US 11,897,164 B2
Method and system for producing slabs, tiles or sheets of artificial stone with a wide vein effect
Salvador Cristobal Rodriguez Garcia, Almeria (ES); and Carmen Maria Montero Perez, Almeria (ES)
Assigned to COSENTINO RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT S.L., Almería (ES)
Appl. No. 16/766,528
Filed by COSENTINO RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT S.L., Almeria (ES)
PCT Filed Nov. 21, 2018, PCT No. PCT/EP2018/082136
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date May 22, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/101823, PCT Pub. Date May 31, 2019.
Claims priority of application No. ES201731349 (ES), filed on Nov. 22, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2021/0229313 A1, Jul. 29, 2021
Int. Cl. B28B 1/00 (2006.01); B28B 13/02 (2006.01); B44F 9/04 (2006.01); C04B 32/00 (2006.01); C04B 111/54 (2006.01); B28B 3/02 (2006.01)
CPC B28B 1/005 (2013.01) [B28B 1/008 (2013.01); B28B 3/02 (2013.01); B28B 13/026 (2013.01); B44F 9/04 (2013.01); C04B 32/00 (2013.01); C04B 2111/545 (2013.01)] 14 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for manufacturing slabs, tiles or sheets of artificial stone with a wide vein effect, which comprises the following steps:
a) a template is positioned on a surface, the template comprising gaps and islands, wherein the islands correspond to at least one vein of the article to be manufactured;
b) a first mixture comprising inorganic particles and an unhardened binder is discharged onto the template by a first distributor device, such that said first mixture rests on the surface and fills at least a portion of the gaps of the template;
c) the template is removed, leaving a layer of the first mixture with cavities in said layer, the cavities being defined by the positions of the islands of the template;
d) a second mixture comprising inorganic particles and an unhardened binder is discharged into at least a portion of the cavities in the layer of the first mixture;
e) the resulting layer of the combination of first and second mixtures is compacted, and a hardening process is carried out, in order to obtain the slab, tile or sheet of artificial stone with a vein effect comprising the at least one vein;
wherein in step d) said second mixture is discharged by a second distributor device,
wherein the second distributor device has a bottom opening with a width less than or equal to a maximum width of the cavities,
wherein said second distributor device moves along at least a portion of the cavities when dispensing the second mixture therein,
wherein the second distributor device comprises a conveyor belt for transporting the second mixture,
wherein the second distributor device is assembled on a robotic device that moves it along at least a portion of the cavities, and
wherein, when dispensing the second mixture, a computer system controls and/or synchronizes the speed of the conveyor belt, the speed of the robotic device, and the position of the robotic device.