WO2016019452A1 - Broches de conditionnement à longueur réglable - Google Patents

Broches de conditionnement à longueur réglable Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2016019452A1
WO2016019452A1 PCT/CA2015/050155 CA2015050155W WO2016019452A1 WO 2016019452 A1 WO2016019452 A1 WO 2016019452A1 CA 2015050155 W CA2015050155 W CA 2015050155W WO 2016019452 A1 WO2016019452 A1 WO 2016019452A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
conditioning
pins
length
adjustable
plate
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/CA2015/050155
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Andre Axel Kromberg
Maxfield Paul Bradshaw
Original Assignee
Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd. filed Critical Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd.
Publication of WO2016019452A1 publication Critical patent/WO2016019452A1/fr

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
    • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
    • B29C45/00—Injection moulding, i.e. forcing the required volume of moulding material through a nozzle into a closed mould; Apparatus therefor
    • B29C45/17—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
    • B29C45/76—Measuring, controlling or regulating
    • B29C45/766—Measuring, controlling or regulating the setting or resetting of moulding conditions, e.g. before starting a cycle
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
    • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
    • B29C45/00—Injection moulding, i.e. forcing the required volume of moulding material through a nozzle into a closed mould; Apparatus therefor
    • B29C45/17—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
    • B29C45/72—Heating or cooling
    • B29C45/7207—Heating or cooling of the moulded articles
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
    • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
    • B29C45/00—Injection moulding, i.e. forcing the required volume of moulding material through a nozzle into a closed mould; Apparatus therefor
    • B29C45/17—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
    • B29C45/72—Heating or cooling
    • B29C45/7207—Heating or cooling of the moulded articles
    • B29C2045/7214—Preform carriers for cooling preforms

Definitions

  • the present disclosure relates to, but is not limited to, the conditioning of molded articles removed from a mold, and more particularly relates to, but is not limited to, the use of adjustable length conditioning pins to apply a conditioning fluid to molded articles removed from a mold.
  • Molding is a process by which a molded article can be formed from molding material using a molding system.
  • Various molded articles can be formed using a molding process, such as an injection molding process.
  • a molded article that can be formed is a preform that is capable of being subsequently blow-molded into a beverage container, such as a bottle or the like.
  • the molding material may be a resin or plastic material, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) for example.
  • inj ection molding of PET material involves heating the PET material (e.g. PET pellets, PEN powder, PLA, etc.) to a homogeneous molten state and injecting, under pressure, the melted PET material into a molding cavity defined, at least in part, by a female cavity piece and a male core piece mounted respectively on a cavity plate and a core plate of the mold.
  • the cavity plate and the core plate are urged together and are held together by clamp force, the clamp force being sufficient for keeping the cavity and the core pieces together against the pressure of the injected PET material.
  • the molding cavity has a shape that substantially corresponds to a final cold-state shape of the molded article.
  • the injected PET material is then cooled to a temperature sufficient to enable ej ection of the so-formed molded article from the mold.
  • the molded article shrinks inside of the molding cavity and, as such, when the cavity and core plates are urged apart, the molded article tends to remain associated with the core piece of the mold. Accordingly, by urging the core plate away from the cavity plate, the molded article can be de-molded.
  • Ejection structures that may be used to assist in removing the molded articles from the core half may include stripper plates, ej ector pins, and others. Alternatively, in some cases the molded articles may tend to remain associated with the cavity half of a mold and may need to be ejected therefrom.
  • post-mold conditioning is cooling of the molded articles.
  • Post-mold cooling may serve one or more purposes.
  • One purpose of post-mold cooling may be to maximize a quality of the molded articles. For example, when articles are molded from semi-crystalline resins such as PET, improper or insufficient post- mold cooling may be detrimental to article quality. The reason is that, when proper cooling is not performed (e.g. when cooling is performed too slowly), the resin may wholly or partially crystallize, thereby weakening or otherwise degrading the quality of the molded article. The risk of crystallization may be particularly high in the hottest areas of the molded articles.
  • the closed end of the preform which may have a dome shape, may be one of the hottest areas of the article just after molding ("post-mold"), because that area is typically proximate to the hot stem of a hot runner injection nozzle during molding.
  • This closed end of the preform may be referred to as the "gate area" of the preform, because it is typically proximate to the gate of the hot runner that is used to inject melted molding material into the mold.
  • Insufficient cooling of the gate area of the preform may result in an undesirable degree of crystallization of the PET material in that area. This may in turn be detrimental to proper stretching of the molding material in that area during subsequent blow-molding.
  • Another area of a preform that may be susceptible to crystallization is the open neck area or "neck finish portion.”
  • the reason is that, because the wall of the neck finish is typically thicker than that of other areas of the preform, post-mold heat retention in that area may be higher than in other areas.
