Resin molded product and its manufacturing method

By laser processing a metal mold to create a wavy surface and transferring it to synthetic resin, the resin molded product mimics ceramic appearance and texture, addressing the difference in appearance and texture with ceramics.

JP7798505B2Active Publication Date: 2026-01-14LIXIL CORP
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2021144446
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Patents
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2021-09-06
Publication Date
2026-01-14
Estimated Expiration
2041-09-06

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing methods for manufacturing synthetic resin tableware fail to adequately replicate the appearance and texture of ceramics, leading to noticeable differences between resin molded products and ceramics.

Method used

A resin molded product with a ceramic-like surface is achieved by laser processing a metal mold to create a wavy surface, followed by etching and optionally sandblasting, and then transferring this surface to a synthetic resin material, ensuring the surface reflects laser light within specific wavelength ranges to mimic ceramic appearance and texture.

Benefits of technology

The resin molded product achieves a ceramic-like appearance and texture, providing a luxurious feel and unity with ceramic products when used together.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

To provide a resin molded product that has little difference in appearance and texture from pottery, gives a sufficiently high-class feeling, and can give a sense of unity when used in combination with a pottery product, and a method for manufacturing the same, and a method for manufacturing a mold.SOLUTION: A resin molded product has a ceramic-like surface satisfying all of the following formulas 1, 2 and 3 on a part or the whole of a surface. Formula 1: Wb>Wc; Formula 2: Wb>Wd; and Formula 3: 21≤Wb≤60, in which Wb, Wc and Wd are values obtained by classifying reflection profiles of laser light incident at an angle of 60° by the following wavelength regions: Wb is a wavelength of 0.3 mm or more and 1 mm or less; Wc is a wavelength of 1 mm or more and 3 mm or less; and Wd is a wavelength of 3 mm or more and 10 mm or less.SELECTED DRAWING: None
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a resin molded product, a manufacturing method thereof, and a manufacturing method of a mold. [Background technology]

[0002] Traditionally, ceramics have been used for sanitary ware and tableware used in toilets and washrooms. In recent years, these molded products have also been supplied in synthetic resin, which is lightweight, shatter-resistant, inexpensive, and suitable for mass production.

[0003] As a method for manufacturing synthetic resin tableware, Patent Document 1 proposes manufacturing synthetic resin tableware using a mold created based on three-dimensional shape data of a ceramic work. Patent Document 1 discloses that in order to give the appearance and texture similar to that of ceramics, the inner surface of the mold is embossed by etching or sandblasting, and that different colored granules are added to the synthetic resin material. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-180474 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] By applying a texturing process as in Patent Document 1, it is possible to obtain an appearance and texture that is somewhat closer to ceramics than a resin molded product made of a synthetic resin with a flat surface. However, Patent Document 1 does not consider what type of texturing process should be used, and the differences in appearance and texture between a resin molded product that can be manufactured within the scope of the information in this document and ceramics were not negligible.

[0006] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a resin molded product that has little difference in appearance and texture from ceramics, a method for manufacturing the same, and a method for manufacturing a mold. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, a resin molded article according to one embodiment of the present disclosure has a ceramic-like surface that satisfies all of the following formulas 1, 2, and 3 on part or all of its surface. Wb>Wc...Formula 1 Wb>Wd...Formula 2 21≦Wb≦60...Equation 3 Here, Wb, Wc, and Wd are values ​​obtained by classifying the reflection profile of laser light incident at an angle of 60° into the following wavelength ranges. Wb: Wavelength 0.3mm or more and 1mm or less Wc: Wavelength 1mm or more and 3mm or less Wd: Wavelength 3mm or more and 10mm or less DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] [Resin molded products] A resin molded product according to one embodiment of the present disclosure has a ceramic-like surface. A ceramic-like surface is a surface having an appearance and texture similar to the surface of ceramic. The resin molded product of this embodiment may have a ceramic-like surface on a portion of its surface, or may have a ceramic-like surface on the entire surface. Either a portion of the surface or the entire surface may be a ceramic-like surface.

