WO2016054675A1

WO2016054675A1 - System and method for forming moulded items

Info

Publication number: WO2016054675A1
Application number: PCT/AU2015/000599
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hamish HINGSTON; Peter SHEPHARD; Gary Skinner; Leslie SKINNER
Original assignee: Icee Holdings Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2014-10-06
Filing date: 2015-10-06
Publication date: 2016-04-14

Abstract

There is disclosed, a moulding apparatus (60) for moulding and steam-fusing expanded polymeric beads into a formed item. The moulding apparatus (60) comprises a support (62). A first moulding tool (70) is provided. The first moulding tool (70) comprises a first female portion (72) and a first male portion (74) configured to engage to define a first moulding cavity for forming the formed item. Either the first female portion (72) or the first male portion (74) is movable with respect to the other of the first female portion (72) or the first male portion (74) to facilitate opening and closing of the first moulding tool (70). A second moulding tool (70) is also provided. The second moulding tool (70) comprises a second female portion (72) and a second male portion (74) configured to engage to define a second moulding cavity for forming the formed item. Either the second female portion (72) or the second male portion (74) is movable with respect to the other of the second female portion (72) or the second male portion (74) to facilitate opening and closing of the second moulding tool (70). The first moulding tool (70) and the second moulding tool (70) are each mounted to the support (62) such that a space 'X' is formed therebetween. The space 'X' being sufficient to accommodate the movement of the first female portion (72) or first male portion (74) of the first moulding tool (70) and/or the second female portion (72) or second male portion (74) of the second moulding tool (70).

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR FORMING MOULDED ITEM S

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority from Australian provisional patent application no. 2014903980 filed on 6 October 2014 and Australian provisional patent application no. 2015901446 filed on 22 April 2015, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a system and method of forming a moulded item, and in particular, to a system and method of forming a moulded item from an expandable polymeric material, that facilitates increased productivity and greater customisation of the moulding process.

BACKGROUND ART

The moulding of an expanded polymeric material such as EPS (expanded polystyrene) and EPP (expanded polypropylene) is well established for making a variety of different products. Typically, the moulding process involves blowing pre- expanded beads into a mould and then subjecting the beads to steam thereby causing the beads to complete their expansion process and fuse together into a unitary mass.

To create a finished item, a mould or tool is typically formed to define a cavity that corresponds to the shape of the desired final product. The mould or tool typically has perforated walls that enable steam to enter the cavity to facilitate expansion of beads present therein. The cavity is typically sandwiched between a pair of steam chests for supplying steam to the mould. The tool or mould may also incorporate separate segments/inserts that may be applied or otherwise affixed to the mould or tool to enable it to be adapted to form a variety of different items.

During the moulding process, at the completion of the steaming step, the moulded article is cooled, by way of any of a number of cooling techniques, to complete the moulding process. Typically the amount of time required for steaming and cooling and the temperatures required to achieve such processes will vaiy with regard to the size and complexity of the particular item being moulded. At the completion of the cooling step the mould is then opened and the moulded item is ejected and collected, thereby enabling the cycle to be repeated again.

In all moulding applications there is a need to structure the moulding machine such that it is able to be connected to a source of expanded beads to enable deliveiy of the beads into the cavity in a controlled manner. Further, the moulding machine must be connectable to water and compressed air sources to the rear of the steam chest(s) to facilitate formation of the finished items. Such connection requirements typically require sufficient space and clearance around the mould to facilitate the connections.

Furthermore most existing moulding machines are only capable of producing a single item, or batch of items, per moulding cycle. This is largely due to the need to have sufficient clearance about the moulding tools to enable various components to be mounted to the rear surface of the moulding tool, such as ejectors, fill-guns and the like. In this regard, due to the need to have sufficient space located at a rear surface of the moulding tool, attempts to arrange multiple moulding tools in a stacked (vertical) or back-to-back (horizontal) arrangement have proven difficult to practically implement. As such, most existing devices have significant constraints on productivity.

Some attempts at increasing productivity with conventional machines have focussed on shortening the operational cycling times. However, it is difficult to achieve this with any real benefit as the time taken to heat-up and cool-down the moulding machine and related parts, is difficult to control. In some situations, this can be achieved through the use of different materials that heat and cool at quicker rates and through the addition of thermal linings in the steam chest to reduce heat transfer to the overall machine. However, the size and complexity of the moulding machines is still maintained and each machine is still limited by its cycle time.

Therefore, there is a need to provide a system and method for moulding items from an expandable polymeric material that enables multiple moulding tools to be utilised and controlled in a manner that maximises production rates and optimises cycle phases to maximise efficiency of the tools.

The above references to and descriptions of prior proposals or products are not intended to be, and are not to be construed as, statements or admissions of common general knowledge in the art. In particular, the above prior art discussion does not relate to what is commonly or well known by the person skilled in the art, but assists in the understanding of the inventive step of the present invention of which the identification of pertinent prior art proposals is but one part.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION

The invention according to one or more aspects is as defined in the independent claims. Some optional and/or preferred features of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

Accordingly, in one aspect of the invention there is provided a moulding apparatus for moulding and steam-fusing expanded polymeric beads into a formed item, the comprising:

a support;

a first moulding tool comprising a first female portion and a first male portion configured to engage to define a first moulding cavity for forming the formed item, wherein either the first female portion or the first male portion is movable with respect to the other to facilitate opening and closing of the first moulding tool; and

a second moulding tool comprising a second female portion and a second male portion configured to engage to define a second moulding cavity for forming the formed item, wherein either the second female portion or the second male portion is movable with respect to the other to facilitate opening and closing of the second moulding tool;

wherein, the first moulding tool and the second moulding tool are mounted to the support such that a space is formed therebetween, the space being sufficient to accommodate the movement of the first female portion or first male portion of the first moulding tool and/or the second female portion or second male portion of the second moulding tool.