  • Another possible purpose of post-mold cooling may be to minimize mold cycle time. Mold cycle time may refer to a duration between a point in time when the cavity and core mold halves are closed for forming the molded articles and a subsequent point in time when the mold halves are opened and the molded articles are removed. Generally, a shorter cycle time is preferred, as this increases the number of molded articles that can be produced by a particular mold over a given time period.
  • the post-mold cooling process may help to minimize cycle time by allowing the duration of an in-mold cooling phase, just after injection molding, to be minimized.
  • an apparatus for conditioning molded articles comprising: a plate; a plurality of conditioning pins extending through the plate, each of the conditioning pins for applying a conditioning fluid to a surface of a molded article; and an adjustment mechanism for adjusting an exposed length of the plurality of conditioning pins by way of relative movement between the conditioning pins and the plate.
  • each of the conditioning pins is attached to a frame and the adjusting comprises moving the frame relative to the plate.
  • the apparatus further comprises a plenum, the plenum containing the conditioning fluid under pressure, the frame is situated within the plenum, and the plate is situated outside of the plenum and in fixed relation to an external face of the plenum.
  • the adjustment mechanism comprises a screw having a threaded portion, the threaded portion being received within a threaded hole in one of the plate and the frame, the screw further comprising an unthreaded portion that is rotatably received by, and longitudinally fixed with respect to, the other of the plate and the frame.
  • the apparatus further comprises a plurality of cups mounted on one side of the plate and in fixed relation to the plate, with an open end of each cup facing outwardly from the plate, each of the cups having a base with an opening therein and a respective one of the conditioning pins extending through the opening into the cup.
  • the conditioning is cooling and the conditioning fluid is pressurized air.
  • the molded articles comprise preforms and each of the conditioning pins has at least one outlet for directing the conditioning fluid onto an interior surface of a closed end the preform.
  • the apparatus further comprises an actuator for actuating the adjustment mechanism responsive to a control signal.
  • each of the conditioning pins has at least one outlet at or near a distal end of the conditioning pin.
  • an apparatus for conditioning a plurality of articles removed from a mold each of the articles being a molded container having an open neck
  • the apparatus comprising: a plurality of cups oriented in the same direction and being in fixed relation to one another, each of the cups being sized for encompassing the open neck of a respective one of the molded containers, each of the cups further having a base with an opening therethrough; a plurality of conditioning pins in fixed relation to one another, each of the conditioning pins being configured for applying a conditioning fluid to an interior of a respective one of the molded containers, each of the conditioning pins extending through the opening in the base of a respective one of the cups and into the cup; and an adjustment mechanism for moving the plurality of conditioning pins relative to the plurality of cups to adjust a distance between a distal end of each conditioning pin and the respective cup, wherein each cup is configured for
  • the apparatus further comprises a plate, and each of the cups is fixedly mounted, directly or indirectly, to the plate.
  • the molded containers are preforms and each of the conditioning pins has at least one outlet for applying the conditioning fluid to the interior of a respective one of the preforms.
  • a non-transitory computer- readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a controller associated with a post-mold article conditioning apparatus having a plurality of adjustable-length conditioning pins, cause the controller to: determine a target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins; based on the determined target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins, automatically compute an adjustment to be made to the adjustable-length conditioning pins for attaining the target length; and output a signal for causing an actuator to effect the adjustment to the adjustable-length conditioning pins.
  • the controller has an associated human-machine interface and the determining comprises inputting, via the human-machine interface, an indication of the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins.
  • the instructions further cause the controller to input, via a human-machine interface associated with the controller, an article identifier uniquely identifying an article to be conditioned by the post-mold article conditioning apparatus, and the determining of the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins comprises mapping the article identifier to the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins.
  • the inputting of the article identifier comprises receiving, via the human- machine interface, a selection of one of a plurality of selectable options displayed in a user-interface control, each selectable option being associated with a unique article identifier.
  • the automatically computing of the adjustment to be made to the adjustable- length conditioning pins comprises: determining a current length (E) of the adjustable-length conditioning pins; and computing a difference between a current length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins and the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins.
  • the instructions further cause the controller to input, via a sensor associated with the controller, an indicator of a type, a form factor, or a dimension of an article to be molded, and the determining of the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins comprises mapping the indicator to the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins.
  • the indicator that is input via the sensor is encoded on a mold component that is specific to the article to be molded.
  • the instructions further cause the controller to input, via a sensor associated with the controller, an indicator of the target length of the adjustable-length conditioning pins to be used for conditioning the article.
  • FIG. 1 illustrates, in cross-section, an apparatus for conditioning molded articles that have been removed from a mold
  • FIG. 2 schematically illustrates an injection molding system incorporating the apparatus of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 3 illustrates a conditioning pin of the apparatus of FIG. 1 conditioning a molded article held within a receptacle of a take-off device
  • FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of a system that may be used to control the apparatus of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating operation of the apparatus of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 6 is a user interface that may be presented on a human-machine interface of the system of FIG. 2.
