Apparatus and method for cutting or slotting rigid material, in particular wood

An apparatus for cutting elongate pieces of wood, said pieces of wood having a modulus of elasticity between 50,000 and 400,000 kg/cm.sup.2, comprising:

• a circular saw blade having a plurality of spaced peripheral teeth;
• drive means for rotating said saw blade about an axis at a cutting speed of said teeth exceeding 40 m/s;
• feeding means for displacing said pieces of wood relative to said saw blade along a feeding direction extending perpendicularly to said axis;
• stationary bending means arranged on a broad side of said circular saw blade adjoining said cutting teeth, said stationary bending means having a radially profiled surface with a thickness increasing towards said axis and decreasing towards said cutting teeth, whereby said saw blade can be used to cut a slot into said pieces of wood along said feeding direction thus generating a first and a second section of said pieces of wood, and whereby said first section is lifted from said saw blade immediately after the formation of said slot;
• deflection means arranged at a first distance (L.sub.1) from said stationary bending means downstream along said feeding direction, said deflection means exerting a first force (F.sub.1) on a first surface of said first section facing away from said stationary bending means;
• and
• supporting means arranged at a second distance (L.sub.2) from said stationary bending means downstream along said feeding direction with said second distance (L.sub.2) being smaller than said first distance (L.sub.1), said supporting means exerting a second force (F.sub.2) on a second surface of said first section facing said stationary bending means.