In a preferred form, the support is a frame member. The frame member may comprise an open structure having a pair of opposed ends and a pair of open sides extending between the opposed ends.

The first moulding tool and the second moulding tool may each be mounted to one of the pair of opposing ends.

The first female portion of the first moulding tool may be fixedly mounted to one of the ends of the frame member and the second female portion of the second frame member may be fixedly mounted to the other end of the frame member. In such an arrangement, the corresponding first male portion and second male portion may each move into the space formed between the ends of the frame member.

A plurality of guide rods may extend between the opposing ends of the frame member. The first male portion and the second male portion may be mounted on the guide rods so as to be movable therealong.

Each of the first moulding tool and the second moulding tool may comprise at least one actuator to facilitate movement of the first male portion and the second male portion along the guide rods. The at least one actuator is preferably a linear actuator that facilitates linear movement of the first male portion and the second male portion. The linear actuator may include conventional piston arrangements such as hydraulic or pneumatic pistons as well as rotaiy actuators that facilitate a linear movement through knuckle joints and the like.

A controller may be further provided to control the at least one actuator such that only one of the first male portion and the second male portion is movable at a time.

According to another aspect, there is provided a moulding apparatus comprising a pair of moulding tools mounted adjacent each other and separated by a working space, each mounting tool comprising a static moulding platen and a moving moulding platen that is movable with respect to the static moulding platen to open and close the moulding tool, wherein the pair of moulding tools are orientated such that their respective moving moulding platens are positioned to move within the working space formed therebetween.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a service bay for a moulding tool having at least a male and a female steam chest, comprising: a body mountable to a rear surface of either the male or female steam chest, the body comprising a collar member extending at least partially about a perimeter of the male or female steam chest and projecting from the rear surface thereof so as to accommodate moulding components of the moulding tool therein.

In one embodiment, the moulding components may comprise any one or more of injectors, ejectors and/or anvils and connectors for connecting the one or more of the injectors, ejectors and/or anvils to a control/supply source.

The body may have one or more recesses formed therein to facilitate access to the moulding components.

Accordingly, in another aspect of the invention there is provided a moulding apparatus for moulding and steam-fusing expanded polymeric beads into a formed item, the apparatus comprising:

a plurality of tool sets for forming the item therein, each tool set being arranged in a row; and

a service bay attachable to at least one of the tool sets, the service bay being arranged so as to be positional between opposing tool sets in said row such that the moulding components associated with the at least one tool set are accommodated within the service bay to enable said tool sets to be arranged in a back-to-back manner. In an embodiment of this aspect of the invention, the tool sets may comprise a male and a female steam chest. The service bay may be attachable to a rear surface of a female steam chest or may be.

In another aspect, there is provided a moulding apparatus for moulding and steam- fusing expanded polymeric beads into a formed item, the apparatus comprising: at least one pair of complementary steam chests, said complementary steam chests being configured to define a moulding cavity therebetween within which the formed item is to be moulded, the at least two pairs being mounted in a coaxial manner;

a mount support upon which each of the at least one pair of complementary steam chests can be mounted, the mount support being configured to include an actuator means for selectively moving one of the pair of complementary steam chests to open the mould cavity.

In an embodiment of this aspect of the invention, there may be optionally provided at least one service bay, the at least one service bay being mounted to at least one of the pair of complementary steam chests to provide a space for accommodating components of the pair of complementary steam chests so as to facilitate connection to at least one of a pneumatic, hydraulic and bead source to deliver the associated services to the pair of complementary steam chests to create the formed item.

In yet another aspect, there is provided, a system for controlling operation of a plurality of moulding tools to produce multiple finished items; comprising:

a plurality of moulding tools; each moulding tool comprising a female portion and a male portion for forming said finished item from an expandable polymeric material;

a plurality of service sources for supplying services to each of the moulding tools via a plurality of supply lines to facilitate operation of the plurality of moulding tools; and

a controller configured to be in operational control of each of the moulding tools and service sources to control a phase of operation of each of the plurality of moulding tools such that the services required by each moulding tool from the service sources is optimized to minimize instantaneous drain of services from the system.

The plurality of moulding tools of this aspect of the invention may comprise a plurality of moulding apparatus according to any one of the preceding aspects of the invention.

The plurality of service sources may include a steam source, a bead source, a vacuum source, a compressed air source, and/or a cooling fluid source. The phase of operation of each moulding tool may include, a filling phase, an expansion phase, a cooling phase and an ejection phase as well as transfer phases therebetween. The filling phase of a moulding tool may comprise the delivery of bead from a bead source via the supply lines to the moulding tool. The expansion phase of a moulding tool may comprise the delivery of steam from a steam source via the supply lines to the moulding tool. The cooling phase of a moulding tool may comprise the cessation of supply of steam to the moulding tool and the supply of a cooling fluid from a cooling fluid source via supply lines to the moulding tool. The ejection phase of a moulding tool may comprise the ejection of the finished item from the moulding tool for collection.

The controller may comprise a computer for staggering the phase of operation of the moulding tools such that the requirement of the system of any one service at any one time is controlled to be within predetermined limits.

In yet another aspect, there is provided, a method for controlling operation of a plurality of moulding tools to produce multiple finished items, comprising:

arranging said plurality of moulding tools such that each moulding tool is in communication with a plurality of service sources for receiving services by way of a supply line;

delivering said services to each moulding tool by way of said supply line in accordance with a phase of operation of each moulding tool; and

controlling said phase of operation of each moulding tool to minimize instantaneous drain of services from the service sources.

