JP2001088208A - Vacuum molding method and apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vacuum molding method and apparatus capable of shortening the total length, capable of efficiently performing production on an automatic line within a real time with high accuracy, capable of being constituted inexpensively and fitted to multikind and small-quantity production. SOLUTION: A plastic material product is produced by vacuum molding by using a heater 9 heating a sheet 5 to proper molding temp. in a heating process 8, molds 11, 12 for performing the vacuum molding of the sheet 5 in a vacuum molding process 10, a punching cutter 15 made of a Thomson blade and a flat cutting stand 16 for cutting the product 5a produced by vacuum molding into individual products 5b in a trimming process 14 so as to leave a part thereof, a knock-out tool 18 for perfectly cutting a part left in an uncut state in a knock-out process 17 to discharge the individual molded products 5b, an accumulation means for accumulating the individual molded products 5b discharged from the knock-out process 17, and a pair of the feed chains 6, 6 provided under tension over the range from the heating process 8 to the vacuum molding process 10, the trimming process 14 and the knock-out process 17 and grasping both sides of the sheet 5 to successively and intermittently feed the same to the respective processes at a predetermined pitch.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vacuum forming method and apparatus for continuously forming a product from a continuous thermoplastic plastic sheet and trimming and cutting the product.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG.
Is sent intermittently at a predetermined pitch to the heating chamber 33, and is heated and softened to an appropriate temperature by the heating means 34.
After being molded and vacuum-adsorbed to the molding dies 36 and 36 ′, the molded product is sent to a trimming machine 38 via a one-shot shear 37, and separated and cut into individual molded products. The products are accumulated and discharged by the accumulation means 39, and the scrap 32 c emitted by the trimming machine 38 is sequentially wound around a scrap winder 40. However, the one-shot shear 37 is deactivated when the trimming machine 38 is used.

[0003] As shown in FIG. 4D, a trimming machine 38 has a male mold 38a and a female mold 38 manufactured with high precision.
b is attached to the upper mold base 38c and the lower mold base 38d, and below the hole of the female mold 38b, the lifting / lowering table 43 for product accumulation is lowered by one pitch every time one product is punched. It is installed so that it can be. And
When a predetermined number of products are accumulated on the product accumulation elevating table 43, the table 43 is once lowered to the discharge position, the pusher 44 is operated, and the table 43 is transferred onto the discharge conveyor 45 or the discharge table. , The table 43
Is returned to the position immediately below the female mold 38b, and is operated to receive the next product. In this case, the rising end position of the table 43 is set at a position separated from the lower surface of the female mold 38b by a predetermined dimension L downward. This is because the male mold 38a is lowered and the female mold 38 is moved.
b, the lower end of the male mold 38a is placed below the lower surface of the female mold 38b in order to cut the product at the edge of the female mold 38b and to push the cut product out of the female mold 38b. This is to prevent the table 43 from being damaged by the lowering end of the male mold 38a.

Incidentally, a molding die 3 of the vacuum molding machine is used.
6, 36 'can form a large number of products at a time in multiple rows and multiple columns, but the time required for one molding is reduced by the trimming machine 3.
8 longer than the operation time. For example, assuming that the molding dies 36 and 36 'of a vacuum molding machine mold products in 5 rows and 5 columns, the trimming machine 38 has a relationship of separating and cutting five pieces in one column. In addition, during one operation of the vacuum forming machine, the trimming machine 38 is set to have such a speed relationship that the separation cutting for five rows is completed. For that purpose, the continuous sheet of the molded product leaving the vacuum molding machine is
It is slackened between the inoperative one-shot shear 37 and the trimming machine 38. For this reason, the conventional vacuum forming machine has a total length of 15 to 1 including the trimming machine 38.
It requires a large installation space of up to 8 m.

The vacuum forming machine requires expensive molding dies 36 and 36 ', and the trimming machine 38 also requires expensive trimming dies (high-precision male and female dies). Is required, the production cost is remarkably high when various kinds of products are produced in small quantities. For example, molded products such as trays for packaging products such as supermarkets have different sizes and shapes of trays for each type of product, diversify sales methods and change according to customer needs. Product packaging tray models are frequently changed.

