Vented Stile Door with Gas Permeable Membrane
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for manufacturing foam-filled doors often result in trapped air bubbles or pockets, leading to poor-quality doors that may be rejected.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a vented stile with a gas permeable membrane that allows air to escape during the foam injection process, preventing the formation of air bubbles by ensuring the foam material is injected without trapped air.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If foam is injected into the door cavity using traditional poured-in-place process, then the door core is filled with foam material, but air pockets are trapped inside the door causing poor quality
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the air from the door cavity during foam injection by providing a vent in the stile that allows trapped air to escape. The vent is positioned to enable air removal while preventing foam leakage, directly addressing the air pocket formation problem.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a surfactant as an intermediary substance mixed with the foam material. This surfactant reduces surface tension and prevents air pocket formation by allowing air to be more easily displaced during the foam injection process, improving the quality of foam filling.
2Manufacturing precision
If vents are added to stiles to eliminate air pockets, then air can escape during foam injection, but the door structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a foam barrier layer (thin film) applied to the interior surface of the stile to prevent foam from leaking through the vent while allowing air to pass. This thin film solution adds minimal structural complexity while effectively preventing foam leakage.
Solution Approach 2:
The vent is positioned specifically in the stile rather than throughout the entire door structure. This localized approach allows air escape functionality to be added only where needed, minimizing the overall structural complexity modification.
3Stability of the object's composition
If foam barrier layer is applied to prevent foam leakage through vent, then foam is contained in core, but manufacturing process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The foam barrier layer is applied by controlling the foam material's expansion parameters. By adjusting foam density and expansion rate, the barrier layer forms automatically during the injection process without requiring separate application steps, simplifying manufacturing.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively eliminates air bubbles and pockets within the door, resulting in high-performance and durable foam-filled doors with improved quality.
Implementation Method 1
The gas permeable membrane is permeable to gas, but not permeable to the precursor of the foam material
Data Source
AI summary
A door includes a first skin, a second skin, two stiles, a core, and a gas permeable membrane. The first skin provides a first outer door surface. The second skin provides a second outer door surface. The two stiles are disposed at least partially between the first skin and the second skin. At least one stile defines a vent therein. The core comprises a foam material and is disposed between the first skin and the second skin. The gas permeable membrane, which is permeable to gas but not to the precursors of a foam material, is disposed on the at least one stile covering the vent. The gas permeable membrane contacts the foam material in the core, and separate the foam material in the core from the vent.