SI9010518A - Procedure of folding by pressing a deformable rigid support with a soft decorating cover and the mould for its realization - Google Patents

Abstract

In order to obtain a piece having a slightly deformed area in which the decorative covering preserves a good aesthetic appearance, this area is first formed and held in place during the subsequent forming of the other areas. The mould consists of two compression thermoforming half-moulds (1) (2), the impressions (8) (9) of which in the slightly deformed area consist of movable elements (10) (11) which can be displaced in housings (12) (13) relative to the remainder of the impressions when the mould is closed. <IMAGE>

Description

THE JOINING PROCEDURE BY PRESSING THE DEFORMABLE RIGID CARRIER AND THE SOFT DECORATIVE COAT AND THE MOLD FOR ITS CREATION

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of production and production of layered materials, as well as to the field of thermoforming plastics. Designations according to the International Patent Classification with B 41 B 31/20, 33/00, B 29 C 51/00.

Technical problem

The invention solves the problem of how to accomplish the process of joining a deformable rigid support with a soft decorative coating, as well as a mold for its realization, which will allow the formation of a support with a very high degree of local deformation and not lead to damage or deterioration of the appearance of the decorative coating in places where the deformation is not so pronounced.

The state of the art

The making of parts of opiates, or linings, such as car interior doors, made of metal or plastic support, coated with a soft decorative element such as, for example, textiles or artificial leather, is known, for example, from American Patent Nos. 4,243,456 and 4,332,067. Joining, usually, and for reasons of economy, is carried out, either by gluing or welding, simultaneously with the molding of the support, or by sieving or thermoforming.

According to conventional technology, a flat carrier, which can be preheated or coated with adhesive, and a decorative element held along the edges in one frame, are inserted between the presses of the press and, at closing, the presses are simultaneously formed and joined.

In manufacturing according to this technology, parts of opiates, such as, for example, internal opiates on the car door, the flat support will deform a lot in certain zones, for example, when making armrests, which, after forming, the corresponding parts of the decorative overlay are exposed. by tightening and / or large elongation, the Sto is reflected in portions thereof in the immediate vicinity of the deformation zone. These elongations and / or tensions that the decorative moldings are exposed to can have a very adverse effect on the aesthetic appearance of the finished product, especially if those moldings have some decorative motif, such as, for example, textile stripes, artificial skin, etc. In this case, in fact, it is observed that the decorative motif is disturbed in some very visible zone, which is otherwise only slightly deformed, such as being part of the opiate for the car door above the armrest, which creates a very ugly silence.

Description of the solution to a technical problem

On the basis of the foregoing, it is an object of the invention to provide a process for joining a pre-deformable rigid support with a soft decorative coating to obtain an opiate, such as the inner opiate of a car door, wherein the opiate has at least one zone which is highly deformed, and at least one adjacent, smaller, or slightly deformed zone in which the decorative covering should preserve its appearance. This process is characterized by thorns, which in its first phase compress only the zone that needs to be slightly deformed, while in the second phase, other zones that need to be more deformed are crimped, whereby during this second phase the zones Keeps the deformation firmly clamped.

A zone of large deformation means an area whose average deformation depth is at least ten times the thickness of the support, and under a zone of small deformation is meant an area whose average deformation depth is less than ten times the thickness of the support.

Pressing into two phases of the opiate can be done in cold or warm conditions, under vacuum or under pressure. Pressing in a warm pressurized state is considered more appropriate.

According to one convenient embodiment, the compression of the small deformation zone is pressurized from 0.1 to 10 bar, while the compression of the other zones is pressured from 0.5 to 10 bar.

In the process according to the invention, in the zone of small deformation, which is formed in the first stage, there is a negligible stretch of decorative plastic, which is without influence from the point of view of aesthetics. In the course of the next deeper formation of the adjacent zones, the decorative plastic is held firmly in its place in the zone of small deformation, so that it cannot be disturbed in that place by the deformations to which its adjacent part is exposed.

The rigid deformable noseC used in the process of the invention may be made of Steel or Aluminum Sheet, or Thin Plate, or Sheet, of Plastic. A suitable carrier material is a polyolefin board with a high percentage of fiber filler, especially cellulose fibers, as described in U.S. Pat. 4,229,116. In this case, it is advantageous for the opiate portion to be molded by a heat-molding process, whereby the carrier is previously brought to a temperature of 170 to 220 ° C.

