Control device of injection molding machine

Abstract

The present invention relates to a control device for an injection molding machine, in which a plurality of mold devices each including a fixed mold and a movable mold are mounted on a rotary table (114), the plurality of mold devices are sequentially arranged at an injection position and a take-out position by intermittent rotation of the rotary table (114), at the injection position, the mold devices are closed and injected, and at the take-out position, the mold devices are taken out by the rotary table (114). A control device for an injection molding machine that opens a mold device by pressing a movable mold with a mold opening / closing lever (132) and extracts a molded article from the mold device is provided with a control unit that controls the operation of the mold opening / closing lever (132) on the basis of operation setting information that can be set independently for each mold device, and that opens the mold device by pressing the movable mold with the mold opening / closing lever (132) and extracts the molded article from the mold device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2023-159143 filed on September 22, 2023. The entire contents of the Japanese Patent Application are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] The invention relates to a control device for an injection molding machine. Background Art

[0003] Patent document 1 discloses an injection molding machine, in which a plurality of mold devices are mounted on a rotating table, and the plurality of mold devices are sequentially arranged at an injection position, a cooling position, and a removal position by intermittent rotation of the rotating table. According to the injection molding machine, the mold device at the injection position can be molded and the molding material can be injected into the mold device, the mold device at the cooling position can be cooled, and the molded product can be removed at the removal position, thereby shortening the molding cycle.

[0004] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2022-117246 Summary of the invention

[0005] The present invention has been made under such circumstances, and one of the exemplary objects of one embodiment thereof is to provide a technology for improving the commercial value of an injection molding machine.

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a control device of an injection molding machine according to one embodiment of the present invention is that a plurality of mold devices each including a fixed mold and a movable mold are mounted on a turntable, and the plurality of mold devices are sequentially arranged at an injection position and a removal position by intermittent rotation of the turntable. At the injection position, the mold device is molded and injection is performed. At the removal position, the mold device is opened by pushing the movable mold with a mold opening and closing rod, and a molded product is removed from the mold device. The control device of the injection molding machine includes a control unit, which controls the movement of the mold opening and closing rod according to action setting information, and the action setting information can be set independently for each mold device.

[0007] Furthermore, any combination of the above-described constituent elements, and forms in which constituent elements and expressions of the present invention are mutually replaced with methods, apparatuses, systems, and the like are also effective as embodiments of the present invention.

[0008] Effects of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technology for improving the commercial value of an injection molding machine. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 It is a perspective view of the injection molding machine according to the embodiment.

[0011] Figure 2 It means that the switch is used to Figure 1 A diagram showing a state where the mold device at the 3rd position is opening the mold.

[0012] Figure 3 Yes means Figure 1 FIG. 2 is a diagram of a functional block of a control device 200 .

[0013] Figure 4 Yes means Figure 3 A diagram showing an example of a data structure of an action setting information storage unit.

[0014] Figure 5 Yes means Figure 3 FIG. 5 is a diagram of a setting screen displayed on a display unit by a display control unit of FIG.

[0015] Figure 6 (a) to (c) are diagrams for explaining the operation of the injection molding machine in time series and are diagrams showing its periphery.

[0016] Explanation of symbols

[0017] 10-mold device, 12-upper mold, 14-lower mold, 100-injection molding machine, 114-rotating table, 132-mold opening and closing rod, 200-control device, 212-opening and closing control unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] In the following, the same or equivalent components, parts, and processes shown in the drawings are marked with the same symbols, and repeated descriptions are appropriately omitted. In addition, for ease of understanding, the size of the parts shown in the drawings is appropriately enlarged or reduced. In addition, some of the parts that are not important in explaining the embodiments are omitted in the drawings.

[0019] Figure 1 1 is a perspective view of the injection molding machine 100 according to the embodiment. In this specification, the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction are directions perpendicular to each other. The X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction represent horizontal directions, and the Z-axis direction represents a vertical direction. When the mold clamping device 110 is vertical, the Z-axis direction is the mold clamping direction.