In yet another aspect, there is provided, a method for operating a pair of moulding tools, each moulding tool comprising a female portion and a complementary male portion for forming a mould cavity with at least one of the female portion or the male portion being movable with respect to the other of the female portion or the male portion to facilitate opening of the mould cavity, the method comprising;

arranging said pair of moulding tools such that they each extend in a parallel manner and are separated by a working gap formed therebetween that defines a space into which each of the movable female portion or male portion of the moulding tools extend to open the cavity; and

controlling the operation of each of the moulding tools such that only one of the moulding tools is open at any one time.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention may be better understood from the following non-limiting description of preferred embodiments, in which:

Fig. 1 is a simplified view of prior art moulding tool;

Fig. 2 is an expanded view of a back-to-back tool system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a compacted view of the back-to-back tool system of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a moulding module 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is a side view a plurality of moulding modules arranged in a production assembly in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 6 is a side view of a production assembly incorporating a plurality of moulding modules in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 7 is a side view of a modular moulding apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the modular moulding apparatus of Fig. 7; and

Fig. 9 is an isolated view of a moulding tool of the moulding apparatus of Fig. 7.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Preferred features of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it is to be understood that the features illustrated in and described with reference to the drawings are not to be construed as limiting on the scope of the invention.

The present invention will be described below in relation to an apparatus for moulding an item from expanded polymeric beads using a conventional steam fusion technique. In a preferred form the expanded polymeric beads are expanded polystyrene (EPS). However, it will be appreciated that other materials that function to expand within a mould are also envisaged.

Referring to Figure 1, a simplified view of a conventional moulding tool 100 is depicted. As shown, the conventional moulding tool 100 comprises a male steam chest 110 and a female steam chest 120 each having a complementary moulding surface 1 12, 122. In this regard, when the male steam chest 110 and female steam chest 120 are brought together, as depicted by arrow Ά', a space is formed between the complementary moulding surfaces 1 12, 122. This space is the mould cavity that defines the shape and configuration of the item that is to be formed by the moulding process. This cavity is then filled with expanded beads of polymeric material via a conventional supply mechanism to fill the cavity to an appropriate density to create the item.

As is depicted in Fig 1 , each of the male steam chest 1 10 and female steam chest

120 comprise steam inlets 1 1 1 and 121 respectively, for receiving a supply of steam from a boiler or similar steam supply means. The steam is then able to be directed into the cavity, and due to the temperature of the steam, this causes the expanded beads of polymeric material to further expand and fuse together within the controlled space of the cavity. The steam inlets 1 1 1 , 121 are located at the top of the steam chests with drains 115, 125 located at the bottom thereof, for returning the steam and/or any condensed water that may result therefrom. The steam inlets 1 1 1 ,

121 direct the steam supply into mould cavity formed between the complementary moulding surfaces 1 12, 122 of the male and female steam chests 1 10, 120 by way of a plurality of pores or vents 1 14, 124 formed therein. These pores or vents are located over the moulding surfaces 112, 122 to provide a path for the steam to enter the cavity containing the beads of expanded polymeric material to facilitate further expansion and fusion of the beads into the finished item.

As is depicted in Fig. 1, due to the need to supply steam, beads to the surface of the mould cavity, a plurality of components must be mounted to the rear surface of the female steam chest 120. In the rather simplified embodiment as shown in Fig. 1 , these components include injectors 130 that have connections for attachment to one or more hoses for delivering the expanded beads of polymeric material from a hopper or supply and into the moulding cavity formed between the complementaiy moulding surfaces 1 12, 122. The injectors 130 are mounted to external surface of the female steam chest 120 such that the nozzle is positioned adjacent the surface

122 to inject the expanded beads of polymeric material into the moulding cavity to ensure that the moulding cavity is filled with expended beads to a desired density. As a result the hose connections extend beyond the rear surface of the female steam chest in order to facilitate connection to the various hoses and the like for supplying the beads under pressure. Further, it is common to mount one or more ejectors 140 to the rear surface of the female steam chest 120 to provide a means for ejecting the finished moulded item from the mould cavity at the end of the moulding cycle. To achieve this, the ejectors may comprise a piston or push rod 142 having a head 144 formed to be flush with the moulding surface 122. A pneumatic cylinder or an actuating push plate may then be provided at the end of the push rod 142 to drive the push rod to enter into the moulding space to eject the moulded item therefrom, when the male steam chest 1 10 and female steam chest 120 are separated in the manner depicted in Fig. 1. It will be appreciated that other componentry, such as movable anvils that are actuated to enter into the moulding space may also be mounted to the rear of the female steam chest 120, depending on the particular part to be moulded by the moulding tool 100.

It will be appreciated that, due to the presence of the various components 130, 140 (as well as other components where applicable) mounted in the space behind the female steam chest 120, it is not generally possible to stack or arrange multiple tools comprising of male and female steam chests in a back-to-back or vertical arrangement in order to optimise space requirements and improve throughput.

One way of achieving such a back-to-back tooling system is depicted in Figs. 2 and 3 and is assigned reference numeral 200. In an embodiment of the system 200, multiple steam chests 210, 220, 230, 240 and 250 are mounted in a linear or back- to-back manner with the steam chests 220, 230, 240 and 250 being movable between an expanded arrangement as depicted in Fig. 2 and a contracted arrangement as depicted in Fig. 3, where each of the front and rear surfaces of the steam chests are in abutting contact. As will be appreciated, when the steam chests are in the expanded arrangement of Fig. 2, moulded items are able to be withdrawn therefrom, and when the steam chests are in the contracted arrangement of Fig. 3, the moulding process can be performed.

Each of the steam chests 210, 220, 230, 240 and 250 are attached by way of links 205 that extend between adjacent steam chests to facilitate controlled movement of the steam chests between the expanded and contracted arrangements. Whilst not shown, one or more piston arms may be arranged to drive the steam chests between the expanded and contracted positions, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. Typically, the piston arms function to apply a pushing or pulling force to the rearmost steam chest 250 which, in turn, causes the linked steam chests to either expand or contract, depending upon the direction of movement of the piston arms.

