Apparatus for producing insulating panels

Abstract

Abstract An apparatus for the continuous production of prefabricated insulating panels is provided, which includes a feeding station for a lower metal sheet and for an upper metal sheet, a rolling-mill train for shaping the sheets, a furnace for heating the sheets, a device for injecting expandable plastic material between the sheets, a joining unit for joining the sheets together and for holding the expanded plastic material in place, and a cutter for cutting the finished panels. The joining unit has two, link-type upper and lower conveyors for the sheets shaped by the rolling-mills, at least one of which is adjustable, so that the distance between them may be regulated according to the thickness of the panel, with the conveyors being arranged to revolve continuously around rollers which rotate about a horizontal axis. An article produced by the apparatus is also provided. The present invention relates to an apparatus for producing insulating panels and the panels produced thereon. Prefabricated insulating panels are currently in use, consisting of an upper and lower metal sheet joined along their side edges, for example, with clips. Between the two sheets a plastic material, which is expandable during the stage when the sheets are joined together, is injected. These panels can be produced in several shapes, i.e., the upper and lower sheets can be so shaped as to produce a number of different longitudinal corrugations. Since it is necessary during the expansion stage of the plastic material that both the lower and upper sheets are held accurately in place, if it is desired to change the shape of the panel, the shapes of the sections which hold the panels in place have to be altered by a process which is both long and complicated, since these holding sections are mounted on a pair of rollers which advance the panel a certain distance. At present, in order to modify the shape of the panel, the manufacturer is obliged to halt production for a considerable time, so as to have the necessary time for substituting all the holding sections which, for the reasons given above, are numerous. Another problem arising with these panels is that when they are assembled, there is direct contact between the sheets. Thus, the insulating material has to be inserted into the panel joints. According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for the continuous production of prefabricated insulating panels, comprising a feeding station for a lower metal sheet and for an upper metal sheet, a rolling-mill train for shaping the sheets, a furnace for heating the sheets, a device for injecting expandable plastic material between the sheets, a joining unit for joining the sheets together and for holding the expanded plastic material in place, and a cutter for cutting the finished panels. The joining unit has two, link-type conveyors, a lower and an upper conveyor, for the sheets shaped by the rolling-mills, the distance between them being regulated according to the thickness of the panel. The conveyors are arranged to revolve continuously around rollers which rotate about a horizontal axis. The unit may also have two pressure units mounted on chains, which are continuously driven by rollers rotating around a vertical axis, and thrusters which act sideways on the sheets. Each of the conveyor links may include a dovetail connecting-section, which lies along the length of the link and engages with a support plate to which can be attached a series of detachable blocks for forming the trains, which are to have the same shape as the corresponding sheet. These trains are rapidly interchangeable through lateral coupling with other trains of differing shapes, depending on the shape of the sheets which are designed according to market demand. A further characteristic of the invention concerns the stage following the injection of the expandable plastic material, where a strip of elastomeric material is inserted between the upper and lower sheets. This strip is the connecting element between the upper and lower sheets, and also forms a part of the side edge of the finished panel. Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings which disclose the embodiments of the invention. It is to be understood, however, that the drawing is designed for the purpose of illustration only and not as a definition of the limits of the invention.

Inventors

• 👤 Giuseppe Brollo

Bibliographic Details