Release agent application method and release agent application unit

Abstract

The release agent application method provided by the invention comprises the following steps of: pushing a release agent into an internal mold chamber of a mold at a temperature higher than room temperature by taking gas as a propellant, and gasifying the release agent under the action of heat energy of the mold, so that a release component in the release agent is attached to the chamber wall of the mold chamber to form a release layer. Therefore, the problem existing in traditional manual spraying is solved, and particularly the uniformity of the coating is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to molding and forming technology, and more particularly to a method for applying a release agent and a release agent application unit. Background Technology

[0002] During the molding process, a release agent is usually applied to the mold surface to prevent the product from sticking to the mold. This helps the product to be released from the mold more easily, ensuring that both the product surface and the mold remain intact. There are many types of release agents, such as water-based or oil-based release agents.

[0003] However, traditionally, release agents are applied manually by spraying, which can lead to the following problems:

[0004] 1. Uneven coating: The quality of manual spraying technology depends on the experience of the operator. For example, the concentration of the release agent, the viscosity of the release agent being too high or too low, the angle of the spray gun and the distance between the spray gun and the mold surface, the speed of the spray gun movement, and the adjustment of the spray gun pressure can all lead to uneven coating of the release agent, that is, the coating in some areas is too thick or too thin, thus affecting the effect of the product being demolded from the mold during production.

[0005] 2. Production Costs and Health Risks: During the spraying process, operators need to rely on their vision and experience to adjust the details of the current application. However, a slight carelessness or distraction may lead to overspraying. This not only wastes the release agent, increases production costs and reduces efficiency, but also the excessive release agent may spread into the surrounding environment. The release agent may contain chemicals that are harmful to the environment or health, leading to concerns about health risks.

[0006] Therefore, while manual spraying of release agents is a common practice, it presents several significant problems, including uneven coating, wasted costs, and environmental and health risks. Thus, it is imperative for industry professionals to seek alternative methods to address these issues. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The main objective of this invention is to provide a method for applying release agent that improves upon the problems of traditional manual spraying, particularly in terms of coating uniformity.

[0008] Therefore, in order to achieve the above objectives, the release agent application method provided by the present invention uses gas as a propellant to push the release agent into a mold chamber inside a mold at a temperature higher than room temperature, so that the release agent is vaporized by the heat energy of the mold, thereby causing the release component in the release agent to adhere to the chamber wall of the mold chamber to form a release layer.

[0009] To ensure the quality, integrity, and production efficiency of the product, the solvent components of the release agent and the propellant remaining in the mold chamber are discharged from the mold after the release layer is formed, so as to avoid the residue from hindering or contaminating the raw materials when filling the mold.

[0010] Specifically, the mold is placed in an independent space, and the mold chamber is connected to the independent space. Then, the gas in the independent space is extracted to form a vacuum, thereby expelling the residual solvent components and the propellant.

[0011] Furthermore, the residual solvent components and the propellant are discharged outward through the channel formed by opening the mold to connect the mold chamber with the independent space.

[0012] On the other hand, the residual solvent components and the propellant are discharged to the outside through a gas channel pre-set inside the mold that communicates with the mold chamber.

[0013] In order to achieve the best coating effect with a small amount of release agent, the mold is in the closed state when the release agent is pushed into the mold chamber by the gas.

[0014] Furthermore, the present invention provides a release agent application unit that performs the aforementioned release agent application method.

[0015] In one embodiment, the release agent application unit is engaged with a gas channel on the mold, through which the release agent is injected into the mold chamber inside the mold.

[0016] Specifically, the release agent application unit includes a release agent source, a delivery section and a drive section, wherein the release agent source provides the release agent; the delivery section is bridged between the release agent source and the gas channel of the mold; the drive section is connected to the delivery section to provide the propellant so as to drive the release agent to be delivered into the mold chamber of the mold.