  • an exemplary embodiment of an apparatus 100 for conditioning molded articles (or "conditioning apparatus") 100 is illustrated.
  • the apparatus 100 is used to cool molded articles, specifically preforms, that have been removed from a mold.
  • alternative embodiments may perform different types of conditioning upon other types of molded articles.
  • the exemplary apparatus 100 comprises a plate 102, a plurality of conditioning pins 104a, 104b (referred to generically and collectively as conditioning pin(s) 104) extending through the plate 102, a frame 106 to which the conditioning pins 104 are attached, an adjustment mechanism 108, and a plenum 110.
  • the plate 102 which may in some embodiments be referred to by the trademark CoolJetTM or CoolPikTM (e.g. a "CoolJetTM plate” or a “CoolPikTM plate”), has a plurality of holes 112a, 112b (referred to generically and collectively as hole(s) 112) therethrough.
  • Each hole 112a, 112b has a respective conditioning pin 104a, 104b extending therethrough, with each pin 104 being free to move longitudinally relative to the plate 102.
  • each hole 112a, 112b is fitted with a respective collar 114a, 114b (referred to generically and collectively as collar(s) 114) that is in fixed relation to the plate 102 through which the respective conditioning pin 104a, 104b extends.
  • Each of the collars 114a, 114b has a respective annular flange 116a, 116b (referred to generically and collectively as flange(s) 116).
  • Each flange 116a, 116b has attached thereto a cup-like structure or "cup" 117a, 117b (referred to generically and collectively as cup(s) 117).
  • the purpose of the cups 117 is described below.
  • the cups may be mounted directly to the plate rather than being mounted to the plate indirectly, e.g. via collars.
  • the collars 114 and/or cups 117 may be omitted in alternative embodiments.
  • the conditioning pins 104 are for applying the conditioning fluid, which is pressurized air in the present example, to a surface of a molded article, which is a preform in this example. Because the type of conditioning that is performed by the illustrated embodiment is cooling of molded articles, the conditioning pins of this embodiment may be referred to as cooling pins. Although only two conditioning pins 104a, 104b are illustrated in FIG. 1 for the sake of clarity, it will be appreciated that the number of conditioning pins in alternative embodiment may be greater than two. For example, the number of conditioning pins 104 may correspond to the number of preforms molded during a single molding cycle of an associated molding system, which may be several hundred for example.
  • the number of conditioning pins may be a multiple of a number of preforms 232 molded during a single molding cycle.
  • the apparatus 100 may cool multiple sets of molded articles, with each set possibly being at a different stage of cooling.
  • Each of the conditioning pins 104a, 104b of the present embodiment is an elongate rigid tube with an outlet 103 at its distal end 105a, 105b (referred to herein generically and collectively as distal end(s) 105). This design allows the distal end 105 of each conditioning pin 104 to be positioned proximately to the interior surface of the closed end (or "gate area") of the preform to be cooled upon insertion of the conditioning pin 104 into the preform.
  • each conditioning pin 104 of the present embodiment may be considered to act essentially as an elongate nozzle whose tip can be positioned close to an interior surface of the closed end of an article to be cooled, so that a stream of pressurized air may be applied directly to that area of the article.
  • Each cup 117 is sized to loosely receive (e.g. encompass without touching) the open neck area of a respective one of the preforms, which may be referred to as the "neck finish portion" of the preform and may have the appearance of a threaded bottle opening.
  • the cup 117 has a base 119 and an opening 121 in the base through which the conditioning pin 104 extends, into and through the cup (as shown in FIG. 3, discussed below).
  • Each cup 117 is configured (e.g. shaped) so as to cause air exiting the interior of the respective preform (i.e. air that has been blown into the preform by the conditioning pin 104) to be redirected to flow about an exterior of the open neck area of the preform.
  • the cup 117 may accordingly facilitate or enhance cooling of the neck finish of the preform or, more generally, may facilitate conditioning of the open neck area of a molded article that is a container. An example of this will be shown in FIG. 3 (discussed below).
  • All of the conditioning pins 104 of the present embodiment are of uniform length. This may be considered a typical arrangement but is not necessarily true in all embodiments.
  • each conditioning pin 104 i.e. the portion that extends from the respective collar 114
  • the frame 106 serves as a common point of attachment for each of the conditioning pins 104 and facilitates movement of the conditioning pins 104 in unison.
  • the conditioning pins 104 are removably attached to the frame 106 by way of threaded ends. This is not necessarily true in all embodiments. For example, the pins may be removably attached using other means or may be permanently attached.
  • the frame 106 may be aligned with the plate 102 by way of leader pins (not depicted). In some embodiments, the frame 106 may be a plate.
  • the adjustment mechanism 108 allows the exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104 to be adjusted.
  • the adjustment mechanism 108 of the present embodiment comprises a screw having a threaded portion 120 and an unthreaded portion 122.