Conventionally, when a large number of products are produced in small quantities, the products are vacuum formed by a vacuum forming machine, and then one shot shear 37 is operated to form the forming dies 36, 3 of the vacuum forming machine.
The molded product molded in 6 'is cut and stored for each shot, and transported to a general-purpose die press 41 installed at another position as shown in FIG. Cut and separated. A punch cutter 42 composed of an inexpensive Thomson blade 42 'as shown in FIG. 4C is attached to the general-purpose die press 41, and the molded products formed by the vacuum forming machine are separated into individual products. In this way, a trimming machine 38 which requires an expensive trimming die is not required.

In this case, one continuous product 32a cut by one shot shear 37 is manually supplied to a die press 41, and the die press 41 is operated to cut the cutting table 42a.
The product 32b is punched by the Thomson blade 42 'above, and after the punching, the product 32b and the scrap 32c are taken out manually.
The next continuous product 32a is manually supplied, and thereafter, the above operation is repeated.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Conventional vacuum forming machines are:
When an automatic line is formed in series with a trimming machine, the entire line becomes long, and there are difficulties in terms of cost in the case of producing various kinds in small quantities. Moreover, the conventional trimming machine 3
8 is a case where the rising end position of the elevating table 43 for product accumulation cannot be brought into close contact with the lower surface of the female mold 38b, and the predetermined dimension L
Only when the first product is received at the table 43, the product after exiting the hole of the female mold 38b has no guide member and falls freely. , Product receiving position is table 4
If the receiving position of the first product is deviated, the receiving position of the first product is disturbed, and there is a problem that the stacking of the products becomes difficult. In order to avoid this, for example, the table 43
If a guide protrusion having the same shape as that of the product is provided on the upper surface of the device, there is a problem in that a predetermined number of integrated products cannot be discharged by the pusher 44 shown in FIG. Even if, instead of the pusher 44, it is gripped by a chucking mechanism or the like and transferred to the discharge conveyor 45 or the like, the above-described guide projections can be trimmed by the trimming machine 38.
In this case, the same number of molds must be mounted on the table 43, and a chucking mechanism or the like is required for each of them. Further, the conventional trimming machine 38 cuts the entire periphery of the product by applying the pressing force of the male mold 38a to the upper edge of the hole of the female mold 38b.
8d requires a large supporting force, so that the lower mold base 38d has ribs 38 as shown in FIG.
d 'is provided, and there is a problem that the integrated state of the product cannot be seen from the outside because of the rib 38d'.

On the other hand, when the general-purpose die press 41 is used, it is necessary to operate the general-purpose die press 41, to supply the continuous product 32a, to take out the product 32b and the scrap 32c, and to carry out vacuum forming. There was a problem that it was completely different from the line and could not be produced in real time. Furthermore, die press 41
It is necessary to accurately position and supply the continuous product 32a, and therefore, it is necessary to provide a positioning means on the cutting table 42a, and it is necessary to make the positioning with the Thomson blade 42 'accurate, and the configuration becomes complicated. In addition, there is a problem that the work is complicated, cut errors and the like are easily generated, and the work efficiency is reduced.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum forming method and apparatus suitable for low-volume, small-quantity production that can reduce the overall length, can be efficiently and accurately produced in real time on an automatic line, and can be configured at low cost. .

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, the vacuum forming method of the present invention intermittently feeds a sheet at a predetermined pitch, heats and softens the sheet to a suitable temperature in a heating step, and then repeats the sheet in a vacuum forming step. Formed into a multi-row product, and then trimmed in a trimming process with a Thomson blade punching cutter and a flat cutting table configured in a shape conforming to the multi-row, multi-row array of vacuum formed products. The product is cut, and the part left uncut in the next knockout process is completely cut off and discharged as individual molded products, so as to accumulate, especially through the heating process to the vacuum forming process, and the trimming process. The intermittent conveyance is performed by the same sheet feeding means up to the knockout step.

[0012] The vacuum forming method of the present invention, as described above,
Since the trimming process is composed of a Thomson blade punching cutter and a flat cutting table configured in a shape that matches the arrangement of the vacuum forming products in multiple rows and multiple rows, multiple rows and multiple rows of products formed in the vacuum forming process Can be cut in a single operation, so that there is no need to provide slack between the vacuum forming step and the trimming step as in the prior art, and the overall length of the line can be shortened.

Further, the trimming step in the present invention comprises:
Since it is composed of a punch cutter made of Thomson blades and a flat cutting table, it can be constructed at a lower cost than conventional male and female dies.

