Vertical stirring and mixing device

Abstract

The utility model discloses a vertical stirring and mixing device, and relates to the field of injection molding production, the mixing device comprises a constant volume bin, a mixing bin and a discharging bin from top to bottom, the upper end of the constant volume bin is provided with a particle feeding port with an opening and closing control mechanism, and the lower end of the constant volume bin is connected with the upper end of the mixing bin through a connecting opening with a turning plate type opening and closing mechanism; a stirring rod is arranged in the mixing bin and is driven by an external stirring driving unit to rotate and stir; the upper end of the mixing bin is also provided with a powder feeding hole for feeding powder; the lower end of the mixing bin is connected with the discharging bin through a connecting opening with a turning plate type opening and closing mechanism; a mixed material outlet is formed in the lower end of the discharging bin. According to the material mixing device, the turning plate type opening and closing mechanism is adopted to replace the traditional push-pull type baffle plate design, so that uneven stirring caused by blocking of the baffle plate or poor matching of a guide groove is avoided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of injection molding production, and in particular to a vertical mixing device. Background Technology

[0002] In existing injection molding processes, color control is a crucial step in achieving high-quality plastic products. Traditionally, color control relies primarily on two methods: mixing color masterbatch and color powder with the base plastic. Color masterbatch is a granular substance that is precisely formulated to uniformly mix colorant with the base plastic. It possesses strong color stability, ensuring color consistency in the final injection-molded product. Its advantage lies in providing a stable and uniform color effect, making it widely used in high-end markets where color consistency is paramount. However, color masterbatch is costly, especially in production processes with a wide variety of colors and frequent color changes. The procurement and management costs of color masterbatch increase significantly, thus hindering its widespread application in cost-sensitive production areas.

[0003] In comparison, color powder, as an economical and efficient color control method, has been widely used in the industry. Color powder is a powdery material composed of fine particles of different colors, typically mixed with a base plastic (such as transparent or white plastic granules) to change the plastic's color. The main advantages of color powder are its low cost and its ability to flexibly meet diverse color requirements, especially in situations where color changes are frequent during production or large-scale production is required, where using color powder can effectively reduce production costs. However, the use of color powder also brings a significant challenge—ensuring uniform mixing of the color powder with the plastic granules. Uneven mixing can lead to inconsistent colors in the final product, and even quality problems such as color spots and color differences, which not only affect the appearance quality but may also affect the performance of the plastic products.

[0004] Currently, the industry commonly uses mechanical mixing equipment (such as vertical mixers or blenders) to mix color powder and plastic granules. These mixing devices mix the color powder and plastic granules through rotation or vibration. However, due to design flaws in existing mixers, the mixing effect often fails to achieve the desired uniformity. First, the stirring rods of existing mixers typically use a simple, single shape, such as a straight line or spiral. This design cannot effectively disperse the material, resulting in uneven mixing of the color powder and plastic granules. Especially in mass production processes, the design of the stirring rod restricts the flowability of the material, causing some areas to accumulate or disperse unevenly with the color powder and plastic granules, thus affecting the color consistency of the product.

[0005] Furthermore, most existing mixers adopt a vertical structure and use push-pull baffles and slots or guides to control material flow between compartments. While this design theoretically achieves effective isolation between compartments and control of material flow, it presents several problems in practical use. With increased usage time, fine particles from the color powder and plastic granules tend to accumulate on the contact surfaces of the baffles and slots or guides, causing the baffles to jam or not close properly. This not only hinders material flow and affects the smooth mixing process but can also lead to equipment malfunctions or production downtime, increasing maintenance costs and production cycles. Especially under high-efficiency production requirements, poor material flow and uneven mixing often become bottlenecks in the production process, affecting production efficiency and reducing product stability.

[0006] To address the aforementioned problems, the development of a new type of vertical mixing device is particularly urgent. Utility Model Content

[0007] The purpose of this application is to overcome at least one deficiency of the existing technology and provide a vertical mixing device. This mixing device, through optimized stirring rod design, can achieve uniform mixing of color powder and plastic granules in a shorter time, ensuring a more uniform distribution of the mixture and avoiding color differences and unevenness. Furthermore, the mixing device uses a flap-type opening and closing mechanism instead of the traditional push-pull baffle design, avoiding uneven mixing caused by baffle jamming or poor guide groove fit.