  • the threaded portion 120 is received within a threaded hole 124 in plate 102.
  • the unthreaded portion is rotatably received by, and is longitudinally fixed with respect to, the frame 106.
  • the screw cannot be moved along its longitudinal axis relative to the frame 106 but can rotate relative to the frame. In the present embodiment, this is achieved by way of annular flanges 128 and 130 on the screw that sandwich the frame therebetween and thereby prevent, or limit to a minimal degree, longitudinal movement of the screw with respect to the frame 106.
  • the unthreaded portion 122 of the screw extends through a hole 126 in the frame 106 and is free to rotate therewithin.
  • Rotation of the screw causes the exposed length E of the conditioning pin 104 to be adjusted as follows.
  • the rotation causes the separation S between the frame 106 and the plate 102 to increase or decrease. This in turn causes the pins 104 to extend from, or retract into (depending upon the direction of rotation of the screw), the plate 102.
  • the conditioning pins 104 may be referred to as adjustable-length conditioning pins 104.
  • the plenum 110 supplies conditioning fluid under pressure to the conditioning pins 104 for application to molded articles.
  • the conditioning fluid is pressurized air
  • the plenum 110 may comprise an air pressurizing device such as a blower (not depicted).
  • the plenum 110 of FIG. 1 comprises a closed container. Operationally, the internal air pressure within the container will be greater than ambient pressure. The pressure differential will force air, represented by arrows A in FIG. 1, out through the conditioning pins 104. Air may flow continuously throughout operation of the apparatus.
  • the frame 106 is situated within the plenum 110, while the plate 102 is situated outside of the plenum 110.
  • the plate 102 is in fixed relation to an external face 111 of the plenum, e.g. attached to the plenum using suitable fasteners (not depicted).
  • the face 111 of the plenum 110 has a plurality of holes 132a, 132b therethrough (referred to collectively or generically hole(s) 132).
  • the holes 132 are aligned with the holes 112 in the plate 102, described above. This permits the conditioning pins 104 to extend through both the face 111 of the plenum 110 and the plate 102.
  • the collars 114 that are seated within holes 112 also extend into the holes 132.
  • the collars 114 may accordingly help form a seal for limiting egress of pressurized air from the plenum 110. Nevertheless, some degree of air egress or leakage, e.g.
  • the collars 114 may also facilitate longitudinal sliding of the conditioning pins 104 through the holes 112 and 132, i.e. may facilitate slidable extension of the pins through the holes.
  • the apparatus 100 may have other configurations and the description presented above has been provided as an example only and is not intended to be limiting. In other non-limiting embodiments, the apparatus can have other configurations with more or fewer components.
  • FIG. 2 illustrates the apparatus 100 in the context of a non-limiting embodiment of a molding system 200.
  • the illustrated molding system 200 is an injection molding system.
  • the molding system 200 may comprise other types of molding systems, such as, but not limited to, compression molding systems, metal molding systems or the like.
  • the apparatus 100 could be used with molding systems incorporating any multi-cavitation mold, including PET molds, thinwall articles molds, closures molds or the like.
  • the apparatus 100 could be used in other contexts or could be independently commercialized.
  • the example molding system 200 of FIG. 2 comprises a fixed platen 202 and a movable platen 204.
  • the apparatus 100 is mounted to the movable platen 204 by way of support 140. As a result, the apparatus 100 moves along with the movable platen 204 as the movable platen 204 reciprocates.
  • the molding system 200 further comprises an injection unit 206 for plasticizing and injection of molding material.
  • clamp force also referred to as closure or mold closure tonnage
  • closure or mold closure tonnage can be developed within the molding system 200, for example, by using tie bars 208, 210 and a tie-bar clamping mechanism 212, as well as (typically) an associated hydraulic system (not depicted) that is usually associated with the tie-bar clamping mechanism 212.
  • clamp tonnage can be generated using alternative means, such as, for example, using a toggle-clamp arrangement (not depicted) or the like.
  • a first mold half 214 can be associated with the fixed platen 202 and a second mold half 216 can be associated with the movable platen 204. These two mold halves may be considered to collectively comprise a mold 217.
  • the first mold half 214 comprises one or more mold cavities 218.
  • the one or more mold cavities 218 may be formed by using suitable mold inserts or any other suitable means.
  • the first mold half 214 can be generally thought of as a "cavity mold half "
  • the second mold half 216 comprises one or more mold cores 220 complementary to the one or more mold cavities 218.
  • the one or more mold cores 220 may be formed by using suitable mold inserts or any other suitable means.
  • the second mold half 216 can be generally thought of as a "core mold half.”
  • the first mold half 214 can be coupled to the fixed platen 202 by any suitable means, such as a suitable fastener (not depicted) or the like.
  • the second mold half 216 can be coupled to the movable platen 204 by any suitable means, such as a suitable fastener (not depicted) or the like.