Further, according to the present invention, since the molded product is conveyed from the vacuum forming step to the trimming step by the same sheet feeding means, the sheet feeding means can be used as a positioning means, and a Thomson blade punching cutter can be used in the trimming step. There is no need to separately provide positioning means for the product and the product, and the configuration is simplified.

Further, in the present invention, the trimming step is constituted by a punch cutter made of Thomson blades and a flat cutting table.
Since the product is cut with a part of the punch cutter made by Thomson blade invalidated and partly left uncut, the product cut on a flat cutting table does not remain on the cutting table, and sheet feeding means Thereby, it is possible to reliably transport the sheet to the next knockout step. Then, the part left in the knockout process can be completely separated and discharged as individual molded products, and can be accumulated.The work in this knockout process is performed by a punching cutter made of Thomson blades in the previous process. Only the part needs to be cut off, and the means for that can be configured at a lower cost than conventional male and female molds.
In particular, the ascending end position of the elevating table for product accumulation, that is, the position for receiving the first product can be brought into contact with the knockout receiving tray immediately below the hole, and the first table can be kept while the upper surface of the table remains flat. The product receiving position can be held at a fixed position. Moreover, the knockout process of the present invention only requires cutting off the uncut portion of the previous process, so that only a small force is required, and the support of the cradle can be simplified.
Therefore, it is possible to configure so that the accumulation state of the products on the elevating table for product accumulation can be seen from outside.

As described above, according to the vacuum forming method of the present invention, the entire length of the line can be shortened, and various plastic products can be efficiently and accurately produced in an automatic line in real time, and can be manufactured at a low cost.

Further, the vacuum forming apparatus of the present invention comprises a heater for heating a sheet to an appropriate temperature in a heating step, a mold for vacuum forming a sheet in a vacuum forming step, and a part of a product vacuum formed in a trimming step. A punching cutter made of Thomson blades and a flat cutting table that cuts into individual products while leaving uncut parts, a knockout tool that completely cuts off the parts left uncut in the knockout process and discharges them as individual molded products, and a knockout An accumulating means for accumulating the individual molded products discharged from the process, and stretching from the heating process to the vacuum forming process, the trimming process and the knockout process, and holding both sides of the sheet to carry out a predetermined pitch at each process. It is characterized by comprising a pair of transport chains that carry out intermittent transport sequentially.

Since the vacuum forming apparatus of the present invention is configured as described above, it is suitable for carrying out the above-described method invention, and can reduce the overall length of the line and can be configured at low cost.

[0019]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of a vacuum forming method and apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG.
FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the entire vacuum forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG.
(A) is a conceptual explanatory view of main steps of a vacuum forming apparatus according to the present invention, (B) is a schematic front view showing a relationship between a pair of transport chains and a heater in a heating step, and (C) is a view in a vacuum forming step. A schematic front view showing a relationship between a pair of transport chains and a mold, (D) a schematic front view showing a relationship between a punch cutter and a cutting table made of Thomson blade used in a trimming step of the present invention and a pair of transport chains, (E) is a schematic plan view of a punching cutter made of a Thomson blade, (F) is an enlarged side view of a main part of the Thomson blade, (G) is a plan view thereof, and (A) of FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of a knockout process. (B) is a schematic perspective view of a knockout receiving stand, and (C) is a schematic explanatory view of a pitch change adjustment mechanism of a vacuum forming step and a trimming step of the present invention.

In FIGS. 1 and 2A, reference numeral 1 generally indicates a vacuum forming apparatus of the present invention. 2 is a material roll, 3 is its frame, 4 is a base, 5 is a sheet, 6 is a pair of transport chains, 7 is a sheet transport guide, 8 is a heating step,
9 is a heater, 10 is a vacuum forming process, 11 is a vacuum forming die, 12 is a plug die for assisting the forming, 13 is a play process, 14 is a trimming process, 15 is a Thomson blade punching cutter, and 16 is a punching cutter. Cutting table, 17 is a knockout process, 18 is a knockout tool, 19 is a knockout receiving table, 20 is a collecting means, 21 is a scrap winder,
Reference numeral 22 denotes an operation box.

The sheet 5 fed from the material roll 2 is
As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, a pair of transport chains 6, 6 supported on a base 4 hold both ends in the width direction, and a heating process 8 is performed along the sheet transport guides 7, 7. From the vacuum forming step 10, the play step 13, the trimming step 14, and the knockout step 17 at a constant pitch.

