Composite Sink Surface With Exposed Fillers for Cleanability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Natural stone products, such as sinks and basins, are prone to stains, difficult to clean, brittle, and heavy, making them unsuitable for everyday use despite their high-quality appearance.
Innovation Solution
A molded part made from a composite material with a hardened polymeric binder and filler particles, where the filler particles protrude to the surface and are planarized, creating a tactile and visually appealing waviness that enhances abrasion resistance and cleanability, with a surface composition that mimics natural stone.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If natural stone is used for sinks and basins, then high-quality appearance is achieved, but the product becomes prone to stains, difficult to clean, brittle, and heavy
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses a composite material consisting of a polymeric binder and filler particles (such as quartz, granite, or marble dust) to create a molded part that combines the aesthetic appearance of natural stone with the practical advantages of synthetic materials. This composite structure allows the product to achieve high-quality appearance while being resistant to stains and easy to clean, directly resolving the contradiction between appearance quality and cleanability
2Illumination intensity
If natural stone is used for sinks and basins, then high-quality appearance is achieved, but the product becomes brittle and heavy
Solution Approach 1:
The composite material with polymeric binder and filler particles provides both the visual appearance of natural stone and superior mechanical properties. The polymeric binder creates a flexible matrix that reduces brittleness while the filler particles maintain the stone-like appearance, resolving the contradiction between appearance quality and strength
Solution Approach 2:
By changing the material parameters from natural stone to a composite of polymeric binder and filler particles, the invention achieves the desired appearance while fundamentally altering the mechanical properties to reduce brittleness and weight, allowing the product to meet both aesthetic and functional requirements
3Reliability
If filler particles are embedded in the binder, then good usage properties are achieved, but the surface uniformity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies local quality by having filler particles protrude to form the surface in specific areas, creating a dual-layer structure where the binder provides a smooth base and the protruding filler particles create an uneven surface texture. This local differentiation improves usage properties such as abrasion resistance and cleanability while maintaining overall compositional stability through the binder matrix
Data Source
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AI summary
The part is manufactured from a composite material with a hardened polymer bonding medium (12) and filler particles (14) by casting a used mold. The part is machined on a visible side after casting in such a manner that the molded part on the visible side exhibits a tactile and/or visually observable corrugation, and the filler materials are projected to a surface (10) of the visible side for forming a part of the surface of the visible side. The surface of the visible side is formed in an intermediate area between the filler particles using a bonding material. An independent claim is also included for a method for manufacturing a molded part.