WO1995026635A1

WO1995026635A1 - A method and an apparatus for forming an object from a flowable composition

Info

Publication number: WO1995026635A1
Application number: PCT/DK1995/000144
Authority: WO
Inventors: Henrik KLØFT
Original assignee: Kloeft Henrik
Priority date: 1994-03-30
Filing date: 1995-03-30
Publication date: 1995-10-12
Also published as: AU2213795A

Abstract

A method for forming an object from a flowable composition in each of a number of successive moulds (18), which each comprises an upper and a lower mould part, defines an intermediary mould cavity, and which can be mutually moved between an open position and a closed position, comprises the following steps: placing the flowable composition in a mould, keeping the mould closed in a period of time sufficient to transform the composition into an object with such a consistency that it can be handled, opening the mould and removing the handable object from the mould. The moulds are arranged stacked on the top of each other, and the moulds in the stack are opened in succession by vertical moving the mould parts of each mould apart by dividing the stack into minimum two sub-stacks, and thereafter closing by moving the mould parts towards each other.

Description

A METHOD AND AN APPARATUS FOR FORMING AN OBJECT FROM A FLOWABLE COMPOSITION.

Technical Field

The invention concerns a method for forming an object from a flowable composition in each of a number of successive moulds, which each comprises an upper and a lower mould part, defining an intermediary mould cavity, and which can be mutually moved between an open position and a closed position, which method comprises the steps of:

- placing the flowable composition in a mould,

- keeping the mould closed in a period of time sufficient to transform the composition into an object with such a consistency that it can be handled,

- opening the mould

- removing the handlable object from the mould.

Background Art

In the baking trade it is known that for the forming of plane waffles blanks, later to be converted into finished waffles, an equipment is existing comprising a number of moulds, which are placed on a circular conveyor, and a filling station for filling dough into the moulds and a station to remove the baked plane waffles blanks. Every mould consists of a lower part and a matching upper part, which is hinged to the lower part.

The equipment operates according to the following sequence; starting from the open position of a mould:

Placing the fluid dough in the lower mould part, closing the mould, baking the dough until its consistency is high enough for handling, opening the mould and removing of the handlable object from the mould. This known equipment takes up much room, and it is time consuming to switch over production to another type of waffles, because a great number of separate moulds has to be replaced. Further, the equipment has certain environmental problems because the great surface from which the heat is given 5 off.

Disclosure of the Invention

The object of the invention is to provide a method of the type stated in the introduction, which can be exercised by the use of a more compact apparatus than known till now, and which at the same time makes it possible to solve the l o above mentioned problems concerning the environment and the replacement of moulds.

In order to reach that aim the invention is characterised by:

the moulds are arranged stacked on the top of each other, and comprising the further steps of

15 opening the moulds in the stack in succession by vertically moving the mould parts of each mould apart by dividing the stack into minimum two sub stacks, and thereafter closing by moving the mould parts towards each other.

The room required for carrying out the method is roughly determined by the size of the stack and the distance the moulds are successively moved apart for

20 opening of the mould in order to remove the finished object. The compact arrangement of the moulds further makes it easier to solve the environmental problems caused by the heat given off by the moulds, than when the moulds are situated out over a great area. Finally, the use of a stack of moulds makes it possible to replace the entire stack in one operation, when the moulds have to

25 be cleaned, or new objects, demanding other moulds, have to be produced.

According to the invention the mould parts of two moulds are opened for providing of three stacks. When two moulds in this way are kept open at the same time, it becomes possible to inject the flowable composition in one mould and simultaneously to remove a finished object from the other mould, which is 30 of advantage for obtaining a short cycle time. In relation to the above mentioned embodiment of the invention, two adjacent moulds are opened so that the central stack comprises an uppermost bottom mould part and a lowermost top mould part.

Further according to the invention, the moulds are opened from the top towards 5 the bottom of the stack by at any time to move the top mould part of the highest placed mould (and thus the bottom half of a mould which may be laying on the top of it) from an engaged position up to an engaged intermediate position and thereafter to a delivery position, where it becomes the lowest situated mould part in the top stack, and supports the rest of the moulds in the stack, and that ι o flowable composition is filled into the bottom mould part above in intermediate position, and a finished object is picked out of the bottom mould part, which is situated highest up in the stack.

When all moulds by this method have been transferred to the upper stack, this is lowered, so that the top mould part of the upper mould becomes situated in the 15 engaged position, after which the procedure is repeated.

Embodiment of the invention may be modified in such a way that the top mould part of the upper mould is transferred directly from the engaged position to the discharge position without any resting in the intermediate position. In this way only one mould may be open at a time. In the open position the finished object is 20 removed from the mould, and flowable composition is placed in the mould.