[0009] The reflectance profile of a porcelain-look surface can be determined by the wavelength range of the laser light incident at a 60° angle. The reflectance profile of a 60° incident laser light is an optical profile obtained by irradiating the target surface with a laser light at an angle of 60° from the normal to the surface and measuring the reflected light at the same angle in the opposite direction, while repeatedly moving the point source of the laser light at a set interval.

[0010] The reflectance profile is classified from short wavelength to long wavelength range using a filter function transformation. The classified values ​​are represented by symbols Wa, Wb, Wc, and Wd according to the wavelength range, as shown below.

[0011] Wa: Wavelength 0.1mm or more and 0.3mm or less Wb: Wavelength 0.3mm or more and 1mm or less Wc: Wavelength 1mm or more and 3mm or less Wd: Wavelength 3mm or more and 10mm or less

[0012] To measure Wa, Wb, Wc, and Wd, a MICRO-WAVE-SCAN (registered trademark) manufactured by BYK Gardner (Germany) is used. This device is known for its ability to optically measure the light / dark pattern of wavelengths on a target surface, much like the human eye, and analyze the surface structure.

[0013] The ceramic-like surface of a resin molded product satisfies all of the following formulas 1, 2, and 3. Wb>Wc...Formula 1 Wb>Wd...Formula 2 21≦Wb≦60...Equation 3

[0014] The ceramic-like surface of a resin molded product has an appearance and texture similar to that of ceramic by satisfying all of the above formulas 1 to 3. Resin molded products give off the same luxurious feel as ceramic. When used in combination with ceramic products, a sense of unity is achieved.

[0015] It is preferable that the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 4. 12≦Wc≦51...Equation 4

[0016] It is preferable that the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 5. 16≦Wd≦50...Equation 5

[0017] It is preferable that the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 6. Wb>Wa Equation 6

[0018] It is preferable that the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 7. 32≦Wb≦60...Equation 7

[0019] It is preferable that the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 8. 30≦Wc≦51...Formula 8

[0020] It is preferable that the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 9. 28≦Wd≦50...Equation 9

[0021] The resin molded products can be used as substitutes for sanitary ware such as toilet side panels, toilet body covers, toilet lids, and toilet seats, as well as tableware.

[0022] [Mold manufacturing method] A method for manufacturing a mold according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is a method for manufacturing a mold for obtaining a resin molded product. The method for manufacturing a mold involves laser processing the surface of a metal material and then etching it to form a wavy surface. The wavy surface is a surface that is transferred to a synthetic resin material to form a ceramic-like surface. In other words, the surface of the metal material that forms the wavy surface is the part of the resulting mold that corresponds to the ceramic-like surface of the resin molded product. The surface structure of the wavy surface corresponds to the surface structure of the ceramic-like surface. It is preferable to use a metal material in which the basic shape of the mold is already completed, except that the wavy surface is not formed.

[0023] For laser processing, a data pattern is created in advance, and the surface of the metal material on which the undulating surface is to be formed is subjected to micro-processing using a laser in accordance with this data pattern. The depth of the micro-recesses formed on the surface of the metal material by laser processing is preferably 6 μm or more and 10 μm or less. By setting the depth of the micro-recesses within the preferred range, it is easy to form a undulating surface with a surface structure corresponding to a ceramic-like surface. There are no particular limitations on the arrangement of the micro-recesses. For example, they can be random.

[0024] With current laser processing technology, it is difficult to form perfectly smooth micro-recesses using laser processing alone. To form a wavy surface with a surface structure corresponding to a ceramic-like surface, further etching processing is required. In addition to etching, a blasting process such as sandblasting may be performed. In this case, there is no particular restriction on the order of etching and blasting. Etching and blasting may be performed independently multiple times. Furthermore, polishing using a brush or buff may be performed.

[0025] [Manufacturing method for resin molded products] A method for manufacturing a resin molded product according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is a method for forming the ceramic-like surface by obtaining a mold by the above-described mold manufacturing method and transferring the undulated surface of the obtained mold to a synthetic resin material. When manufacturing the mold, if a metal material in which the basic shape of the mold is already completed except for the fact that the undulated surface is not formed is used, the obtained mold can be used to form the ceramic-like surface while also forming the basic shape of the resin molded product. [Example]

[0026] The present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to examples and comparative examples. The present disclosure is not limited to the following examples. In the following examples, Examples 1 to 5 and Examples 15 to 17 are comparative examples, and Examples 6 to 14 are working examples.

