DE102010045266B4 - Process for the production of a cladding component and a cladding component - Google Patents

Abstract

Method for producing a component for cladding a floor, wall or ceiling surface, in which a fleece layer (3) is applied to a flat base body (2), with the fleece layer (3) being applied to the base body (2) before or after an upper decoration (6) made of ink is applied above the fleece layer (3) by means of a digital inkjet printing process, the fleece layer (3) being printed with the upper decoration (6) by means of a printing process in which a printing body with the fleece layer (3 ) comes into contact, is printed with a lower decoration (4), the lower decoration (4) being colored in a targeted manner in order to produce an overall decoration in connection with a printed layer.

Description

The invention relates to a method for producing a component for cladding floor, wall or ceiling surfaces according to the features of patent claim 1 and a component produced by this method for cladding such surfaces according to the features of patent claim 12.

Cladding components are used for visual design as well as upgrading and finishing visible surface areas. Inside buildings, for example, they are suitable for covering walls, ceilings or floors. They are usually produced in the form of panels or plates. On the other hand, elements that set accents or limit the edges are usually designed as ornaments or in the form of strips. The surfaces that are visible in the installed state either have their natural material character or a different look, for example a specially applied decor.

In the prior art, these surface decorations are printed. They are usually generated using the direct printing method. The respective decoration is applied via a pressure roller either directly to a panel or first to a paper layer, which is then connected to a panel-shaped base body. In this way, in particular, the production of laminate takes place.

through the DE 10 2008 033 274 A1 For example, a method for printing printing paper from a roll with at least one decorative image for use in flat components, in particular for floor, wall, ceiling or furniture applications, is part of the prior art. In this case, a predetermined print image is provided on a paper section of the printing paper with a predetermined length, which is printed using a digital printing method by a digital printing device. Subsequent paper sections can have a different, further decorative image than the decorative image of the preceding paper section. As a result, different decor images can be printed on a roll of printing paper with increased variability.

Digital printing in connection with floor elements or wall or ceiling panels is also in the DE 10 2007 013 132 A1 described. The individual flat printed components are in particular wood-based panels such as MDF, HDF or DKS panels or so-called HPL (high pressure laminate) panels. It is proposed to apply a printed paper layer to the top of the base body and to connect it firmly to the base body. A protective layer is then applied to the colored layer of the paper layer, which serves to protect the colored layer from UV radiation and, in particular, mechanical damage. The protective layer is transparent.

the US 2005/0136254 A1 relates to the hot pressing of layers of natural or recycled wood products for the manufacture of pressed wood panels and describes in particular the use of printed and vulcanised fiberboard and a method of making the same. A three-ply product contains a chipboard core, which is covered with a patterned and vulcanized fiberboard on each surface. One of the vulcanized fiberboards may have a pre-printed and decorative design. The second vulcanized fiberboard may also have a decorative pattern or may be plain vulcanized fiberboard with no pattern. The fiberboards can be pre-printed either before or after the vulcanized molding process. In an advantageous embodiment variant, the pattern can be pre-printed using a digital inkjet printing process.

From the DE 10 2009 023 737 A1 the digital printing of directly decorateable or printable nonwovens and their use in composite materials is known. A textile fabric such as a non-woven fabric is provided with a decoration using digital printing and then laminated onto a carrier. The fleece produced in this way is pressed with a carrier material under pressure and temperature. The carriers used are, for example, wood materials, paper, HDF or MDF. The composite material produced is particularly suitable as a material for interior design, for cladding, structures and for the manufacture of furniture.

the WO 2010/084386 A2 describes a method of manufacturing panels and panels obtained from manufacture. The panel consists of a substrate and a cover layer provided on this substrate, the cover layer having a printed decoration. The decor is applied directly to the panel using a digital printing device. The method is characterized in that a drying treatment is provided, by which the applied print is at least partially dried in a forced manner. The process is suitable for the production of panels for floors, walls and ceilings.

The usual procedure for the production of flat components is that the paper layers are first printed with a decor using a printing process. This can be a rotogravure printing process in which a printing body comes into contact with the paper layer. The paper layer printed in this way is provided with a protective layer, i.e. it is impregnated.