Heating step 8, vacuum forming step 10, play step 13, trimming step 14, and knockout step 17
Are installed at intervals corresponding to the intermittent transport pitch of the transport chain 6.

In order to grip the sheet 5, the transport chain 6 has, for example, a large number of needles 6a or other clip means installed at equal intervals on a chain link, and a drive sprocket wheel 6b having both ends supported by the base 4. And the driven sprocket wheel 6c is stretched endlessly. The driving sprocket wheel 6b has a pitch of one pitch in the sheet conveyance direction formed by the dies 11 and 12 in the vacuum forming step 10 and is intermittently driven by a motor in association with one vacuum forming operation. Is what is done.

The sheet conveyance guide 7 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (B), a receiving groove 7a, which is installed on the lower side corresponding to the transport chain 6 and into which the needle 6a enters, is formed over the entire length at the center of the upper surface. The sheet 5 is conveyed by grasping both ends of the sheet 5 with the upper surface of the conveyance guide 7.

The heating step 8 is for heating and softening the sheet 5 to an appropriate temperature for molding. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the heater 9 is provided on the upper surface (or lower surface) of the sheet 5 conveying path. , Or both upper and lower sides). The heater 9 may be capable of approaching or separating from the seat 5, but may be fixed.

The vacuum forming step 10 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG.
2 is a process of vacuum-sucking with the mold 11 while raising it from below to mold the mold 11 in the shape of the molding recess 11 a of the mold 11. And the operation of applying a vacuum effect to the operation. Therefore, a mechanism for raising and lowering the dies 11 and 12 (not shown).
Is installed, and the air intake hole 11 b is provided in the ceiling of the mold 11.
Are formed. The molding recesses 11a are formed in multiple rows and multiple columns, and the product is molded in multiple rows and multiple columns by one molding operation. Since the temperature of the mold 11 rises with the progress of the molding operation, the mold 11 is cooled with cooling water.

The idle step 13 is a step in which no operation is performed, and can be omitted in theory, but is necessary for actually manufacturing the apparatus.
This is due to space reasons such as preventing interference between the operating mechanisms 1 and 12 and the operating mechanism of the punching cutter 15 made of Thomson blade in the trimming process 14. That is, in order to improve the product yield, the product forming pitch in the vacuum forming process 10 is set as close as possible,
The play step 13 is required to avoid interference between adjacent operating mechanisms.

The trimming step 14 includes a vacuum forming step 10
This is a process for cutting all the multi-row, multi-column continuous products 5a formed in a single operation in one operation, and as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2D, the continuous products 5a formed by vacuum forming. The product is cut with a Thomson blade punching cutter 15 and a flat cutting table 16 partially cut off in a shape adapted to the arrangement of multiple rows and multiple columns.

As shown in FIGS. 2E, 2F, and 2G, the punch cutter 15 made of Thomson blades is formed by cutting a thin plate-like blade into a ring shape corresponding to the contour shape of each product 5a. FIG. 2 shows a structure in which the substrate is fixed to the substrate 15a and is arranged in a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns.
As shown in (G), a part 15b of the punching cutter 15 made of Thomson blade is abraded or cut off at a plurality of places (about 2 to 4 places) to invalidate it. A mechanism (not shown) for vertically moving the punching cutter 15 made of Thomson blades is provided, and the mechanism is moved up and down in association with the operation of the mold 11 in the vacuum forming process 10.

As shown in FIG. 2D, the cutting table 16 is fixedly installed on the lower surface between the pair of transport chains 6, 6, and is made of an elastic material such as a rubber plate or a soft resin plate having a flat upper surface. It is composed of a plate 16a.

The vacuum forming step 10 and the trimming step 1
4 means a vacuum forming step 10 as shown in FIG.
When the size S of the dies 11 and 12 is changed, the trimming process 14 is performed by the motor 23 and the screw mechanism 24.
The upper and lower rams 15c and the cutting table 16 to which the punching cutter 15 made of Thomson blades are attached are moved in the direction of the sheet conveying line to change the interval P between the two processes, and to trim the trimming process 14 to a position corresponding to the vacuum formed product. And a cutting table 16 made of Thomson blades.

