Method for producing a wood veneer, veneer block, method for producing a molded part, and molded part

Abstract

A method for producing a wood veneer, where the wood veneer is provided as a decorative layer for a trim piece for a vehicle interior, wherein the molded part has at least one line element on a visible side, can involve the steps of a) providing a wood blank, b) generating two-dimensional cutting data by developing a designated three-dimensional shape of the wood veneer c) forming wood slats by cutting out the two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer from the wood blank and slicing the two-dimensional developed form along the developed line elements on the basis of the two-dimensional cutting data, d) layering and gluing the cut wood slats to form a veneer block, e) compressing the wood slats and curing the veneer block, f) separating the veneer block into wood veneers. Moreover, the invention relates to a veneer block, a molded part, and corresponding methods of production.

Claims

1. A method for producing a wood veneer, wherein the wood veneer is provided as a decorative layer for a decorative and/or trim piece for a vehicle interior fashioned as a molded part, wherein the molded part has at least one line element on its front side, designed as a visible side, comprising the steps of: a) providing a wood blank; b) generating two-dimensional cutting data by developing a designated three-dimensional shape of the wood veneer including line elements provided in the wood veneer into a two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer with developed line elements; c) forming wood slats by cutting out the two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer from the wood blank, and slicing in sequence the two-dimensional developed form along the developed line elements on the basis of the two-dimensional cutting data; d) layering and gluing with an adhesive the cut wood slats; e) compressing the layered and glued wood slats, and curing the adhesive to form a veneer block; and f) separating the veneer block into wood veneers.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein, upon completion of steps a) to e), step f) is carried out upon completion of the following: providing the veneer block cured in step e) as a wood blank in a further step a); and repeating steps b) to e).

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer and the developed line elements are cut out from the wood blank, such that the two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer and/or the developed line elements follow a principal direction of a corresponding wood structure in the wood blank.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the cutting and slicing of step c) are done with: a) a high-pressure water jet cutting, b) laser beam cutting, or c) chip removing methods comprising CNC milling, band sawing, or punching.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: during the layering and gluing of the cut wood slats, the wood slats are layered in the same sequence in which they were sliced from the wood blank.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: during the layering and gluing of the cut wood slats at least one intermediate layer is inserted between every two wood slats.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the adhesive comprises polyurethane and/or epoxy resin and/or PVAC glue and/or urea resin and/or melamine resin and/or phenolic resin and/or acrylate.

8. The method in claim 1, wherein: during the compressing of the wood slats at least one cutting residue of the wood blank produced during the cutting and slicing as per step c) is used as a die and/or punch and/or support for the wood slats.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the veneer block is sliced for separating into wood veneers, or the veneer block is sawed for separating into wood veneers.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the separating of the veneer block is done with an angle between 0° and 180° to cut surfaces of the wood slats.

11. A method for producing a decorative and/or trim piece for a vehicle interior fashioned as a molded part comprising a wood veneer, wherein the molded part comprises a decorative layer and has at least one line element on its front side, designed as a visible side, wherein the wood veneer is provided as a decorative layer for decorative and/or trim piece for a vehicle interior fashioned as a molded part, wherein: the molded part has at least one line element on its front side, designed as the visible side, and a veneer block comprises wood slats cut from a wood blank, the method comprising: a) providing the wood blank; b) generating two-dimensional cutting data by developing a designated three dimensional shape of the wood veneer including line elements provided in the wood veneer into a two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer with developed line elements; c) forming wood slats by cutting out the two-dimensional developed form of the wood veneer from the wood blank, and slicing in sequence the two-dimensional developed form along the developed line elements on the basis of the two-dimensional cutting data; d) layering and gluing the cut wood slats with an adhesive to form a veneer block; e) compressing the wood slats and curing the adhesive to form the veneer block; and f) separating the veneer block into wood veneers.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein: the separating of the veneer block is done with an angle between 45° and 135° to cut surfaces of the wood slats.

13. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein: the separating of the veneer block is done by cutting surfaces of the wood slats at a perpendicular angle.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein: the wood slats are layered in the same sequence with respect to each other in the veneer block as that sequence in which they were sliced from the original wood blank.

15. The veneer block as claimed in claim 14, wherein: the wood slats are glued together; and the adhesive comprises at least one of: polyurethane, epoxy resin, PVAC glue, urea resin, melamine resin, phenolic resin, acrylate.

16. The veneer block as claimed in claim 14, wherein the wood veneer has at least one intermediate layer between at least two wood slats.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention shall be explained more closely below, also with regard to further features and advantages, with the aid of the description of sample embodiments and making reference to the enclosed schematic drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of a sample embodiment of a wood blank with an indicated two-dimensional developed form of an intended wood veneer and developed line elements,

(3) FIG. 2 shows a schematic representation of a sample embodiment of a veneer block to be produced according to the invention,

(4) FIG. 3 shows a schematic representation of a sample embodiment of a veneer block according to the invention,

(5) FIG. 4 shows a schematic representation of a sample embodiment of a wood veneer,

(6) FIG. 5 shows a schematic representation of a sample embodiment of a molded part according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(7) Corresponding parts and components are designated with the same references in the figures, even among the different sample embodiments. Moreover, it should be noted that the dimensional relations, especially the layer thicknesses, are purely schematic to illustrate the invention and need not conform to the actual dimensional relations.