The usual web widths for gravure printing are between 2.0 m and 5.5 m. For further processing, the decorative paper webs are often cut to a narrower size after printing. The usual web widths are then 1.25 m or 2.1 m. These two widths are common formats that are used for impregnation with aminoplastic resins.

The paper used is usually soaked through. It is also possible to apply the resin used for impregnation asymmetrically to the printed paper web. After impregnation, the resin is first dried until it is partially condensed. The final hardening only takes place afterwards, when the decorative paper is pressed onto the base body.

A paper web that has been pretreated in this way is brittle after it has been impregnated. Their rigidity increases significantly compared to an unimpregnated paper web. The disadvantage of this production sequence is that the paper grows as a result of the printing and impregnation. In order to obtain a decor-synchronous structure when pressing using a pressing plate, the value of the growth must be precisely known. This is the only way to achieve correct results.

Here it is assumed that the press sheet is not absolutely flat, but has a structure or roughness differences (differences in gloss level) that must be precisely matched to the decor. An offset between the decor and the surface profile leads to an appearance that is perceived as unrealistic. As a result, the otherwise desired realistic surface impression, for example in the form of a wood structure, can be at least partially lost.

In the production of laminate in particular, increased demands are placed on their surface durability in addition to the respective appearance. In the laminate sector, this is mainly due to the wide range of possible uses, each of which involves different loads.

Depending on the structure, the resilience of a laminate is grouped into standardized load classes, from which the corresponding usage classes result. The load classes of laminate floors are regulated in EN 13329. The right product can be selected based on the intended use. The classes for living areas range from 21 to 23. Classes starting with 31 are particularly recommended for commercial use.

The structure of clad components known in the prior art still offers room for improvement, especially for use in areas subjected to high loads. The focus is particularly on the component surface that is subject to mechanical wear.

The invention is therefore based on the object of optimizing a method for producing a component for cladding floor, wall or ceiling surfaces and such a component in terms of production technology in such a way that, in addition to a good printed image of the decor, improved resistance of the component surface is achieved.

According to the invention, the solution to this problem is a method with the features of patent claim 1.

According to this, a method for producing a component for cladding a floor, wall or ceiling surface is provided, in which a fleece layer is applied to a flat base body. Before or after the fleece layer is applied to the base body, an upper decoration made of ink is applied above the fleece layer. The upper decoration is created using a digital inkjet printing process. The non-woven layer is first printed with a lower decoration before it is printed with the upper decoration. The lower decoration is produced using a printing process in which a pressure body comes into contact with the fleece layer.

The non-woven fabric is a textile fabric made of individual fibers. In contrast to paper, the individual fibers used are longer. In principle, wet-laid nonwovens made of short cellulose fibers can also be used, which are similar in length to those of paper. In contrast to paper, however, the fleece layer has no hydrogen bonds. The fleece layer used can be loose fibers that are not yet connected to one another. The strength of the fleece layer is based on the fiber's own adhesion. The strength of the fleece layer can be influenced by processing. The processing of the fleece layer leads to its consolidation.

The fleece layer can be formed from a glass fleece or polyester, for example. reason In addition, the fleece layer can also be formed from a combination of glass and polyester. The arrangement of the fleece layer is not just limited to a single layer, but can also be made up of several layers. The basis weight of the fleece layer is, for example, from 25 to 190 g/m ² . Advantageously, the basis weight of the fleece layer is from 90 to 160 g/m ² .

The arrangement of the fleece layer gives the component a high resistance to mechanical wear, which is better than that of paper. The high resilience of a component equipped with a fleece layer has very good impact resistance to impacting bodies and high resistance to scratching. In particular, the use of a glass fleece layer leads to very good fire behavior of the component. In addition to the properties of the non-woven layer which strengthen the surface against wear, the arrangement of the paper which is otherwise customary in the prior art is dispensed with, the omission of which saves corresponding material costs.

In addition to its strength properties, the fleece layer can have other features. Depending on the configuration of the fleece layer, it can have electrically conductive fibers, so that a possible shielding against electrical fields is achieved. Furthermore, the fleece layer can also have antistatic properties.

Another advantage lies in the high covering quality of the fleece layer, so that the surface properties of the base body do not show through. In addition, the fleece layer also reliably covers a possible surface structure of the base body, so that telegraphing of the base body is prevented. The arrangement of the fleece layer thus prevents possible negative effects on the surface design of the component.