[0020] The injection molding machine 100 includes: a mold clamping device 110 for clamping the mold devices 10A, 10B, and 10C; an injection device 120 for injecting molding material into the mold devices 10A, 10B, and 10C; an opening and closing device 130 for opening the mold device; an ejection device 140 for ejecting the molded product from the mold devices 10A, 10B, and 10C; and Figure 1 These devices are supported by the frame 102. The frame 102 is installed on the ground, for example.

[0021] The mold clamping device 110 is a vertical type with a mold clamping direction in the vertical direction. The mold clamping device 110 includes an upper platen 112 , a rotating table 114 provided below the upper platen 112 with a gap therebetween, and a lower platen 118 supporting the rotating table 114 from below.

[0022] The lower platen 118 is fixed to the frame 102. The rotating table 114 is supported to rotate freely on the opposing surface (upper surface) 118a of the lower platen 118 which is opposed to the upper platen 112 in the vertical direction. The first mold device 10A, the second mold device 10B, and the third mold device 10C (hereinafter, collectively referred to as "mold devices 10" when not particularly distinguished) are mounted on the upper surface of the rotating table 114.

[0023] The first mold device 10A includes an upper mold 12A and a lower mold 14A. The second mold device 10B includes an upper mold 12B and a lower mold 14B. The third mold device 10C includes an upper mold 12C and a lower mold 14C. When the upper molds 12A, 12B, and 12C are not distinguished, they are collectively referred to as the "upper mold 12". When the lower molds 14A, 14B, and 14C are not distinguished, they are collectively referred to as the "lower mold 14". The upper mold 12 is a movable mold, and the lower mold 14 is a fixed mold.

[0024] In addition, the number of mold devices 10 that can be mounted on the rotating table 114 is not particularly limited, and the rotating table 114 only needs to be able to mount two or more, that is, a plurality of mold devices 10 .

[0025] The rotating table 114 is intermittently rotated by 120° each time by a rotating motor (not shown), whereby the three mold devices 10 are sequentially arranged at the first position P1, the second position P2, and the third position P3. Figure 1 In the embodiment, the first mold device 10A is arranged at the first position P1, the second mold device 10B is arranged at the second position P2, and the third mold device 10C is arranged at the third position P3.

[0026] The first position P1 is an injection position for closing the mold assembly 10 and injecting the molding material into the mold assembly 10. The second position P2 is a cooling position for cooling the molding material injected into the mold assembly 10. The third position P3 is a removal position for opening the mold assembly 10 and removing the molded product.

[0027] In addition, the number of stop positions of the mold device 10 may be the same as the number of the mold devices 10 and is not limited to three, but may be two or four or more.

[0028] The upper platen 112 is raised and lowered relative to the rotating table 114 by a driving unit (not shown). When the upper platen 112 is lowered, the mold device 10 disposed at the first position P1 is clamped vertically by the upper platen 112 and the rotating table 114, thereby clamping the mold device 10.

[0029] In addition, Figure 1 In the figure, the mold clamping device 110 is a vertical type with the mold clamping direction being the vertical direction, but may be a horizontal type with the mold clamping direction being the horizontal direction.

[0030] The injection device 120 is arranged above the upper platen 112. The injection device 120 has a cylinder 122 with a nozzle 122a provided at its front end. The injection device 120 is raised and lowered relative to the upper platen 112 and then relative to the mold device 10 arranged at the first position P1 by a driving unit not shown in the figure. The injection device 120 makes the nozzle 122a contact the mold device 10 arranged at the first position P1 by descending, and injects molding material into the cavity space of the mold device 10. A molded product can be obtained by solidifying the molding material filled in the cavity space. The number of cavity spaces can be, for example, multiple, and multiple molded products can be obtained at the same time. The number of cavity spaces can be one.

[0031] In addition, the injection device 120 is Figure 1 The vertical type is shown in the figure with the axial direction of the cylinder 122 being in the vertical direction, but the horizontal type may also be shown with the axial direction of the cylinder being in the horizontal direction.

[0032] The opening and closing device 130 opens the mold device 10 disposed at the third position P3. The opening and closing device 130 is provided below the rotating table 114 at a position corresponding to the third position P3. The details will be described later, and the opening and closing device 130 opens the mold device 10 by pushing up the upper mold 12 of the mold device 10 disposed at the third position P3 with a mold opening and closing rod.