In the embodiment as shown in Fig. 2, the back-to-back tool system 200 is configured to form four separate moulding tools referred to as (A), (B), (C) and (D). In this regard, steam chest 210 is a male steam chest that has a moulding surface 21 1 that interacts with moulding surface 221 of female steam chest 220 to form the first moulding tool (A). Similarly, the opposing moulding surface 222 of female steam chest 220 interacts with moulding surface 231 of male steam chest 230 to form the second moulding tool (B). The opposing moulding surface 232 of male steam chest 230 interacts with the moulding surface 241 of female steam chest 240 to form the third moulding tool (C), whilst the other moulding surface 242 of female steam chest 240 interacts with the moulding surface 251 of the male steam chest 250 to form the fourth moulding tool (D).

As is shown in Fig. 3, when the steam chests 210, 220, 230, 240 and 250 are in the contracted state required to form the tool sets (A), (B), (C) and (D) so as to mould the items, there is no space formed between the steam chests which could accommodate componentiy such as the injectors, ejectors and other such components as discussed above in relation to Fig. 1. Whilst steam is able to be delivered to the steam chests via the inlet ports 208, when in the moulding position of Fig. 3, the system 200 does not have any open space to accommodate the components for filling the moulding tools with expanded beads or ejecting the finished item.

For this purpose, each of the female steam chests 220, 240 comprise a service bay 260 located behind each of the corresponding moulding surfaces, so as to accommodate the componentry for that particular moulding tool.

The service bays 260 generally comprise an open space defined by a perimeter wall that extends about the open space to ensure that the open space into which the components of the tool are accommodated is maintained, even when the system 200 is moved to the compacted state of Fig. 3. The walls of the service bays 260 may have recesses 262 formed therein to provide a means of accessing the open space within the service bays 260 and the service bays 260 may comprise a supply manifold (not shown) which provides a means for enabling quick connection of service lines to the componentry accommodated therein, as required. The provision of such a manifold provides a simple means for speeding up the tool change-over process as required.

In the system 200 as depicted, the provision of the service bays 260 makes it possible to arrange steam chests in a back-to-back or linear manner to provide multiple linked moulding tools as the service bays 260 ensure that the relevant componentry is able to be accommodated within the overall system 200. Without such a dedicated space provided by the service bays 260 to accommodate the componentiy associated with the moulding tools, it is not possible to provide a linear arrangement of tools. However, with such a linked system 200, each of the moulding tools (A), (B), (C) and (D) must be phased together as they cannot be individually controlled and opened to remove the formed items therefrom.

To address this issue, a moulding module 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention has been developed. The moulding module 10 is depicted in Fig. 4 and generally comprises a mounting support 12 for supporting the moulding module in position. In the embodiment as depicted, the mounting support 12 is in the form of a substantially U-shaped pillar member having legs 1 1 that are configured to be supported on a surface 5, as shown. The surface 5 may comprise a movable surface which enables the module 10 to be moved about a plant or facility as required, as will be discussed in more detail below. In the depicted embodiment, the mounting support 12 comprises a tubular steel structure having a substantially rectangular cross section. However, it will be appreciated that other configurations and shapes of the mounting support 12 are also envisaged.

A moulding tool 50 is mountable to one side of the mounting support 12. In the embodiment as depicted in Fig. 4, two mounting tools 50 are mountable to the mounting support 12, so as to be positioned on opposing sides thereof. However, as depicted in Fig. 5, in another embodiment, only one moulding tool 50 is mountable to the mounting support 12, as will be discussed in more detail below.

Each moulding tool 50 generally comprises a female steam chest 16, a male steam chest 18 and a service bay 14 mounted to a rear surface of the female steam chest 16. Each of the moulding tools 50 may be mounted to the mounting support 12 by way of the service bays 14, such that the female steam chest 16 is stationary and the male steam chest 16 is moveable with respect to the female steam chest 16. As the female steam chest 16 typically comprises each of the various components such as the ejectors, injectors and moveable anvils, the female steam chest 16 is typically heavier than the male steam chest 18. As such, by keeping the female steam chest 16 stationary and mountable to the mounting support 12, the greater weight of the moulding tool is supported by the mounting support 12, with the lighter male steam chest 18 being the movable element.

In this regard, each of the service bays 14 may comprise a mounting plate (not shown) that extends therefrom to be bolted or otherwise fixed to the mounting support. This enables the moulding tools 50 to be simply removed and replaced, as required.

As previously discussed, the service bays 14 are mounted on the rear surface of the female steam chest to form a collar member that extends from the rear surface of the female steam chest 16 to define a protective space for housing the various components required by the female steam chest 16. Each service bay 14 has access slots 13 formed in the top surface and sides thereof, for providing access to the interior of the service bays 14. The service bays 14 are configured to accommodate the relevant componentry and accessories mounted therein, such as bead injectors, movable anvils, die ejectors and the like, as is required for forming the mould. Each of the componentry may include connectors for facilitating connection to a bead supply hopper or pneumatic and hydraulic supply lines for receiving and delivering the beads and operating services. In this regard, a manifold (not shown) may be fitted to the service bay 14 to allow hoses and the like to be arranged in a manner that matches up with the service supplies of the machine to facilitate quick changing of the moulding tool 50, as required.

It will be appreciated that the size dimensions of the service bay 14 may vaiy depending upon the type and size of components used with the female steam chest 16 to ensure that the service bay 14 provides a protective space for accommodating the componentry that extends from the rear surface of the female steam chest 16.

While the female steam chest 16 has the service bay 14 extending from the rear surface thereof, the opposing front surface of the female steam chest 16 has a female moulding surface that defines the mould cavity into which the item is to be formed. As discussed above in relation to Fig. 1 , the female moulding surface may comprise perforations therein to permit the passage of steam therethrough, while the rear surface of the female steam chest 16 may be provided with injectors, cylinder hose fittings, and the like which extend into and are accommodated within the service bay 14.