[0008] To achieve the above objectives, this application discloses a vertical mixing device, which comprises, from top to bottom, a constant volume silo, a mixing silo, and a discharge silo. The constant volume silo has a particle inlet with an opening and closing control mechanism at its upper end, and its lower end is connected to the upper end of the mixing silo via a connecting opening with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism. A stirring rod is installed inside the mixing silo, which is driven to rotate and stir by an external stirring drive unit. The upper end of the mixing silo also has a powder inlet for powder material entry. The lower end of the mixing silo is connected to the discharge silo via a connecting opening with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism. The lower end of the discharge silo has a mixed material outlet.

[0009] As an optional technical solution, the fixed-volume silo, mixing silo, and discharge silo are all equipped with openable silo doors to facilitate cleaning of the silo interior.

[0010] As an optional technical solution, the fixed-volume silo, mixing silo, and discharge silo are all equipped with observation windows for observing the conditions inside the silo.

[0011] As an optional technical solution, the lower part of the chambers of the fixed-volume silo and the mixing silo gradually narrows towards the connection opening, forming a conical and / or arc-shaped channel on the inner wall of the silo facing the connection opening. Through this structure, the material flow is accelerated by gravity, thereby increasing the discharge speed of the fixed-volume silo. Preferably, the mixing silo is circular or inverted D-shaped.

[0012] As an optional technical solution, the opening and closing control mechanism in the fixed-volume hopper is a push-pull opening and closing mechanism. This mechanism includes a base plate with a horizontal guide groove located inside the particle feed, a horizontal valve plate that can be horizontally inserted into the base plate, and a drive unit that drives the horizontal valve plate to move horizontally in a straight line. Preferably, the base plate is provided with a guide slope to prevent particle material from getting stuck in the particle feed inlet.

[0013] As an optional technical solution, the mixing hopper is equipped with a removable inner lining structure, which facilitates disassembly and quick cleaning of the mixing hopper.

[0014] As an optional technical solution, the flap-type opening and closing mechanism includes a base shaft, a flap connected to the base shaft, and a rotary drive unit that drives the base shaft to rotate. During operation, the rotary drive unit drives the base shaft to rotate, thereby controlling the opening and closing of the connecting opening via the flap. Preferably, the flap-type opening and closing mechanism for controlling the mixing bin and the discharging bin is located at the same level as the discharging bin, and the base shaft avoids the connecting opening.

[0015] As an optional technical solution, the fixed-volume bin and the discharge bin are equipped with material level sensors for detecting whether the bin is full.

[0016] As an optional technical solution, the stirring rod includes a shaft as the base for rotation and an arc-shaped stirring section that revolves around the shaft.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, this application has at least one of the following beneficial effects:

[0018] 1. The optimized stirring rod design significantly improves the uniformity of mixing between color powder and plastic granules, avoiding color differences and quality problems caused by uneven mixing, and improving the overall quality of the product.

[0019] 2. The introduction of a flap-type opening and closing mechanism replaces the traditional push-pull baffle design, reducing material flow obstruction caused by jamming and mismatch of guide channels, lowering maintenance costs and improving production efficiency.

[0020] 3. The equipment features an openable door and observation window, facilitating cleaning and monitoring of the interior, thus improving maintainability and ease of operation.

[0021] 4. The design of conical or arc-shaped channels accelerates material flow and increases the discharge speed of the fixed-volume silo, thereby improving production efficiency and reducing material accumulation and stagnation.

[0022] The beneficial effects listed above are not exhaustive of all advantages. Other potential beneficial effects and detailed technical implementation methods will be further disclosed in the embodiments or other descriptive sections of this application. Attached Figure Description

[0023] A better understanding of various aspects of this disclosure will be achieved by reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The positions, dimensions, and extents of the structures shown in the drawings, etc., do not always represent actual positions, dimensions, and extents. In the drawings:

[0024] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of one embodiment disclosed in this application.

[0025] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of one embodiment disclosed in this application from another perspective.

[0026] Figure 3 This is a structural schematic diagram of one embodiment disclosed in this application from another perspective.