[0033] The ejector device 140 ejects a molded product from the lower mold 14 by ejecting a predetermined rod into the cavity space of the lower mold 14 of the mold device 10 opened by the opening and closing device 130. The molded product ejected from the lower mold 14 is taken out by a take-out machine (not shown) or the like.

[0034] The opening and closing device 130 and the ejecting device 140 may also be configured as one device.

[0035] exist Figure 1 A control device (not shown) centrally controls the entire injection molding machine 100. The control device can be constituted by a general-purpose computer.

[0036] Figure 2 1 is a diagram showing a state in which the mold device 10 disposed at the third position P3 is opened by the opening and closing device 130. Figure 2In FIG. 1 , the mold device 10 disposed at the first position P1 and the second position P2 is omitted.

[0037] The upper mold 12 includes an upper mold body 12a that forms a cavity space together with the lower mold 14 and guide rods 12b extending downward from the lower surface of the upper mold body 12a. In the example shown in the figure, the upper mold 12 has two guide rods 12b, but the number of guide rods 12b is not particularly limited.

[0038] The lower mold 14 has a through hole 14a that passes through from top to bottom. The guide rod 12b is inserted into the corresponding through hole 14a. This can prevent the upper mold 12 from falling off. In the example shown in the figure, the lower mold 14 has the same number of through holes 14a as the guide rods 12b, but the number of through holes 14a is not particularly limited as long as the number of through holes 14a is greater than the number of guide rods 12b.

[0039] The opening and closing device 130 includes mold opening and closing rods 132 and a driving mechanism 134 for vertically moving the mold opening and closing rods 132. In the example shown in the figure, the opening and closing device 130 includes the same number of mold opening and closing rods 132 as the guide rods 12b, but the number of mold opening and closing rods 132 is not particularly limited.

[0040] The opening and closing device 130 raises the mold opening and closing rod 132 through the driving mechanism 134, inserts the mold opening and closing rod 132 into the through hole 114a of the rotating table 114, and causes the mold opening and closing rod 132 to enter the through hole 14a of the lower mold 14 of the mold device 10 disposed at the third position P3, and pushes up the guide rod 12b and then the upper mold 12 with the mold opening and closing rod 132. As a result, the upper mold body 12a is separated from the lower mold 14, that is, the mold device 10 is opened.

[0041] exist Figure 2 In the example, the mold device 10 is opened by pushing up the guide rod 12b through the mold opening and closing rod 132 of the opening and closing device 130, but it is not limited to this. The mold device 10 can also be opened by pushing up a part other than the guide rod 12b, such as the upper mold body 12a, through the mold opening and closing rod 132.

[0042] Figure 3 2 is a diagram showing a functional block of the control device 200 . The control device 200 includes a communication unit 202 , an input unit 204 , a display unit 206 , a control unit 210 , and a storage unit 230 .

[0043] The communication unit 202 controls communication with other devices. The communication unit 202 performs communication by any wired or wireless communication method.

[0044] The control unit 210 performs various data processing. The control unit 210 can be implemented by the cooperation of hardware resources and software resources, or only by hardware resources. As hardware resources, a processor, ROM, RAM, and other LSIs can be used. As a processor, a CPU, a GPU, etc. can be used. As a software resource, programs such as an operating system and application software can be used.

[0045] The storage part 230 stores data referenced and / or updated by the control part 210. The storage part 230 may be a semiconductor memory, a hard disk, or the like.

[0046] The display unit 206 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display. The display unit 206 displays a screen provided by the control unit 210. The input unit 204 is a user interface such as a physical key or a touch panel. The input unit 204 receives an operation by a user and inputs the operation content to the control unit 210. The display unit 206 and the input unit 204 may be composed of an integrated touch panel display.

[0047] The control unit 210 includes an opening and closing control unit 212 and a display control unit 214 .

[0048] The opening and closing control unit 212 controls the operation of the mold opening and closing rod 132 by controlling the driving mechanism 134 of the opening and closing device 130, thereby opening and closing the mold device 10. The opening and closing control unit 212 controls the operation of the mold opening and closing rod 132 based on predetermined operation setting information.