In order to complete the moulding tool 50, a male steam chest 18 is movably mounted against the front moulding surface of the female steam chest 16. The male steam chest 18 typically comprises a complementary male moulding surface that is configured to extend into the female steam chest 16 so as to form a sealed moulding chamber with the corresponding female moulding surface of the female steam chest for forming the moulded item, in much the same manner as described in relation to the prior art arrangement of Fig. 1. The male steam chest 18 is configured to be movable by way of one or more actuator arms 15 that extend from a surface of the mounting support and/or the service bay 14 to move the male steam chest 18 between an open position where there is a gap formed between the male and female steam chests to remove the moulded item, and a closed position, where the male and female steam chests interact to form the moulded item.

The actuator arms 15 are controlled by a linear actuator 17 that is mounted to an opposing side of the mounting support 12 to control movement of the actuator arms 15, and in turn, the male steam chest 16. The linear actuator 17 may be hydraulically, pneumatically or electrically driven and may comprise a rotary actuator configured to apply linear motion, such as through the use of knuckle joints or the like. The linear actuator may be remotely controlled in a manner which will be described in more detail below.

As can be more clearly seen in Fig. 5, each moulding module 10 is able to be arranged in a line of modules 10, to define a plurality of individually addressable moulding tools 50. In this regard, as the linear actuators 17 are independently controllable to open close the male steam chest 18, each moulding tool 50 can be independently operated to form an item, whereby the phase of operation is not dependent on the neighbouring moulding tool 50, enabling moulding tools to be synchronised in a manner that optimises throughput.

As each module 10 has one or two moulding tools 50 mounted thereon, each moulding tool 50 can be individually operated and controlled to form an item. For those moulding modules having two moulding tools, each moulding module is able to produce two items or batches of items each moulding cycle. A moulding cycle can be considered as being the cycle beginning from the phase of injection of the expanded beads into the moulding tool 50 through to the ejection of the finished item from the mould cavity.

As depicted in Fig. 5, the provision of a moulding module 10 capable of manufacturing up to two items or batches of items at different phases of a moulding cycle, enables multiple modules 10 to be employed to provide multiple independent moulding stations. It will be appreciated that, the ability to independently control each moulding tool 50 enables the phase of operation of each moulding tool 50 to be staggered to provide a substantially constant supply of finished items and to reduces the instantaneous supply requirements of steam, air, vacuum and water.

This arrangement is depicted in Fig. 6, wherein a plurality of moulding modules 10 are an-anged in a line, each of which are controlled by a central control unit 20. As is shown, the front most module 10a has a moulding tool 50 mounted to the rear surface of the mounting support 12, with the front surface of the mounting support 12 being free to enable the central control unit 20 to be positioned thereagainst. Whilst the embodiment depicted shows the moulding modules arranged in a linear formation, it will be appreciated that the modules may be an-anged in a variety of formations depending upon the space considerations of the manufacturing facility housing the modules. The central control unit 20 may comprise a central computer processor that is able to independently address each moulding tool 50 of each moulding module 10 to control the operation thereof. The central control unit 20 includes a data link 26 that is able to receive and transmit control data from/to each of the individual moulding tools 50 of the moulding modules 10 to determine the state of operation of each moulding tool 50, as well as the various operating parameters associated therewith, such as steam pressure, temperature and cooling methods and times. Whilst the data link 26 is depicted as a physical line or wired connection, it will be appreciated that the data link may be a wireless connection where appropriate. In this regard, each moulding module 10 may also comprise an electronic control unit that controls the operation of each moulding tool of the moulding module in accordance with control signals received from the central control unit 20.

The central control unit 20 is also preferably in communication with bead storage (not shown), such as one or more hopper(s), which contains expanded bead for delivery to each of the moulding modules at the commencement of each moulding cycle. The central control unit 20 is able to determine the requirements for each individual moulding module 10 and deliver beads from the hopper(s) to each moulding tool of each moulding module 10 via a delivery line 22. The delivery line 22 is preferably in communication with each service bay 14 provided on each moulding module 10 so as to deliver the beads to the injectors present therein for injection into the mould cavity to commence the moulding cycle. As previously discussed, each service bay 14 may be provided with a service supply manifold to allow for quick connection of the various services to be delivered to the service bay via a mating service supply manifold mounted to the mounting support or other fixed support associated with the moulding module. In this arrangement, the tools of the module 10 can be readily changed and reconnected to the services to speed up the change-over process.

Similarly, the central control unit 20 is also preferably in communication with the machine services such as steam, air, water and vacuum (not shown), to control the delivery of these services to each of the moulding modules to facilitate the expansion phase of the moulding cycle. The central control unit 20 is able to determine the requirements for each individual moulding tool of each moulding module 10 and deliver steam from the steam source to the steam chests of each moulding tool 50 via a delivery line 24. The delivery line 24 is preferably in communication with each steam chest provided on each moulding tool 50 so as to deliver the steam to the steam chests 16, 18 to commence the expansion and fusing stage of the moulding cycle. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, each moulding module 10 present in a plant consists of multiple moulding tools 10 which may be controlled by the central control unit 20 to be operated at different phases of a moulding cycle. For example, in an arrangement where four moulding modules 10 are provided under control of a central control unit 20, as depicted in Fig. 6, the moulding tool 50 of moulding module 10a may be at the initial moulding phase to receive beads from line 22; one of the moulding tools 50 of moulding module 10b may be completing the filling phase whilst the other moulding tool of moulding module 10b may be about to commence the expansion phase and ready to receive the steam from the steam supply via line 24; one of the moulding moulding tools of moulding module 10c may be about to enter the cooling phase whilst the other moulding tool 50 of moulding module 10c may be part way through the cooling phase; and one of the moulding tools 50 of moulding module lOd may have completed the cooling phase and be ejecting the finished item onto a conveyor belt or similar collection means provided beneath the module to collect the finished item when ejected therefrom, whilst the other moulding tool 50 of moulding module l Od may be about to recommence the next moulding phase.

