Patent Publication Number: US-9849609-B2

Title: Mold for building coating products and plant for manufacturing such coating products

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a 371 of PCT/M2014/066473, filed Dec. 1, 2014, which claims the benefit of Italian Patent Application No. MI2013A002011, filed Dec. 2, 2013. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention refers to a mould for building coating products, as well as to a plant for manufacturing such coating products. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The coating products for walls made up of artificial stones are currently obtained by pouring various very liquid mixtures, usually consisting of inerts (sand), water, cement, additives, colouring, plasticisers, etc., in suitable moulds. The moulds are typically manufactured with polyurethane rubber or with similar materials, as illustrated for example in document WO 2004/062866 A1. The moulds are generally obtained by covering some sample natural stones with the polyurethane rubber, thus obtaining a concave die inside of which the mixture which reproduces the natural stone is poured. With the subsequent hardening of the mixture the finished product is obtained, completely similar to the original stone. 
     The polyurethane rubber of the moulds, in addition to the fact of perfectly copying the sample to be reproduced, also has the capability of easily detaching from the finished product, obtained from the mixture poured inside of the mould. This is due to the high elastic deformability of the mould, which thus makes it possible to easily free the finished product also in the case of possible undercuts present in the product itself. 
     The unmoulding is essentially a manual operation and, consequently, it is very expensive. In addition, the capability of easily unmoulding the finished product becomes a negative aspect over time, since the mould loses elasticity and tends to break and/or deform with use, to the point of not being able to be used any longer. Indeed the pieces produced with the broken or deformed mould become incompatible with one another, generating assembly difficulties, since various pieces are no longer capable of coupling with one another in the foreseen manner. The high labour cost for unmoulding and for packing the finished products, to which also the cost of replacing the moulds, which is also high, is added thus leading to a production cost that is substantial for conventional manufacturing plants of artificial stones. 
     The finished product, generally of the slab-like type, matches the mould both in its lower surface, that is exposed in the coated wall, and its peripheral surface, which has a positive unmoulding surface (see  FIGS. 1-3 ). For such a reason the peripheral or lateral walls A, B, C and D of the product  100 , once the latter has been installed, have a peripheral furrow that must be filled with sealing agent and that is clearly visible, with a debatable aesthetic effect. In some cases it is not acceptable for the end buyer, also because it further increases the installation cost. 
     At the state of the art numerous moulds and relative processes are known for obtaining slab-like products, in particular artificial stones for decorative use, like for example those described in documents WO 2010/069057 A1, EP 2 363 262 A1, WO 99/25933 A1 and US 2008/088063 A1. These documents, however, describe moulds and processes for producing objects that are obtained starting from dry-cast concrete pressed inside metal formworks. On the contrary, the present invention concerns a mould and a plant for the production of stone veneer that is obtained by pouring liquid cement mortar inside the formworks or dies made of polyurethane rubber with high deformability, so as to allow the end product to be subsequently unmoulded. 
     In the procedures known for obtaining artificial stones starting from liquid mortar or mixtures, the end product is obtained by pouring such liquid mortar or mixtures inside formworks copying the negative of natural stones, made up for example of rocks also with substantial undercuts. At the state of the art the material making up the formwork is flexible and very deformable to such an extent that it is easy to extract the product after it has hardened. This, however, leads to the drawback of wearing and deforming the formwork itself after repeated use. After a certain number of production cycles the formwork becomes useless due to permanent deformation and wearing, which make it necessary for it to be replaced. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The purpose of the present invention is therefore that of making a mould for building coating products, as well as a plant for manufacturing such coating products, which are capable of solving the aforementioned drawbacks mentioned in the prior art in an extremely simple, cost-effective and particularly functional manner. 
     In detail, one purpose of the present invention is that of making a mould for building coating products that is particularly durable, i.e. capable of manufacturing a considerable amount of products without becoming deformed. 
     Another purpose of the present invention is that of making a mould for building coating products that is capable of manufacturing such products in a precise manner, so as to ensure a perfect coupling in the subsequent installation steps. 
     A further purpose of the present invention is that of making a plant for manufacturing coating products for construction that is completely automated. 
