Ceramic Edge Protection Strip Production via Segmented Cutting
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Solution Overview
Problem
The building sector faces challenges in producing edge protection strips that closely match the surface finish of tiles and requires a method that is affordable, quick, and accurate.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the incision and cutting of ceramic sheets to create edge protection strips with a surface finish homologous to the tiles, using specific formulas to determine incision and cutting depths, and optionally leaving a bridge for controlled detachment, ensuring efficient and safe production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If edge protection strips are made from metal, plastic, or ceramic material with different surface finishes, then the functional protection is achieved, but the visual difference and color mismatch with tiles increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies homogeneity by using the same ceramic material for both the tiles and the edge protection strip, ensuring that the surface finish, color, and texture are identical. The strip is cut from a ceramic sheet that has the same exposed surface as the tiles, creating visual continuity and eliminating the need for different materials with different surface properties.
2Manufacturing precision
If complex cutting methods are used to create precise edge protection strips, then the surface finish matching improves, but the production complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the ceramic sheet into two distinct parts: the main tile area and the edge protection strip. By making incisions along specific planes (first incision plane parallel to the lateral face, second incision plane parallel to the exposed surface), the sheet is divided such that one portion becomes the protective edge strip while the other remains as the tile. This segmentation allows both components to be obtained from a single homogeneous material with minimal processing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The method performs preliminary actions by first making incisions to define the boundaries of the edge protection strip before separating it from the main tile. The incisions are made along predetermined planes that ensure the resulting strip will have the correct geometry and surface finish. This preliminary definition of boundaries simplifies the subsequent separation step and ensures manufacturing precision is achieved before the final cutting occurs.
3Productivity
If the cutting depth is increased to separate the edge protection strip completely, then the production speed improves, but the risk of accidental breaks increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by making incisions that do not completely traverse the ceramic sheet thickness in a single continuous cut. Instead, the cutting process is divided into multiple steps with controlled depths, where each incision penetrates only to the required depth to define the strip boundaries without excessive force that could cause breaking. This partial cutting approach maintains strip integrity while still achieving complete separation through controlled, incremental action.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of production of edge protection strips (10) of ceramic material, includes the steps of: arranging a sheet-like article (20) of ceramic material elongated along a longitudinal axis (A) and provided with an exposed surface (S); incising the exposed surface (S) along two distinct incision planes, parallel to each other, orthogonal to the exposed surface (S) and each intersecting the exposed surface (S) along an incision line (I) parallel to the longitudinal axis (A); cutting the article (20) along two cutting planes each intersecting an incision plane along a cutting line (C) parallel to the incision lines (I) and mutually incident in an intersection line (X) included in the thickness of the article (20); and separating a substantially prismatic edge protection strip (10) from the article (20) with a first portion (S1) of exposed surface (S) internal to the incision lines (I).