It will be appreciated that the system of the present invention can be used such that the moulding tools of each of the moulding modules is configured to make the same item or each moulding tool of each moulding module make have tooling to make different items. In the event where one or more of the mounting modules make different items, the cycle times may vaiy depending on the size of the item being moulded and the raw material requirements. In such instances, the central control unit 20 is able to monitor the phase of operation of each module to optimise the throughput of the system to ensure that the modules can be staggered to produce a constant supply of finished items when desired, and that the overall draw on the services such as steam, air, vacuum and waters is minimised to eliminate the cumulative effect of drawdowns from the services supply which may result in excessive drawing of steam, air, water and vacuum from the various service supplies and overloads on the system.

Each of the modules 10 may mounted on rails such that the modules 10 are able to be simply taken off line and re-tooled as necessary, without requiring that the entire system be shut-down. This can ensure that throughput is maximised and once the module 10 has been re-tooled the control unit 10 is able to simply incorporate the module back into the system and control its phase of operation in accordance with the system requirements.

It will be appreciated that the present invention provides a number of advantages over existing moulding systems used to form a moulded item from an expandable polymeric material. Through the provision of a service bay mountable to a steam chest, multiple steam chests can be configured to operate in a back-to-back manner to provide for mass production of moulded items which has not previously been possible.

Similarly, by forming moulding modules that are mountable to a stationaiy support, the modules can be operated alone or in combination with other modules to become a modular system. Such a system enables each side or tool of the module to be operated either in phase or out of phase to allow for different moulding items and cycles and/or to allow for the most efficient utilisation of service supplies in order to optimise demand requirements on steam sources and the like. This can have the added benefit that service supply equipment and associated supply lines can be smaller than may otherwise be the case.

It will also be appreciated that each of the steam chests of the moulding tools of the modules may have a barcode or RF chip provided therein to identify the tool and to track production output of the tool. The production data may be stored by the tool or transmitted to the control unit 10 where it can be interrogated or accessed by an operator either remotely or at the facility. This provides a means for monitoring production to ensure that any unauthorised use of the tooling is detected.

The present invention provides a modular moulding machine comprising at least one set of back-to back tooling whereby the indi vidual modules can be added to the machine at any time to increase capacity. Each of the modules are supplied services from a set of supply sources and each module generally has a central operating system. Each of the modules can be operated either sequenced or in time. When the modules are operated in a sequenced manner, the modules can be controlled to reduce the instantaneous supply requirements of steam, air, vacuum and water. This provides a flow-on effect that enables the reduction of pipes and valve sizing that reduces the overall cost of the machine. Each of the individual modules can also be removed from production to allow for tool changes without stopping operation of each of the other modules.

It will be further appreciated that the present invention provides a service bay for a moulding tool that provides a protective space that allows for the fitting of fill-guns, ejectors, anvils and other components for the tool, as required, with the components being attached to the rear of the tool when used in a back-to-back moulding machine. The service bay can have manifolds fitted to allow hoses and the like to be arranged in a manner that they will match up with the service supplies of the machine to facilitate quick tool change.

It will be appreciated that for stacked or back-to-back moulding machines such as that depicted in Figs. 2 and 3, the service bay is necessary in order for the machine to function. However, for a modular arrangement as depicted in Figs. 4 - 6, the provision of a service bay is the preferred method but is not essential to the operation of the device.

An alternative embodiment of the present invention is depicted in Figures 7 - 9. This embodiment of the present invention is also directed towards arranging a pair of moulding tools in a side-by side arrangement and to minimise the space taken up by the tools by configuring the tools to share a common working space.

As depicted, a moulding module 60 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention has been developed. The moulding module 60 is depicted in Figs. 7 and 8 and generally comprises a support frame 62 for supporting the moulding module in position. In the embodiment as depicted, the support frame 62 is in the form of a substantially rectangular open frame having a pair of legs 63a and 63b located at opposing ends thereof. The legs 63a, 63b are configured to be mounted to a ground surface such that the support frame 62 is able to extend from the support surface in an upright manner as shown. The surface may comprise a movable surface which enables the module 60 to be moved about a plant or facility as required or may be part of the flooring.

In the depicted embodiment, the support frame 62 comprises a tubular steel structure having a substantially rectangular cross section. The support frame 62 is structured to define a pair of opposing ends 64 to which the moulding tools 70 are mounted. A pair of open sides 65 extends in a parallel manner between the ends 64 to define a space 80 between the moulding tools 70. A roof portion 66 extends over the top of the support frame 62, as shown.

In the embodiment as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the moulding tools 70 are depicted in a closed position and are mounted in a vertical arrangement, separated by distance 'X' that defines the width of the open space 80. It will be appreciated that in an alternative embodiment, the moulding tools 70 may be arranged in a horizontal manner with the distance 'X' being a vertical distance between the moulding tools that determines the spacing between the moulding tools 70.

Referring to Fig. 9, a single moulding tool 70 is depicted. The moulding tool 70 is based on a similar configuration as the moulding tool 100 depicted in Fig. 1 , and comprises a female steam chest 72 and a male steam chest 74 arranged to engage in the manner as shown to form a moulding cavity therebetween to form the finished part. The female steam chest 72 is mounted to the side 65 of the support frame 62 such that the outer surface of the female steam chest is exposed to facilitate mounting of the various components and connectors thereto, such as injectors and ejectors as discussed above in relation to moulding tool 100 of Fig. 1.

The male steam chest 74 is mounted with respect to the female steam chest 72 through the provision of a plurality of guide rods 73. The guide rods 73 are attached to the support frame 62 such that they extend between the ends 64 of the support frame 62, as shown. The male steam chest 74 has a plurality of circular recesses 75 formed therein to enable the male steam chest 74 to be mounted on the guide rods 73. Each of the circular recesses 75 are provided with bearings to facilitate sliding movement of the male steam chest 74 along the guide rods 73 under controlled action of a pair of linear actuators 76. The linear actuators 76 are each mounted to the support frame 62 at opposing sides of the ends 64. The linear actuators 76 may be hydraulically, pneumatically or electrically driven and remotely controlled in a manner which, when activated apply a pushing force to push the male steam chest 74 away from contact with the female steam chest 72 and into the space 80. This enables any part formed within the moulding tool 70 to be ejected and provides a means for servicing the moulding tool 70 as required.