Further advantageous measures of the method according to the invention are contained in the dependent claims 2 to 11.

For printing, an ink that can be cured by UV light is used, which is cured by exposure to UV light immediately after the printing process. Common aqueous inks or solvent-based inks run on the fleece layer so that the printed image is not sharp. These inks also have to be dried by means of heat, mostly by means of infrared rays. The required heat input can have a negative effect on the layer structure, for example due to thermal expansion.

Printing using the UV-light-curable ink can in principle be carried out partially or over the entire surface. It is also possible to carry out several printing processes one after the other.

The fleece layer is provided with a protective layer before printing. The protective layer can be placed on the fleece layer. The fleece layer is advantageously impregnated with the protective layer, so that the protective layer penetrates the fleece layer at least in certain areas. The protective layer is therefore an impregnate. In combination with the UV light curing of the decoration, only a little heat is introduced into the fleece layer impregnated in this way, so that the impregnate contained in the fleece layer by the impregnation is not impaired. Overall, this leads to lower stretching, which simplifies pore-synchronous production between the printed decoration and a profiled pressing sheet. Non-woven webs that are printed in roll unwinding stations are stretched longitudinally while their width is constricted at the same time. By avoiding water-based printing inks or inks, which can lead to growth of the fleece layer, the growth-triggering parameters are eliminated from the outset with the method according to the invention.

Another advantage is that this procedure simplifies handling. The current state of the art is to have the decor printed on a layer of paper in a printer. The printed paper layer is then impregnated and finally pressed with the base body by a manufacturer of, for example, laminate floors. In the case of the invention, on the other hand, a printed or unprinted base fleece can be procured and impregnated beforehand, only then can the desired decoration be applied with a digital printer, which can be pressed directly in a press together with the base body, in particular to form a laminate floor, without lengthy drying times. The amount of ink used can be between 1 g/m ² and 10 g/m ² , preferably between 3 g/m ² and 6 g/m ² .

The method according to the invention is therefore suitable for the production of flat components such as doors, wall cladding panels, but in particular also for furniture parts such as kitchen furniture fronts.

The impregnate, ie the protective layer, is advantageously formed from a resin. This is preferably an aminoplast.

Another advantage is that the digital printer does not require a complex winding and unwinding station for the fleece. The resin impregnated ned fleece layer has a certain rigidity and cannot be easily bent. It is therefore fed through the digital printer in individual sheets. The transport of the individual fleece sheets can take place via suction means.

Pre-impregnation of the fleece layer forms an excellent base for the special UV-light-curable ink, as the ink cannot penetrate deeply into the fleece layer. As a result, it is to a certain extent on the surface of the impregnated fleece layer. This leads to an extremely sharp print image. Conventional ink, especially solvent-based inks, would run on an impregnated fleece layer or cause the impregnating resin to react when the ink dries. However, due to the use of UV-curable ink, there is no reaction with the impregnating resin. The ink also does not run, so that the desired, razor-sharp print image results.

In a variant of the method according to the invention, the fleece layer is only provided with a protective layer after printing. In this case, the first impregnation of the fleece layer with the subsequent arrangement of an additional protective layer after printing is also possible. The decoration created is sealed by applying a protective layer after printing.

Advantageously, the protective layer is formed from a resin. The resin used is preferably an aminoplast. The term aminoplast is used both for the preliminary product that is still to be cured and for the fully cured end product.

In particular for an application of a protective layer that takes place only after the printing, the invention provides that this protective layer is formed from a lacquer. In addition to paints that at least partially cover the decor, paints that tint the decor over the entire surface or only in certain areas can also be used. In principle, mostly transparent paints are used here. In addition to its function as a protective layer, the decorations are improved in their optical effect, especially when applying tinted or transparent paints.

If necessary, at least one of the protective layers can be equipped with solid bodies. In this case, the protective layer provided for application to the printed fleece layer is preferably provided with individual particles at least in regions. These can, for example, be incorporated into the paint that has already been applied or the resin that has been applied. In order in particular to increase the abrasion and scratch resistance of the protective layer, it is provided with the abrasion-resistant particles. The material, for example corundum, silicon or ceramic, in particular porcelain, is in this case glued to the protective layer or already bonded to the protective layer during its production. The particle size of the particles preferably ranges from 2 to 100 mμ (mu). The material, which has the appropriate grain size, is mixed into the protective layer to be applied, for example, and applied together with it.