According to the invention, the flowable composition may also be placed in the bottom mould part, when the mould is open.

As a further alternative of the invention, the flowable composition may be injected into the mould, when it is closed.

25 The choice between the above mentioned two embodiments of the invention depends upon the ingredients which have to be moulded. By baking of a dough it will thus probably be most appropriate to place the lump of dough in the bottom mould part and thereafter to close the mould. However, by moulding of - 4 -

other materials f.inst. plastics as f.inst. polyurethane it will be more suitable to inject the fluid into a closed mould.

The inventing further concerns an apparatus for execution of the method of the invention, and which comprises a number of moulds with a top half and a bottom half, which defines between them a space, and which may mutually be moved between being in open position and closed position. The apparatus further comprises a feeding device for placing flowable composition into the mould and a picking unit to remove the moulded object from the mould.

The apparatus of the invention is characterised thereby that the moulds are arranged in a vertical stack, as the mould parts 35, 38 of each mould in the stack are guided for a vertical mutual movement by support of vertically extending guiding. The apparatus comprises a device for opening the moulds 46 is provided, which is arranged for engagement with at least one of the mould parts of a mould and move these apart from each other.There is also a device for closing the moulds, which is adapted to move the two mould parts of a mould towards each other, and also a device for movement which is adapted to move the opening device relative to the stack of moulds.

In this way a very compact apparatus is obtained, as earlier mentioned, which easily can be separated from the surroundings to avoid environmental problems, and which also makes it possible to replace the entire stack of moulds in one operation to clean them or to switch the production over to other objects.

According to the invention the opening device 46 for the moulds has an engagement device 50 for engaging with the moulds, which is adapted to engage with two moulds at the same time in order to keep the mould parts of two moulds apart. This way to execute the invention is considered to be highly advantageous in order to reach a short cycle time, particularly when the flowable composition is placed in a open mould, because a new shot of fluid then may be placed in one mould at the same time as when a ready object is removed from another mould. In connection with the just mentioned way of performing the invention, the opening device 46 for the moulds comprises a cylindrical body 49, which is supported for rotation around a vertical axis, and which has an outside helix track 50 which extends from the bottom side 52 to the top side 51 of the cylindrical body, and which is adapted for engagement with protruding cams 44 on the moulds being arranged on top of each other. The body will in this way move the mould part of the first mould relative to the other mould part, when it engages with the cam of the first mould, and in this way it opens the mould by dividing the stack into two sub stacks. By further turning of the body, its helix track can also be engaged onto the cam of the other mould and thus move the two mould parts of that mould from each other, so that the stack becomes divided into three. In this way flowable composition may be placed in one of the opened moulds and a finished object may be removed from the other open mould.

The cylindrical body may, as an alternative of being engaged and taken out of engagement with cams on the moulds, have such an axial dimension that its track always is engaged with all moulds of the stack. The helix track then has a higher pitch in the area where the moulds have to be opened.

Further the cylindrical body 49 further has an outer vertically extending track 79 for engagement with the cams 44 of the moulds, and in that a disc 53 is placed on the upper surface of the body 49, which has an outer peripheral slot 54 corresponding to the cams of the moulds, which disc 53 can be turned relative to the body 49 between one position where the slot 54 is in alignment with the vertical track of the body and another position where it is in alignment with the outlet for the helix track 50.

When the peripheral slot of the disc is in alignment with the helix track, it becomes part of the track, and then the surface of the disc will serve the purpose of supporting one of the sub stacks, which results from opening a mould by leaving the cam on the bottom mould of the sub stack to rest on the disc. When the disc is rotated until its slot is in alignment with the vertical peripheral track in the body, free passage appears for all the moulds in the stack, whereafter all the moulds in the stack may be freely moved relative to the opening member. This possibility is utilised when the stack of moulds is to be moved a long distance relative to the member for opening the moulds, i.e. the body with the helix track, f.inst. when all the moulds in the stack have been opened and thereafter closed starting out from one end of the stack, and the body is to be taken back to the starting position for a new stepwise opening and closing of all the moulds in the stack. The vertical track in the body is therefore used for movement of the stack and the body relative to each other without opening of any mould.

