Method for slitting a sponge for a tiler's sponge board and a use thereof

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for slitting a sponge (1) for a tiler's sponge board consisting of the sponge (1) and a fingerboard (2), wherein the sponge (1) is fed to a laser device (3) having a movable laser head (4) with a feed device (12), wherein the laser device (3) scratches a dirt collecting channel (5) into a first working surface (6) of the sponge (1), wherein the fingerboard (2) is adhesively connected to a second working surface (9) of the sponge (1).

Description

Technical field

[0001] The invention relates to a method for slitting a sponge for a tile-laying sponge board according to the preamble of claim 1 and a use thereof according to claim 5. State of the art

[0002] Such methods for producing a slotted sponge for a fingerboard are achieved in the prior art by passing the sponge through cutting devices, thereby creating more or less deep cuts at the designated locations. A further known method involves first compressing the sponge onto a die and then cutting it slice by slice, the portion of the sponge displaced by the die forming a recess in the material and thus creating a slotted sponge.

[0003] In this context, reference is made to KR 102 211 963 B1, which discloses a cosmetic sponge for receiving a cosmetic product, wherein the cosmetic sponge is a polyether-based polyurethane foam with a special microstructure and which undergoes surface treatment by means of a laser.

[0004] Reference is further made to DE 197 30 703 A1, which discloses a washboard used in particular by tilers, painters, or plasterers. It essentially consists of a rectangular board with a handle and an attached work surface made of felt, rubber, sponge, or a similar material. The work surface is divided into two areas: a central area and surrounding edge areas. The central area has several groove- or joint-like indentations, each forming a recess.

[0005] Reference is also made to DE 100 10 508 A1, which discloses a method for manufacturing a cleaning or application sponge in which the sponge body is produced by foaming in a mold. The sponge can initially have a closed-cell internal structure, which is subsequently opened in certain areas. This opening is achieved, for example, by milling, cutting, grinding, peeling, sandblasting, or similar processes.

[0006] Additionally, laser devices are known which are used, for example, in EP 2 388 121 A2, to insert a decoration into a plastic part.

[0007] Furthermore, the use of a laser device to weld together strips with a foam layer is known. A similar use is also known from DE 10 2005 021 235 A1, which discloses the cutting of artificial leather with an embedded foam layer.

[0008] DE 31 34 569 C1 discloses a laser device for sampling a web of goods, wherein the web of goods also contains foam. Object of the invention

[0009] The object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a tile-laying sponge board with a slotted sponge for a handle, which makes the work easier for people laying tiles, wherein the manufacture of the slotted sponge is inexpensive and particularly easy to customize. Solution to the task

[0010] The features according to claim 1 and claim 5 lead to the solution of the problem.

[0011] Advantageous embodiments are described in the dependent claims.

[0012] This process involves manufacturing a slotted sponge for a tile-laying sponge board. The combination of the slotted sponge and the sponge board is also referred to as a tile-laying sponge board, a term commonly used by tile layers. After grouting, the tile-laying sponge board is typically used to clean the freshly laid tiles by removing tile adhesive residue and, most importantly, excess grout from the surface.

[0013] The laser device cuts a dirt-trapping groove into the first working surface of the sponge. The sponge is not completely cut through, but typically only scored to about half its total thickness. This gives the slotted sponge sufficient rigidity to be adhesively bonded to the fretboard using standard adhesives in a subsequent step.

[0014] In some cases, and depending on the sponge material, the dirt-trapping channel can be scored to more than half the sponge's thickness or only one-third. The sponge is fed to a laser unit with a movable laser head via a feeding device. This is done during production using standard roller conveyors, where the sponge is automatically or manually positioned at one end of the conveyor and then fed to the laser unit at a predetermined speed. The feed speed is set to account for the laser unit's operating time. This means that another sponge is only fed to the laser unit once the first sponge has been fully processed.

[0015] The laser device can generate either a cold or a hot laser beam. In addition to the material-dissolving process, for example by melting the material with heat, it is also advantageous that the dirt-trapping channels have sealed microstructures that the laser device reaches in the affected sponge areas. This prevents the dirt-trapping channels from becoming unintentionally clogged with the sponge structure. The sealing also results in a better feel when the tile-laying sponge is used by the person laying the tiles.

[0016] The sealing of the dirt-trapping channel described above, achieved through the use of the laser device, also results in a consolidation of the sponge material within the channel. Furthermore, because the laser device removes sponge material from the dirt-trapping channels, the channel becomes clearly visible. This, in turn, has the advantage that the slotted sponge board is easily recognizable, unlike sponge boards cut and thus slotted using blades or similar tools. With current technology, sponge material is generally not removed, so the slotted cut is not readily apparent, thus limiting the dirt-removal properties of the sponge.

[0017] The movable laser head of the laser device makes it advantageously possible to etch a design as a dirt-trapping groove. The selection of designs is freely adaptable and expandable. With slotted sponge boards produced by cutting, according to the state of the art, it is not possible, for example, to leave a border area of ​​the sponge unslotted. This is because the sponges are moved across cutting tables for slotting, and lifting the rotating cutting blades would be costly and imprecise if one wanted to leave a border area of ​​the sponge unslotted.

[0018] The movable laser head makes it possible, for example, to laser a motif in the form of a droplet into the sponge, which would only be possible manually using cutting blades.

[0019] It is also possible to etch motifs in the form of circles, ovals, grid structures, etc.

[0020] To create a tile-laying sponge float, the handle is bonded to a second working surface of the sponge using adhesive or other standard techniques. Alternatively, the laser system can be used to create adhesive-receiving grooves in the second working surface of the sponge, thus achieving a sufficiently strong bond with less adhesive.