     These purposes according to the present invention are achieved by making a mould for building coating products, as well as a plant for manufacturing such coating products, as outlined in the independent claims. 
     Further characteristics of the invention are highlighted in the dependent claims, which are an integrating part of the present description. 
     The mould for building coating products according to the present invention is of the type “with reverse demoulding” and it consists of three main parts that are described in the rest of the description. The three parts are interconnected with one another so as to allow the production of coating stones while avoiding the production and economic drawbacks that were previously described. In addition, the mould for building coating products “with reverse demoulding” according to the present invention also makes it possible to automate the industrial production process of the products themselves. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The characteristics and the advantages of a mould for building coating products and of a plant for manufacturing such coating products according to the present invention shall become clearer from the following description, given as an example and not for limiting purposes, with reference to the attached schematic drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a rubber mould made according to the prior art; 
         FIG. 2  is a vertical section view of the mould of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a side elevational view of a coating product, typically an artificial stone, manufactured with the mould of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a section view of a mould for building coating products according to the present invention, shown in a first operative configuration; 
         FIG. 5  is a section view of the mould of  FIG. 4 , shown in a second operative configuration; 
         FIG. 6  is a section view of the mould of  FIG. 4 , shown in a third operative configuration; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a first component of the mould for building coating products according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a second component of the mould for building coating products according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the mould for building coating products according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 10  is a section view, which is obtained along the line X-X of  FIG. 9 , of the mould for building coating products according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 11  is a detailed view of a detail of FIG.  10 ; 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of a tool for manufacturing a component of the mould for building coating products according to the present invention; and 
         FIG. 13  is a plan view from above of a plant for manufacturing coating products for construction according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     With reference in particular to figures from 4 to 11, a mould for building coating products according to the present invention is shown, wholly indicated with reference numeral  10 . The mould  10  is of the “with reverse demoulding” type and it consists of three separate components, described in the rest of the description. The three components of the mould  10  are interconnected with one another so as to allow the production of the coating products for construction, typically but not necessarily consisting of slabs of artificial stone  100 , avoiding the drawbacks in terms of production and cost that have been previously described. 
     In detail, in a preferred embodiment thereof, the mould  10  is made up of:
         a base plate  12 , which is manufactured from a rigid indeformable material and is provided with a plurality of through holes  14 ;   a die  16 , which is manufactured from a resilient and deformable material and is configured for incorporating the base plate  12  therein, the die  16  being provided with the shape in negative of the front surface of each coating product  100  to be manufactured; and   a moulding grid  18  that is open at the upper part, manufactured from a rigid indeformable material and that is configured to be pressure applied above the die  16 , so as to define the perimeter edges of each coating product  100  to be manufactured.       

     The die  16  is made in an artificially stable and indeformable form in the configuration of the mould  10  in which the base plate  12  is incorporated inside the die  16  itself. In addition, in the configuration of the mould  10  in which the base plate  12  is incorporated inside the die  16 , such a base plate  12  and such a die form a first half of the mould  10 , which can be separated with respect to the second half of the mould that is made up of the moulding grid  18 . It is possible to obtain a coupling that is stable and is without loss between the two halves of the mould  10  thanks to the deformability (only locally) of the die  16  when the moulding grid  18  is positioned on such a die  16  to form the mould  10 . 
     The base plate  12  is preferably manufactured from a metal material with a suitable thickness, typically steel, so that the planarity of the base plate  12  itself is ensured. The base plate  12  is manufactured from any dimensions whatsoever, as long as they are compatible with the manual operations and with the manufacturing plant of the coating product  100 . 
     The through holes  14  can be of any shape and/or size. Preferably, such through holes  14  are circular shaped and are uniformly distributed along the entire flat surface of the base plate  12 . 
     The die  16  is preferably manufactured from a polyurethane rubber and the base plate  12  is incorporated inside it, so that the base plate  12  projects from the die  16  at two opposite lateral edges. The opposite projecting portions of the base plate  12  are used for being able to transport the mould  10  with special conveyor belts. The die  16  is in turn configured to project uniformly beneath the base plate  12 , whereas on its upper surface it has the shapes  20  with the exposed surface of the portions of stones  100  to be copied. 