Finally, a set of moulds according to the invention may be constituted of an upper part constituting the bottom half of the mould and the lower part constituting the top mould part. In this way a very compact stack of moulds is made.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention is described in greater detail in the following with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

fig. 1 schematically describes the apparatus according to the invention,

fig. 2 the apparatus of fig. 1 seen from the front,

fig. 3 the apparatus of fig. 1 seen in sectional view from the line III - III,

fig. 4 a mould belonging the apparatus according to the invention seen from above, fig. 5 a sectional view from the line V - V in fig. 4, where also a bottom plate for a stack of moulds and a guiding column for the stack is shown, and fig. 6 a schematically sectional view from the line VI -VI of fig. 4.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

An apparatus according to the invention intended for baking plane objects from a dough is described below with reference to fig. 1 - 3, it should be noted that the apparatus after a suitable modification may also be used for manufacturing of objects with another shape and/or bodies from other materials. The displayed apparatus have a frame 1 made from a corrugated plate. Four guiding columns 2 extend vertically from frame top 3 to bottom 4 of the frame. A bottom slide 5 and a top slide 6 are guided by the four guiding columns 2. The slides are vertically adjustable, but mutually fixed together to obtain a joint sliding along the guiding columns. Sliding of the two slides 5, 6 is accomplished by two toothed wheels belts 7, which each is connected with the bottom slide at reference 5 number 8; each is turned around its bottom toothed wheel 9, each turned .around its top toothed wheel 10, and fixed to the bottom slide 5 at reference number 11. The bottom toothed wheels 9 are mounted on to a horizontal shaft 12, which is supported for rotation in opposite walls of the frame 13, 14. The top toothed wheels 10 are mounted on a top horizontal shaft 15, which also is supported for l o rotation in opposite walls of the frame 13, 14. The bottom shaft 12 is via a gear 16 connected to a stepmotor 17.

A stack of moulds 18 is placed between the two slides 5, 6, as indicated on fig. 1 and 2 by the small numbers 1 - 18. More details of the moulds appear from fig. 4 - 6. The moulds 18 are arranged between a bottom plate 19 and a top plate 20. is The bottom plate 19, which is shown on fig. 5, is attached to the bottom slide 5, whereas the top plate 20 is loaded downwards by an elastic member, which acts between the top slide 6 and the mentioned top plate 20, and which may be made up from a pressure spring 21. The moulds 18 are mounted on four guiding columns 22, which as indicated in fig. 5 are fixed on to the bottom plate 19, and

20 which extend to the top plate 20.

By particular reference to fig. 4 - 6, every mould consists of two mould parts 23, which in the following will be named "set of moulds". Each mould comprises an upper plate 24 with a central circular cavity 25. The upper plate 24 is by the support of screws 26 screwed on to two mould holders 28, 29 with steering

25 holes 30 for the guiding columns 22. Further, the plate 24 has attached to it three small bricks 31 close to the circular cavity 25. These bricks are attached with screws 31. The three bricks 33 are located with a mutual distance of 120 °. In each of these three small bricks a radially oriented needle 34 is attached, which is attached to the upper mouldplate 35 as well. Further everyone of the

30 three small bricks 33 have got a lower radially oriented hole 36, which in sectional view is oblong in vertical direction. The bottom end of the bottom needle 37 is engaged with each of the oblong holes 36. The other end of the bottom needle 37 is attached to the bottom mouldplate 38. Between the top mould plate 35 and the bottom mould plate 38 springs 39 are fitted, which press

35 the bottom mould plate 38 towards the outer position which is shown in fig. 5 and 6, where its outer surface 40 extends past the outer surface 41 , 42 of the mould holders 28, 29. The lower surfaces of the mould holders are in the same plane. Further, the top side of the top plate 24 is fitted with spacers in the form of distance nails 43, which serve the purpose of defining the distance between two moulds which are on the top of each other.

By the described embodiment a mould is composed of two adjacent set of moulds 23, whereunto the mouldplate 35 of the bottom mould part forms one part of the bottom mould part, and the mould plate of the top mould part forms a part of the top half. The distance nails 43 serve the purpose of determining the thickness of the plane object, which is to be manufactured, whereas the spring loaded bottom mould plate 38 serves the purpose to secure that gases which possibly may develop from the formed object may escape from the mould. The mounting of the upper and lower mould plates 35, 38 in needles 34, 37 secure a minimum of heat transfer from the mould plates to the mould holders 28, 29 with the guiding holes 30 for the guiding columns 22.

Finally, it is to be mentioned that the set of moulds 23 are equipped with two cams 44, which are placed so that they can be turned on shafts 45, which are fixed on the outside of the mould holders 28 and 29, diagonally to each other.