[0049] The action setting information includes mold opening and closing stroke, mold opening force, mold opening speed, and mold closing speed.

[0050] The mold opening and closing stroke is the distance that the mold opening and closing rod 132 pushes the upper mold 12 upward in order to remove the molded product. The mold opening and closing stroke can be set according to the size of the molded product.

[0051] The mold opening force is a force for opening the mold device 10 , and more specifically, is a force for the mold opening and closing rod 132 to push up the upper mold 12 .

[0052] The mold opening speed is the speed at which the mold device 10 is opened, and more specifically, is the speed at which the mold opening and closing rod 132 pushes up the upper mold 12 .

[0053] The mold opening force and the mold opening speed may be set according to the difficulty of opening the mold device 10 caused by the shape of the molded product, for example.

[0054] The mold closing speed is a speed at which the mold device 10 is closed, and specifically, a speed at which the mold opening and closing rods 132 and, more specifically, the upper mold 12 are lowered.

[0055] That is, the opening and closing control unit 212 pushes up the upper mold 12 by the set mold opening and closing stroke at the set mold opening force and mold opening speed, and lowers the upper mold 12 at the set mold closing speed when the molded product is removed.

[0056] The action setting information for causing the mold opening and closing rod 132 to move can be set independently for each mold device 10. In other words, different action setting information can be set for each mold device 10. For example, a different mold opening and closing stroke can be set for each mold device 10, a different mold opening force can be set for each mold device 10, a different mold opening speed can be set for each mold device 10, and a different mold closing speed can be set for each mold device 10. In addition, the action setting information is set in the setting screen described later. In addition, it is also possible to set only any one or more action setting information of the mold opening and closing stroke, the mold opening force, the mold opening speed, and the mold closing speed independently.

[0057] As a variation, it is also possible to switch between the first mode and the second mode, wherein the first mode is capable of independently setting the action setting information for each mold device 10, and the second mode is unable to independently set the action setting information for each mold device 10, that is, only the same action setting information can be set for all mold devices 10.

[0058] The storage unit 230 includes an operation setting information storage unit 232. The operation setting information storage unit 232 stores operation setting information of each mold device 10.

[0059] Figure 4 2 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of the operation setting information storage unit 232 .

[0060] The action setting information storage unit 232 stores the action setting information related to the three mold devices 10 mounted on the rotating table 114 set in the setting screen described later. In detail, the action setting information storage unit 232 stores the mold device ID, mold opening and closing stroke, mold opening force, mold opening speed and mold closing speed in a corresponding manner. The mold device ID is an ID that uniquely identifies the mold device 10. The ratio relative to the maximum mold opening force is set in the mold opening force column. The ratio relative to the maximum speed is set in the mold opening speed column and the mold closing speed column.

[0061] The opening and closing control unit 212 reads the operation setting information of the mold device 10 disposed at the third position P3 from the operation setting information storage unit 232 , and operates the mold opening and closing rod 132 according to the read operation setting information.

[0062] For example, the opening and closing control unit 212 can store the configuration information of the three mold devices 10 in the storage unit 230, and update the configuration information of the three mold devices 10 stored in the storage unit 230 whenever the turntable 114 rotates intermittently, that is, whenever the three mold devices 10 move, thereby determining the mold device 10 configured at the third position P3.

[0063] Furthermore, for example, the opening and closing control unit 212 can determine the mold device 10 arranged at the third position P3 based on the detection results of appropriate sensors. For example, a mold device ID can be added to the mold device 10, and the mold device ID can be read by a sensor to determine the mold device 10 arranged at the third position P3. The sensor can be a sensor for determining the mold device 10 located at the first position P1. Since the positional relationship among the three mold devices 10 is determined, as long as the mold device 10 arranged at the first position P1 can be determined, the mold device 10 arranged at the third position P3 can be determined. Figure 1 In the example, when the first mold device 10A is arranged at the first position P1, the third mold device 10C is arranged at the third position P3. When the second mold device 10B is arranged at the first position P1, the first mold device 10A is arranged at the third position P3. When the third mold device 10C is arranged at the first position P1, the second mold device 10B is arranged at the third position P3.

