the manufacturer saves time and therefore money.

A reinforcement rod conventionally has a circular cross-section, although rods with non-circular cross-sections, such as square, triangular or other, may also or alternatively be used. Preferably, a reinforcement rod comprises a plurality of glass fibres. The bond between the thermoplastic material of the body and the reinforcement rod may be improved through the inclusion of a binding agent. This is useful for the efficient transfer of operational loads, which are placed on the component during the lifetime of the window or door structure, to the reinforcement rod. Provision of a binding agent at the surface of the reinforcement rod also improves the handleability of the reinforcement rod during the manufacture of the component.

Preferably, the thermoplastic material of the body of the component is PVC-U. A preferred binding agent for bonding the PVC-U and a glass fibre reinforcement rod in the component is acrylic.

The stiffness of the component can be adjusted by tailoring the method of the invention. For example, the number of reinforcement rods used in the process of the invention can effect the stiffness of the component. Through appropriate design of the extrusion and depending on the space and cost, two or more reinforcement rods may preferably be encapsulated. In some embodiments, between two and ten rods can be usefully employed.

Use of reinforcement rods of different widths during manufacture may also influence the stiffness properties of the component. Due to space limitations, cylindrical rods with a typical diameter of between 1 mm and 5 mm are useful.

Preferably, cylindrical rods with a diameter of 2.5 mm may be used.

The placement of the reinforcement rods nearer to the periphery of the component during the method of manufacture is preferable, since this arrangement is more conducive to increasing the stiffness of a reinforced component of the invention than locating them near to the middle.

In a second aspect of the present invention, a method of manufacturing a reinforced window or door structure is provided, said method comprising: manufacturing a plurality of reinforced components according to the method of the first aspect of the invention; and assembling the components to form a window or door frame.

The reinforced components of the invention may be assembled in any manner known to the person skilled in the art to form a reinforced window or door structure according to this aspect of the present invention. This method of manufacture is quick compared to conventional approaches, due to the abovementioned advantages of the method of reinforced component manufacture.

In a third aspect, the present invention provides a reinforced component for use in window or door structures, which component includes a thermoplastic material which forms a body, said body having a wall; and a reinforcement rod encapsulated by the thermoplastic material in the outer wall of the component body.

A reinforcement rod as used in the present invention is located within a wall formed by the body of the window or door component. The reinforcement rod may be located in an outer wall of the body of the component. Alternatively, the reinforcement rod may be located in an inner wall of the body of the component. Where several reinforcement rods are used, these may be located in an outer and/or an inner wall of the body of a window or door component. Generally, a reinforcement rod might be effective in an outer wall of the body of the component since outer walls are furthest from a bend axis. In addition, outer walls are generally thicker than inner walls and therefore may be more suited to accommodating the reinforcement rods therein.

A reinforcement rod conventionally has a circular cross-section, although rods with non-circular cross-sections, such as square, triangular or other, may also or alternatively be used. Usually, a reinforcement rod comprises a plurality of glass fibres. Bonds between the reinforcement rod and the thermoplastic material comprising the body of the component may be improved by use of an appropriate binding agent.

This is useful for the efficient transfer of operational loads, which are placed on the component during the lifetime of the window or door structure, to the reinforcement rod.

Preferably, the thermoplastic material of the body of the component is PVC-U. For components where the body is made primarily from PVC-U and the reinforcement rod comprises glass fibres, acrylic has been found to be an effective binding agent. In a preferred embodiment, the invention is carried out using PVC-U and acrylic-coated glass fibre reinforcement rods.

The reinforced components of the present invention are inherently stiff. The stiffness of the components may be tailored to the requirements of the manufacturer by adjusting one or more of a number of variables. For example, the number of reinforcement rods used in the extrusion process can effect the stiffness of the component.

Depending on the space and cost, two or more rods may be preferably encapsulated. In some embodiments, between two and ten rods can be usefully employed. The width of the reinforcement rod also has an influence on the stiffness of the reinforced component of the invention, as wider rods are able to support bigger loads. Due to space limitations, a cylindrical rod with a typical diameter of between 1 mm and 5 mm may be useful. Preferably, a cylindrical rod with a diameter of 2.5 mm may be used.

Similarly, the placement of the reinforcement rod in the component can influence the stiffness of the component. Positioning the reinforcement rod nearer to the periphery of the component of the invention has been found to be more conducive to increasing the stiffness of a reinforced component than locating it near to the middle.

In a fourth aspect, the reinforced components of the invention described above may be used in window or door structures, especially window or door frames. The component may be used in all or part of any part of a window or door frame, including an opening part of a window or door frame. Where the structure is a window frame, the reinforced component of the invention might be one or more of a perimeter frame section, a mullion section, a transom section or a sash section of a window frame.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawing. Other embodiments using equivalents will also be apparent to the skilled person.

Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional diagram of a component according to an embodiment of the present invention. This component may be manufactured according to the method of an embodiment of the present invention, and may be used in the assembly of a window frame in the manner of an embodiment according to the present invention.