To facilitate sliding movement of the male steam chest 74 within the space 80, each linear actuator 76 comprises an actuator arm 77 that extends through the male steam chest 74 and is secured to the opposing side of the male steam chest 74 by way of an attachment member 78. In this regard, when the linear actuators 76 are activated to retract the actuator arm 77, this retraction movement is applied to the male steam chest 74 so that the male steam chest 74 engages with the female steam chest 72 to form a sealed mould cavity. Thus, the opening and closing of the moulding tool 70 is controlled by controlling the state of the linear actuators 76.

As previously discussed, the moulding module 60 of the present invention comprises a pair of moulding tools 70 mounted to opposing ends 64 of the support frame 62. As the guide rods 73 extend between the opposing ends 64 of the support frame 62, each of the male steam chests 74 of the tools 70 are mounted on the guide rods 73 as depicted in Fig. 7. As such, by controlling the state of the actuators 76 of the respective tools 70, the common space 80 can be utilised by both tools to open and close the tools as desired.

As indicated above, the distance 'X' defines the distance between the opening male steam chests 74 or movable moulding platens of the respective moulding tools 70. This distance 'X' represents the maximum distance that either moulding platen or male steam chest 74 can open. In a preferred form, this distance may be around 450 mm, although other gap distances are also envisaged depending upon the tool requirements.

The distance 'X' of the gap or open space can be determined in two ways. Firstly, the distance X can be determined such that it caters for the minimum ejection area for both tools 70, when both tools are operated in unison, as well as catering for a shared service area to service each tool 70. In a preferred form, the distance 'X' is around 450 mm which caters for an ejection area for each tool 70 of around 150 mm, and a shared service of around 150 mm. Such a gap distance 'X' enables the tools to operate in phase and/or out of phase and enables one of the tools 70 to be fully opened for servicing as required. In another embodiment, namely an embodiment whereby the tools have sufficient depth such that ejection area of one tool is sufficient to account for the service area of the tools, the distance 'X' may represent the maximum ejection distance of either platen, provided that the tool's phases are sequenced such that they do not both eject at the same time.

By providing such a common and shared operating space 80 between tools and by controlling the ejection and servicing of the tools 70, the tools 70 are able to be mounted together in a manner that minimises space requirements on a factory floor such that multiple machines can be arranged to maximise machine usage over a given surface area or space.

It will be appreciated that, in the embodiment shown in relation to Figs. 7 - 9, the male steam chest 74 is movable in relation to the static female steam chest 72. As the female steam chest 72 typically has the various machine related components mounted to one side thereof, as discussed in relation to Fig. 1, the male steam chest is significantly lighter and more easily moveable. However, it will be appreciated that in some instances, the female steam chest may be moved with respect to a static male steam chest, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The moulding modules 60 of the present invention are able to be arranged in a line of modules each having tools 70 that are able to be individually addressed by a single controller. In this regard, each moulding tool 70 can be independently operated to create one or more moulded items, with the phase of operation of each moulding tool 70 being controllable such that the moulding tools 70 are able to be synchronised in a manner that optimises throughput.

As each module 60 has one or two moulding tools 70 mounted thereon, each moulding tool 70 can be individually operated and controlled to form an item. For those moulding modules having two moulding tools, each moulding module is able to produce two items or batches of items each moulding cycle. A moulding cycle can be considered as being the cycle beginning from the phase of injection of the expanded beads into the moulding tool 70 through to the ejection of the finished item from the mould cavity. Thus, it will be appreciated that the ability to independently control each moulding tool 70 enables the phase of operation of each moulding tool 70 to be staggered to provide a substantially constant supply of finished items. The ability to control the phase of operation of each tool 70 also provides the system with the ability to reduce the instantaneous supply requirements of steam, air, vacuum and water.

A central controller may comprise a central computer processor that is able to independently address each moulding tool 70 of each moulding module 60 to control the operation thereof. The central control unit may include a data link that is able to receive and transmit control data from/to each of the individual moulding tools 70 of the moulding modules 60 to determine the state of operation of each moulding tool 70, as well as the various operating parameters associated therewith, such as steam pressure, temperature and cooling methods and times. In this regard, each moulding module 60 may also comprise an electronic control unit that controls the operation of each moulding tool of the moulding module in accordance with control signals received from the central control unit.

The central control unit may also preferably be in communication with a bead storage, such as one or more hopper(s), which contains expanded bead for delivery to each of the moulding modules at the commencement of each moulding cycle. The central control unit may be able to determine the requirements for each individual moulding module and deliver beads from the hopper(s) to each moulding tool of each moulding module via a dedicated delivery line. Similarly, the central control unit may also be in communication with the various other machine services such as steam, air, water and vacuum to control the delivery of these services to each of the moulding modules to facilitate the expansion phase of the moulding cycle. In this regard, the central control unit is able to determine the requirements for each individual moulding tool of each moulding module and deliver steam from the steam source to the steam chests of each moulding tool.

It will be appreciated that the central control unit generally includes a programmable logic controller (PLC) that is able to monitor the phase of operation of each moulding module to optimise the throughput of the system and to ensure that the operational phases of the modules are staggered. By staggering the operational phases of the modules, it is possible to produce a constant supply of finished items when desired and to ensure that the instantaneous draw on the services (such as steam, air, vacuum and water) at any one time during the operation of the machine is minimised, thereby reducing the cumulative effect of drawdowns from the services supply which may result in excessive drawing of steam, air, water and vacuum from the various service supplies and overloading the system.