[0064] The display control unit 214 displays various screens on the display unit 206 .

[0065] Figure 5 3 is a diagram of a setting screen 300 displayed on the display unit 206 by the display control unit 214. The setting screen 300 includes an action setting information area 302. When a tab 304 is selected, the display of the action setting information area 302 is switched to a display related to the first mold device 10A, when a tab 306 is selected, the display of the action setting information area 302 is switched to a display related to the second mold device 10B, and when a tab 308 is selected, the display of the action setting information area 302 is switched to a display related to the third mold device 10C.

[0066] The action setting information area 302 includes a mold opening and closing stroke area 310 in which a mold opening and closing stroke can be input, a mold opening force area 312 in which a mold opening force can be input, a mold opening speed area 314 in which a mold opening speed can be input, and a mold closing speed area 316 in which a mold closing speed can be input. The values ​​input to the action setting information area 302 are stored in the action setting information storage unit 232.

[0067] Next, the operation of the injection molding machine 100 will be described. Figure 6 (a) to (c) in FIG. 1 are diagrams for explaining the operation of the injection molding machine 100 in time series. Figure 6 In each of (a) to (c), the upper figure is a plan view showing three mold devices 10 and their surroundings, and the lower figure is a side view of the mold device 10 located at the third position P3.

[0068] exist Figure 6 In (a), the first mold device 10A is arranged at the first position P1, the second mold device 10B is arranged at the second position P2, and the third mold device 10C is arranged at the third position P3. At the first position P1, the first mold device 10A is clamped, and the molding material is injected into the first mold device 10A. At the second position P2, the second mold device 10B is cooled. At the third position P3, the molded product is taken out from the third mold device 10C. At this time, the control device 200 moves the mold opening and closing rod 132 up and down according to the action setting information for the third mold device 10C to open the third mold device 10C. Specifically, the thickness of the lower mold 14C of the third mold device 10C is 80 mm, and the mold opening and closing stroke is 70 mm.

[0069] Figure 6 (b) is from Figure 6 The state (a) makes the turntable rotate 120° in the clockwise direction. Figure 6 In (b), the third mold device 10C is located at the first position P1, the first mold device 10A is located at the second position P2, and the second mold device 10B is located at the third position P3. At the first position P1, the third mold device 10C is molded, and the molding material is injected into the third mold device 10C. At the second position P2, the first mold device 10A is cooled. At the third position P3, the molded product is taken out from the second mold device 10B. At this time, the control device 200 moves the mold opening and closing rod 132 up and down according to the action setting information for the second mold device 10B to open the second mold device 10B. Specifically, the thickness of the lower mold 14B of the second mold device 10B is 150 mm, and the mold opening and closing stroke is 120 mm.

[0070] Figure 6 (c) is from Figure 6 The state (b) makes the turntable rotate 120° in the clockwise direction. Figure 6In (c), the second mold device 10B is located at the first position P1, the third mold device 10C is located at the second position P2, and the first mold device 10A is located at the third position P3. At the first position P1, the second mold device 10B is closed, and the molding material is injected into the second mold device 10B. At the second position P2, the third mold device 10C is cooled. At the third position P3, the molded product is taken out from the first mold device 10A. At this time, the control device 200 moves the mold opening and closing rod 132 up and down according to the action setting information for the first mold device 10A to open the first mold device 10A. Specifically, the thickness of the lower mold 14A of the first mold device 10A is 150 mm, and the mold opening and closing stroke is 100 mm. In addition, the molded product taken out here is Figure 6 The molded product after the molding material injected into the first mold device 10A in (a) is solidified.

[0071] exist Figure 6 In the examples (a) to (c), the three mold devices 10 are different from each other, and the mold opening and closing strokes required to remove the molded products are different from each other.

[0072] According to the present embodiment described above, since the action setting information for causing the mold opening and closing rod 132 to move can be independently set for each mold device 10, multiple types of mold devices 10 with different mold opening and closing strokes can be mounted on the rotating table 114 to mold different molded products. In particular, when the thickness of the lower mold 14 is different, it is preferred to change the action setting information (mold opening and closing stroke, mold opening speed, mold closing speed, etc.) according to the thickness of the lower mold 14. Since different action setting information can be independently set for each mold device 10 according to the mold device 10, especially according to the thickness of the lower mold 14, when multiple types of mold devices 10 are mounted, molded products can be molded with more preferred action settings compared to a case where independent settings cannot be made.