[0027] [Examples 1 to 14] The metal material used was a pre-hardened steel plate measuring 8 cm in length, 12 cm in width, and 20 mm in thickness. One surface of this plate was laser processed using a 5-axis laser processing machine manufactured by GF Machining Solutions, creating micro-recesses with a maximum depth shown in Table 1, randomly arranged at a vertical and horizontal pitch of 5 to 20 mm. After laser processing, the metal material was subjected to etching and sandblasting, and finally polished with a metal brush and buff to obtain the resin molded product for each example.

[0028] [Examples 15 to 17] In Examples 15 and 16, commercially available PP (abbreviation for polypropylene) resin side panels were used, and in Example 17, a commercially available ABS (abbreviation for acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer) flat plate was used as the resin molded product.

[0029] [Surface structure measurement] For Examples 1 to 14, the surfaces subjected to laser processing or the like, and for Examples 15 to 17, the surfaces designated as tables, were measured using a MICRO-WAVE-SCAN (registered trademark) AW-4824 manufactured by BYK Gardner (Germany) manufactured by BYK Japan Co., Ltd., to determine Wa, Wb, Wc, and Wd. The results are shown in Table 1.

[0030] [Table 1]

[0031] [Appearance evaluation] Ten resin molded products from each example were prepared, labeled A to J, and the appearance of each was evaluated by 10 panelists according to the following criteria, with the average being calculated. The results are shown in Table 2. A rating of 3.3 or higher indicates a desirable ceramic-like surface. As shown in Table 2, examples 6 to 14 received high ratings for appearance.

[0032] (Evaluation criteria) 1: The surface is not wavy and looks like resin. 2: The surface is less wavy and looks like resin. 3: Surface undulations are visible. 4: The undulations on the surface make it look similar to ceramic. 5: The undulations on the surface look similar to those of pottery.

[0033] [Table 2]

Claims

1. A resin molded article having a ceramic-like surface that satisfies all of the following formulas 1, 2, and 3 on at least a portion of its surface (excluding the surface of the film and the surface of the coating film). Wb>Wc...Formula 1 Wb>Wd...Formula 2 21≦Wb≦60...Formula 3 Here, Wb, Wc, and Wd are values ​​obtained by classifying the reflection profile of laser light incident at an angle of 60° into the following wavelength ranges. Wb: Wavelength 0.3 mm or more and 1 mm or less Wc: Wavelength 1 mm or more and 3 mm or less Wd: Wavelength 3 mm or more and 10 mm or less

2. The resin molded product according to claim 1, wherein the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 4. 12≦Wc≦51...Formula 4 However, Wc is the same as Wc in claim 1.

3. The resin molded product according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 5. 16≦Wd≦50...Formula 5 However, Wd is the same as Wd in claim 1.

4. The resin molded product according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 6. Wb>Wa Equation 6 Here, Wa is a value obtained by classifying the reflection profile of laser light incident at an angle of 60° into the following wavelength ranges, and Wb is the same as Wb in claim 1. Wa: Wavelength 0.1 mm or more and 0.3 mm or less

5. The resin molded product according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 7. 32≦Wb≦60...Formula 7 However, Wb is the same as Wb in claim 1.

6. The resin molded product according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 8. 30≦Wc≦51...Formula 8 However, Wc is the same as Wc in claim 1.

7. The resin molded product according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the ceramic-like surface further satisfies the following formula 9. 28≦Wd≦50...Formula 9 However, Wd is the same as Wd in claim 1.

8. 8. A method for manufacturing a resin molded product according to claim 1, comprising: obtaining a mold by laser processing a surface of a metal material and then etching the surface to form a wavy surface; and transferring the wavy surface of the obtained mold to a synthetic resin material to form the ceramic-like surface.

Citation Information

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