  • first mold half 214 and the second mold half 216 can be reversed and, as such, the first mold half 214 can be associated with the movable platen 204 and the second mold half 216 can be associated with the fixed platen 202.
  • the fixed platen 202 need not be stationary and may as well be moved in relation to other components of the molding system 200.
  • FIG. 2 depicts the first mold half 214 and the second mold half 216 in a so-called "mold open position" where the movable platen 204 is positioned generally away from the fixed platen 202 and, accordingly, the first mold half 214 is positioned generally away from the second mold half 216.
  • the distance separating the plenum 110 and the take-off device 228 is denoted P.
  • a molded article can be removed from the first mold half 214 and/or the second mold half 216.
  • first mold half 214 and the second mold half 216 are urged together, by means of movement of the movable platen 204 towards the fixed platen 202, and cooperate to define (at least in part) a molding cavity (not depicted) into which the molding material can be injected.
  • first mold half 214 and the second mold half 216 can be associated with a number of additional mold elements, such as for example, one or more leader pins (not depicted) and one or more leader bushings (not depicted), the one or more leader pins cooperating with one more leader bushings to assist in alignment of the first mold half 214 with the second mold half 216 in the mold closed position.
  • the example molding system 200 can further comprise a robot 222 operatively coupled to the fixed platen 202.
  • the robot 222 comprises a mounting structure 224, an actuating arm 226 coupled to the mounting structure 224 and a take-off device 228 (alternatively referred to as an "end of arm device") coupled to the actuating arm 226.
  • the take-off device 228 comprises a plurality of molded article receptacles 230.
  • the purpose of the plurality of molded article receptacles 230 is to remove molded articles (in this case, preforms 232) from mold cores 220 or mold cavities 218 and to hold the molded articles during post-mold cooling.
  • each of the molded article receptacles 230 comprises a tube for receiving and holding a single molded preform during cooling.
  • the number of receptacles 230 in the take-off device 228 may match a number of preforms 232 molded during a single molding cycle.
  • the number of receptacles 230 may be a multiple of a number of preforms 232 molded during a single molding cycle.
  • the take-off device 228 may hold multiple sets of molded articles at different stages of cooling, with one set (or possibly more than one set) being cooled by the apparatus 100 at any given time.
  • the molding system 200 may further comprise additional components, such as a hot runner (not depicted) associated, for example, with the fixed platen 202. Furthermore, the molding system 200 may optionally or additionally comprise auxiliary equipment (not depicted), such as dehumidifiers, heaters and the like. It should be understood that the molding system 200 may have other configurations and the description presented above has been provided as an example only and is not intended to be limiting. In other non-limiting embodiments of the present invention, the molding system 200 can have other configurations with more or fewer components.
  • the apparatus 100 cools just-molded preforms 232 in parallel with the molding of new preforms in mold 217.
  • the mold halves 214 and 216 may separate.
  • the robot 222 may move take-off device 228 (downwardly in FIG. 2) between the mold halves 214 and 216 and position the device 228 for removal of the preforms from the mold cores 220 (this positioning not being expressly shown in FIG. 2).
  • the take-off device 228 may then receive the preforms 232, one preform 232 per receptacle 230, and may remove them from the mold.
  • the robot 222 may then move the take-off device 228 (upwardly in FIG. 2), along with the preforms 232, to a position that is opposite the apparatus 100, as shown in FIG. 2.
  • the moving platen 204 may then be moved towards the fixed platen 202 for the purpose of closing the mold 217 for molding the next batch of preforms.
  • the apparatus 100 is attached to the moving platen 204 via support 140, movement of the moving platen 204 towards the fixed platen 202 causes the apparatus 100 to similarly move towards the take-off device 228.
  • the mold halves 214 and 216 fully close (not shown in FIG. 2), the conditioning pins 104 of apparatus 100 will be received within respective preforms 232 that are held by the receptacles of take-off device 228.
  • the exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104 will be suitable for positioning the outlets 103 of the pins in a desired or target position with respect to the respective molded articles to be cooled when the mold 217 is closed. This is illustrated, for a single preform 232, in FIG. 3.
  • FIG. 3 illustrates the position of an exemplary conditioning pin 104 relative to an exemplary preform 232 being held, during post-mold cooling, by a receptacle 230 of take-off device 228.
  • the exposed length E of the conditioning pin 104 is such that that the outlet 103 at the distal end 105 of the pin is positioned proximately to a targeted area of the molded article, which in this example is an interior surface of the closed end 233 of the preform 232, when the mold 217 is in the closed position.
  • This positioning may provide a desired conditioning effect, e.g. may expedite cooling of the targeted area of the molded article and/or may limit crystallization of molding material in targeted area of the molded article.
  • Air flow during cooling of the preform 232 is represented in FIG. 3 using arrows denoted A.
  • Air under positive pressure within the plenum 110 flows into a proximal end 107 of the conditioning pin 104.
  • the air may then flow through the length of the conditioning pin 104 (rightwardly in FIG. 3) until it exits or is blown from outlet 103.