     The die  16  is divided into a plurality of shapes  20  in negative each defining a single coating product  100 . The division of the die  16  is obtained with a deep incision, called a “furrow”. In other words, the upper surface of the die  16  is fragmented into single shapes  20 , which are separated by suitable grooves or “furrows”  22  with a suitable width and length and so as to be able receive the side walls  24  of the moulding grid  18  therein, through light mechanical compression. 
     The moulding grid  18  can have any shape and dimensions, but each time corresponding to the shape and to the dimensions of the die  16  and, especially, of the grooves  22  obtained therein. The moulding grid  18  indeed engages inside the grooves  22  of the die  16  thanks to the shape itself of its skeleton, consisting of the side walls  24  (see for example the section view of  FIG. 10 ). Indeed, it is easy to understand that the moulding grid  18 , once it is positioned above the die  16  with the relative grooves  11 , can perfectly engage above the shapes  20  representing the single coating products  100  to be manufactured. 
     In particular it can be noted that, between the side walls  24  of the moulding grid  18 , separate bowls are formed that are perfectly sealed ( FIG. 9 ), with the “exposed face” below it. Each bowl  26 , thanks to the reverse demoulding angle α with which the single side walls  24  are inclined with respect to a vertical plane, has a lower surface with dimensions that are greater with respect to its corresponding upper surface. In addition, thanks to the deformability of the resilient material with which the die  16  is manufactured, the bottom of each bowl is perfectly sealed. 
     The reverse demoulding angle α is preferably comprised between 1° and 4° with respect to a vertical plane (more preferably between 2° and 2.5°) as a function of the thickness and of the type of artificial stone that constitutes the coating products  100 . In other words, by effect of the reverse demoulding angle α, each side wall  24  of the moulding grid  18  has a sharp-pointed and tapered shape from top towards bottom with respect to the entire mould  10 , which facilitates the extraction of the finished products  100  from the mould  10 . 
     The components  12  (base plate),  16  (die) and  18  (moulding grid) previously described are coupled with one another so as to form the mould  10  so that this always has the same predetermined height H, or a height H that can vary according to the type of product  100 . The mould  10 , or more moulds  10  the same as one another, can be used for the manual or automated production of artificial stones  100  for coatings. 
     The manufacturing steps of one or more coating products  100  using a mould  10  of the type described so far, both for manual processes, and for automatic processes, can be illustrated as follows. 
     The mould  10 , after its components  12  (base plate), (die) and  18  (moulding grid) have been cleaned in order to remove possible cement residues, is assembled by joining such components  12  (base plate),  16  (die) and  18  (moulding grid) with one another, so as to obtain an assembly having a predefined height H. The exposed surfaces of the die  16  and of the side walls  24  of the moulding grid  18  are then covered with detachment oil, so as to facilitate the subsequent unmoulding of the coating products  100 . 
     At this stage a cement mixture is poured into the separate bowls  26  after the bottom has been painted with the coloured cement grouting agents. The formulation of the cement mixture can vary according to the cases as a function of the type of artificial stone that is desired to be copied. Once the mixture has been poured, the mould  10  undergoes a vibrating step for eliminating any air bubbles, thus obtaining a compact product  100 . It is important to note that, in processes of the known type, the liquid mortar is directly pressed or pressed-vibrated mechanically inside the formwork instead of foreseeing a preliminary pouring step. 
     Following the vibrating step, the mould  10  is set to rest for the aging time (which may or may not be accelerated) of the mixture, by using special chambers inside which there may or may not be a heat cycle for raising the temperature. The heat cycle for increasing the temperature can be carried out so as to obtain the hardening of the mixture over a short time in the case of accelerated aging. 
     Once the necessary resistance and the required degree of drying have been obtained, the products  100  are extracted from the mould  10 , firstly separating the moulding grid  18  from the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16  ( FIG. 5 ). The detachment of the moulding grid  18  from the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16 , which still supports the products  100 , can occur easily thanks to the reverse demoulding angle α present on the side walls  24  of the moulding grid  18  itself. 
