Technical Field

The present invention relates to a procedure and equipment for the manufacture of slabs of ceramic and/or stone material.

Background Art

The manufacture of slabs of ceramic and/or stone material, such as ceramic products or slabs made of mineral grit bound with resins, generally involves a deposition phase of a basic material on a supporting surface, such as a belt or a mould, to form a slab to be compacted, and a subsequent pressing phase, in order to obtain a compacted slab. The basic material may be made of a ceramic material or a mixture of minerals in granular form (e.g. marble, granite, glass, fragments of mirrors, and/or others) as well as quartz powder and, precisely, resins that act as binders.

Depending on the type of basic material, further phases are then carried out, such as e.g. firing and subsequent cooling, in order to obtain a product having high mechanical and chemical properties.

The equipment required to carry out these phases therefore includes the presence of a supporting surface, means for depositing the basic material on the supporting surface so as to form a slab to be compacted and pressing means to obtain a compacted slab.

As the technician in this sector knows, depending on the type of basic material used, the embodiment and the technical characteristics of the means making up the relative equipment may differ.

Today, the market requires increasingly special aesthetic effects, such as e.g. the reproduction of natural stones, such as marble or granite, characterized by “veins”, or strips with a wavy pattern of different color than the basic material, which cross the entire thickness thereof.

A well-known type of equipment used to obtain this effect involves the use of a hopper that extends over the entire width of the slab to be obtained and inside which the basic material to be deposited on the supporting surface is loaded, since a relative movement is provided between the latter surface and the hopper itself.

In order to obtain a“veined” effect, layers of different types of material are deposited inside the hopper, which are deposited in succession on the supporting surface.

The slabs obtained in this way, however, have“longitudinal” veins, i.e. they do not cross the entire thickness thereof. This drawback therefore prevents the creation of a so-called “through vein”, typical of natural stones, and is particularly evident in the case of slabs being manufactured with two surfaces that are orthogonal to each other, such as in the case of kitchen tops, bathroom tops or other similar applications, so that it is not possible to obtain a substantially continuous vein along the two orthogonal surfaces.

In addition, due to the friction of the material on the walls, the layers of material are not deposited evenly on the supporting surface, so that the intensity of the color of the veins obtained is faded.

Description of the Invention

The main aim of the present invention is to devise a procedure and equipment for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material that allows obtaining a wide variety of aesthetic effects in a simple and reliable manner. Within this aim, one of the objects of the present invention is to create aesthetic variations characterized by colors and/or patterns not achievable using the natural materials mentioned above, thus allowing a particularly versatile and customizable production.

Another object of the present invention is to allow the predictability and reproducibility of the aesthetic effects obtained.

Another object of the present invention is to devise a procedure and equipment for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material that allows overcoming the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art in a simple, rational, easy, effective to use and low-cost solution.

The aforementioned objects are achieved by the present equipment for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material according to claim

1.

The aforementioned objects are also achieved by the present procedure for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material according to claim 15.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will be better evident from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of an equipment for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material, illustrated as an indicative, but not limiting example in the attached tables of drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic axonometric representation of an equipment according to the invention with the container in the loading configuration;

Figure 2 is a schematic axonometric representation of the equipment in Figure 1 with the container in the release configuration;

Figure 3 is a schematic axonometric representation of the equipment in Figure 2 with the containment wall moved with respect to the base body;

Figure 4 is a schematic axonometric representation of the equipment in Figure 3 with the outlet port open;

Figure 5 is a schematic axonometric representation of the equipment in Figure 4 with the slab to be compacted coming out of the container;

Figure 6 is a schematic axonometric representation of the equipment in Figure 5 with the container in the loading position;

Figure 7 is a schematic plan representation from above of an equipment according to the invention;

Figures 8 to 10 are schematic axonometric representations of an equipment according to the invention in alternative embodiments.

Embodiments of the Invention

With particular reference to these figures, reference numeral 1 globally indicates an equipment for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material.

The equipment 1 comprises at least a base frame 2 which can be positioned resting on the ground, at least one supporting surface 3 associated with the base frame 2 and movable along a direction of forward movement 4, e.g. of the type of a motorized belt, at least one container 5 defining a collecting chamber 6 of a ceramic and/or stone material intended to be deposited onto the supporting surface 3 to obtain at least one slab to be compacted L.

Downstream of the container 5, pressing means 7 of the slab to be compacted L are arranged along the direction of forward movement 4.