The knockout step 17 is a step for completely cutting off the part left uncut in the trimming step 14 and discharging it as individual molded products 5b, and is shown in FIGS. 2A and 3A. 2) As shown in FIG. 2 (B), a knockout tool 18 and a knockout receiving stand 19 are provided.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the knockout tool 18 is provided with a knockout bar 18b on a substrate 18a connected to the upper and lower rams 15c in the trimming process 14.
The punching cutter 15 made of Thomson blades is moved up and down simultaneously with the vertical movement of the punching cutter 15 made of Thomson blades.

The knockout receiving tray 19 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (B), a hole 19a slightly larger than each individual product is formed in accordance with the arrangement of the continuous products 5a, and the hole 19a is formed corresponding to the knockout tool 18. It is.

The accumulating means 20 is means for accumulating the products cut in the individual products 5b in the knockout step 17 and sending them to the next step (for example, a packaging step). An elevating table 20a for product accumulation is provided corresponding to the lower surface of the hole 19a, and
When a predetermined number of products are accumulated on the elevating table 20a for accumulating products, a pusher 20c for pushing the accumulated products onto the discharge conveyor or the discharge table 20b is provided.
This product accumulating and lowering table 20a is used for the first product 5b.
Is received, that is, the rising end position is set to a position in close contact with the lower surface of the knockout receiving table 19, and a cushion material 20a 'such as a rubber plate is attached to the upper surface of the table 20a. The table 20a is configured to move downward by one pitch each time one product is received in the knockout step 17.

As described above, the knockout step 1 of the present invention
In 7, the product connected to the scrap 5 c is only required to be pushed down and cut off at a small portion that is almost cut in the previous process and withstands the pulling force enough to be transferred to the knockout process 17. The support mechanism of the pedestal 19 may have a simple configuration, and a frame or the like may be formed of transparent plastic so that the integrated state can be seen from the outside. In addition, when the first product 5b is received, the product accumulation elevating table 20a can be raised to the contact position immediately below the lower surface of the knockout hole 19a of the knockout receiving base 19, and therefore, the knockout receiving base 1
When the first one is pushed down into the hole 19a of No. 9, there is no gap between the front and back, left and right, and it can be used as a reliable drop guide for the product 5b, so that the position of the product 5b received on the table 20a is fixed. .

As shown in FIG. 1, the scrap winder 21 sequentially winds the scraps 5c in association with the intermittent conveyance of the sheet 5.

The operation box 22 performs means for enabling automatic operation and independent operation of each part, and performs emergency stop, setting of cycle time, setting of heating temperature, setting of the intermittent feed pitch of the sheet 5, and the like. Means for monitoring and displaying the state and storing the state are provided.

The embodiment of the present invention has the above configuration.
Next, the overall operation will be described as follows. First,
The starting end of the sheet 5 is fed out from the base 3 of the raw roll 2,
The pair of transport chains 6, 6 are gripped by the starting ends. Then, both ends of the sheet 5 are gripped by the transport chains 6 and 6 and the sheet transport guides 7 and 7 and sent to a heating step 8, heated and softened by a heater 9, and sent to a vacuum forming step 10. Next, the vacuum-formed continuous product 5a is sent to the play step 13 and further sent to the trimming step 14. In the trimming process 14, each part is cut in a partially uncut state and sent to a knockout process 17, where each product 5
b, cut and separated, discharged, and accumulated by the accumulation means 20. On the other hand, the scrap 5c is wound by a scrap winder 21. Thereafter, this operation is performed in each step in parallel, and the plastic product is automatically and continuously molded.

The operation of the embodiment of the present invention has been described above.
The present invention is not limited only to this embodiment,
The present invention may be appropriately modified and implemented within the scope of the matters described in the claims.