[0017] In one embodiment, the release agent application unit further includes a metering unit connected to the delivery unit for measuring and controlling a predetermined volume of the release agent injected into the mold chamber; and a control unit for controlling the operation of the metering unit and the drive unit respectively. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a manufacturing process diagram according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 2 This is a system block diagram of the release agent application unit in the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 3 This is a manufacturing process diagram according to the third embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The present invention will now be further described with reference to a preferred embodiment and accompanying drawings.

[0022] First, such as Figure 1 The diagram briefly illustrates the "mold 10" of the present invention, which includes a mold body 11, a mold chamber 12, a gas channel 13, and an injection channel 14. The mold body 11 has a first mold component 111 and a second mold component 112. The mold chamber 12 is located between the first mold component 111 and the second mold component 112. The gas channel 13 is disposed on the mold body 11 and communicates with the outside of the mold body 11 and the mold chamber 12. The injection channel 14 is disposed on the first mold component 111 and communicates with the mold chamber 12. However, this example is merely illustrative and is not intended to limit other embodiments of the mold 10.

[0023] Next, see reference. Figure 1 and Figure 2 The release agent application unit disclosed in the first embodiment of the present invention is connected to the gas channel 13 on the mold 10, and a release agent is injected into the mold chamber 12 inside the mold 10 through the gas channel 13.

[0024] Specifically, the release agent supply unit 20 includes a release agent source 21, a delivery unit 22, a drive unit 23, a metering unit 24, and a control unit 25.

[0025] The release agent source 21 has a first container (not shown) for storing the release agent. The release agent is categorized into aqueous and oil-based release agents based on different solvents (i.e., water or organic solvents), and the release agent is diluted to any desired concentration, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, and therefore will not be elaborated further.

[0026] The delivery unit 22 has a pipeline and a flow control element (not shown). The pipeline is bridged between the release agent source 21 and the gas channel 13 of the mold 10. More specifically, one end of the pipeline is normally connected to the release agent source 21, while the other end of the pipeline is selectively connected to the gas channel 13, and the part of the pipeline connected to the gas channel 13 is tightly joined to prevent the release agent from leaking out.

[0027] The flow control element is a check valve located on the pipeline near the mold 10 to prevent the release agent from flowing back from the mold chamber 12 into the pipeline. In other possible embodiments, the flow control element may also be a solenoid valve, whose opening and closing are controlled by the control unit 25.

[0028] The metering unit 24 has a second container (not shown) and a power source (not shown), and a metering space with a preset volume. The second container is disposed on the pipeline for filling with release agent from the release agent source 21, thereby measuring and controlling the predetermined volume of release agent injected into the mold chamber 12. The power source is a pump that provides a pressure difference to allow the release agent to enter the second container from the release agent source 21. The measured predetermined volume is related to the surface area of ​​the wall of the mold chamber 12. In other possible embodiments, the metering unit 24 may also include an adjusting component, such as a piston or screw, for changing the volume of the metering space to accommodate molds 10 of different specifications or shapes of mold chambers 12.

[0029] The drive unit 23 is an air compressor connected to the conveying unit 22, and can compress air into high-pressure gas as a propellant to drive the release agent to be delivered into the mold chamber 12 of the mold 10.

[0030] The control unit 25 has a central processing unit that can execute a preset instruction to control the operation of the metering unit 24 and the drive unit 23 respectively.

[0031] Based on the above structural explanation, please refer to [further details]. Figure 1 As shown, the release agent application method performed by the release agent application unit of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0032] Step 301: In Figure 1 In (A), the mold 10 is in the closed state, and the pipeline is connected to the gas channel 13. The mold 10 is preheated to a predetermined temperature above room temperature, which is between 100°C and 250°C, preferably 170°C.

[0033] Step 302: In Figure 1 In (B), using gas as a propellant, the release agent located in the metering space is pushed into the mold chamber 12 inside the mold 10 through the pipeline and the gas channel 13. The release agent is vaporized by the heat energy of the mold 10, thereby causing the release components in the release agent to adhere to the chamber wall of the mold chamber 12 to form a release layer 30. The thickness of the release layer 30 is often adjusted depending on the raw material 40 of the product, the process requirements, and the required surface characteristics, and the thickness of the release layer 30 is usually between 10 μm and 100 μm.