  • This exiting air is blown against (i.e. contacts) the targeted area, which in this case is the interior surface of the closed end of the preform 232, and may be thereby redirected so as to flow in the opposite direction (leftwardly in FIG. 3) through the annular space between the conditioning pin 104 and the interior surface of the preform 232.
  • the air may subsequently exit the open neck 235 of the preform 232 into the surrounding cup 117.
  • the cup 117 may in turn cause the exiting air to be redirected to flow about an exterior of the open neck 235 of the preform 232 (rightwardly in FIG. 3).
  • the cup 117 may thus facilitate or enhance cooling of the open neck 235 of the preform.
  • the apparatus 100 may be easily reconfigured for conditioning such articles.
  • operation of the molding system 200 (FIG. 2) may be suspended.
  • the mold halves 214 and 216 may be swapped out for new mold halves suitable for molding the longer preforms.
  • the currently exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104 may be considered too short for effectively cooling the closed ends of the longer preforms.
  • the adjustment mechanism 108 may be adjusted, e.g. by rotating the screw that forms part of that mechanism, to decrease the separation S between the frame 106 (see FIG.
  • the apparatus 100 may be suited for quick mold change ("QMC") applications.
  • QMC quick mold change
  • the amount of time required to adjust the exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104 may be less than the amount of time required to swap out a plate of non-adjustable length conditioning pins for a new plate of non-adjustable length conditioning pins of a different length, as may be required in some conventional systems.
  • a faster tooling changeover time may reduce machine down time.
  • capital expenditures may be reduced, e.g. in comparison to systems that use different plates of conditioning pins for each type or form factor of article that is to be molded.
  • a distance between a distal end of a conditioning pin and its respective cup may be adjusted by extending or retracting the conditioning pin relative to the cup.
  • a conventional pin of fixed length having a cup fixedly attached at or about its base may not provide such a benefit.
  • adjustment of the exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104 by way of the adjustment mechanism 108 may be manually actuated.
  • adjustment of the exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104 may be wholly or partially automated using an actuator responsive to electronic operator control.
  • FIG. 4 a schematic representation of an automated control system 400 that may be used to control the apparatus 100 of FIG. 1 is shown.
  • the control system 400 may form part of the molding system 200 for example.
  • the exemplary system 400 comprises a controller 402 operably connected to each of an actuator 404 and a human-machine interface (HMI) 406.
  • HMI human-machine interface
  • FIG. 4 adopts a convention whereby communication between components (e.g. by way of electronic signals) is illustrated using solid arrows, while mechanical control or physical linkage between components is illustrated using a dashed arrow.
  • Controller 402 may be a controller associated with a molding system, such as the exemplary injection molding system 200 of FIG. 2, that has been configured to execute controller-executable instructions for facilitating automated adjustment of the exposed length E of conditioning pins 104 using the apparatus 100 as described herein.
  • the instructions may be loaded by the controller 402, e.g. into a volatile controller memory (not expressly illustrated), from a non-transitory machine-readable or computer-readable medium 408, such as an optical disk or magnetic storage medium for example, or may be stored in a non-volatile non-transitory memory within the controller 402.
  • the controller 402 may comprise a plurality of controllers working in unison. For example, one controller (e.g.
  • a SiemensTM motor controller may apply control algorithms to calculate power requirements for actuating physical machine components. This controller may in turn be connected to a separate motor controller that receives the calculated power requirements and converts them to a voltage output for an actuator (e.g. actuator 404) that effects the movement.
  • actuator e.g. actuator 404
  • the HMI 406 may comprise a display (e.g. an LCD screen or otherwise) and a user input mechanism (e.g. a touchscreen, keyboard, pointing device or otherwise) for receiving operator input.
  • the HMI may be executed by a separate or standalone device having at least one processor, e.g. a WindowsTM-based PC.
  • the actuator 404 may be a hydraulic actuator, pneumatic actuator, a motor (e.g. a DC motor, stepper motor, linear motor, piezo-actuaor), or otherwise.
  • the actuator may be physically or mechanically coupled to the adjustment mechanism 108, e.g. by way of a mechanical linkage.
  • the actuator may be electromagnetically coupled to the adjustment mechanism 108.
  • Operation 500 of the controller 402 for adjusting the exposed length of the conditioning pins 104 is illustrated in FIG. 5.
  • the operation 500 may be governed, at least in part, by the instructions loaded from the medium 408 (FIG. 4).
  • a current length E of the conditioning pins 104 is determined. In some embodiments, this may be done by reading a value stored in controller memory or by sensing the current length E using a sensor for example.
  • a target length E' for the conditioning pins 104 is determined.
  • the target length may be determined on the basis of operator input, from a user interface, such as user interface 600 of FIG. 6 (described below).
  • a length adjustment (denoted ⁇ ) to be made to the exposed length of the conditioning pins 104 is automatically computed.
