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Title:
MACHINE FOR PROCESSING MATERIAL IN THE FORM OF SLABS, IN PARTICULAR NATURAL AND AGGLOMERATED STONE MATERIAL, CERAMIC MATERIAL AND GLASS MATERIAL
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2011/039700
Kind Code:
A1
Abstract:
In a machine (10, 200) for processing slabs of natural or agglomerated stone material, ceramic material or glass material, comprising two longitudinally arranged support structures (30, 32) on which respective travel rails (34, 36) are positioned, a spindle-carrying crossbeam (40) extending transversely between said two support structures (30, 32) and slidably mounted on said travel rails (34, 36) so as to be moved along said longitudinal direction, a sleeve support carriage (50) slidably mounted on said spindle-carrying crossbeam (40), a spindle support sleeve (52) which is vertically movable with respect to said sleeve support carriage (50) and on the bottom end of which a spindle (54) is mounted, and a machining surface (22) for supporting the rough slab to be machined, arranged between said two support structures (30, 32), there being provided a sucker pick-up device (60) extending between said two support structures (30, 32) and slidably mounted along said travel rails (34, 36), said pick-up device (60) including a sucker-carrying crossbeam (74) movable vertically, rotatable through at least 180° about a horizontal axis and provided with sucker pick-up means (78) for the material to be machined so as to be able to pick up the material to be machined (24) from said machining surface (22), rotate it through an angle of between 0° and 180° and then deposit it again, overturned, on the machining surface.

Inventors:
TONCELLI DARIO (IT)
Application Number:
PCT/IB2010/054355
Publication Date:
April 07, 2011
Filing Date:
September 28, 2010
Export Citation:
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Assignee:
TONCELLI DARIO (IT)
International Classes:
B28D7/04; B28D1/04
Domestic Patent References:
WO2006057024A12006-06-01
WO2004080861A12004-09-23
Foreign References:
EP0537674A11993-04-21
DE4206274A11992-09-03
IT1265653B11996-11-22
Other References:
None
Attorney, Agent or Firm:
DRAGOTTI, Gianfranco et al. (Via Paris Bordone 9, Treviso, IT)
Download PDF:
Claims:
CLAIMS

Electronically controlled machine (10, 200) for processing slabs of stone and or agglomerated material, ceramic material or glass material, comprising two longitudinally arranged support structures (30, 32) on which respective travel rails (34, 36) are positioned, a spindle-carrying crossbeam (40) extending transversely between said two support structures (30, 32) and slidably mounted on said travel rails (34, 36) so as to be moved along said longitudinal direction, a sleeve support carriage (50) slidably mounted on said spindle-carrying crossbeam (40), a spindle support sleeve (52) which is vertically movable with respect to said sleeve support carriage (50) and on the bottom end of which a spindle (54) is mounted, and a machining surface (22) for supporting the rough slab to be machined, arranged between said two support structures (30, 32), characterized in that it comprises a sucker pick-up device (60) extending between said two support structures (30, 32) and slidably mounted along said travel rails (34, 36) so as to move togheter with the spindle-carrying crossbeam, said pick-up device (60) being vertically movable with respect to the machining surface and rotatable about an horizontal axis with own sucker pick-up means (78) for the material to be machined so as to be able to pick up the material to be machined (24) from said machining surface (22), and moving and rotating it on the machining surface.

Machine according to claim 1, caracterized in that said pick-up device includes a sucker- carrying crossbeam (74) rotatable through at least 180° about said horizontal axis and provided with said sucker pick-up means so as to be able to pick up the material to be machined (24) from said machining surface (22), rotate it through an angle of between 0° and 180° and then deposit it again, overturned, on the machining surface.

Machine for processing material in slab form according to Claim 2, characterized in that said sucker pick-up device (60) comprises radial sucker-carrying arms (76) which are arranged in a comb-like manner along said sucker-carrying crossbeam (74) and said machining surface (22) is also provided with support arms (100) for the slab to be machined which are positioned at one end thereof and extend in a direction perpendicular to said longitudinal direction, the free space between said support arms (100) being greater than the overall volume of said radial sucker-carrying arms (76) such that said radial sucker-carrying arms, after picking up a slab to be machined (24) and overturning it, are able to pass through said support arms (100) of the machining surface (22) thus resting the slab to be machined, overturned, on the machining surface (22).

Machine for processing material in slab form according to Claim 1, characterized in that said machining surface 22 is rotatable with respect to a vertical axis.

