Method for manufacturing panels having a decorative surface

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9566823-B2
Application number	US-201615075515-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 21, 2016
Priority date	Aug 6, 2012
Publication date	Feb 14, 2017
Grant date	Feb 14, 2017

Abstract

Panels having a decorative surface may include a substrate and a top layer, and the top layer may include a paper layer having a printed pattern. A method for manufacturing such panels may involve providing the paper layer with at least a portion of the printed pattern. Providing the portion of the printed pattern may involve depositing pigment containing inks on the paper layer using a digital inkjet printer. The pigments may be color pigments. The digital inkjet printer may include print heads with nozzles for firing the pigment containing ink onto the paper layer. The dry weight of the total volume of the pigment containing inks deposited on the paper layer and contained in the portion of the printed pattern may be lower than 15 grams per square meter.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for manufacturing panels having a decorative surface,
wherein the panels include a substrate and a top layer, and the top layer includes a paper layer having a printed pattern, the method comprising: providing the paper layer;
and providing the paper layer with at least a portion of the printed pattern;
wherein providing the portion of the printed pattern involves depositing pigment containing inks on the paper layer using a digital inkjet printer;
wherein the pigments contained in the ink are color pigments;
wherein the digital inkjet printer includes print heads with nozzles, and the depositing involves firing the pigment containing ink from the nozzles onto the paper layer;
wherein the dry weight of the total volume of the pigment containing inks deposited on the paper layer and contained in the portion of the printed pattern is lower than 15 grams per square meter; and
wherein the total volume is less than 15 milliliters per square meter.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pigment containing ink is a UV curable ink.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the dry weight is less than 10 grams per square meter.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the paper layer is a colored base paper.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the top layer comprises a layer of colored thermosetting resin above the paper layer having the printed pattern.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the layer of colored thermosetting resin is a colored or pigmented overlay.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the digital inkjet printer uses pigment containing inks of between 3 and 6 colors.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the digital inkjet printer uses at least two differently colored pigment containing inks that include reddish pigment.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the paper layer is provided from a roll, and after printing cut to sheets.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the digital inkjet printer is of the single pass type.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the paper layer has a paper weight of between 50 and 100 grams per square meter and an air resistance of below 25 seconds according to the Gurley method.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises providing the paper layer with resin, and the paper layer is provided with an amount of thermosetting resin equaling 40 to 250% dry weight of resin as compared to weight of the paper.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises providing the paper layer with resin, and the paper layer is provided with such an amount of thermosetting resin, that at least a paper core is satisfied with the thermosetting resin.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises providing the paper layer with resin, and the resin is a melamine formaldehyde resin with a formaldehyde to melamine ratio of 1.4 to 2.

Assignees

• Unilin Bvba

Inventors

• Clement Benjamin
• De Boe Luc

Classifications

• B44C5/0446

  bearing graphical information · CPC title

• B44C3/048

  applying an additional decorative element, e.g. picture · CPC title

• B41J3/407

  for marking on special material · CPC title

• B41M5/5218

  characterised by inorganic additives, e.g. pigments, clays · CPC title

• B41J2/01

  Ink jet · CPC title