The soft decorative coating used in the process of the invention may be some textile material, woven, knitted or non-woven, made of natural or synthetic fibers, or plastic film, such as artificial leather film. In any case, it is apparent that the process according to the invention is particularly suitable for decorative upholstery having decorative motifs such as stripes or imitation of the skin surface, and which should not be deformed on those surfaces which are particularly noticeable on the parts of the opiates being made. Particularly when using decorative coatings such as artificial leather with a porous structure, the low pressure compression of the malfe deformation zone allows the porous structure visible in that zone to be preserved in a certain way.

In addition, the process according to the invention enables the application of decorative coatings consisting of at least two different materials, interconnected by a single separation line, when that line is in the zone of small deformation. In this case, the procedure not only allows for the exact placement of the dividing line, but also prevents any deformation of the decorative coating in the areas adjacent to that line.

The method according to the invention is particularly suitable for the manufacture of parts of the interior opiate for the car door, but can also be used for the manufacture of all other parts of the interior opiate, and in particular the shelf behind the rear seats of the car.

The present invention also relates to a mold used to perform the process according to the invention when using injection molding technology.

According to the invention, the mold consists of two movable halves, one containing a positive and the other a negative imprint of a portion of the opiate to be made. The primary areas of the imprint corresponding to the zone of small opiate deformation are composed of elements movable in their grooves relative to the rest of the imprint before the mold is completely closed.

When using a mold according to the invention, a support, or a substrate preheated to the pressing temperature and a decorative cover kept in a single frame, are placed between the half molds. In the first stage of the process the movable elements are moved so that a zone of small deformation is formed, while in the second stage the mold is completely closed, with a zone of small deformation being held by the moving elements.

Moving elements are displaced by actuators which can be hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders of adjustable pressure, or adjustable springs.

In automatic molding plants, the controls can be programmed to operate in a timely manner with actuators that perform complete mold closure.

In one particularly simple embodiment, the movable elements of each of the half molds are held in their half of the mold in a pressing position, i.e. displaced relative to their place in the mold Suplinum by, for example, a spring in the open mold position. At the closure of the mold, during the molding cycle, these elements, which are displaced relative to their position in the mold cavity, first form a zone of small deformation of the part of the opiate being made, and then hold that pressure zone, which normally increases, during trimming areas of large deformation resulting from the complete closure of the mold.

After the pressing is completed, when the mold is opened, the moving elements are again moved under the action of the springs relative to the mold cavity, thus removing the pressed parts of the opiate from the mold, thus facilitating their removal from the mold.

Certainly, the mold according to the invention can be provided with conventional accessories and elements, such as punctures for making openings in the pressed part, or elements for cutting the edges of the pressed part after the mold has been completely closed.

The process and mold of the present invention will be explained in more detail in the following description of an embodiment of the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, where s

- Figure 1 shows, in cross-section, a conventional die-casting mold used to date for the manufacture of an interior opiate car door,

- Figures 2 to 4 show, in cross section, a mold for thermal forming under pressure according to the invention, at various stages of pressing.

The manufacture of a part of the inner opiate for a car door by thermal molding under pressure by means of a conventional mold, although not part of the present invention, is carried out as shown in Figure 1, so that a deformable rigid support 3 is placed between the two spaced halves 1 and 2 of the mold. previously brought to the molding temperature, followed by a soft decorative trim 4 which is usually fixed along the edges to the holding frame 5. Closing the mold starts pressing and joining the bracket and the upholstery.

In any case, as can be seen in Figure 1, the portion of the opiate being made should comprise at least one zone 6 corresponding to the armrest, which should be very deformed. That zone 6 is located near the zone 7, which should be slightly deformed and which corresponds to the part of the opiate just above the armrest, which is clearly visible after mounting on the vehicle. However, during the screening, the decorative cover 4 is substantially stretched in zone 6, which may cause it to deform, and this deformation is reflected at the level of zone 7 which is adjacent and may only be slightly deformed. This causes a very noticeable, aesthetically unacceptable appearance of the opiate.

This defect is eliminated, according to the invention, by applying a mold for thermal molding under pressure, as shown in Figures 2 to 4.