[0021] The movement of the movable laser head can be pre-programmed in a computer.

[0022] In addition, for automation purposes, a monitoring device in the form of a camera or sensor can subject the dimensions and / or shape of the sponge to an actual / target comparison, automatically selecting a motif to be etched into a dirt-trapping channel in the computer and controlling the movable laser head accordingly to generate the selected motif.

[0023] Furthermore, the use of a laser device for slitting a sponge for a fingerboard can be achieved by using a movable laser head to etch a dirt-trapping groove into the sponge's first working surface. The aforementioned advantages of the manufacturing process are fully transferable to the use of the laser device and result in particular from its use.

[0024] The laser device can generate either a cold or a hot laser beam, with the degree of hotness depending on the ambient temperature and the material properties of the sponge. It is important that the laser beam reaches a specific depth within the dirt-trapping channel, regardless of the sponge material used.

[0025] The laser device uses a movable laser head to etch a design into the sponge to create a dirt-trapping groove. The movement of the movable laser head can be pre-programmed on a computer.

[0026] A monitoring device can be designed such that, for example, a dimension and / or a shape of the sponge is subjected to an actual / target comparison in the computer, and a motif to be engraved in a dirt-trapping channel is automatically selected in the computer, and the movable laser head is controlled accordingly to generate the selected motif. Character description

[0027] Further advantages, features and details of the invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments and from the drawings; these show in: Fig. 1 a schematic side view of an embodiment of the method or use according to the invention; Fig. 2 an exemplary top view of a first working surface (6) of the sponge (1); Fig. 3 another exemplary top view of another first working surface (6) of the sponge (1); Fig. 4 A side view of a tile layer's sponge board. Example of implementation

[0028] The Fig. Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a device illustrating the inventive method for producing a slotted sponge 1 for a fingerboard 2 or a hand sponge (14). The hand sponge (14) is not part of the invention.

[0029] Similarly, the invention also describes the use of a laser device 3 for the production of a slotted sponge 1 for a fingerboard 2, wherein a movable laser head 4 scratches a dirt-trapping groove 5 into a first working surface 6 of the sponge 1.

[0030] The sponge 1 is fed to the laser device 3 with the movable laser head 4 by a feeding device 12 which is arranged on a table 13, wherein the laser device 3 has a dirt-trapping trough 5 (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 3) scratches into the first working surface 6 of the sponge 1.

[0031] The movable laser head 4 of the laser device 3 generates a laser beam 7, whereby the laser beams 7 shown with dashed lines are intended to illustrate the mobility of the laser head 4 and thus of the laser beam 7.

[0032] A monitoring device 11 can be placed upstream of the laser device to perform an actual / target comparison of the dimensions and / or shape of the sponge 1 and automatically select a motif 8 to be etched into a dirt-trapping channel 5 in a computer 10 and control the movable laser head 4 to generate the selected motif 8.

[0033] However, it is also possible that only a movement of the movable laser head 4 is pre-programmed in a computer 10, without the need for the upstream monitoring device 11.

[0034] In the Fig. 2 and Fig. Figure 3 shows a top view of the first working surface 6 of the sponge 1 after the laser device 3 has been used.

[0035] The laser device 3 can use the movable laser head 4 to etch a motif 8.1 into a frame as a dirt-trapping channel 5, whereby the sponge material between the frame and the circumferential section edge of the sponge 1 has not been slit or otherwise processed.

[0036] Furthermore, a second motif 8.2 in the form of an arrow is etched into the first working surface 6 of the sponge 1. Etched wave patterns are also possible. In principle, any customization to meet customer requirements is possible.

[0037] Furthermore, in Fig. Figure 2 shows by way of example that a third motif 8.3 in the form of an oval is also incised into the first working surface 6 of the sponge 1.

[0038] In the Fig. In 3, a fourth motif 8.4 in the form of a circle and at least partially shown grid structure of another motif 8.5 can be seen.

[0039] In Fig. 4 then shows the tile-laying sponge board, which consists of the handle 2, which is adhesively bonded to a second working surface 9 of the sponge 1. The first working surface 6 is the side of the slotted sponge 1 facing away from the second working surface 9. Reference symbol list 1 sponge 2 Fretboard 3 Laser device 4 Laser head 5 dirt trap channel 6 First work surface 7 Laser beam 8 motif 9 Second work surface 10 computers 11 Monitoring device 12 Feeding device 13 Table 14 hand sponges

Claims

[1] Method for slitting a sponge (1) for a tile-laying sponge board consisting of the sponge (1) and a handle board (2), characterized by , that the sponge (1) is fed to a laser device (3) with a movable laser head (4) with a feeding device (12), wherein the laser device (3) scratches a dirt-trapping groove (5) into a first working surface (6) of the sponge (1), wherein the fingerboard (2) is adhesively bonded to a second working surface (9) of the sponge (1). [2] Method according to claim 1, characterized by , that the laser device (3) uses the movable laser head (4) to etch a motif (8.1 to 8.5) as a dirt-trapping channel (5). [3] Method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by , that a movement of the movable laser head (4) is pre-programmed in a computer (10). [4] Method according to claim 3, characterized by, that a monitoring device (11) subjects a dimension and / or a shape of the sponge (1) to an actual / target comparison and thereby automatically selects a motif to be engraved (8.1 to 8.5) of a dirt-trapping channel (5) in the computer (10) and controls the movable laser head (4) to generate the selected motif (8.1 to 8.5). [5] Use of a slit sponge (1) according to the method of any one of claims 1 to 4 for a fingerboard (2) for receiving and removing tile adhesive residues and excess grout.

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