The apparatus according to the invention further comprises an opening device 46 to open the moulds in the stack, i.e. to move two adjacent set of moulds relative to each other. The opening device comprises two vertical shafts 47, which at their lowest end can be supported for rotation in the bottom 4 of the frame, and which in their highest end also is supported for rotation on brackets 48, which stick out from opposite walls 13, 14 of the frame 1. On each of the shafts 47 is mounted a cylindrical body 49 with a helix formed track 50, which extends from the bottom side 52 to the tope side 51 of the body. The helix track 50 is turning less than one rotation around the periphery of the body, and it is adapted to actuate the cams 44 of the set of moulds 23. On that part of the periphery of the bodies where there is no helix track, a vertical track 71 is made, and its dimension is such that the cams 44 may freely pass through. Finally, each of the cylindrical bodies 49 have a disc 53 on its upper surface 51. The disc 53 has at its periphery a slot 54, which allows for passage of the cam 44. Each of the discs 53 may me turned relative to the cylindrical body 49 between one position where its slot is in alignment with the axially track and another position where it is in alignment with the outlet of the spiral track 50. The device for performing that switching is not shown on the drawings.

To turn the vertical shafts 47 and thus also the cylindrical bodies 49 attached to the shafts, a toothed wheel 55 with a toothed belt is attached to the bottom end of each shaft. Each toothed wheel is driven by a toothed belt 56, 57, which is turned around each toothed wheel 58, 59, which is mounted on to a common shaft 60. The shaft 60 is via a gear 61 connected to a step motor 62.

Further the apparatus according to the invention has a feeding device 60 for filling the flowable composition into the bottom mould part of an open mould and a picking unit 61 to remove a finished object from an underlying mould. The feeding device 60 comprises a horizontal feeding tube 62, which has an outlet 63 which is turned downwards. Fresh supply is coming from a source, not shown on the drawings. The feeding tube 63 may be freely moved in its longitudinal direction on a support 65, so that it may be slided between a feeding position which is fully drawn and the outlet 63 of the feeding tube 62 is situated above a bottom mould part, and a recessed position (shown with dotted lines) where the feeding tube 62 is situated outside of the stack with moulds.

The picking unit 61 comprises a sucking disc 66, which is placed at the end of a horizontal arm 67, which is attached to the slide 64. The sucking disc 66 gets vacuum from a source not shown on the drawings. The sucking disc may in a similar way as the feeding tube 62, and together with this be slided between one position, where it is located between two mould parts for picking up a finished object and in a recessed position where it is outside the stack with moulds, and releases the transferred object.

Below, the mode of operation of the described execution of the invention is described in greater detail:

In start position the bottom slide 5 is in its lowest position, and all the moulds 18 in the stack of moulds are closed. The opening device 46 has not yet been activated for opening any of the moulds; which is contrary to what is shown on the drawing. The spring 21 will via the top plate 20 keep all moulds closed. This means that the three completely drawn set of moulds in starting position are in contact with each other.

In the just mentioned start position the cylindrical bodies 49 of the opening device 46 are turned in such a way that the bottom outlet 70 of the helix track 50 is in alignment with the cams 44 of the upper set of moulds 23. Thereafter the bottom slide 5 is elevated by action from the stepmotor 17, until the cams 44 become engaged with the inlet 70 of the tracks 50. After this, the step motor 62 is activated, and turns the shafts 47, on which the bodies 49 are mounted, until the set of moulds 23 has become lifted up to the disc 53, as the slot 54 of this is in alignment with the outlet of the helix track 50. In this way the upper set of moulds assumes the position as shown by the upper completely drawn set of moulds.

Provided, there already are objects in the moulds, the slide 64 with filling tube 62 and sucking disc 66 is moved into the just established open space, and the sucking disc picks the object in the upper set of moulds in the stack, i.e. the lowest one of the completely drawn set of moulds. No filling is performed with the feeding tube, because there is not yet any empty mould underneath. Provided, there are no finished objects in the mould, the slide 64 is activated with feeding tube; the sucking disc is not activated.

Thereafter the stack with set of moulds is slided upwards again, until the cams 44 of the upper set of moulds is engaged with the inlet 70 of the helix track 50, and the motor for turning of the cylindrical bodies is activated for turning the body half a turn. In this way the set of moulds which is engaged with the body takes up the position shown by the central completely drawn set of moulds. At this moment, two moulds in the stack are open, namely the two moulds formed by the three completely drawn set of moulds. Slide 64 with the feeding tube and the sucking disc is hereafter again protruded, and a finished object in the set of moulds, which now is the highest in the stack is taken out, at the same time as new flowable composition is filled into the central set of moulds.