The mold, as shown in these figures, consists of two hemispheres 2, 3 whose positive imprint or surface 8 and negative imprint or surface 9 reproduce the shape of the opiate portion to be stuffed.

According to the invention, part of the mold surfaces corresponding to the zone 7 of small deformation of the part of the opiate being made is made of profiled or movable elements 10 and 11, slidingly movable in grooves 12 and 13 extending in the halves 1 and 2 of the mold.

When the mold is open, the displacement members 10 and 11 are completely pushed out of the corresponding grooves by the action of springs 14 and 15, so that their profiled parts distance from the surfaces 8 and 9 of the cavities of the mold halves, as shown in Figure 2.

In order to form part of the opiate in the mold described, it is sufficient to place a rigid deformable nose 3, previously brought to the molding temperature, between the hemispheres 1 and 2 of the molds, and a soft decorative cover 4, attached to the holding frame 5 by circumference, as shown in the figure 2, and that the mold gradually closes with the approximation of its hemispheres 1 and 2.

During this closure, as shown in Fig. 3, the movable elements 10 and 11 first come into contact with the worn and decorative cover, thus forming only in the zone 7 of small deformation, with only a slight withdrawal of that decorative fabric. This molded zone is held firmly by the elements 10 and 11 as the mold closes to the end, with the positive surface 8 and the negative surface 9 of the mold cavity forming the remainder of the opiate being made. (During this final movement of the mold hemispheres, the elements 10 and 11 holding the zone 7 of small deformation are gradually inserted into the grooves 12 and 13 opposite to the action of the springs 14 and 15, so that their profiled parts are placed at the level of the surfaces 8 and 9 of the mold cavity when their ends come in contact with the granites 17 made at the bottom of the grooves.

It can be seen, therefore, that during the final molding of the opiate part, the carrier and the decorative cover are firmly held on top of each other in the level of zone 7 of small deformation, so that upon completion of the molding, the decorative cover cannot be disturbed at that location by the large drawings that have the same cover. subjected outside that zone.

When the mold is completely closed, the opiate obtained by pressing can extend along the edges of the conveniently positioned fixed sowings 16.

After sieving and cooling the finished opiate, the mold is opened by moving the halves 1 and 2. The springs 14 and 15 push the moving elements 10 and 11 out of their grooves 12 and 13 so that the pressed opiate is separated from the surfaces 8 and 9 in the halves 1 and 2 mold, which allows the opiate to be easily removed from the mold.

As soon as the mold is opened, a new sieving cycle can begin, with Cern moving elements 10 and 11 pushed out of its grooves by the action of springs 14 and 15.

It is obvious that in the mold described above, the springs 14 and 15 can be replaced by the corresponding pneumatic or hi draul and C cylinders whose stroke and pressure can be regulated.

Claims (7)

PATENT APPLICATIONS 1. A method of folding by compressing a deformably rigid carrier and a soft decorative coating to produce a portion of the carrier, such as an interior car door carrier, wherein the carrier is very easily deformable in one place and has one very deformable location at in which the decorative coating must retain its appearance, characterized in that during the first stage of the process only the area which is slightly deformable is compressed, and in the second stage, the remaining areas are compressed, while the slightly deformable area is kept pressed during this second phase. in its place. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the rigid support is a sheet or board of polyoliphene with a high percentage of fiber content, especially cellulose fibers, which are heated to a temperature of from 170 to 220 ° C during compression. Method according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the decorative coating is a fabric with a decorative motif and / or artificial leather imitating a porous structure that gives the appearance of genuine leather. 4. Mold for the realization of a process for folding by means of compression of a deformably rigid support and a soft decorative coating consisting of two halves 1 and 2, relative to each other, with surfaces 8 and 9 defining the final shape of the part of the carrier to be manufactured , characterized in that the movable elements (10,11) in the area (7) are small deformations, slidingly mounted in the grooves (12,13) on the surfaces (8,9) of the openings of the half-molds resting on the springs (14,15) ) located in the grooves. Mold according to claim 5, characterized in that hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders of suitable pressure are incorporated into the grooves (12,13). Mold according to claim 5, characterized in that suitable springs (14,15) are incorporated in the half (1,2) of the mold. Mold according to one of Claims 4 to 6, characterized in that cutters are arranged on the half (1) of the mold for machining the edge of the liner.