Method for folding over an edge of a decorative layer and fold-over system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10464256-B2
Application number	US-201414902943-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 8, 2014
Priority date	Aug 8, 2013
Publication date	Nov 5, 2019
Grant date	Nov 5, 2019

Abstract

A method for folding over an edge of a decorative layer, a fold-over system, a method for converting a fold-over system, and an interior trim part. To reduce cycle times and to achieve excellent quality of the produced laminated parts at the same time, a method is provided wherein the fold-over slide for fixing the edge of the decorative layer is cooled by means of an active cooling means. Alternatively or cumulatively, the fold-over slide according to the invention is heated by means of an active heating means. In a preferred embodiment, a heating fluid flows through the fold-over slide when the fold-over slide is already pressing the adhesive into the adhesive joint, such that the hot-melt adhesive is activated. Then, under persistent contact pressure, the fold-over slide is cooled until fixation occurs. Then the fold-over slide is removed, and the carrier part can be exchanged.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for the folding of a rim of a decorative layer around an edge of a substrate part, the method comprising:
folding the decorative layer rim around the substrate part edge using an edge-folding slide;
fixing the rim of the decorative layer in the edge-folded condition in an adhesive joint;
actively heating the edge-folding slide during the edge folding and/or during the fixing of the rim of the decorative layer; and
actively cooling the edge-folding slide.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge-folding slide is cooled from its inside outward by pumping a cooling fluid through a channel on or in the edge-folding slide, so that the edge-folding slide is flowed through by the cooling fluid and thereby cooled.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein a cooling regulating circulation is provided and the cooling is regulated with respect to the circulation's amount and/or its flow and/or its cooling capacity and/or its cooling position.

4. The method of claim 3 ,
wherein a return-flow temperature of the cooling fluid is measured as the regulating value, and
wherein the return-flow temperature is regulated to a value below 40° C.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge-folding slide is first cooled to below 40° C. before it is removed from the edge-folded rim.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge-folding slide is heated from its inside outward by pumping a heating fluid through a channel in the edge-folding slide, so that the edge-folding slide is flowed through by the heating fluid and thereby heated.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein a metallic structural element is used for the edge-folding slide.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the metallic structural element comprises copper and/or beryllium.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge-folding slide is formed in one piece with an open or closed channel.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein a same liquid medium is used for the cooling and the heating.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein a heating fluid and a cooling fluid are provided and are pumped in alternation through a same channel on or in the edge-folding slide.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
a) edge-folding of the rim and pressing of the rim against the substrate part by way of the edge-folding slide;
b) heating-the edge-folding slide to activate thermally activatable adhesive in the adhesive joint;
c) holding of the rim in the pressed condition of the thermally activatable adhesive;
d) cooling the edge-folding slide to cool the thermally activatable adhesive, so that the cooling of the thermally activatable adhesive fixes the edge-folded rim to the substrate part;
e) detaching of the edge-folding slide from the rim fixed on the substrate part.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge folding of the rim takes place at a temperature level at the point of contact with the edge-folding slide below an activation temperature of a thermally activatable hot melt used to fix the rim in the edge-folded condition.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the heating takes place during exertion of the pressure of the edge-folding slide on the rim and on the thermally activatable adhesive on the substrate part.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cooling takes place during exertion of the pressure of the edge-folding slide on the rim and on the adhesive on the substrate part.

16. An edge-folding system for the edge folding of a rim of a decorative layer around an edge of a substrate part, the system comprising:
an electromechanically driven edge-folding slide configured to perform edge folding;
a fixing means configured to fix the rim of the decorative layer in an adhesive joint in the edge-folded condition;
an active heating means for the edge-folding slide configured to heat the edge-folding slide during the edge folding and/or during the fixing of the rim of the decorative layer; and
an active cooling means for the edge-folding slide configured to cool the edge-folding slide for the fixing of the rim of the decorative layer by way of the active cooling means.

17. The edge-folding system of claim 16 , wherein a cooling circulation for a cooling fluid is provided.

18. The edge-folding system of claim 17 , wherein the cooling circulation and the heating circulation are connected in series.

19. The edge-folding system of claim 17 , wherein the cooling circulation and the heating circulation are connected in parallel.

20. The edge-folding system of claim 16 , wherein a heating circulation for a heating fluid is provided.

21. The edge-folding system of claim 16 , wherein the edge-folding slide has an electrically and/or magnetically activatable heating element and wherein the edge-folding system is set up to activate the heating element for the edge folding and/or for the fixing.

22. The edge-folding system of claim 16 , wherein a hot-air system is provided and set up to direct a hot-air stream onto a region of the adhesive joint of the substrate part, taken up for edge folding, with the rim to be edge-folded of the decorative layer, with a multiplicity of discrete hot-air outlet openings disposed substantially in the shape of the substrate-part contour.

23. The edge-folding system of claim 16 , wherein a contactless heating means is provided for the rim of the decorative layer and/or an adhesive in the adhesive joint.

24. The edge-folding system claim 16 , wherein the edge-folding slide has a thermal insulating element attached to an opposite end of an adhesive jaw as a pressing part of the adhesive jaw on the edge-folding system.

25. The edge-folding system of claim 16 , wherein various heating and/or cooling means are provided for various edge portions of a substrate part to be taken up with rim to be edge-folded of a decorative layer, the heating and the cooling means using the same medium for at least one edge portion.

Assignees

• Kiefel Gmbh

Inventors

• Feil Juergen
• Dandl Andreas

Classifications

• B29C53/84

  Heating or cooling · CPC title

• B32B2605/08

  Cars · CPC title

• B32B3/06

  for securing layers together; for attaching the product to another member, e.g. to a support {, or to another product, e.g. groove/tongue, interlocking} · CPC title

• B32B2451/00

  Decorative or ornamental articles · CPC title

• B32B7/14

  applied in spaced arrangements, e.g. in stripes · CPC title