  • the controller 402 may automatically compute the length adjustment by computing a difference between a current length E and a target length E'.
  • a signal is output for causing the actuator to make the length adjustment, i.e. to cause the length of the conditioning pins 104 to be adjusted to the target length E'.
  • the signal may be based on the computed difference.
  • the controller 402 may use a feedback loop comprising a position sensor to periodically or continuously monitor the current length E during adjustment of 508, so that it will be known when the target length E' has been attained.
  • an exemplary user interface (UI) 600 that may be displayed on a display of the HMI 406 is illustrated.
  • the UI includes an indicator 602 of a current length E of the conditioning pins 104.
  • the UI also includes a user interface control 604 for allowing an operator to input or otherwise specify a target length E' of the conditioning pins 104 for the article to be produced by the molding system 200 (e.g. for the purpose of operation 504, described above).
  • the exemplary user interface control 604 illustrated in FIG. 6 is an editable text field.
  • the user interface control could alternatively be one that provides a predetermined set of selectable options, such as a pull-down menu, a set of radio buttons, or the like, wherein each selectable option represents a different target length E'.
  • the user interface control 604 may not require the operator to specify or select a target length E' as such. Rather, in some embodiments, the operator may only be required to input an indicator (e.g. unique part identifier or similar) of the article to be molded.
  • a user interface control such as a menu (not depicted), may be presented in UI 600 instead of text field 604. The menu may present a list selectable options, each representing a different part (e.g. a different type or form factor or molded article) that the system 200 is capable of molding.
  • an indicator of the corresponding article may be generated and provided to the controller 402.
  • the controller 402 may then automatically determine a target length E' for the conditioning pins, e.g. by using the indicator to index into a database table (or any other suitable data structure). In other words, once the article to be molded has been identified using UI control 604, the controller 402 may automatically map the article to a target length E' of the conditioning pins for conditioning that article. This may relieve an operator from the burden of having to know or manually look up the target length E' for each type of molded article that the system 200 is capable of molding.
  • the UI 600 may further include user interface control 606, such as a button, for triggering the computed adjustment ⁇ .
  • user interface control 606 such as a button
  • Another user interface control 608, which may be another button, may permit the user interface 600 to be exited when adjustment is complete.
  • the adjustment may be determined based on data from a network database or online source.
  • the operator may not even be required to use a UI control such as control 504 to input a target length E' or to identify the article to be molded.
  • mold components that are replaced within the molding system 200 during retooling may be encoded (e.g. using a Mold ID tag) with such information.
  • mold halves 214 and 216 may be encoded with an indicator of a form factor, a type, or a dimension of the article to be molded, or an indication of a target length E' of a conditioning pin to be used for conditioning the article.
  • the encoding could be achieved in any number of ways, e.g.
  • Such an indicator may be automatically sensed or read, during or after mold retooling, by the sensor forming part of the control system 400. Thereafter, the information may be used to automatically adjust the length of the pins, as described above. In such embodiments, there may be no need to present any UI similar to the UI 600 of FIG. 6.
  • the molded articles are not necessarily open containers and may have various shapes.
  • the articles may include, without limitation, closures, thin walled containers, and medical parts (e.g. vials, test tubes, and the like).
  • the type of conditioning performed by the apparatus 100 is cooling. It will be appreciated that alternative embodiments may perform other types of conditioning upon molded articles.
  • Some embodiments of the conditioning apparatus may not incorporate a plenum.
  • tubes or lines may be used to supply a conditioning fluid such as a pressurized gas to the proximal ends of the conditioning pins.
  • cups 117 for conditioning an open neck area of molded articles
  • cups are not necessarily present in all embodiments.
  • cups may be omitted if the neck area of the molded article does not require enhanced conditioning.
  • cups may be omitted if the molded article to be conditioned lacks an open neck area (e.g. when the articles are not containers).
  • each conditioning pin 104 is used to condition a respective molded article 232. It is possible that, in some embodiments, a single molded article may be conditioned using multiple conditioning pins.
  • each of the conditioning pins 104 is described and illustrated as an elongate rigid tube with a central passage for air and a single outlet at its distal end. This is but one example of a conditioning pin.
  • Alternative conditioning pins may have multiple passages, and/or multiple outlets, for conditioning fluid.
  • the outlet(s) may face in any direction, such as longitudinally, radially, or both.
  • the outlet(s) may have various shapes.
  • the distal end of a conditioning pin may be open or closed.
  • the adjustment mechanism 108 comprises a screw with threaded and unthreaded portions. It will be appreciated that various alternative adjustment mechanisms could be used in place of the mechanism 108 for adjusting the exposed length E of the conditioning pins 104.
  • the threaded and unthreaded portions of an alternative adjustment mechanism could be reversed, i.e. the threaded portion of the screw may be threaded into a threaded opening in the frame 106, and the unthreaded portion may be received within a hole, and longitudinally fixed with respect to, the plate 102.
