Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor – Automatic and/or material-triggered control
Reexamination Certificate
1998-09-03
2001-04-17
Ball, Michael W. (Department: 1733)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor
Automatic and/or material-triggered control
C156S368000, C156S556000, C156S578000, C156S581000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06216759
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns a method and an apparatus for application of frames or mirrors of different shapes and dimensions to furniture panels in general. The method and the apparatus herein disclosed allows a quicker and more precise application of the frame or mirror to each panel.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
In the furniture industry ornamental frames, mirrors or glasses are often to be applied to furniture panels.
Once the mirrors were applied to e.g. wardrobe doors by means of peripheral frames screwed to the panels used to make the doors.
However, fixing frames required long time to be mounted and the result was not always aesthetically acceptable.
To decrease the time necessary to set the mirrors and improve the aesthetic result, adhesive means are now used, which grip the mirrors at the back. This allows to apply also ornamental frames without any need to make holes in the panels for the screws or nails.
Up to now, ornamental frames or mirrors have been usually applied by means of double-adhesive sided tape, which was applied manually, in pieces, that obviously causes a considerable waste of time.
Another drawback of the double-adhesive sided tape is that the grip between the mirror and the panel is too rigid along the whole extension of the mirror.
The panels are often subjected to bending, e.g. during transport, or may fall down or have to support considerable weight, e.g. because of piling, and these facts taken alone or in combination often result in breaking of the mirror. Document DD-A5-286,321, to WEB MOBELWERKE EISENBERG, discloses a method for applying mirrors or glass sheets to panels by depositing at least one strip of hot glue onto the mirror or glass sheet, and then applying the panel to said mirror or glass sheet. This is made automatically, by using a single glue sprayer moving along guide rails, while the mirror or glass sheet is carried by a movable carriage. This method is not very efficient, particularly when high production rates or high accuracy are required.
Another problem arisen with the use of the known techniques derives from the fact that the panel to which a frame or a mirror has to be applied is often slightly curved.
When a frame is applied the bending of the panel provokes misalignment of its sides, which therefore must be kept in the correct position while the frame. is placed on the panel, that is not always a simple operation, in particular if long frames are processed.
The adhesive tape is first applied to the backside of the frame, and a wrong positioning of the frame on the panel requires detachment therefrom and reapplying of the frame. Obviously, this could damage the surface of the panel and increases the time required for the operation.
Moreover, times imposed by the industrial processing do not allow to strengthen those parts which are most subjected to breaking, because of e.g. through holes for handle screws or the like.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to facilitate the application of frames, mirrors, glass and the like on wardrobe doors or furniture panels in general, no matter of the condition, i.e. perfectly flat or slightly curved, of the panels.
Another object of the present invention is to make quicker and more precise the application of frames or mirror of different shapes and dimensions to furniture panels in general.
Yet another object of the present invention is to improve the breaking resistance of the fixed glass sheets, by optimal application of adhesive means, so that the two joined parts are less rigid and the most critical parts are reinforced.
A further object is to reduce the quantity of adhesive means to the just necessary quantity, with suitable adhesive means distribution, so as to reinforce the most stressed areas and avoid an excessive rigidity between the parts, which could provoke sheets breaking during bending.
Finally, it is another object of the invention to improve and make more durable the grip between the joined parts and guarantee a high level of finishing, aesthetically perfect. The above mentioned objects are obtained by means of a method for gluing mirrors, frames or glass sheets and the like to panels, in particular furniture panels, which includes depositing at least one strip of hot glue onto a panel, along a pre-determined path and then applying the mirror, frame or glass sheet to the panel.
To carry out the method, it is proposed an apparatus for gluing mirrors, frames or glass sheets and the like to panels, in particular furniture panels, which includes:
at least one table for receiving a panel thereon;
at least one horizontal cross bar extending over said table and connected to motor means for sliding over said table;
at least one slide running along said cross bar and equipped with at least one sprayer pistol for depositing at least one strip of glue on predetermined areas of said panel;
motor means for moving said slide along said cross bar.
Preferably the apparatus is equipped with an articulated place and press element which can rotate from an inclined position, in which the frame or mirror is loaded, to the horizontal working position, where actuator means push the place and press element downward on said panel, to apply the frame or mirror, and then pull the place and press element upward leaving the frame or mirror attached to said panel.
The place and press element is supported by a support bar extending over said table, with rotary actuator means interposed between said support bar and a plurality of uprights which connect said support bar to corresponding ends of said table.
The place and press element carries a frame receiving template of a shape corresponding to the frame shape and made of material having such elasticity that allows to compensate for possible working tolerances and deformations of the frame and the panel.
The machine, according to the present invention, is equipped with one or more movable cross bars, sliding over the panels supporting table, along which carriages carrying pistols or nozzles distributing hot glue can translate.
The cross bar and the carriages are moved in such a way as to deposit the glue along the desired path, corresponding to the frame shape, according to a program prepared in a numerical control station.
Moreover, the apparatus is equipped with a particular articulated pressing element supporting the frame, aimed at maintaining the frame in the correct position and pressing it in a uniform way, so as to compensate for deformations and inevitable working tolerance.
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Ball Michael W.
Coleman Sudol Sapone P.C.
Piazza Gladys
Sapone William J.
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