The present invention provides a modular moulding machine that enables a plurality of moulding tools to be packaged together in a manner that minimises space requirements and maximises output. The present invention also provides for a process for making moulded items comprises arranging a plurality of modular moulding machines over a surface and controlling the phase of operation of the modular moulding machines to provide maximum output of the machines over a given surface area of factoiy space.

Throughout the specification and claims the word "comprise" and its derivatives are intended to have an inclusive rather than exclusive meaning unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise. That is, the word "comprise" and its derivatives will be taken to indicate the inclusion of not only the listed components, steps or features that it directly references, but also other components, steps or features not specifically listed, unless the contraiy is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many modifications and variations may be made to the methods of the invention described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

The claims defining the invention are as follows:

1. A moulding apparatus for moulding and steam-fusing expanded polymeric beads into a formed item, comprising:

a support;

a first moulding tool comprising a first female portion and a first male portion configured to engage to define a first moulding cavity for forming the formed item, wherein either the first female portion or the first male portion is movable with respect to the other of the first female portion or the first male portion to facilitate opening and closing of the first moulding tool; and a second moulding tool comprising a second female portion and a second male portion configured to engage to define a second moulding cavity for forming the formed item, wherein either the second female portion or the second male portion is movable with respect to the other of the second female portion or the second male portion to facilitate opening and closing of the second moulding tool;

wherein, the first moulding tool and the second moulding tool are each mounted to the support such that a space is formed therebetween, said space being sufficient to accommodate the movement of the first female portion or first male portion of the first moulding tool and/or the second female portion or second male portion of the second moulding tool.

2. A moulding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the support is a frame member.

3. A moulding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the frame member comprises a pair of opposing ends and the first moulding tool and the second moulding tool are each mounted to one of the pair of opposing ends.

4. A moulding apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first female portion of the first moulding tool is fixedly mounted to one of the ends of the frame member and the second female portion of the second frame member is fixedly mounted to the other end of the frame member such that the corresponding first male portion and second male portion each move into the space formed between the ends of the frame member.

5. A moulding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a plurality of guide rods extends between the opposing ends of the frame member and the first male portion and the second male portion are mounted on the guide rods so as to be movable therealong. A moulding apparatus according to claim 5, wherein each of the first moulding tool and the second moulding tool comprise at least one actuator to facilitate linear movement of the first male portion and the second male portion along the guide rods.

A moulding apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a controller configured to control the at least one actuator such that only one of the first male portion and the second male portion is linearly movable at a time.

A moulding apparatus comprising a pair of moulding tools mounted adjacent each other and separated by a working space, each mounting tool comprising a static moulding platen and a moving moulding platen that is movable with respect to the static moulding platen to open and close the moulding tool, wherein the pair of moulding tools are orientated such that their respective moving moulding platens are positioned to move within the working space formed therebetween.

A system for controlling operation of a plurality of moulding tools to produce multiple finished items; comprising:

A system according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of moulding tools comprises a plurality of moulding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

A system according to claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the plurality of service sources include a steam source, a bead source, a vacuum source, a compressed air source, and/or a water source. A system according to any one of claims 9 to 1 1, wherein the phase of operation of each moulding tool may include, a filling phase, an expansion phase, a cooling phase and an ejection phase as well as transfer phases therebetween.

A system according to claim 12, wherein the filling phase of a moulding tool comprises the delivery of bead from a bead source via the supply lines to the moulding tool.

A system according to claim 12, wherein the expansion phase of a moulding tool comprises the delivery of steam from a steam source via the supply lines to the moulding tool.

A system according to claim 12, wherein the cooling phase of a moulding tool comprises the cessation of supply of steam to the moulding tool and the supply of a cooling fluid from a cooling fluid source via supply lines to the moulding tool.

A system according to claim 12, wherein ejection phase of a moulding tool comprises the ejection of the finished item from the moulding tool for collection.

A system according to any one of claims 9 to 16, wherein the controller comprises a computer for staggering the phase of operation of the moulding tools.

A system according to claim 17, wherein phase of operation of the moulding tools is staggered such that the requirement of the system of any one service at any one time is controlled to be within predetermined limits.

A service bay for a moulding tool having at least a male and a female steam chest, comprising:

a body mountable to a rear surface of either the male or female steam chest, the body comprising a collar member extending at least partially about a perimeter of the male or female steam chest and projecting from the rear surface thereof so as to accommodate moulding components of the moulding tool therein.

A service bay according to claim 19, wherein the moulding components comprise any one or more of injectors, ejectors and/or anvils and connectors for connecting the one or more of the injectors, ejectors and/or anvils to a control/supply source.

A service bay according to claim 19 or claim 20, wherein the body has one or more recesses formed therein to facilitate access to the moulding components.

A moulding apparatus for moulding and steam-fusing expanded polymeric beads into a formed item, the apparatus comprising:

a plurality of tool sets for forming the item therein, each tool seat being arranged in a row; and

a service bay attachable to at least one of the tool sets, the service bay being arranged so as to be positional between adjacent tool sets in said row such that moulding components associated with the at least one tool set are accommodated within the service bay to enable said tool sets to be arranged in a back -to-back manner.

A moulding apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the plurality of tools sets each comprise a male steam chest and a female steam chest.

A moulding apparatus according to claim 23, wherein the service bay is attachable to a rear surface of the female steam chest.

at least two pairs of complementary steam chests, said complementary steam chests being configured to define a moulding cavity therebetween within which the formed item is to be moulded, the at least two pairs being mounted in a coaxial manner;

a mount support upon which each of the at least two pairs of complementary steam chests are mounted, the mount support being configured to include an actuator means for selectively moving one of the pair of complementary steam chests to open the mould cavity; and

at least one service bay, the at least one service bay being mounted to at least one of the pair of complementary steam chests to provide a space for accommodating components of the pair of complementary steam chests so as to facilitate connection to at least one of a pneumatic, hydraulic and bead source to deliver the associated services to the pair of complementary steam chests to create the formed item.