  • the adjustment mechanism may comprise, or may work in conjunction with, a collet mounted in the plate 102 through which the pins mounted to the frame 106 can slide.
  • the collet may be threaded to support side-mounted set screws that may lock the pins in a fixed location.
  • the pins can be scribed to ensure that all the pins will be "locked-down" at the same position to ensure parallelism to the plate 102.
  • Adjustment mechanism may include: a multi-bar linkage (slider crank, parallelogram, or the like); a linear motor/actuator mechanism (using magnetic forces); and a rotary motor with a ball screw or planetary roller screw, cam or wedge actuation.
  • the exposed length E of a conditioning pin is measured as the distance between the collar 114 and the distal end 105 of the conditioning pin. It will be appreciated that the exposed length E could be measured between other reference points, such as between the distal end 105 of the conditioning pin 104 and the plate 102, or between the distal end 105 of the conditioning pin 104 and a reference point on the cup 117 (if present) for example.
  • first component when it is stated that a first component is moved relative to a second component, this should be understood to include the following scenarios: the first component being moved while the second remains stationary; the second component being moved while the first remains stationary; or both components being moved but at different rates or in different directions.
  • cup In an embodiment comprising cups, it will be appreciated that direct or indirect attachment of the cups to a plate, such as plate 102, is but one way of achieving a fixed relation between cups. In some embodiments, there may be no plate 102 or support structure per se. For example, it is possible for a plurality of cups to be simply be welded together.
  • the conditioning apparatus may move the conditioning pins relative to the molded articles as the molded articles are being conditioned.
  • the exposed length E can be made to vary during the molding cycle, e.g. by decoupling the plenum 110 from movable platen 204 (e.g. by removing the support 140) and via suitable actuation of the articles relative to the pins.
  • cooling may be performed according to a profile that may be molded part-specific. For example, certain areas (e.g. areas with more molding material such as thicker walls) may be cooled for a longer period of time than other areas (e.g. areas with less molding material such as thinner walls).
  • Each conditioning pin may be designed such that the air exits through its sidewalls instead of, or in addition to, its distal end, causing impingement flow on internal walls of the associated preform. Forward or backward actuation of the pins relative to the molded articles may cause cooling to be more effective in regions of the preform body that are thicker than others, whether at or near the closed end of the articles or elsewhere, or may allow fewer openings to be used in the conditioning pin (e.g. to maximize pressure differential and an associated speed of conditioning fluid flowing from the conditioning pin).

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Moulds For Moulding Plastics Or The Like (AREA)

Abstract

La présente invention concerne un appareil de conditionnement d'articles moulés, tels que des préformes, qui ont été retirés d'un moule, pouvant comprendre une plaque et une pluralité de broches de conditionnement s'étendant à travers la plaque. Chacune des broches de conditionnement peut être conçue pour appliquer un fluide de conditionnement sur une surface d'un article moulé. L'appareil peut comprendre un mécanisme de réglage servant à régler une longueur mise à nu de la pluralité de broches de conditionnement par déplacement des broches de conditionnement par rapport à la plaque. Les broches de conditionnement de longueur réglable peuvent être utilisées pour le conditionnement post-moulage de divers types d'articles ayant des facteurs de forme variés. Le réglage de la longueur des broches de conditionnement peut être entièrement ou partiellement automatisé au moyen d'un système de commande incorporant un actionneur. Le système de commande peut comprendre un dispositif de commande dont le fonctionnement est régi, au moins en partie, par des instructions exécutables par le dispositif de commande chargées à partir d'un support lisible par ordinateur non transitoire.
PCT/CA2015/050155 2014-03-26 2015-03-02 Broches de conditionnement à longueur réglable WO2016019452A1 (fr)

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US61/970,500 2014-03-26

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US10988608B2 (en) 2017-02-01 2021-04-27 Fujifilm Corporation Resin composition, resin film, method of manufacturing resin film, optical filter, solid-state imaging element, image display device, and infrared sensor

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CA2326449A1 (fr) * 1998-03-31 1999-10-07 Husky Injection Molding Systems, Inc. Procede et appareil servant au refroidissement de preformes apres moulage
WO2013026145A1 (fr) * 2011-08-24 2013-02-28 Athena Automation Ltd. Objets moulés par injection à refroidissement post-moulage

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CA2326449A1 (fr) * 1998-03-31 1999-10-07 Husky Injection Molding Systems, Inc. Procede et appareil servant au refroidissement de preformes apres moulage
WO2013026145A1 (fr) * 2011-08-24 2013-02-28 Athena Automation Ltd. Objets moulés par injection à refroidissement post-moulage

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US10988608B2 (en) 2017-02-01 2021-04-27 Fujifilm Corporation Resin composition, resin film, method of manufacturing resin film, optical filter, solid-state imaging element, image display device, and infrared sensor

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