METHODS FOR MANUFACTURING LAMINATE, IMPREGNATED DECORATIVE PAPER AND LAMINATE OBTAINED THEREBY

20240165941

18/550533

March 07, 2022

A decorative paper of a roll of decorative paper is laminated on paper in a continuous pressing operation under pressure and at elevated temperature by means of an aminoplast resin. The roll of decorative paper comprises serially differing decorative finishes. After the continuous pressing operation, the laminate can be divided into sheets. A method is also described for impregnating, with aminoplast resin, decorative paper that comprises serially differing decorative finishes.

1.-121. (canceled)

122. A method for the manufacture of impregnated decorative paper, for use in the manufacture of High-Pressure Laminate or Continuous Pressure Laminate, wherein the method comprises the steps: the provision of a roll of decorative paper that comprises serially differing decorative finishes, by serial addition of various decorative finishes on a roll of paper; impregnation of the paper of the aforementioned roll of decorative paper with an aminoplast resin; the optional coating of the decorative side of the aforementioned paper with a thermosetting resin, or with polyurethane acrylate or with a polyester resin; the rolling up of the impregnated decorative paper, wherein a roll of decorative paper impregnated with aminoplast resin is obtained, wherein this impregnated decorative paper comprises serially differing decorative finishes, wherein these decorative finishes each consist of a decorative printing and/or of a uniform dye application; or wherein after impregnation the impregnated decorative paper is cut or chopped into sheets.

123. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the impregnated decorative paper is wound on a roll, wherein this paper roll comprises a length of paper of at least 300 meters.

124. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein on the roll of paper that is being impregnated, gaps without decorative finish are provided between the decorative finishes following one another serially, or in that on the roll of paper that is being impregnated, no gaps without decorative finish are provided between the decorative finishes following one another serially.

125. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the different decorative finishes are located in the roll of paper that is being impregnated on a continuous length of paper, without seam; wherein the decorative finishes were produced by digital printing.

126. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the roll of paper that is being impregnated comprises serially differing decorative finishes, wherein at least a number of the serially differing decorative finishes are each located on a separate length of decorative paper, wherein each of these lengths of decorative paper are joined together serially.

127. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the width of the various decorative finishes is not constant and/or wherein the various decorative finishes comprise decorative finishes wherein several decorative finishes are placed over the width of the paper, wherein a zone without decorative finish is placed between the several decorative finishes over the width of the paper.

128. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the paper of the roll of paper comprises an inkjet receiving layer, a primer that makes the paper suitable for digital printing.

129. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein one or more of the decorative finishes are produced at least partly, and by digital printing.

130. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein one or more of the various decorative finishes each consist of one uniform color.

131. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the paper of the roll of paper is impregnated with a melamine resin, wherein the melamine resin comprises etherified resin and/or acrylates and/or a polyurethane dispersion, and/or other modifiers to make the impregnated paper easier to roll up.

132. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein on the roll of decorative paper the lengths of the various decorative finishes on the roll of decorative paper are such that account is taken of the stretching of the decorative paper that occurs during the impregnation with aminoplast resin, so that the desired length for each decorative finish in the impregnated decorative paper is obtained such as necessary for the manufacture of the desired length of sheet or sheets of laminate for each of the decorative finishes.

133. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the impregnated decorative paper is intended for making laminate; wherein the roll of decorative paper that is fed into the impregnation process comprises markings that indicate where the laminate must be cut or chopped into sheets after a continuous pressing process for making the laminate; or that indicate where the roll of impregnated paper must be cut or chopped into sheets for use in a discontinuous or continuous pressing process for making the laminate, wherein the process in which the decorative paper is impregnated with aminoplast resin and is later dried is controlled in such a way that the cutting markings on the impregnated decorative paper produced are at the correct position and distance from each other so that during the cutting or chopping of the laminate produced in a continuous pressing operation with impregnated decorative paper, the use of the cutting markings to cut or chop the laminate into sheets leads to the desired length of the sheets of laminate.

134. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the impregnated decorative paper is intended for making laminate; wherein in the process for making laminate, successive discrete sheets of laminate are produced; wherein the successive discrete sheets of laminate are divided up into orders, wherein each order comprises a number of directly successively produced laminates, whether or not with different decorative finishes, wherein the roll of paper that is fed into the impregnation process comprises markings over its length, which indicate where an order begins and/or ends.

135. The method in accordance with claim 122, wherein the roll of decorative paper that is fed into the impregnation process comprises markings over its length linked to decorative finishes, wherein these markings comprise coded information for further processing of the length of decorative paper, which follows, or which precedes or which accompanies the marking; for processing information relating to the impregnation process, or information relating to a process in which the roll of decorative paper will be processed into laminate, and wherein the markings can be read optically and decoded by means of a controller.

136. A method for producing a laminate, wherein a roll of decorative paper is fed into a continuous pressing operation, wherein the decorative paper of the roll of decorative paper is laminated on paper by means of an aminoplast resin, under pressure and at elevated temperature in the continuous pressing operation, wherein the roll of decorative paper comprises serially differing decorative finishes, wherein these decorative finishes each consist of a decorative printing and/or a uniform dye application; wherein the decorative paper is impregnated with a melamine resin, wherein the decorative paper before impregnation has a weight between 40 and 130 grams per square meter, wherein the decorative paper before impregnation has a weight between 50 and 100 grams per square meter.

137. The method in accordance with claim 136, wherein the roll of decorative paper comprises serially at least two different decorative finishes, wherein these at least two decorative finishes have been digitally printed.

138. The method in accordance with claim 136, wherein the width of the various decorative finishes is not constant and/or wherein the roll of decorative paper comprises at least certain lengths of decorative paper, wherein at least two different decorative finishes are placed over the width of the decorative paper, wherein a zone without decorative finish is placed between the various decorative finishes over the width of the paper.

139. A method for producing laminate, wherein the method comprises a continuous pressing operation wherein the laminate is produced, wherein successive sheets of decorative paper of discrete length are fed into the continuous pressing operation, by cutting or chopping of sheets from a roll of decorative paper; wherein at least two successive sheets of decorative paper are provided with a different printed and/or dyed decorative finish, wherein a continuous length of substrate is fed into the continuous pressing operation; wherein in the continuous pressing operation the various successive sheets of decorative paper are laminated successively by means of a resin on the continuous length of substrate, wherein a release film is fed in the continuous pressing process, which provides pressing of a texture into the laminate produced with the various successive sheets of decorative paper, wherein the various successive sheets of decorative paper at the inlet of the continuous pressing process are placed on the substrate in such a way that these sheets are fed on and together with the substrate into the continuous pressing operation and so that in the continuous pressing operation the release film presses the texture in register with the printing on the sheets of decorative paper.

140. The method in accordance with claim 139, wherein the successive sheets of decorative paper are impregnated with melamine resin, and wherein the melamine resin comprises etherified resin and/or acrylates and/or a polyurethane dispersion, and/or other modifiers so that the impregnated paper can be folded over a smaller radius.

141. The method in accordance with claim 139, wherein markings are applied on the release film that allow the successive sheets of decorative paper to be positioned correctly during feed into the continuous pressing operation, so that in the continuous pressing operation the release film presses the texture in register with the printing on the sheets of decorative paper.

32; 32; 32; 44; 21

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