Machine for processing material in slab form according to Claim 1 , characterized in that said sucker pick-up device (60) is integral with said spindle-carrying crossbeam (40) during horizontal displacement.

6. Machine for processing material in slab form according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said machining surface (22) comprises a conveyor belt with a thick rubber-lined surface suitable for receiving the incisions of the cutting discs.

7. Machine for processing material in slab form according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said machining surface (22) comprises a metallic base on top of which support means made of soft material are mounted, said means being able to support the material to be machined in a position spaced from said base so that the cutting disc or machining tool does not cut into said base.

8. Machine (200) for processing material in slab form according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said machining surface (22) is a surface for performing disccutting operations and moreover the machine is characterized in that it comprises an additional machining surface (210) for performing profiling or recessing operations.

9. Machine for processing material in slab form according to Claim 8, characterized in that it comprises a tool store (220) containing the tools (222) for performing said profiling operations so as to allow tool change-over in an automatic manner direcdy with the spindle (54).

10. Machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises loading means for transferring the article to be machined onto said machining surface and unloading means for removing the machined articles from said machining surface.

11. Machine according to Claim 10, characterized in that said loading means comprise a swivel ring with stand (90) which is arranged on a first side of said machine (10, 200) and on which the rough slabs (24) to be machined are rested and in that said two support structures (30, 32) with the respective travel rails (34, 36) extend at least as far as said swivel ring with stand (90) such that said sucker pick-up device (60) is able to pick up a rough slab from said swivel ring with stand (90), move the slab (24) and deposit it on said machining surface (22).

Description:
"Machine for processing material in the form of slabs, in particular natural and agglomerated stone material, ceramic material and glass material"

DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to an electronicaUy controlled machine for optimizing the cutting and surface-machining of natural and agglomerated stone materials, ceramic materials and glass materials.

In the description which follows reference will be made to the cutting of slabs of stone material (such as marble and granite), it being understood that this description does not have a limiting meaning.

It is known that, during the production of generic articles such as strips, tiles, skirting and furnishing elements such as kitchen tops, vanity tops and the like, the starting stone material in the form of large-size rough slabs must undergo different types of machining operations, including also cutting, in order to obtain both finished products with the desired format and semi-finished products which will be subsequently converted into the corresponding famishing elements.

In order to perform these cuts, cutting machines are used, the most common ones of which are formed by two support structures on which a crossbeam slidably supporting a horizontal-axis cutting spindle is movable. The rough slab to be machined is placed on a work bench positioned between the two support structures.

Usually loading of the rough slab is performed manually by means of a crane or a bridge crane which the operator uses in order to hitch up, with the aid of grippers or suckers, the rough slab resting on a stand, raise it and then position it on the work bench which may be fixed or of the tilting type. In fact, in order to facilitate the operation of loading the rough slab on the work bench, the latter is preferably of the tilting type so that, before starting the loading step, it is inclined to assume a near vertical position, following which, by means of a gripper, the slab is hitched up to the crane or to the hook of the bridge crane and transported to the work bench where it is unloaded. Finally, the bench is tilted so as to assume again its original horizontal position.

This operation, however, in addition to requiring human effort is also time-consuming.

Moreover, it is required to provide a tilting bench, this complicating the constructional design of the machine, making it more cosdy.

Once the slab has been cut to the required size, the pieces of cut material, since they are small in size, may often be unloaded easily manually without the aid of particular equipment.

It must also be mentioned that intervention of the operator is required not only during initial loading and final unloading, but also during the intermediate cutting stages. In fact, in the event of having to perform incisions on the bottom part of the slab, for example form grooves in the underlying part into which reinforcing bars or "rodding" are then inserted, the operator must raise the material, turn it over and then deposit it overturned on the work bench.

Moreoyer, when it is required to cut a slab into tiles, strips and/ or skirting or the like, a first series of parallel longitudinal cuts must be made, so as to obtain a series of strips, following which transverse cuts cannot be directly formed unless the slab is to be cut in a crisscross pattern; instead the strips must be spaced from each other so that, when a strip is cut, the adjacent strips are not cut and therefore damaged by the disc.

This operation of spacing the strips is also usually performed manually.

All these operations described above where intervention of an operator is required increase significandy not only the machining time, resulting in frequent positioning or alignment errors during execution of the cuts, but also increase the cost of the end product in view of the high unit cost of a specialized operator.

While it is true that manipulator devices able to automate the manually performed operations have been developed, none of them is able to replace entirely the human operations performed. For example there exist manipulator devices which are able to pick up the rough slabs and deposit them on the work bench, but these devices are unable to perform other operations such as spacing the strips from each other or turning over the material in order to perform cuts on the underside of the slab.

With reference to this latter point, hitherto, in order to perform cuts or incisions on the bottom side of the slab to be machined, a second spindle with a cutting disc is used, arranged underneath the bench, allowing the underlying cuts to be performed on the parts which are moved by means of suckers mounted direcdy on the cutting spindle of the machine.

It is evident, however, that such a design complicates significandy the machine and moreover the bottom spindle does not have the same freedom of movement as the top main spindle, resulting in its functions being limited, owing to the difficulties of picking up and moving bulky or unevendy balanced parts by means of spindle-mounted suckers, unless the operator intervenes again in order to reposition suitably the material, which therefore results, as mentioned above, in a further increase in the machining time and production costs.

The bottom cutting spindle is also subject to the action of the cutting water and the machining waste and therefore constant cleaning and maintenance is required.

When, moreover, it is required to form blind holes in the bottom side of the slab, needed for subsequent insertion - for example in the case of a finished product such as kitchen tops - of the fixing bushes for sinks, an ad hoc boring spindle must be provided, positioned underneath the bench. This complicates further the machine and the production cycle.

Therefore the main object of the. invention is to eliminate entirely the need for intervention of the operator by automating all the operations, starting from initial loading of the rough slab, spacing of the strips and panels on the work bench with the same alignment, and overturning of the material, until the finished part is obtained, together with, if necessary, unloading of the finished material. The present invention has therefore the object of simplifying the machining operations and reduce the production time and machining costs.

When it is required to produce particular articles, such as the top surfaces for kitchen and bathroom furniture units (the so called "tops"), in addition to the cutting operations, it is also required to perform other machining operations using shaped so-called "profiling" tools, i.e. machining operations which involve the contours of the material which may be on the outside, for example in order to provide chamfering or a toroidal or semi-toroidal profile, or also on the inside, required, for example, in order to form holes for receiving tapware, inset openings for sinks, blind holes for fixing bushes, etc.

In order to perform these types of operations other machines are used, such as numerical-control profiling machines with interpolated axes which have a bench provided with suckers for temporarily fixing the parts which are to be machined and a tool store for changing the tools. In the most advanced embodiment, the benches are two in number and may alternately be arranged in the working zone, so that, while machining is being performed on one bench, the completed parts are unloaded onto the other bench and the new parts to be machined are arranged in position. It is clear that these machines have a substantially high cost so that, if the product cut with a conventional machine of the type with overhead milling cutter must undergo these machining operations, the cost of the finished product increases significandy.

Another object of the invention is therefore to provide a machine which not only allows intervention of the operator to be dispensed with, but also allows a reduction in the costs of the finished product, being able to perform, in addition to the cutting operations, also the profiling operations, with automatic displacement of the panels.

All these objects are achieved with a machine for processing slabs of natural or agglomerated stone material, ceramic material or glass material, comprising two longitudinally arranged support structures on which respective travel rails are positioned, a spindle-carrying crossbeam extending transversely between said two support structures and slidably mounted on said travel rails so as to be moved along said longitudinal direction, a sleeve support carriage slidably mounted on said spindle-carrying crossbeam, a spindle support sleeve which is vertically movable with respect to said sleeve support carriage and on the bottom end of which a spindle is mounted, and a machining surface for supporting the rough slab to be machined, arranged between said two support structures, characterized in that it comprises a sucker pick-up device extending between said two support structures and slidably mounted along said travel rails, said pick-up device including a sucker-carrying crossbeam movable vertically, rotatable through at least 180° about a horizontal axis and provided with sucker pick-up means for the material to be machined so as to be able to pick up the material jto be machined from said machining surface, rotate it through an angle of between 0° and 180° and then deposit it again, overturned, on the machining surface.

In this way, owing to the second sucker-carrying crossbeam, it is possible to perform all the following operations:

pick-up the raw material from a stand and deposit it on the machining surface;

raise and displace the material being machined for example in order to space from each other the newly formed strips or parts;

- pick up the material and turn it over, thus allowing operations to be performed on its rear side; pick up the material and move it onto a second work table provided with vacuum fixing means for carrying out profiling or recessing work;

pick-up the finished from the machining surfaces and unload it.

Preferably the sucker means on said second crossbeam can be excluded, there being provided means for partially enabling or disabling said sucker means so as to allow gripping of parts of varying dimensions and with varying forms and configurations.

In one particular configuration the machining surface comprises a belt conveyor with a thick rubber-lined surface for automatic and rapid unloading of the machined parts.

In another particular configuration the machining surface comprises a metallic base on which support means made of soft material are mounted, said means being able to support the material to be machined in a position at a distance from said base so that the cutting disc or machining tool does not cut into said base.

In this way, differendy from the conventional sacrificial surface made of wood or rubber on which the machining waste is deposited, the waste falls downwards and therefore no longer accumulates on the machining surface and no longer affects the position of the material to be machined. Removal of the waste is thus facilitated and the machine cleaning operations are reduced significantly.

According to a variant of the invention, the machine, in addition to having a machining surface for performing disc-cutting operations, may also have an additional machining surface and in particular a profiling table with vacuum- fixing systems for performing the profiling operations and a tool store for performing tool change-over.

In this way, in the same machine it is possible to perform both the macliining operations typical of the overhead milling cutter, namely cutting of a rough slab, and the profiling and recessing operations such as those described above, without having to transfer the articles resulting from the cutting operation to other processing machines, owing precisely to the sucker-carrying crossbeam which allows the material cut on the machining surface to be transferred to the profiling table. In particular, it is possible to perform not only the operations for cutting the rough slab into tiles .or some other polygonal form, but all the operations necessary for the production of kitchen tops, vanity tops and the like, where the operations consist in cutting the outer contour of the slab and reducing it to the desired dimensions, execution of the inner cut, preferably with a square or circular contour for the subsequent insertion of sinks, formation of holes for mounting tapware, formation of undercuts and/ or inclined cuts in the thickness for joining together several sections, and providing holes for the fixing bushes.

These and other advantages of the present invention will emerge more clearly from the following detailed description of a number of embodiments thereof provided purely by way of a non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 are side elevation views of the machine according to the invention shown in different operating conditions;

Figs. 4 and 5 are front views of the machine according to Fig. 1 shown in different operating conditions;

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the machine according to Figure 1 ;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a detail of the machine according to figure 1 ;

Fig. 8 is a side elevation view of a variant of the machine according to the invention;

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the machine according to Fig. 8.

In Figures 1 to 6 it is overall indicated with 10 an electronically controlled machine for processing material in the form of slabs, in particular natural or agglomerated stone material, ceramic material or glass material.

The machine 10 comprises a base 20 on which it is mounted a work surface 22 on which a rough slab 24 to be machined is deposited. A wooden board 26 is arranged between the work surface 22 and the slab to be machined so that during the cutting operations the disc does not score the work surface, but instead the wooden board which must be periodically replaced with a new one.

As an alternative to the wooden board, it is possible to provide a conveyor belt with a thick rubber- lined surface able to receive the incisions of the cutting discs, so as to automate and speed up unloading of the machined material.

Alternatively and advantageously it is possible to provide a metal base on top of which supports made of soft material are mounted, said supports being able to support the material to be machined in a spaced position so that the cutting disc or machining tool does not cut into the metal base. For example, these supports may consist of metal bars onto the top end of which corresponding plastic profiles are fitted.

In this way, the machining waste no longer accumulates on the machining surface but instead falls down through the supports so that cleaning of the machining surface is reduced considerably. The machine 10 is bounded at the two ends by two longitudinally arranged support structures 30, 32 on which respective travel rails 34, 36 are mounted.

A spindle-carrying crossbeam 40 is mounted between the two support structures 30 and 32, being arranged transversely with respect to the longitudinal direction and movable along the two support structures 30, 32 by means of motor means not shown in figures.

On the spindle-carrying crossbeam 40 a sleeve support carriage 50 is slidably mounted on the crossbeam, and having in turn, mounted thereon, a spindle support sleeve 52 which is vertically movable by means of a drive unit 56 and which has, mounted on its bottom end, a spindle 54 for rotation of the cutting disc 58 or the machining tool.

It should be noted that the guide means and motor means for moving the crossbeam 40, sleeve support carriage 50 and the spindle support sleeve 52 are known per se, consisting for example of rack and pinion mechanisms, trapezoidal or recirculating ball bearing screws, or the like, so that they are not described below, nor shown in the figures.

It must be pointed out, however, that the above description is necessarily generic in nature since it relates to a machine structure and components of the prior art, such that a more detailed explanation is not necessary.

From the above description it can be noted that the position of the bottom end of the spindle 54, and therefore of the cutting disc 58 or machining tool, is adjustable so that it can be arranged opposite any point on the work surface 22: this is achieved by means of suitable displacement of the crossbeam 40 transversely with respect to the work surface 22 and suitable sliding of the sleeve support carriage 50 along the said crossbeam.

As can be seen from Figures 1 to 7 and in particular Figures 4, 5 and 7, it can be noted that a sucker pick-up device 60 extends between the two support structures 30, 32, said device comprising an upper horizontal crossbeam 64 which extends between the two support structures 30, 32 and is slidable along the travel rails 34, 36 by means of sliding carriages 66a, 66b and is integral with the spindle-carrying crossbeam 40. Two vertical uprights 68a, 68b are mounted vertically on the two ends of the upper crossbeam 64 and have, vertically sliding thereon, supports 70a, 70b on which a horizontal sucker-carrying crossbeam 74 is rotatably mounted.

The sucker-carrying crossbeam 74 is provided with transverse arms 76 on which the suckers 78 are mounted.

Motor means 80a, 80b mounted on the top end of the two vertical uprights 68a, 68b are provided for vertical movement of the supports 78a, 70b and therefore of the sucker-carrying crossbeam 74, while a motor 84 mounted on the support 68b is provided for rotation of the said crossbeam 74 about a horizontal axis. In this case also the guide and movement transmission means are known per se, consisting for example of recirculating ball bearing screws.

It can also be seen from Figures 1, 2, 3 and 6 that a stand 90 against which the rough slabs 24 are rested is mounted on one side of the machine 10.

The two support structures 30, 32 with the respective travel rails 34, 36 extend as far as the stand 90 such that the sucker pick-up device 60 is able to pick up a rough slab 24, move it and then deposit on the machining surface 22.

The stand 90 is preferably of a dual nature, namely has two inclined surfaces opposite each other on which the rough slabs are rested, and is provided with a bottom swivel ring so as to allow rotation about a vertical axis through at least 180°. In this way, while the rough slabs to be machined are loaded onto the side of the stand opposite to that of the machine, on the other side, i.e. the side facing the machine, the rough slabs already loaded are picked up by the sucker pick-up device 60 and deposited on the machining surface 22.

From Figures 1, 2, 3 and 6 it can be seen that support arms 100 are provided on a side edge of the machining surface 22, said arms being arranged in the longitudinal direction so as to form a comblike element on which the parts to be machined are deposited overturned.

In fact, the distance between the support arms 100 of the machining surface 22 is greater than the overall volume of the radial arms 76 of the sucker pick-up device 60 such that the latter, after gripping a piece of material to be machined and overturning it through 180°, pass between the support arms 100, depositing the part to be machined on the support arms 100 (see Figs. 3 and 5). Moreover, a photo camera (not shown in figures) may be mounted on the spindle-carrying crossbeam 40 in order to photograph the rough slab and record its profile and also any surface defects, required in order to optimize the cutting operation. The machine is, in fact, equipped with an electronic control system for operation controlled via a keypad 110, containing a program for optimization of the slab cutting operation depending on the profile of the rough slab recorded by the photo camera and the form and dimensions of the finished or semi-finished parts to be obtained.

It is pointed out that the base 20 is preferably rotatable about its vertical axis so as to allow the sucker pick-up device to move not only longitudinal strips but also transverse strips.

The operating principle of the machine is as follows.

The spindle-carrying crossbeam 40 and therefore the sucker pick-up device 60 are moved towards the stand 90, and the sucker-carrying crossbeam 74 is lowered and rotated so that the suckers 78 are able to grip the rough slab 24.

After gripping the slab 24 the photo camera photographs the next slab still positioned on the stand and records its contour and any defects so that, while the machine is machining a rough slab, information regarding the next slab to be machined is transferred to the electronic control system and processed in order to optimize cutting depending on the work to be performed.

The rough slab 24 is moved, as shown in Figure 2, namely the sucker pick-up device 60 together with the spindle-carrying crossbeam 40 move towards the machining surface 22 after which the sucker-carrying crossbeam 74 is lowered and rotates about its axis so as to deposit the rough slab 24 on the machining surface 22, as shown in Figure 3.

The optimized cutting operations may be started immediately since the information regarding the slab contour and any defects were already recorded when the previous slab was picked up.

After performing a first series of cuts on the rough slab 24, the sucker pick-up device 60 intervenes in order to space the adjacent strips or parts which must again be cut in such a way that the cutting disc does not score and damage the adjacent parts.

