Window Shade Preform Fabrication and RF Bonding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for fabricating cellular window shades and other window treatments are time-consuming, expensive, and result in significant waste due to the need for initially forming and stocking broad panels or bolts, which are then cut to specific sizes for customer orders.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus for fabricating window coverings by forming elongated preforms from a continuous strip of fabric, which are then cut to length, creased, folded, and bonded using adhesive lines that are partially cured during the forming process, allowing for efficient stacking and bonding of the preforms to form a finished window covering without the need for large initial stockpiles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If broad panels or bolts are initially formed and stocked for later cutting to customer order sizes, then product availability for various window sizes is improved, but significant material waste and storage costs occur
Solution Approach 1:
The continuous fabric strip is divided into individual preforms of specific lengths during the forming process, rather than creating large broad panels that require later cutting. Each preform is sized appropriately for its intended window covering application, eliminating the need to cut and waste material from oversized stock panels.
Solution Approach 2:
The fabric is formed into preforms with adhesive lines applied and partially cured before final assembly. This preliminary formation and partial curing allows the preforms to be stacked and bonded efficiently later, providing product availability without requiring large stocked panels that would need cutting and generate waste.
2Productivity
If broad panels are initially formed and stocked, then customer order fulfillment is improved, but handling and storage costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system produces individual preforms rather than large broad panels, eliminating the need for storage and handling of oversized stock materials. Preforms can be directly assembled into finished window coverings, reducing handling steps and storage requirements while maintaining order fulfillment capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The process operates continuously, forming preforms on-demand from the continuous fabric strip and assembling them into finished products. This eliminates the interruption caused by storing and retrieving large broad panels, maintaining continuous productive action without storage delays.
3Strength
If thermal curing is used to cure adhesive lines, then bonding strength is improved, but thermal distortion and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal curing with radio frequency (RF) energy curing for the adhesive lines. RF energy directly excites molecular dipoles in the adhesive to generate heat locally at the bond line, providing strong bonding without the broad thermal exposure that causes fabric distortion, and consuming less overall energy.
4Loss of energy
If radio frequency energy is used to cure adhesive lines, then thermal distortion and energy consumption are reduced, but curing effectiveness must be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
Radio frequency energy provides localized heating at the adhesive bond lines through dielectric heating, concentrating energy exactly where needed for curing. This localized energy delivery ensures effective curing while minimizing overall energy consumption and avoiding thermal distortion of the surrounding fabric material.
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
This method significantly reduces waste and costs associated with handling and storing large stockpiles, enables faster conversion of customer orders to finished products, and minimizes thermal distortion and energy consumption by preferentially curing the adhesive lines using radio frequency energy.
Implementation Method 1
preferentially curing the adhesive lines using radio frequency energy
Data Source
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AI summary
An apparatus and method are disclosed for forming cellular or non-cellular window shades directly from raw stock to the final desired window shade color, height and width to fit a particular window size, with essentially no wasted material. The shade is fabricated from a bonded array of a predetermined number of stacked, identically shaped and sized, elements or preforms of uniform length corresponding to one of the height or width dimensions of the desired window covering. The number of preforms is selected so that the length of the fully expanded array will correspond with the other of the height or width dimensions of the window covering. The raw stock is in the form of a continuously fed narrow strip of uncolored fabric to which the necessary coloring, folding, cutting-to-length, stacking and bonding steps are applied within the disclosed apparatus.