[0041]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a multi-row, multi-row product formed in the vacuum forming step can be entirely cut in one operation. It is not necessary to provide a slack between the lines as in the related art, and the entire line length can be reduced. Further, since the trimming step is constituted by a punch cutter made of Thomson blades and a flat cutting table, it can be constructed at a lower cost than a conventional male and female mold. Moreover, the sheet feeding means can be used as the positioning means, and there is no need to separately provide a positioning means for the punch cutter made of Thomson blades and the product in the trimming step, and the configuration is simplified. In addition, since the product is cut with a part of the punch cutter made by Thomson blade invalidated and partly left uncut, the product cut on the flat cutting table does not remain on the cutting table, and the sheet is cut. By the feeding means, it is possible to reliably transport the sheet to the next knockout step. And
The part left uncut in the knockout process can be completely separated and discharged as individual molded products, and can be accumulated.The work in this knockout process is limited to the part left uncut by the Thomson blade punching cutter in the previous process. Can be cut off, and the means for that can be configured at a lower cost (1/20 to 1/30 of the cost of the male and female molds) as compared with the conventional male and female molds. In particular, the ascending end position of the elevating table for product accumulation, that is, the position for receiving the first product can be brought into contact with the knockout receiving tray immediately below the hole, and the first table can be kept while the upper surface of the table remains flat. The product receiving position can be held at a fixed position. Moreover, in the knockout process of the present invention, only a small amount of force is required because only the uncut portion of the previous process is cut off, and the punching load is small, so that the support of the pedestal can be simplified. The lower frame of the stand can be configured,
The product accumulation state on the product accumulation elevation table can be configured to be visible from the outside.

As described above, according to the vacuum forming method of the present invention, the entire length of the line can be shortened, and various plastic products can be efficiently and accurately produced on an automatic line in real time, and can be constructed at low cost.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is suitable for carrying out the above-mentioned method invention, the entire length of the line can be reduced, and the apparatus can be constructed at a low cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of an entire vacuum forming apparatus according to the present invention.

2A is a conceptual explanatory view of main steps of a vacuum forming apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2B is a schematic front view showing a relationship between a pair of transport chains and a heater in a heating step, and FIG. FIG. 4D is a schematic front view showing a relationship between a pair of transport chains and a mold in a molding process, and FIG. 4D is a schematic diagram showing a relationship between a punch cutter and a cutting table made of a Thomson blade used in a trimming process of the present invention and a pair of transport chains. (E) is a schematic plan view of a punching cutter made of a Thomson blade, (F) is an enlarged side view of a main part of the Thomson blade, (G) is a plan view thereof,
(H) is a schematic front view showing the relationship between the knockout means and a pair of transport chains in the knockout step.

FIG. 3A is a schematic side view of a knockout step,
(B) is a schematic perspective view of a knockout receiving stand, and (C) is a schematic explanatory view of a pitch change adjustment mechanism of a vacuum forming step and a trimming step of the present invention.

FIG. 4A is a schematic side view of an automatic molding line including a conventional vacuum forming machine and a trimming machine, FIG. 4B is a side view for explaining a separation and cutting operation of a product by a conventional general-purpose die press, and FIG. The principal part enlarged longitudinal side view of the Thomson blade cutter attached to the conventional general-purpose die press, (D) is the schematic side view of the conventional trimming machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vacuum forming apparatus 2 Raw material roll 3 Stand 4 Base 5 Sheet 5a Continuous product 5b Individual product 5c Extracted waste 6 A pair of transport chains 7 Sheet transport guide 8 Heating process 9 Heater 10 Vacuum forming process 11 Die for vacuum forming DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 Plug die 13 Play process 14 Trimming process 15 Punching cutter made of Thomson blade 16 Cutting table 17 Knockout process 18 Knockout tool 19 Knockout cradle 20 Stacking means 21 Scrap winder 22 Operation box

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A sheet is intermittently fed at a predetermined pitch, heated and softened to an appropriate temperature in a heating step, then formed into a multi-row, multi-row product in a vacuum forming step, and then a vacuum-formed product is formed in a trimming step. The product is cut in a state where a part is left uncut by a punch cutter made of Thomson blades and a flat cutting table configured in a shape conforming to the arrangement of rows and columns, and a part left uncut in the next knockout process Was completely cut off and discharged as individual molded products, and the products were accumulated.In particular, the same sheet feeding means was used to intermittently transport the products from the heating process to the vacuum forming process and the trimming process to the knockout process. A vacuum forming method characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. A heater for heating the sheet to an appropriate temperature in the heating step, a mold for vacuum forming the sheet in the vacuum forming step, and individual products in a state where a part of the vacuum formed product is left uncut in the trimming step. Punching cutter and flat cutting table made of Thomson blade to cut into pieces, Knockout tool to completely cut off part left uncut in the knockout process and discharge as individual molded products, Individual molding discharged from the knockout process An accumulating means for accumulating products, and a pair of transport chains stretched from the heating step to the vacuum forming step, the trimming step and the knockout step, and intermittently transporting the sheet by a predetermined pitch in each step while grasping both sides of the sheet. A vacuum forming apparatus comprising: