A honeycomb structure includes a central area and a reinforced outer peripheral area. For a boundary cell having cell walls with different wall thicknesses on two sides parallel with an imaginary parallel line, a thin wall thickness t1<a thick wall thickness t3, an inner wall thickness t2<an outer wall thickness t4, t1=t2, and t3=t4. The honeycomb structure includes a cross-shaped unit having a thin wall, an inner wall, a cell wall, and a cell wall and a cross-shaped unit having a thick wall, an outer wall, a cell wall, and a cell wall. The honeycomb structure also includes cross-shaped units extending vertically and horizontally from alternate cell vertexes arranged from a cell vertex as a starting point. In the central area and the reinforced outer peripheral area, the cell walls of each cross-shaped unit have a substantially equal wall thickness.

A concrete dowel placement system and methods for making the same. The system allows for accurate and easy substantially-parallel or parallel placement of slip dowels within sections of concrete so that adjacent sections of concrete may be allowed to undergo thermal expansion and contraction while remaining in a common plane without cracking or faulting. The system includes a coupler and a sheath. The sheath is configured to be slidably extensible over the coupler and may be held to the coupler by friction. An outer surface of the sheath may be textured. Additionally, a method of constructing the concrete dowel placement system includes extruding material to form two tubes of different sizes. The tubes are then attached to each other, then material is extruded or injection molded to form a sheath. Alternatively, construction may include extruding material to form a tube, then removing some of the material from the tube in order to form a coupler.

A concrete dowel placement system and methods for making the same. The system allows for accurate and easy substantially-parallel or parallel placement of slip dowels within sections of concrete so that adjacent sections of concrete may be allowed to undergo thermal expansion and contraction while remaining in a common plane without cracking or faulting. The system includes a coupler and a sheath. The sheath is configured to be slidably extensible over the coupler and may be held to the coupler by friction. An outer surface of the sheath may be textured. Additionally, a method of constructing the concrete dowel placement system includes extruding material to form two tubes of different sizes. The tubes are then attached to each other, then material is extruded or injection molded to form a sheath. Alternatively, construction may include extruding material to form a tube, then removing some of the material from the tube in order to form a coupler.

A honeycomb extrusion die (120) includes a die body (342) including an inlet face (315) and an outlet face (341). A plurality of pins (330) extend from the die body (342), wherein the pins (330) are arranged to define primary (312P) and secondary slots (312S). Primary slots (312P) include primary slot inlets (320P) and primary slot outlets (3120) and the secondary slots (312S) include secondary slot inlets (312SI) and secondary slot outlets (312SO). Feedholes (317) extend within the die body (342), the feedholes (317) including feedhole outlets (319), wherein the feedhole outlets (319) intersect only with the primary slot inlets (320P). First surface indentation features (345) extend into side surfaces (332) of the plurality of pins (330) defining the primary slots (312P). The first surface indentation features (345) are spaced from the primary slot outlets (3120). The secondary slots (312S) are devoid of surface indentation features. Other die bodies, extruders, and methods are disclosed.

An apparatus and method for manufacturing a workpiece using optical dimensioning. The apparatus comprises a tool configured to alter at least one feature of the workpiece. An imaging system is coupled to the tool and defines an optical axis. The imaging system is configured to capture a plurality of images of the at least one feature of the workpiece. A controller comprises one or more processors. The controller is configured to analyze the plurality of images to determine measured dimensions of the at least one feature of the workpiece. The controller is further configured to define a three-dimensional path for operating the tool by applying a predefined modification to the measured dimensions of the at least one feature of the workpiece.

Disclosed apparatus and method to extrude a honeycomb, providing correction in bowing of the extruded honeycomb structure, employs a deflector device having a base plate including an opening aligned in a direction parallel to the extrusion axis through which the plastic material is conveyed to the die. The deflector device includes a bow plate movably mounted to the downstream or upstream side of the base plate. The bow plate includes a constant area aperture. The deflector device positioned upstream of extrusion die imparts a degree of bow reduction by the position of the constant area aperture over the opening imparting a pressure drop gradient on the flow stream entering the die.

In-line inspection and control system to in-situ monitor an extrudate during extrusion. A light beam illuminates a line on the outside circumference of the extrudate skin recording the curvature. A master profile of the illuminated defect-free skin is recorded and compared to successive monitoring of the illuminated skin. Differences from the comparison indicate skin and/or shape defects. A real-time feedback to automatically adjust process control hardware reduces or eliminates the skin and shape defects based on the monitoring and comparison.

Embodiments herein include extruded articles, building components and methods of making the same. In an embodiment, an extruded article is included. The extruded article can include a body member including a first portion comprising a first composition, the first composition comprising a polymer resin. The extruded body member can also include a second portion comprising a second composition different than the first composition. The second composition can include a polymer resin, fibers, and at least one component selected from the group consisting of at least 1% by weight particles and at least 5 phr impact modifier. Other embodiments are also included herein.

Embodiments herein include extruded articles, building components and methods of making the same. In an embodiment, an extruded article is included. The extruded article can include a body member including a first portion comprising a first composition, the first composition comprising a polymer resin. The extruded body member can also include a second portion comprising a second composition different than the first composition. The second composition can include a polymer resin, fibers, and at least one component selected from the group consisting of at least 1% by weight particles and at least 5 phr impact modifier. Other embodiments are also included herein.

A honeycomb body with a honeycomb structure having an inner zone of a first plurality of walls and an outer zone of a second plurality of walls at least partially surrounding the inner zone. The honeycomb structure has Pi that is greater than Po and MPSi that is greater than MPSo, wherein Pi is an average bulk porosity of the first plurality of walls, Po is an average bulk porosity of the second plurality of walls, MPSi is a median pore size of pores in the first plurality of walls, and MPSo is a median pore size of pores in the second plurality of walls. Various honeycomb structures, honeycomb extrusion apparatus, and co-extrusion methods are disclosed.