[0073] The present invention has been described above based on the embodiments. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments are merely examples, and that the combinations of the constituent elements and the processing procedures may have various modifications, and such modifications are also within the scope of the present invention.

[0074] (Variant 1)

[0075] In the embodiment, the case where the action setting information storage unit 232 stores the action setting information of the plurality of mold devices 10 inputted in the setting screen 300 and the action setting information of the plurality of mold devices 10 mounted on the rotating table 114 is described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The action setting information storage unit 232 may store the action setting information of the plurality of mold devices 10 including the mold device 10 not mounted on the rotating table 114. In this case, the opening and closing control unit 212 only needs to determine the mold device 10 arranged at the third position P3 based on the detection result of the appropriate sensor, read the action setting information of the mold device 10 from the action setting information storage unit 232, and move the mold opening and closing rod 132 up and down according to the read action setting information.

[0076] (Variant 2)

[0077] In the embodiment, the case where different action setting information can be set for each mold device 10 is described, but different action setting information can also be set for each mold device 10 and for each molding condition. In this case, the action setting information storage unit 232 can store the mold device ID, molding conditions, mold opening and closing stroke, mold opening force, mold opening speed and mold closing speed in a corresponding association. Molding conditions are, for example, injection speed, cylinder temperature, resin injection pressure, mold temperature and resin injection amount. For example, the injection speed affects the molding cycle. Therefore, the action setting information storage unit 232 can store different mold opening speeds, mold closing speeds or settings for corrections for each injection speed. The opening and closing control unit 212 only needs to read the action setting information from the action setting information storage unit 232 using the mold device ID and molding conditions. In addition, in addition to the molding conditions that affect the action setting information, the action setting information storage unit 232 can also store molding conditions that do not affect the action setting information. This is because there are many cases where the molding conditions are stored in association with the mold device. At this time, the action setting information storage unit 232 can also be understood as a mold device information storage unit that stores information related to the mold device. The action setting information storage unit 232 is not particularly limited, but can also store molding conditions that affect the action setting information and molding conditions that do not affect the action setting information in a distinguishable manner. The opening and closing control unit 212 only needs to determine the mold device 10 configured at the third position P3 in the same manner as in the embodiment. The opening and closing control unit 212 can obtain the molding conditions from the user via the input unit 204.

[0078] Any combination of the above-mentioned embodiments and modified examples is also useful as an embodiment of the present invention. The new embodiment generated by the combination has the effects of the combined embodiments and modified examples. In addition, those skilled in the art should understand that the functions to be achieved by each component recorded in the technical solution can be achieved by the monomers of each component shown in the embodiments and modified examples or their cooperation.

Claims

1. A control device for an injection molding machine, comprising a plurality of mold devices, each of which is a fixed mold and a movable mold, mounted on a rotating table, wherein the plurality of mold devices are sequentially arranged at an injection position and a removal position by intermittent rotation of the rotating table, wherein at the injection position, the mold device is clamped and injection is performed, and at the removal position, the mold device is opened by pushing the movable mold with a mold opening and closing rod, and a molded product is removed from the mold device, wherein: The control device of the injection molding machine includes a control unit, and the control unit controls the movement of the mold opening and closing rod according to the movement setting information. The operation setting information can be set independently for each mold device.

2. The control device for an injection molding machine according to claim 1, wherein: The operation setting information can be independently set for each mold device and for each molding condition.

3. The control device for an injection molding machine according to claim 1, wherein: The action setting information is mold opening and closing stroke, mold opening force, mold opening speed or mold closing speed.

4. The control device for an injection molding machine according to claim 1, wherein: The control unit includes a storage unit that stores operation setting information for each mold device.

5. The control device for an injection molding machine according to claim 1, wherein: The control unit includes a display control unit configured to display a setting screen for setting operation setting information for each mold device on a predetermined display unit.

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