If the work bench 20 is rotatable about its vertical axis, the sucker pick-up device may also be displace strips formed with cuts which are transverse to the longitudinal axis of the bench.

The sucker pick-up device, in addition to performing loading of the slab onto the machining surface 22 and spacing of the cut parts, also has the function of overturning the pieces of material which must be machined on the bottom side.

In this case, the sucker pick-up device 60 picks up the parti in question and overturns it rotating through 180° the sucker-carrying crossbeam 74 which is then moved towards the support arms 100 of the machining surface 22, causing the sucker-carrying arms 76 to pass through the support arms 100 such that the overturned part is deposited on the arms 100, as shown in Figures 3 and 5.

In this way, operations may be carried out on the rear non-visible side of the piece of material, for example in order to form grooves inside which reinforcing elements (or so-called "rodding") are inserted, or in order to form blind holes inside which fixing bushes, for example for kitchen sinks, are later inserted, by means of a special tool applied to the main spindle or to an ancillary part arranged alongside.

Once the machining operations have been completed, the finished material is unloaded manually by the operator on the opposite side of the machine to that where the stand is positioned.

It is also possible to perform loading of the rough slab on one side of the machine and unloading of the machined parts on the other side of the machine in a completely automatic manner by providing, for example, both on the loading side and on the unloading side a shuttle, conveyor belt or rollerway; in this case the workbench is provided with a conveyor belt with a thick rubber-lined covering suitable for receiving the incisions of the cutting discs.

Alternatively, it is possible to provide loading and unloading means arranged on only one side of the machine by providing, for example, two horizontal and vertically spaced support surfaces, said support surfaces comprising means for moving the material and being vertically movable so as to be able to align alternately any one of the two support surfaces with the machining surface 22; in this way, while the support surface aligned with the machining surface 22 feeds the machine with the material to be machined and/or unloads the machined material, the second support surface unloads the machined material and/ or is loaded with new material to be machined.

The suckers 78 of the pick-up device 60 can be individually excluded so as to allow the gripping of parts with different dimensions and configurations. Moreover, means for partial enabling or disabling of said means are provided (not shown in figures) so as to allow gripping of parts were different forms and configurations.

With this machine both optimized cutting of the slab and machining of the bottom side of the slab may be easily performed. Moreover, the sucker pick-up device may also be used to load the rough material to be machined and if necessary unload the finished material.

In this way, human intervention is eliminated and the macliining times are reduced with consequent significant cost savings.

Furthermore, if the machine is incorporated in a processing line and therefore with automated loading and unloading, the advantages are even more evident.

Figures 8 and 9 show a machine 200 according to the variant of the invention.

The machine 200 basically comprises a machine similar to the machine 10, so that similar or identical parts or details are indicated by the same numbering, with the addition, however, of a profiling table 210 and a tool store 220.

It is understood that the comments made with reference to the machine 10 are also applicable to this second machine variant 200.

The profiling table 210 has a support surface 212 on which the suckers (not shown in the figures) are fixed in order to retain the material to be machined.

The tool store 220 may be of the linear or carousel type and contains a series of tools 222 for performing the various profiling operations, namely machining of the outer or inner contours, so as to provide different types of chamfered and rounded profiles (toroidal or semi-toroidal profile), and polishing thereof, the formation of holes, and other operations.

After performing optimized cutting of the slab resting on the machining surface 22, as mentioned above in the description of the machine 10, the cut parts are picked up by the sucker pick-up device 60 and transferred onto the profiling table 210 where they are fixed by means of the suckers present.

At this point the spindle 54 is moved towards the tool store, the cutting disc is disengaged from the spindle and deposited inside the tool store, while the macliining tool required for the specific operation to be performed is engaged with the spindle. Tool change-over is therefore performed in an automatic manner direcdy with the spindle. Once the profiling operation has been completed, the finished parts are removed in the same way as already described with reference to the machine 10.

It is evident that with the same machine it is possible to perform not only the optimized cutting and machining of the bottom sides of the material in an extremely efficient manner, but also perform all those finishing operations necessary for obtaining, using a single machine, mrnishing elements such as kitchen or bathroom tops, various surfaces and the like, with consequent savings in terms of costs.

It is evident that any variant or modification which is functionally or conceptually equivalent falls within the scope of protection of the present invention.

For example, a different type of profiling table with clamping of the slab by means of brackets rather than suckers may be provided.