In principle, however, the individual particles can also be sprinkled onto and incorporated into the protective layer that has not yet hardened. Particularly in the case of impregnation, the individual particles can be sprinkled into the resin that has not yet hardened. The particles can be selected in such a way that the perceptible surface characteristics of the component are changed in a targeted manner. As a result, the particles create/change the desired visual impression. The particles are used as design elements, for example in the form of mica. In this way, a desired gloss value of the surface can be set in general or only in certain areas. In addition to a changed appearance of the component coated in this way, its useful areas and possible uses are expanded. Preferred areas of application are, for example, in areas with increased requirements for slip resistance, such as those found on floor coverings laid in entrance areas. In addition, the rough structure of the protective layer also increases the resistance of the component to mechanical stress.

Depending on the requirements, the protective layer intended for application to the printed fleece layer is provided with a rough structure. This can, for example, be incorporated into the paint that has already been applied or the applied resin. Even if the rough structure can be transferred to the protective layer using a shaping tool, for example, this is advantageously produced by applying or introducing another material into or onto the protective layer. The material, for example corundum, silicon or ceramic, in particular porcelain, is in this case glued to the protective layer or already bonded to the protective layer during its production.

In contrast to the non-contact inkjet printing process, in which tiny droplets of color are accelerated and thus applied to the desired surface area, the lower decoration is produced in direct contact with a color carrier. In this respect, it is a conventional printing method, with the ink carrier being formed from a printing body. Advantageously, this is a rotary printing process. The decor is applied to the fleece layer by means of rotogravure printing. The pressure body is preferably a pressure roller. If the rotary printing process is not used, a flat printing body can also be used to apply the lower decoration.

The primary aim of these conventional printing methods is to achieve a high processing speed. The fleece layer preprinted in this way is then printed with the upper decoration using the inkjet printing process. Different effects are achieved by overlaying the two decors. The lower decor is supplemented and modified by the second, upper decor. Both decors can be applied over the entire surface or over part of the surface. In principle, the upper decoration can also not be designed to cover the entire surface, which means that it does not replace the lower decoration, but primarily serves to supplement it.

It is also provided that a top layer is applied as an overlay above the fleece layer. The overlay thus seals the component on its upper usable side. The overlay serves as the outermost protective layer for all layers underneath, including the decoration. The overlay can also have particles that increase abrasion resistance, such as corundum, silicon or ceramic, in particular porcelain. The overlay is preferably made of resin, in particular melamine resin. Overall, the overlay serves to protect against mechanical stress, such as abrasion.

In particular, a laminate floor is produced with the method according to the invention. In this case, a carrier plate made of a wood material is preferably used as the base body, which is profiled at the edge after pressing with the fleece layer to form a connection geometry. In particular, the properties of the fleece layer that prevent telegraphing of the base body also allow the use of rough and topographically more demanding surfaces of the carrier board, such as those prevalent in chipboard or OSB boards. A preferred area of application for this is, for example, in the production of components for furniture.

The invention provides that a counteracting layer is applied to an underside of the base body that faces away from the fleece layer. In this case, the balancing sheet is applied to the underside of the base body, for example in the form of a paper or a plastic layer. The backing serves to absorb bending forces that arise both from loading and from the layers applied to the top of the base body. The protective layer and the decoration as well as the fleece layer and the backing are advantageously connected to the base body in a common work step. This results in efficient and economical production. In this joint work step, the individual layers and the decoration are pressed together with the base body and glued together.

Furthermore, it is provided that the individual layers are pressed together with the decoration and the counteracting as well as the base body, with a top side of the base body facing the fleece layer being provided with a structure. For this purpose, the press pressure is adjusted in such a way that a structure worked into a press plate is transferred through the individual layers, in particular through the fleece layer, into the upper side of the base body. This surface structure allows an extremely realistic optical effect to be generated on the visible surface of the component. An MDF board is advantageously used for this purpose, in which the structure of the press plate is transferred through individual layers, in particular through the fleece layer.

According to the invention, the solution to the objective part of the task consists in a component with the features of patent claim 12.

Advantageous configurations are the subject matter of dependent claims 13 to 16.