[0034] Step 303: In Figure 1 In (C), after the pipeline is separated from the gas channel 13, the solvent components of the release agent remaining in the mold chamber 12 and the propellant are discharged outward through the gas channel 13.

[0035] Step 304: In Figure 1In (D), the injection process is performed, and a raw material 40 is injected into the mold chamber 12 through the injection channel 14.

[0036] Accordingly, the release agent application method provided by the present invention can inject a quantitative amount of release agent into the mold chamber 12, and a release layer 30 is uniformly distributed on the wall of the mold chamber 12, thereby improving the problems existing in traditional manual spraying.

[0037] Furthermore, the main difference between the second embodiment of the present invention and the first embodiment is that the metering section 24 is omitted, and the release agent can be injected into the mold chamber 12 in batches using only the delivery section 22.

[0038] In addition, such as Figure 3 The figure shown is the third embodiment of the present invention. The main differences between it and the first embodiment are twofold. First, the mold 10 is located in an independent space 50 defined by a vacuum chamber (not shown). When the mold 10 is in the closed state, the mold chamber 12 is not connected to the independent space 50.

[0039] Secondly, in step 303, such as Figure 3 (B) to Figure 3 As shown in (C), the mold 10 changes from a closed state to an open state, and the mold chamber 12 is connected to the independent space 50. Then, using a vacuum pump (not shown) connected to the vacuum hood, the gas in the mold chamber 12 and the independent space 50, which are isolated from the atmosphere, is extracted, making the mold chamber 12 and the independent space 50 a vacuum, and at the same time, the residual solvent components and the propellant are discharged.

[0040] In addition, the aforementioned vacuum operation can also be carried out before the mold 10 is opened, which can also achieve the effect of removing the residual solvent components and the propellant.

[0041] Finally, as Figure 3 (D) to Figure 3 As shown in (E), the mold 10 returns to the closed state to perform the injection process.

[0042] The above description describes the preferred embodiments of the present invention and the technical principles applied thereto. For those skilled in the art, any obvious changes such as equivalent transformations or simple substitutions based on the technical solutions of the present invention, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for applying a release agent, characterized in that, The release agent is propelled by gas into a mold chamber at a temperature higher than room temperature. The release agent is vaporized by the heat energy of the mold, and the release components in the release agent adhere to the chamber wall to form a release layer.

2. The method for applying the release agent as described in claim 1, characterized in that, After the release layer is formed, the solvent components of the release agent and the propellant remaining in the mold chamber are discharged from the mold.

3. The method for applying the release agent as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The method involves placing the mold in an independent space, connecting the mold chamber to the independent space, and then extracting the gas from the independent space to create a vacuum, thereby expelling the residual solvent components and the propellant.

4. The method for applying the release agent as described in claim 3, characterized in that, When the release agent is pushed into the mold chamber by the gas, the mold is in a closed state.

5. The method for applying the release agent as described in claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The residual solvent components and the propellant are discharged outward through the channel formed by opening the mold to connect the mold chamber with the independent space.

6. The method for applying the release agent as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The residual solvent and propellant are discharged outward through a pre-designed gas channel within the mold that connects to the mold chamber.

7. A release agent application unit, characterized in that, It is the method of applying the release agent as described in any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. The release agent application unit as described in claim 7, characterized in that, It is connected to a gas channel on the mold, through which the release agent is injected into the mold chamber inside the mold.

9. The release agent application unit as described in claim 8, characterized in that, It includes: A release agent source is used to provide the release agent; A conveying unit is bridged between the release agent source and the gas channel of the mold; A drive unit, connected to the conveying unit, is used to provide the propellant, thereby driving the release agent to be conveyed into the mold chamber.

10. The release agent application unit as described in claim 9, characterized in that, It also includes: A metering unit, connected to the conveying unit, is used to measure and control the predetermined volume of the release agent injected into the mold chamber; A control unit controls the operation of the metering unit and the drive unit respectively.

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