     The extraction of the products  100  can be facilitated by subjecting the mould  10  to vibrating and it can also be carried out with mechanical unmoulding means, like for example vacuum cups  28  shown in  FIG. 6 . The products  100  that are extracted from the mould  10  can be subsequently packed and stored both manually, and automatically. The mould  10 , divided into the two parts made up of the moulding grid  18  and of the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16 , is at this stage recompacted and cleaned so as to be ready to cyclically produce new products  100 . 
     The moulding grid  18  must be dealt with very carefully, since it is formed with a plastic material that has been perfectly smoothed so as to be practically non-adherent to the concrete liquid-based mixtures used for making the products  100 . Such mixtures, once they are hardened, indeed, become detached from the walls of the moulding grid  18  in an easy manner both for the non-adherence characteristic, and for the presence of the reverse demoulding angle α present on all the side walls  24  of the moulding grid  18 . 
     With reference now to  FIG. 12 , a tool  30  is shown for manufacturing the die  16  in resilient and deformable material having the purpose of copying in negative the exposed surface of the artificial stone  100 . The tool  30  is produced in a limited number of samples with respect to the number of the moulds circulating in the plant for manufacturing the artificial stones  100 . 
     The tool  30  is made up of a frame provided with bars made of acetal resin that are assembled by hand, fixed with a series of Allen screws for creating a grid made up of a plurality of positions with spaces  32  with various length and width. The various natural stones that make up the samples to be reproduced through the products  100  are positioned inside the spaces  32 . 
     The natural stones are cut, shaped, positioned inside the corresponding spaces  32  and are fixed to the walls of the frame of the tool  30  through silicone. The natural stones therefore create the negative of the surfaces of the die  16  of the mould  10 . 
     The walls of the tool  30  have an inclination of 0° with respect to a vertical plane and, at the top, they have a tapered portion with an acute angle, preferably of about 16°, again with respect to a vertical plane. Such an acute angle is present on both the sides of the inner walls of the tool  30  and only on the inner side of the peripheral walls. Along the outer perimeter of the tool  30  is provided a lip that is around 2 mm tall and around 5 mm wide. 
     The tool  30  is provided with a system for unmoulding the die  16  of the pneumatic type. This unmoulding system is made up of holes on the wall of the frame of the tool  30 , one for each space  32 , which allow pressurised air to enter. Moreover, the base of the frame is sealed with a cast of polyurethane rubber having a hardness of 70 degrees Shore, as well as a metal plate that is screwed to the base of the walls of the frame itself, so as to prevent the pressurised air to come out from the lower side of the tool  30 . Indeed, therefore, the pressurised air pushes the die  16  in the opposite direction with respect to that of the casting, so as to facilitate the unmoulding. 
     The polyurethane rubber used for the production of the dies  16  can belong to different hardness classes, like for example 40, 55 and 70 degrees Shore. Some tests have also made it possible to evaluate the possible insertion of a filler so as to reduce the amount, and consequently the costs, of the polyurethane resin. In this case the preparation is made by adding Poraver® 0.5-1.0 mm. From the unmoulding tests it was found that the compressed air system operates well with rubber of 40 degrees Shore, and with rubber of 55 degrees Shore, both added with a special filler. 
     One typical preferred embodiment of the mixture that is suitable for producing each single die  16  foresees an amount of polyurethane resin equal to 5 Kg, to which 300 g of Poraver® are added. Once the resin and the filler have been introduced inside a container, they are mixed with an air drill that is provided with a beater. 125 g of hardening agent are subsequently added for every kilogram of resin and then everything is mixed for around 30 seconds so as to distribute it uniformly. At this stage the mixture is ready to be cast. The casting must occur in the shortest time possible and according to the time of workability allowed based upon the technical specifications of the product. 
     Before preparing the rubber cast, the perforated base plate  12 , which forms the base of the mould  10  and its supporting structure, is rested and centred on the tool  30 . The base plate  12  actually acts as a skeleton for supporting the relative die  16 , which otherwise could not be supported. 