(8) With the aid of the following drawings, a sample embodiment of the method according to the invention shall be explained more closely.

(9) The method according to the invention is intended for producing a wood veneer 10. The wood veneer 10 is intended as a decorative layer 11 for a decorative and/or trim piece for a vehicle interior fashioned as a molded part 12. The molded part 12 should have line elements 14 on its front side 13 designed as the visible side.

(10) In a step a) of the method according to the invention, a wood blank 15 is provided as represented in FIG. 1. A single wood blank 15 is provided for the entire veneer block 19 to be produced and consequently for the wood veneer 10 to be produced.

(11) In a step b) of the method according to the invention, which may be performed after, but also before step a), two-dimensional cutting data is generated by developing an intended three-dimensional form of the wood veneer 10 including line elements 14 provided in the wood veneer 10 into a two-dimensional developed form 16 of the wood veneer 10 with developed line elements 14. In FIG. 1, the two-dimensional developed form 16 of the wood veneer 10 and the developed line elements 14 are marked out on the wood blank 15 for clarity.

(12) The two-dimensional developed form 16 of the intended wood veneer 10 and the developed line elements 14 are oriented in relation to the wood blank 15 such that the two-dimensional developed form 16 of the intended wood veneer 10 and the developed line elements 14 follow a principal direction of a wood structure of the wood blank 15. “Follow the principal direction of a wood structure” means in this case that the two-dimensional developed form 16 of the intended wood veneer 10 and the developed line elements 14 at least partly coincide with at least one section of the wood structure dictated by the grain of the wood or match up with this wood structure.

(13) Next, in a step c) of the method according to the invention, the two-dimensional developed form 16 is cut out from the wood blank 15 along the edges 17 of the two-dimensional developed form 16. Moreover, cutting is done along the developed line elements 14. In this way, wood slats 18 are formed.

(14) During the cutting and slicing as per step c), cutting is done along several cutting edges 23 which may also extend beyond the actual edges 17 of the two-dimensional developed form 16, depending on the cutting method used. For example, the cutting and slicing may be done by means of high-pressure water jet cutting. In this case, the cutting edges 23 shown in FIG. 1 and extending beyond the two-dimensional developed form 16 may optionally be omitted.

(15) The cut wood slats 18 are then layered and glued together in a step d) of the method according to the invention to form a veneer block 19, as shown in FIG. 2.

(16) During the layering and gluing together of the cut wood slats 18, the wood slats 18 are layered in the same arrangement with respect to each other as they were arranged with respect to each other in the wood blank 15.

(17) Furthermore, during the layering and gluing together of the cut wood slats 18 an intermediate layer 20 is inserted between every two wood slats 18. The intermediate layer may be a contrast veneer and/or a metal layer, especially an aluminum sheet and/or a copper sheet and/or a brass sheet, and/or a film, especially a polycarbonate film, and/or a textile and/or leather and/or fleece.

(18) For the gluing together of the wood slats 18 an adhesive 21 is used which comprises PUR and/or epoxy resin, the adhesive 21 being applied to both surfaces of the wood slats 18 to be glued together.

(19) After this, in a step e) of the method according to the invention, the wood slats 18 are compressed and the resulting veneer block 19 is cured.

(20) During the compression of the wood slats 18, as shown in FIG. 2, two cutting residues 22 of the wood blank produced during the cutting and slicing as per step c) are used as die and/or punch and/or support for the wood slats 18. These may be clamped for example in a vise 25.

(21) In a final step f) of the method, the veneer block 19 as shown in FIG. 3 is separated into wood veneers 10, the veneer block 19 being sliced for the separation into wood veneers 10, preferably with a vertical and/or horizontal and/or longitudinal razor machine. One example of a wood veneer 10 formed in such a way is shown in FIG. 4.

(22) For the slicing, the slicing is done along the parting edges 24 on the veneer block 19 as shown in FIG. 3. The separating of the veneer block 19 occurs along the parting edges 24 and thus preferably perpendicular to the former cutting edges 23 of the wood slats 18.

(23) FIG. 5 shows a molded part 12 according to the invention. The molded part 12 is a decorative and/or trim piece for a vehicle interior fashioned as a molded part 12. It comprises a decorative layer 11 and has line elements 14 (not shown) on its front side 13, designed as the visible side, which extend parallel to this front side 13.

(24) The decorative layer 11 is a wood veneer 10, as shown in FIG. 4, which was produced from a veneer block 19, shown in FIG. 3. The veneer block 19 comes from a single wood blank 15, shown in FIG. 1.

(25) The wood veneer may, as shown in FIG. 5, be back-injected with a carrier and thereby be pressed into a form intended for the molded part 12.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

(26) 10 Wood veneer 11 Decorative layer 12 Molded part 13 Front side 14 Line elements 15 Wood blank 16 Form 17 Edge 18 Wood slat 19 Veneer block 20 Intermediate layer 21 Adhesive 22 Cutting residue 23 Cutting edge 24 Parting edge 25 Vise