Thereafter the body 49 is again turned half a turn, by which the central set of moulds is moved up to the disc 53, because it carries the set of moulds above. Hereafter, the bottom slide 5 is again slided upwards, until the cams 44 of the upper set of moulds are engaged with the helix track 50 in the body 49, which thereafter is turned half a turn, till the set of moulds takes up the central position. Slide 64 with feeding tube 62 and sucking disc 66 is now slided forward for picking up of a finished object from the upper set of moulds of the lower stack, and injection of flowable composition into the central set of moulds.

The sequence, turning body 49 half a turn to raise the central set of moulds up on disc 53, elevating the lower slide 5 to engage with cams 44 of that set of moulds onto the helix track 50, turning the body 49 half a turn to transfer the handled set of moulds into the central position, protruding of slide 64 with feeding tube 62 and sucking disc 66 for filling of the central set of moulds and removal of the object from the upper set of moulds in the stack and also recession of slide 64 continues until the bottom of the stack is reached, and all set of moulds rest on the disc 53.

Slide 5 upon which the bottom plate 19 is attached, is now slided upwards until it supports the lowest set of moulds in the stack, which rests on the ring 53, and the disc 53 is turned until its slot 54 is in alignment with the vertical track 71. The slide 5 is now lowered down to the start position, whereby the stack with set of moulds follows, as cams 44 on the set of moulds may freely pass through the slot 54 in the disc 53 and the vertical track 71 in the body 49.

Claims

1. A method for forming an object from a flowable composition in each of a number of successive moulds, which each comprises an upper and a lower mould part, defining an intermediary mould cavity, and which can be mutually moved between an open position and a closed position, which method comprises the steps of:

- placing the flowable composition in a mould,

- opening the mould

- removing the handlable object from the mould,

characterised in that the moulds are arranged stacked on the top of each other, and comprising the further steps of

opening the moulds in the stack in succession by vertically moving the mould parts of each mould apart by dividing the stack into minimum two sub stacks, and thereafter closing by moving the mould parts towards each other.

2. A method according to claim ^characterised in that the mould parts of two moulds are opened for providing of three stacks.

3. A method according to claim 2, characterised in that two adjacent moulds are opened so that the central stack comprises an uppermost bottom mould part and a lowermost top mould part.

4. A method according to claim 3, characterised in that the moulds are opened from the top towards the bottom of the stack by at any time to move the top mould part of the highest placed mould (and thus the bottom half of a mould which may be laying on the top of it) from an engaged position up to an engaged intermediate position and thereafter to a delivery position, where it becomes the lowest situated mould part in the top stack, and supports the rest of the moulds in the stack, and that flowable composition is filled into the bottom mould part above in intermediate position, and a finished object is picked out of the bottom mould part, which is situated highest up in the stack.

5. A method according to claim ^characterised in that the flowable composition is placed in the bottom mould part of the mould when it is open.

6. An apparatus for performing the method according to claim 1 , comprising a number of moulds (18) with a top mould part (38) and a bottom mould part (35) which between them defines a mould cavity, and which each can be moved mutually between an open position and a closed position, a feeding device (60) for placing the flowable composition into the mould and a picking unit (61 ) for removing the formed object from the mould, characterised in that the moulds are arranged in a vertical stack, as the mould parts (35, 38) of each mould in the stack are guided for a vertical mutual movement by support of vertically extending guiding (22), and in that a device for opening the moulds (46) is provided, which is arranged for engagement with at least one of the mould parts of a mould and move these apart from each other, and a device for closing the moulds, which is adapted to move the two mould parts of a mould towards each other, and also a device for movement which is adapted to move the opening device relative to the stack of moulds.

7. An apparatus according to claim 6, characterised in that the moulds are composed of set of moulds (23), the upper part (35) which constitutes of a bottom mould part and the lower part (38) which constitutes of atop mould part.

8. An apparatus according to claim 6, characterised in that the opening device (46) for the moulds has an engagement device (50) for engaging with the moulds, which is adapted to engage with two moulds at the same time in order to keep the mould parts of two moulds apart.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8, characterised in that the opening device (46) for the moulds comprises a cylindrical body (49), which is supported for rotation around a vertical axis, and which has an outside helix track (50) which extends from the bottom side (52) to the top side (51 ) of the cylindrical body, and which is adapted for engagement with protruding cams (44) on the moulds being arranged on top of each other.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9, characterised in that the cylindrical body (49) further has an outer vertically extending track (79) for engagement with the cams (44) of the moulds, and in'that a disc (53) is placed on the upper surface of the body (49), which has an outer peripheral slot (54) corresponding to the cams of the moulds, which disc (53) can be turned relative to the body (49) between one position where the slot (54) is in alignment with the vertical track of the body and another position where it is in alignment with the outlet for the helix track (50).