The pressing means 7 are of a type known to the technician of this sector and generally involve the presence of a buffer, adapted to exert a force of predefined intensity on the slab to be compacted, and a counteracting element. The pressing means 7 can vary constructively according to the type of material used and can be of a dynamic type (in particular in the case where the material used is of the ceramic type), i.e. they can comprise a pair of belts adapted to contact the opposite faces of the slab to be compacted L during its forward movement, where one of these belts acts as a buffer and the other as a counteracting element, or they can be of a static type, i.e. the buffer exerts the pressing force on the slab to be compacted when this is stationary.

The material contained in the collecting chamber 6 may be of the ceramic type, in atomized form, granules or flakes, and/or stone form (such as marble, granite, minerals or other natural stones), in the form of powder and/or granules and/or flakes and mixed with a cement or resin binder. The material contained in the collecting chamber 6 may consist of a single type of material, or of a plurality of primary materials of different type and/or having different colours.

The material contained in the container 5 may therefore have a substantially uniform granulometry and colouring, or it may be composed of a plurality of different materials, in terms of type and/or colouring, mixed together or superimposed to define a plurality of layers. Depending on how the container 5 is loaded, it is therefore possible to obtain various aesthetic effects such as, e.g., veins V that cross the entire thickness of the slab to be compacted L.

The slabs to be compacted L thus obtained can therefore be of the ceramic type, intended to be subjected to a firing procedure, or of the type of slabs of mineral grit (also called quartz slabs), intended to be subjected to a vibro-compression procedure under vacuum.

The characteristics of the materials of which the slabs could be made, in any case, do not represent a limitation to the objects of the present invention. The container 5 can be of the preformed type, i.e. separately loaded and positioned at the supporting surface 3, so that the collecting chamber 6 is closed with the container 5 in the loading configuration.

In the preferred embodiments shown in the figures, the container 5 is provided with at least one inlet port 8 for the introduction of the ceramic and/or stone material into the collecting chamber 6.

According to the invention, the container 5 comprises at least one base body 5a and at least one containment wall 5b, which can be positioned at the supporting surface 3 and which can be moved with respect to the base body 5a between a home position, wherein it contains the ceramic and/or stone material inside the collecting chamber 6, and a work position, wherein it enables the deposition of the ceramic and/or stone material contained in the collecting chamber 6 on the supporting surface 3.

With the wording“which can be positioned at the supporting surface 3” it is meant that the containment wall 5b can be placed substantially facing the supporting surface 3, or it can be placed on the supporting surface 3 or it can be placed in the proximity of the supporting surface itself but spaced apart from it, in the latter case the ceramic and/or stone material contained in the collecting chamber 6 falls by gravity on the supporting surface 3 as a result of the displacement of the containment wall 5b from the home position to the work position.

The movement of the containment wall 5b with respect to the base body 5a may be transverse with respect to the direction of forward movement 4, in which case when the containment wall 5b reaches its work position, it is placed at least partly outside the supporting surface 3, or it may be directed substantially parallel to the direction of forward movement itself, in a convergent or discordant direction with it.

As a result of the displacement from the home position to the work position, the containment wall 5b may remain associated with the base body 5a, in which case it is moved back to the home position by running backwards the movement made, or it may be released from the base body 5a and then taken back to the home position at a later time. In the embodiment in Figure 10, in which the container 5 is arranged with the containment wall 5b at the supporting surface 3, the inlet port 8 is arranged substantially facing the containment wall 5b and the material introduced through it rests directly on the containment surface itself.

In the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 9, the container 5 is movable between at least one loading configuration, wherein the containment wall 5b is moved away from the supporting surface 3, and a release configuration, wherein the containment wall 5b is arranged at the supporting surface 3 and wherein the containment wall itself is movable from the home position to the work position and vice versa.

With the container 5 in release configuration and the containment wall 5b in home position, the ceramic and/or stone material remains inside the collecting chamber 6, while when the containment wall 5b is brought to the work position, the collecting chamber 6 is opened below so that the material contained inside rests on the supporting surface 3.

More specifically, in the loading configuration the containment wall 5b is raised with respect to the supporting surface 3, e.g. in a substantially vertical position, while in the release position it is placed substantially horizontally.

In the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 9, the container 5 also comprises removable closing means 5c of the inlet port 8. The closing means 5c, e.g. of the type of a door, are movable between an open position, wherein they allow the introduction of the ceramic and/or stone material through the inlet port 8, and a closed position, wherein they prevent the ceramic and/or stone material from passing through the inlet port itself. The closing means 5c are then placed in open position with the container 5 in the loading configuration, and are then brought to the closed position after filling the collecting chamber 6 and before moving the container itself to the release configuration. During the displacement from the loading configuration to the release configuration, the collecting chamber 6 is therefore closed.

The container 5 is suitably supported by the base frame 2 and is placed next to the supporting surface 3; in this case, in the loading configuration, the containment wall 5b is oriented substantially parallel to the direction of forward movement 4.

In the embodiment of Figure 9, on the other hand, the container 5 is arranged on top of the supporting surface 3; in this case, in the loading configuration, the containment wall 5b is oriented substantially transversely to the direction of forward movement 4.

Preferably, as shown in the embodiment in Figures 1 to 6, the container 5 can be moved in rotation between the loading configuration and the release configuration. In this embodiment, the containment wall 5b is directed on the side of the supporting surface 3 with the container 5 in loading configuration. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, 5 and 6, the container 5 then carries out a rotation of about 90° to switch from the loading configuration to the release configuration and vice versa.

Appropriately, the axis of rotation of the container 5 is substantially parallel to the direction of forward movement 4. The rotation of the container 5 around the relevant axis can be carried out through hinging means (not visible in detail in the figures) of a type known to the technician of this sector. In particular, the base body 5a can be hinged to one or more supporting elements associated with the base frame 2.

In the alternative embodiments shown in Figures 8 and 9, the container 5 can be moved in rototranslation between the loading configuration and the release configuration. In particular, in the embodiment of Figure 8, the containment wall 5b is directed towards the outside with the container 5 in loading configuration. In this case, the movement of the container 5 can be carried out by means of relative guiding means (not shown in the figures) e.g. of the type of slots associated with the base frame 2 into which the relevant pins associated with the base body 5a are inserted in a sliding manner.

The movement of the container 5 from the loading configuration to the release configuration and vice versa may be of the manual or motorized type.

In the embodiments shown in the figures, the container 5 is shown as being made of substantially transparent material, so as to make it easier to understand how the arrangement of the ceramic and/or stone material inside it, is reproduced on the supporting surface 3. Advantageously, the container 5 comprises at least one openable outlet port 9 of the ceramic and/or stone material deposited on the supporting surface 3.

More in detail, the container 5 is provided with opening means 5d of the outlet port 9, e.g. of the type of a door, which can be moved between a closed position, wherein they prevent the ceramic and/or stone material from passing, and an open position, wherein they allow the passage of the ceramic and/or stone material outside the collecting chamber 6.

Appropriately, the opening means 5d are brought to the open position when the containment wall 5b is in the work position, so that the ceramic and/or stone material that is placed on the supporting surface 3 can be dragged along the direction of forward movement 4.

More particularly, in the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 9, during the movement of the container 5 from the loading configuration to the release configuration, the opening means 5d are kept in the closed position in order to prevent the ceramic and/or stone material from coming out. After reaching the release configuration, the opening means 5d are brought to the open position so that, as a result of the movement of the containment wall 5b to the work position, the ceramic and/or stone material contained in the collecting chamber 6 and placed on the supporting surface 3 is brought outside of the collecting chamber 6 as a result of the forward movement of the supporting surface itself. As an alternative to the presence of the outlet port 9 and of the opening means 5d, it is possible to provide movement means (not shown in the figures) of the container 5 which are adapted to raise it as a result of the displacement of the containment wall 5b to the work position.

Preferably, the container 5 is substantially parallelepiped- shaped, so that the ceramic and/or stone material contained in it takes on the shape of a slab after being placed on the supporting surface 3. More in detail, the container 5 has two lateral faces, one facing the other and substantially parallel, adapted to define the installation face and the visible face, respectively, of the slab to be compacted L, where one of these faces corresponds to the containment wall 5b. The outlet port 9 is arranged transversely with respect to the containment wall 5b. In the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 9, the inlet port 8 and the outlet port 9 are arranged orthogonally to the containment wall 5b, at the thickness of the slab to be compacted L thus obtained, and are separate and contiguous to each other.

Appropriately, as shown in the figures, the inlet port 8 faces upwards with the container 5 in the loading configuration and the outlet port 9 is arranged transversely to the direction of forward movement 4 with the container 5 in release configuration.

In the embodiment of Figure 10, on the contrary, the inlet port 8 is arranged facing the containment wall 5b.

Advantageously, as shown in Figure 7, the equipment 1 comprises a plurality of containers 5 arranged in succession one after the other along the direction of forward movement 4, upstream of the pressing means 7.

This configuration of the equipment 1 allows using the containers 5 alternatively in order to optimize performance and reduce production gaps. In other words, while one of the containers 5 is in loading configuration for the introduction of the ceramic and/or stone material inside it, another container 5 is arranged in release configuration so as to allow the formation of a slab to be compacted L on the supporting surface 3.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 7, the containers 5 are arranged, in loading configuration, on opposite sides to the supporting surface 3, although alternative embodiments cannot be ruled out wherein the containers 5 are arranged on the same side as the supporting surface 3.

The operation of the equipment in carrying out the procedure according to the invention is as follows.

The procedure for the manufacture of slabs made of ceramic and/or stone material involves first of all a supply phase of at least one ceramic and/or stone material in the form of powder and/or granules and/or flakes and the introduction thereof into the container 5.

In particular, it is possible to provide for the supply of a plurality of ceramic and/or stone materials in the form of powder and/or granules and/or flakes that are different from each other, both from the point of view of colouring and type. In this case, the introduction into the container 5 is carried out according to a predefined sequence so as to obtain the veins V.

The ceramic and/or stone material is introduced into the collecting chamber 6 through the inlet port 8 and the containment wall 5b is kept in the home position.

In the embodiment of Figure 10, the container 5 is already positioned with the containment wall 5b at the supporting surface 3, so that the material introduced through the inlet port 8 rests directly on the containment wall itself.

In the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 9, on the other hand, the ceramic and/or stone material is introduced through the inlet port 8 with the container 5 in loading configuration. In this phase, the closing means 5c are in the open position.

After filling the collecting chamber 6, the closing means 5c are brought to the closed position so that the collecting chamber itself is closed.

Then the ceramic and/or stone material contained in the collecting chamber 6 is deposited on the supporting surface 3 in order to define a slab to be compacted

L.

According to the invention, the deposition of the ceramic and/or stone material is performed by positioning the containment wall 5b at the supporting surface 3 and moving it between the home position, wherein the ceramic and/or stone material is kept inside the collecting chamber 6, and a work position, wherein the ceramic and/or stone material falls onto the supporting surface 3.

While in the embodiment of Figure 10, as mentioned above, the containment wall 5b is already at the supporting surface 3, in the embodiments of Figures 1 to 9 the positioning of the containment wall 5b is carried out by moving the container 5 between the loading position and the release position of the ceramic and/or stone material. The container 5 can be moved either by rotation, as in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 6, or by rototranslation, as shown in the embodiment of Figure 8. Further embodiments cannot however be ruled out in which the movement of the container 5 is carried out in a different way from that described herein. The collecting chamber 6 is kept closed during the movement of the container 5 and is opened after the release position is reached so that the ceramic and/or stone material contained in it, is placed on the supporting surface 3.

After the containment wall 5b is arranged at the supporting surface 3, the containment wall itself is moved with respect to the base body 5 a from the home position to the work position, so that the ceramic and/or stone material contained in the collecting chamber 6 rests by gravity on the supporting surface 3, which is stationary.

At this point, since the ceramic and/or stone material is still contained inside the container 5, the opening means 5d, until now in the closed position, are moved and brought to the open position.

In this way, as a result of the forward movement of the supporting surface 3, the ceramic and/or stone material placed on it and substantially slab-shaped, also moves forward and comes out of the collecting chamber 6.

At this point the containment wall 5b is moved back to the home position and the opening means 5d are moved back to the closed position.

The container 5 can then be moved again so as to bring it from the release configuration to the loading configuration (in the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 9), at which the closing means switch from the closed position to the open position so as to make the collecting chamber 6 available again to receive the ceramic and/or stone material.

The slab to be compacted L thus formed is then subjected to a pressing phase.

It has in practice been ascertained that the described invention achieves the intended objects and, in particular, it has been pointed out that the equipment and the procedure described in the present invention make it possible to prepare the ceramic and/or stone material inside the container in such a way as to obtain the desired aesthetic effect and then to obtain a slab to be compacted placed on the supporting surface which reproduces this effect in an almost slavish manner. This is possible thanks to the movement of the container between the loading configuration and the release configuration and to the block deposition of the material contained in it on the supporting surface.