In furniture production, a special place is occupied by decorative finishing processes. This group includes many processing operations aimed at correcting minor defects and giving the ennobled appearance to the individual parts and surfaces of the wood structure. The edges of the parts also require a special approach in terms of mechanical refinement. To work with them, an edging machine is used, which, depending on the modification, can not only ensure the smoothness of the sides, but also automatically trim them with special material to ensure decorativeness to the final product.
The principle of the edging machine
Equipment operation is formed from several actions. The essence of the process most often lies in the preparation and gluing of a special tape on the edge surface. The first stage is implemented in the form of fixing consumables in a special shop of the machine. Further, the edging tape is integrated into the feed system. The most important category of operations during such finishing is the handling of glue. The reliability of the work done, that is, the strength of fixation and retention of the tape during operation, will depend on how well prepared the composition is.
A group of functional mechanisms in a coordinated mode applies a preheated adhesive mass to the edge surface, after which the tape is applied directly. Next, a special press comes into play, which contributes to reliable adhesion of the material to the edge line. Like all modern equipment for the production of furniture, such machines allow the possibility of complete automation. Some models are equipped with sensors for positioning and movement of the guide rollers, which helps to improve accuracy.
Key Work Units
The main unit is the feed module, which produces the direction of the tape in the right direction relative to the position of the edge itself. Management also happens automatically according to the set program. For work with glue, another node is responsible, which can have different principles of work. For example, the process of heating the adhesive mass can be provided either with an infrared lamp or with an industrial hairdryer. At the same time, approaches to applying the solution also differ. Can be processed and one part, and the edge of the tape. As noted above, the edge tape is pressed against the work surface at the end of the process. To perform this function, support rollers with a special platform are used. By the way, it can work both automatically and due to manual effort.
Varieties
The main sign of difference between machines of this type is the level of automation. Fully automated lines are commonly found in large industries. In this design, the edging machine is capable of supplying entire batches of billets with ribbons in a short period of time. Another thing is that the simplest models of this kind can work with typical edge formats - most often rectangular.
Especially for servicing curved parts, semi-automatic or manual modifications are used. This is just the case when physical strength remains relevant even against the background of the active proliferation of robotic mechanisms. A positioning or manual edging machine is characterized by high quality of gluing operations, but also has its drawbacks. In particular, with such equipment it is not possible to efficiently service large batches of billets. Therefore, the positional apparatus is mainly used by private craftsmen or owners of small factories with small-scale or piece production of furniture.
Additional functionality
For a successful and high-quality completion of the tape gluing operation, a final revision is required. The fact is that decorative strips are initially selected to the part in such a way that a small protrusion remains both in width and length. After the work of the clamping support press and hardening of the glue, the correction mechanism is activated on some machines. For example, an edging machine for chipboard, MDF or other wood-shaving materials can be equipped with two cutting mechanisms - milling and trimming. The first implements the delicate removal of the excess part from the width of the tape, and the second performs trimming along the length.
Equipment manufacturers
The leading manufacturers of this equipment include Jet, RAUTEK, and Brassa, well-known in the industrial sector. They produce powerful and productive units, the power potential of which is an average of 2000 watts. This is enough to equip a full-fledged furniture production. High-quality equipment with lower performance is developed by HighPoint. Moreover, the machines of the first group far from all parameters outperform low-power equipment. In particular, models with a power of about 1000 W from the manufacturer HighPoint are characterized by high processing speed and compact dimensions.
How much does an edging machine cost?
Rarely in this segment there are machines whose cost is less than 100 thousand rubles. Even the budget class is available to small enterprises on average for 130-150 thousand. And these are not always offers from manufacturers of the first row. Industrial units can cost 200 thousand. A multifunctional edging machine, the price of which is about 300-400 thousand, in addition to a high degree of automation and the availability of corrective mechanisms, will also provide the user with the ability to control through an autonomous electronic unit.
What to consider when choosing?
Consideration should be given to design features, speed of operation, the possibility of servicing workpieces of complex shapes, the same power potential, etc. The choice will mainly be determined by specific requests in terms of equipping the working line. Much will be decided, in particular, the planned volumes of material with which the edging machine and its functional organs will have to work. It is worth foreseeing additional equipment that is not directly related to the process of forming edges. Such equipment includes the same heat guns for glue, voltage stabilizers, as well as individual supply lines for consumables.
Conclusion
The approaches to the technical equipment of production factory conveyors have changed significantly over the past few years. The introduction of automation systems, but not only, had a serious impact on the organization of the workflow. Modern equipment for the production of furniture is developed taking into account ergonomic nuances and regularly increasing safety requirements. So, for the convenience of operators, special pedals are provided with lightweight mechanisms for transmitting effort, performance indicators and software, which simplifies the entire control process. As for ensuring safety, more and more technological protective systems are used to maintain it, such as automatic shutdown and blocking of individual functions when sensors detect signs of equipment overheating.