     The base plate  12  is provided with through holes  14  so as to allow the rubber to be cast and allow it to pass in all the gaps. The base plate  12  rests on the lip present on the outer perimeter of the tool  30 , thus being lifted by 2 mm with respect to the other walls and thus allowing the resin to pass between one space and the other and completely fill the tool  30  itself. In order to prevent the resin from coming out from the tool  30 , passing through the slit between the lip and the base plate  12 , it is foreseen for there to be a gasket that ensures it is sealed. 
     Since the base plate  12  must be a single piece with the die  16 , acting as a skeleton as previously described, the resin must coat it and create a layer of around 2 mm of thickness above the base plate  12  itself. For such a purpose a rectangular metal containing structure was created, equipped with a gasket on the lower base so as to ensure the seal, which is rested and centred above the base plate  12 . 
     Both on the surface of the air inlet holes, and on the inner edge of the containing structure a thin layer of fat is spread that, in the first case, prevents the holes from being obstructed by the resin and, in the second case, prevents the rubber from solidifying and welding onto the gasket. In such a way the gasket itself can be used for producing more than one die  16 . At this stage it is possible to prepare the polyurethane mixture and pour it in the tool  30 , thus obtaining the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16  of the mould  10 . 
     The rubber, in standard environment, is left to rest for about one day and, once it is solidified, the assembly, consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16 , can be unmoulded. The unmoulding consists of inserting pressurised air inside the unmoulding system of the tool  30 . The air creates a cushion inside the spaces  32  of the tool  30 , between the stones and the rubber, and lifts the die  16  by around 15/20 mm. At this stage the operator can extract the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16  from the tool  30 , without difficulty. 
     By adding the moulding grid  18  to the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16  the complete mould  10  is obtained, empty and ready for casting. As previously described, the coupling between the moulding grid  18  and the assembly consisting of the base plate  12  and of the die  16  occurs by engagingly inserting the moulding grid  18  itself inside the grooves  22  of the die  16 . 
     With reference now to  FIG. 13 , this shows a plant for manufacturing the coating products  100 . The plant  50  firstly comprises a first conveyor belt  52  that is capable of handling the moulds  10 , initially empty and then filled with the products  100  to be formed. 
     The plant  50  also comprises a painting station  54  for the moulds  10 . The painting station  54  is made up of a series of Venturi nozzle sprayers that oscillate around a horizontal axis that is perpendicular with respect to the direction of the conveyor belt  52 , so as to apply a layer of even paint on every part of the moulds  10  where the mixture constituting the products  100  will be cast. 
     The mixture for manufacturing artificial stones  100  is prepared separately and it is positioned inside a dosing machine  56 . The dosing machine  56  pours the mixture into the moulds  10  through a rotary distributor device that is provided with paddles, having an action surface that is equal to the overall surface of the moulds  10  themselves. 
     The rotary distributor device has the function of distributing the material into the moulds  10  which pass below the dosing machine  56 . The conveyor belt  52 , at the dosing machine  56 , is provided with vibrating elements that help the distribution of the material inside the moulds  10 . Subsequently, a levelling machine  58  of the rotary type, that is arranged downstream of the dosing machine  56  and having a greater action surface than the overall surface of the moulds  10 , makes the distribution of the mixture into the moulds  10  even and removes any excess material from the top of the moulds  10  themselves. 
     At this stage the moulds  10 , filled with the material that is still fluid, are sent to a collection device  60  from which they are taken and positioned in an aging chamber to dry. The collection device  60 , that is typically made up from a stacker/destacker device, is made up of a stacker that stacks the moulds  10 , vertically and in groups of predefined units, inside a cage with a plurality of columns. Once one column has been filled, the stacker makes the cage slide to the following column. Once all the columns have been filled, the entire cage is pushed towards the extraction area, where a forklift takes it and transports it to the aging chamber. 
     Once the products  100  inside the moulds are aged, the cage is taken from the aging chamber and is inserted in the inlet area of the destacker device, where an extractor device extracts the moulds  10  one at a time, thus depositing them on a second conveyor belt  62  following the opposite sequence with respect to the placing step. The cages operate so that, while one cage is extracted, from the opposite side of the collection device  60  another cage is inserted (“first-in last-out” procedure). 