The component according to Figure 1 is a reinforced perimeter section 100 of a window frame. As used herein, the perimeter section 100 of a window frame means the section of a window frame located at the outermost part of a glazed window, for example. As shown in Figure 1, the reinforced perimeter section 100 of this embodiment of the invention has a body 10, and encapsulated into the body 10 of the perimeter section 100 there are four reinforcement rods 20.

More or fewer than four reinforcement rods 20 may be used in alternative embodiments; for example, two or more rods 20 can be employed. In this embodiment, the reinforcement rods 20 are circular in cross-section, though in other embodiments an alternative cross-section may be useful.

The body 10 is made from PVC-U in this embodiment, though any suitable thermoplastic material may be used, and is six metres long perpendicular to the plane of the page. In the present embodiment, the reinforcement rods 20 are made from a plurality of glass fibres, though any suitable material may be used as an alternative, and they extend the full length of the perimeter section 100. The body 10 was prepared by extrusion, and the glass fibre reinforcement rods were encapsulated into the PVC-U of the body 10 at the time of extrusion. The body 10 also has eight large hollow interior sections 12, which are separated by interior walls 16 and which are surrounded by an outer wall 14. These large hollow sections 12 also extend the full length of the perimeter section 100.

Parts of the outer wall 14 of the perimeter section 100 have a plurality of small void spaces 30. The PVC-U material of four of these void spaces 30 in the outer wall 14 encapsulates the glass fibre reinforcement rods 20. In other embodiments, the reinforcement rods 20 may be encapsulated in other walls of the body 10, for example in the inner walls 16, or in protruding regions of the outer wall 14 of the body 10. In this embodiment, the reinforcement rods 20 are located towards the periphery of the perimeter section 100, rather than occupying a more central position. In alternative embodiments, they may occupy a different position. The glass fibre reinforcement rods 20 are bonded to the PVC-U body through an acrylic binding agent. The glass fibres of the reinforcement rods 20 were encapsulated by the acrylic binding agent, which also serves to improve the handleability of the glass fibre reinforcement rods 20. In other embodiments, any suitable binding agent may be used to bond the reinforcement rods 20 to the body 10.

The components of the invention may be assembled in any manner known to the person skilled in the art to form a reinforced window or door structure according to the present invention.

It will therefore be apparent that the method of the invention provides a rapid way of manufacturing a reinforced component for a window or door structure. The stiffness of the component can be tailored according to the requirements of the manufacturer by adjustment of the type, position and number of reinforcement rods encapsulated into the component. Such customizations can be readily carried out through appropriate design of the extrusion process. The components may also comprise a suitable binding agent in order to create a bond between the reinforcement rod and the thermoplastic material of the body of the component in order to effectively transfer the operational loads placed on the component during its lifetime onto the reinforcement rod.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A method of manufacturing a reinforced component suitable for use in a window or door structure, which method includes extruding a thermoplastic material which forms a body; wherein a reinforcement rod is encapsulated by the thermoplastic material of the component body at the time of extrusion.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcement rod comprises glass fibres.
3. A method according to any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein a binding agent is present for bonding the thermoplastic material to the reinforcement rod.
4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the binding agent is acrylic.

* *s 400
5. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein between two and ten reinforcement rods are encapsulated.
6. A method according to any one of claims I to 5, wherein the width of the reinforcement rod is between 1 and 5 mm.
7. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the width of the reinforcement rod is 2.5 mm.
8. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the reinforcement rod is located in a peripheral region of the component.
9. A method of manufacturing a reinforced window or door structure, said method comprising: manufacturing a plurality of reinforced components according to the method of any one of claims I to 8; and assembling the components to form a window or door frame.
10. A method according to any one of claims 1 to °. : 9, wherein the structure is a window frame. * 20I

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II * 11. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the structure is a door frame.
12. A method substantially as described herein *°*: 25 and with reference to Figure 1.
13. A reinforced component suitable for use in a window or door structure, which component includes a thermoplastic material which forms a body, said body having a wall; and a reinforcement rod encapsulated by the thermoplastic material in a wall of the component body.
14. A reinforced component according to claim 13, wherein the wall is an outer wall.
15. A reinforced component according to any one of claims 13 or 14, wherein the reinforcement rod comprises glass fibres.
16. A reinforced component according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein the reinforcement rod is bonded to the thermoplastic material through a binding agent.
17. A reinforced component according to claim 15, *..o wherein the binding agent is acrylic. S.. * *
18. A reinforced component according to any one of claims 13 to 16, comprising between two and ten reinforcement rods.SS

*
19. A reinforced component according to any one of claims 13 to 17, wherein the width of the reinforcement rod is between 1 mm and 5 mm.
20. A reinforced component according to any one of claims 13 to 18, wherein the reinforcement rod is located in a peripheral region of the component.
21. A reinforced component substantially as described herein and with reference to Figure 1. 0S S * S. * SSSS..... * S S. S* * S S * 0 S. * S * *.* S. * S S. * S.