The finished flat product is a component for cladding floor, wall or ceiling surfaces with a flat base body in the form of a carrier plate profiled on the edge. A fleece layer is applied to the base body. Before or after the fleece layer is applied to the base body, an upper decoration made of ink is applied above the fleece layer by means of a digital inkjet printing process. The fleece layer can be provided with a suitable protective layer both before and after printing. When the protective layer is arranged before the nonwoven layer is printed, the protective layer is advantageously formed by a resin with which the nonwoven layer is impregnated. The protective layer can be applied after printing using both resin and varnish. Even before the fleece layer is printed with the upper decoration, a lower decoration is first applied above the fleece layer. The lower decoration is created using a printing process in which a pressure body comes into contact with the fleece layer.

The decoration is advantageously formed from ink that can be cured with UV light. In particular, the properties of this ink, which can be cured under UV light, mean that after this ink has been applied and immediately cured by UV light, a sharp image of the decoration is produced.

In order to obtain a surface characteristic of the component that is as natural as possible, the invention provides that an upper side of the base body facing the fleece layer has a structure. This structure can be introduced into the base body, for example, before the fleece layer is applied. This structure is advantageously produced in a common operation, the structure being introduced into the upper side of the base body through the non-woven layer via a correspondingly designed pressing plate.

In the laminate area in particular, a protective layer is applied to the fleece layer before pressing, in order to protect the decor or the fleece layer in general from damage. The fleece layer thus provided with the protective layer is cut to size before pressing.

Within the scope of the invention, it is also possible to use carrier boards other than those made of wood-based materials as the base body, it possibly being necessary to glue or glue the decorative layer to the base body. Depending on the choice of base body, a balancing sheet may be necessary to stabilize the layer structure on the base body. The edge profile of the base body is in particular a profile of a glue-free so-called click system, in which adjacent base bodies can be positively connected to one another.

To increase the abrasion resistance, at least one of the protective layers, preferably the uppermost layer and thus the layer that delimits the component to its useful surface, can have individual solid bodies in the form of particles. This increases the resilience of the top layer as a mechanically stressed wear layer. For example, corundum, silicon or ceramic, in particular porcelain, and a combination of the above can already be mixed into the resin and/or paint before it is applied. The particles can also be sprinkled into the resin and/or paint that has not yet hardened, for example into the impregnation, and harden together with the latter. It is also conceivable to apply the particles beforehand, which are then at least partially overlaid with resin and/or paint.

Depending on the requirements, the component can have an overlay on its upper wear layer. The overlay forms the uppermost protective layer, which protects against abrasion, for example, in particular under mechanical stress. The overlay can have particles that increase its abrasion resistance.

• 1 ein erfindungsgemäßes Bauteil in einer Schnittansicht und
• 2 das erfindungsgemäße Bauteil aus 1 in einer Variante.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments shown schematically in the drawings. Show it:

• 1 a component according to the invention in a sectional view and
• 2 the component according to the invention 1 in a variant.

the 1 shows a flat component 1a, of which only a partial area of the surface is shown in cross section. The supporting element of the flat component 1a is a base body 2. The base body 2 itself can have one or more layers and consists in particular of wood and/or synthetic materials. In particular, the base body 2 can be wood-based panels, such as MDF, HDF or DKS panels, or what are known as HPL (high pressure laminate) panels.

A printed fleece layer 3 is applied to the base body 2 . The fleece layer 3 is printed several times. In this exemplary embodiment, two printed layers are applied one on top of the other. A lower printed layer represents a lower decoration 4. This lower decoration 4 is applied to the fleece layer 3 by means of a rotogravure printing process. The lower decoration 4 is not used for leveling out in the sense of a primer, but is specifically colored in order to result in an overall decoration in connection with a further printed layer. Before the fleece layer 3 is printed, it is provided with a protective layer 5a. The protective layer 5a is a resin, whereby the nonwoven fabric layer 3 is impregnated through the protective layer 5a.

The lower decoration 4 is thus applied to the fleece layer 3 impregnated with the protective layer 5a. The lower decoration 4 is applied by means of a printing process in which a pressure body has come into contact with the impregnated fleece layer 3 . In the next step, in this exemplary embodiment, an upper decoration 6 was partially applied using a digital inkjet printing process. UV-curable ink was used for this. This ink was cured by UV light after the printing process. The fast curing in combination with the impregnation of the fleece layer 3 prevents the ink from running, so that a very precise printed image results.