     The second conveyor belt  62  then transports the moulds  10 , filled with artificial stones  100  that have already been dried, towards the unmoulding step. The unmoulding machine  64  comprises a first shaped clamp that grips the moulds  10  from the lateral edge thereof and lifts them, whereas a second shaped clamp goes to push the stones  100  downwards, detaching the die  16  with the stones  100  still resting on it (see  FIG. 5 ) from the moulding grid  18 . 
     At this stage the dies  16  with the stones  100  continue to slide along the second conveyor belt  62 , whereas the moulding grids  18  are transferred onto a third conveyor belt  66 , which is separated and parallel with respect to such a second conveyor belt  62 . The stones  100  are manually taken from the dies  16  by operators who position them on a shelf  68 , from which they are then grouped and packed. Subsequently, both the empty dies  16 , and the moulding grids  18  continue to slide on the respective conveyor belts  62  and  66  towards a cleaning station  70 , which indeed cleans such components  16  and  18  of the mould  10 . 
     The dies  16  and the clean moulding grids  18  are sent to a mounting station  72 , where each mould  10  is reconstructed. Before reaching such a mounting station  72 , the moulding grids  18  pass through a spraying device  74 , which applies a layer of oil so as to facilitate the introduction into the dies  16  of the moulding grids  18  themselves. 
     In the mounting station  72  the dies  16  are pushed by a piston inside the guides of a coupling belt. The moulding grids  18  are, on the other hand, taken with a clamp, which then goes to position them above the respective dies  16  by applying considerable pressure so as to promote a good coupling. At this stage the complete moulds  10  are pushed by a piston onto the first conveyor belt  52 , so that they can restart a new painting and casting step of the material to be dried. 
     In the plant  50  described thus far the steps of taking the artificial stones  10  from the moulds and their subsequent packing for shipping are carried out manually. It is however possible to foresee automated devices that are also capable of carrying out these activities. 
     It has thus been seen that the mould for building coating products and the plant for manufacturing such coating products according to the present invention achieve the purposes that were previously highlighted. The mould according to the present invention is immune to permanent deformation and wearing, due to the fact that it is completely rigid/planar, whereas the negative surface that copies the natural stone constitutes the bottom on which the liquid mortar contained inside the various compartments obtained in the grid, which is fitted above the die, is poured. The poured mortar never undergoes compacting due to pressure and there is no problem of dosing the material, like occurs, on the other hand, in the mould described in document WO 2010/069057 A1: only a slight vibration is applied to the whole mould to make possible air bubbles present in the liquid mortar come to the surface. 
     Each mould accompanies the product in the aging cycle up to the complete hardening of the product itself. Only subsequently the mould is opened in its two halves thanks to the unmoulding angles with an inclination of the sides that is opposite with respect to the flexible formworks according to the prior art. Therefore, the product is extracted in a very simple manner, since it is only rested on its “noble face”, and subsequently the two parts of the mould are cleaned, oiled and joined again so as to repeat the production cycle. 
     The upper part of the mould, consisting of the moulding grid, engages inside the grooves with a perfect seal, whereas the lower part of the mould itself, despite being mainly manufactured from a resilient and deformable material, is rigidly planar thanks to the introduction of the perforated steel slab, carrying the “noble faces” at the top spaced from one another with the grooves for fixing or coupling the moulding grid. 
     The mould and the relative plant make it possible to produce plates that can be coupled in a very precise manner, by reducing to the minimum the furrow between one stone and the contiguous one and by eliminating the drawbacks related to colouring, width, finishing, etc. relative to the material with which the furrow is filled. Indeed it is clear that a wall that is coated with natural stones that fit together very well has an appearance that is much nicer with respect to a wall of the same type, but having evident furrows. 
     The mould for building coating products and the plant for manufacturing such coating products of the present invention thus conceived can in any case undergo numerous modifications and variants, all covered by the same inventive concept; moreover, all the details can be replaced by technically equivalent elements. In practice the materials used, as well as the shapes and dimensions, can be any according to the technical requirements. 
     The scope of protection of the invention is thus defined by the attached claims.