Method for Manufacturing a Laminate Product, Laminate Products Obtained Thereby and Device for Realizing the Method

Abstract

Method for manufacturing a laminate product comprising at least a laminate layer with a decor sheet, wherein, for forming the laminate layer, at least a decor sheet is formed by providing in a decor application process a decor in the form of a motif on a decor carrier, wherein this decor carrier consists of a continuous material web, wherein the decor is applied by means of one or more digital printers and wherein the global decor during the processing of the material web is controlled in a varying manner, by means of controlling the one or more printers, as a function of varying external data.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]1. Field of the Invention[0002]This invention relates to a method for manufacturing a laminate product, as well as to laminate products which are obtained in accordance with this method, and to a device for realizing the method.[0003]2. Related Art[0004]In particular, the invention relates to a method for manufacturing a laminate product comprising at least a laminate layer, wherein, for forming the laminate layer, on the one hand, at least a decor sheet is formed by providing in a decor application process a decor in the form of a motif on a decor carrier and, on the other hand, subsequently providing the decor sheet with resin by means of a resin application process.[0005]According to the invention, by a laminate product each product has to be understood which consists at least of a laminate layer, which as such comprises at least a decor sheet formed of a decor carrier upon which a decor in the form of a motif is applied and wherein this decor she...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0023]According to a first aspect, the present invention aims at a method for manufacturing laminate products, wherein one or more of the aforementioned disadvantages are excluded or are minimized. Generally, here it aims at a method allowing a generally smoother progress of the production process.

[0024]More particularly, in accordance with certain preferred embodiments, the invention also aims at a method allowing an interaction between the decor application process, thus, printing, and the resin application process, and more particularly a technique with which the deformation in a decor as a result of stretching can take place in a controlled manner.

Problems solved by technology

A disadvantage with the known methods for forming a laminate product is that there is little interaction possible between, on the one hand, printing the decor sheet and, on the other hand, resin-treating the decor sheet; in other words, between the decor application process and the resin application process, in particular in that printing is performed at a printer's who supplies the resin-untreated decor sheet to the producers of the laminate, which last-mentioned producers then provide it with resin.

Another disadvantage is that when unexpectedly a decor with a certain motif should not be in stock, it takes a certain time until it can be supplied by the printer.

Another disadvantage is that the laminate producer often has to store two stocks of decor sheets, more particularly decor paper, namely un-resinated decor sheet and resinated decor sheet.

A difficulty when forming laminate with a relief intended to be in accordance with the decor consists in being able to realize such accordance in reality and with no or minor deviations over the entire surface of the decor sheet.

In fact, the resin is provided on the decor sheet in liquid condition, as a result of which the wet decor sheet becomes sensitive to stretching and consequently is stretched during the resin application process.

Due to the fact that the stretching in fact depends on a large number of parameters, a number of which also can be altered when processing one and the same decor carrier, it is often not sufficient to take a predetermined stretching into account, and often the relief pattern will not be in accordance with the printed pattern.

However, this technique is particularly expensive and provides only a limited solution.

In fact, the technique does not allow taking alterations into account which can occur in a decor carrier itself, as, once a choice of press plate has been made, the entire decor carrier or batch of decor carriers is processed with the chosen press plate.

Further, the chosen relief pattern mostly will not fully correspond to the printed pattern.

However, this regulation is limited and does not offer a solution for deformations in width direction.

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