With the development of a UV-curable digital printing ink, it is possible to produce a razor-sharp print image, since the drying of the UV-curable ink does not destroy the impregnated material. Crosslinking takes place between the ink and the aminoplastic resin, but at the same time there is no dense filming of the digital print. A bond without a separating effect is thus possible, particularly since an abrasion-resistant overlay is possible on the digitally printed paper layer.

A transparent protective layer 5b is then applied. Hard particles such as corundum, porcelain or silicon can be embedded in the protective layer 5b. The protective layer 5b is generally used in those components that are laid on the floor. In principle, when using an overlay, the particles can also be arranged on this. There is a counter-pull 7 on the underside of the base body 2.

2 shows a flat component 1b as a variant of FIG 1 shown component 1a. The main difference lies in the protective layer 5a that is not used, so that the fleece layer 3 is not impregnated with resin. In this case, the lower decoration 4 was applied directly to the fleece layer 3 .

reference list

1a

component

1b

component

2

body

3

fleece layer

4

lower decor

5a

protective layer

5b

protective layer

6

upper decor

7

return

Claims (16)

Method for producing a component for cladding a floor, wall or ceiling surface, in which a fleece layer (3) is applied to a flat base body (2), with the fleece layer (3) being applied to the base body (2) before or after an upper decoration (6) made of ink is applied above the fleece layer (3) by means of a digital inkjet printing process, the fleece layer (3) being printed with the upper decoration (6) by means of a printing process in which a printing body with the fleece layer (3 ) comes into contact, is printed with a lower decoration (4), the lower decoration (4) being colored in a targeted manner in order to produce an overall decoration in connection with a printed layer. procedure after claim 1 , characterized in that the upper decor (6) consists of UV light curable ink and is cured by UV light. procedure after claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that the fleece layer (3) is provided with a protective layer (5a) before printing. procedure after claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that the fleece layer (3) is provided with a protective layer (5b) after printing. procedure after claim 3 or 4 , characterized in that the protective layer (5a, 5b) is formed of a resin. procedure after claim 3 or 4 , characterized in that the protective layer (5a, 5b) is formed from a lacquer. Procedure according to one of Claims 4 until 6 , characterized in that the protective layer (5b) is provided with particles increasing the abrasion resistance. Procedure according to one of Claims 1 until 7 , characterized in that a top layer is applied as an overlay above the fleece layer (3). Procedure according to one of Claims 1 until 8th , characterized in that the base body (2) is formed from a carrier plate made of a wood material, which after the application of the fleece layer (3) is profiled on the edge to form a connection geometry. Procedure according to one of claims 3 until 9 , characterized in that a counteracting layer (7) is applied to an underside of the base body (2) facing away from the fleece layer (3), the protective layer (5a, 5b) and the decoration (4, 6) and the fleece layer (3) and the balancing sheet (7) can be connected to the base body (2) in a common work step. procedure after claim 10 , characterized in that the individual layers (3, 5a, 5b) are pressed together with the decoration (4, 6) and the balancing sheet (7) and the base body (2), with a fleece layer (3) facing the top of the Base body (2) is provided with a structure. Component for cladding floor, wall or ceiling surfaces, which comprises a flat base body (2) in the form of a carrier plate profiled at the edge, to which a fleece layer (3) is applied, with the fleece layer (3) being applied to the Base body (2), an upper decoration (6) made of ink is applied above the fleece layer (3) by means of a digital inkjet printing process, the fleece layer (3) being printed with the upper decoration (6) by means of a printing process in which a printing body with the fleece layer (3) comes into contact, is printed with a lower decoration (4), the lower decoration (4) being colored in a targeted manner in order to produce an overall decoration in connection with a printed layer. component after claim 12 , characterized in that the decoration (6) is formed from UV-light-curable ink. component after claim 12 or 13 , characterized in that an upper side of the base body (2) facing the fleece layer (3) has a structure. Component after one of Claims 12 until 14 , characterized in that the base body (2) is provided at the edge with a profile of a glue-free click system. Component after one of Claims 12 until 15 , characterized in that the base body (2) is a wood-based panel.

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