[0027] Figure 4 This is a structural schematic diagram of one embodiment of the present application from a viewpoint after the door is opened.

[0028] Figure 5 This is a structural schematic diagram from another perspective after the door of one embodiment of the present application is opened.

[0029] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 Enlarged view of point A in the middle.

[0030] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the stirring rod in one embodiment of this application.

[0031] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the flap-type opening and closing mechanism in one embodiment of the present application.

[0032] Figure 9 This is a structural schematic diagram from another perspective after the silo door is opened in one embodiment of this application. The inner lining structure and stirring rod in the figure have been removed and separated. Detailed Implementation

[0033] The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate several embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be presented in many different ways and is not limited to the embodiments described below; in fact, the embodiments described below are intended to make the disclosure more complete and to fully illustrate the scope of protection of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. It should also be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein can be combined in various ways to provide further additional embodiments.

[0034] It should be understood that the same reference numerals denote the same elements in all the accompanying drawings. For clarity, the dimensions of certain features may be modified in the drawings.

[0035] It should be understood that the terminology used in this specification is for describing specific embodiments only and is not intended to limit this disclosure. All terms used in this specification (including technical and scientific terms) have the meanings commonly understood by those skilled in the art, unless otherwise defined. For the sake of brevity and / or clarity, techniques, methods, and apparatus known to those skilled in the art may not be discussed in detail; however, where appropriate, such techniques, methods, and apparatus should be considered part of this specification.

[0036] Unless otherwise specified, the singular forms “a,” “the,” and “the” used in this specification include the plural forms. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “containing” used in this specification indicate the presence of the claimed feature but do not exclude the presence of one or more other features. The term “and / or” used in this specification includes any and all combinations of one or more of the relevant listed items. Example

[0037] See attached document Figure 1 To be continued Figure 5 This embodiment provides a vertical mixing device suitable for mixing granular and powdered materials. It is widely used in the injection molding industry, working in conjunction with injection molding machines to achieve precise mixing, color matching, and feeding. It is important to understand that the design philosophy of this device is to improve material flowability, enhance mixing efficiency, ensure easy cleaning and good sealing of the equipment, and facilitate control and maintenance during actual operation.

[0038] In terms of specific structure, the device includes a main body 1, on which three parts are formed: a fixed volume chamber 2, a mixing chamber 3, and a discharge chamber 4. The fixed volume chamber 2 and the mixing chamber 3 are connected by a connection port 6 with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5, and the mixing chamber 3 and the discharge chamber 4 are connected by the connection port 6 with the flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5.

[0039] To ensure the cleanliness of the equipment and the hygiene of the materials, the constant volume bin 2, mixing bin 3, and discharge bin 4 are all designed with openable bin doors. For structural simplification, please refer to the attached diagram. Figure 1-4 The design of the fixed volume hopper 2 includes a first hopper door 9, while the mixing hopper 3 and the discharge hopper 4 share a second hopper door 10. More specifically, the first hopper door 9 and the second hopper door 10 are in close contact with each other and are fitted with rubber sealing strips to ensure the fit between the hopper door and the main body 1, so that there is no material leakage when the first hopper door 9 and the second hopper door 10 are closed.

[0040] For easy cleaning, the inner walls of the volume control chamber 2, mixing chamber 3 and discharge chamber 4 are designed with smooth, corner-free surfaces. The inner wall material is made of materials that do not easily adhere to the material, such as stainless steel, and the surface is polished to have a high degree of smoothness, as well as strong corrosion resistance and wear resistance.

[0041] It is important to note that the specific structure and shape design of each compartment should avoid complex structures or small holes to prevent material accumulation and ensure easy cleaning after each use.

[0042] To optimize material flow, the lower parts of the constant volume bin 2 and the mixing bin 3 are designed with a gradually narrowing shape. The bottom of the constant volume bin 2 is conical with a moderate taper, which can effectively accelerate the flow of materials and prevent materials from accumulating at the bottom of the bin.

[0043] The lower part of the mixing hopper 3 is also designed to be semi-circular. The arc shape not only satisfies the mixing function but also facilitates the material to slide into the discharge hopper 2. Understandably, the sloping or curved design of the constant volume hopper 2 and the mixing hopper 3 helps to accelerate the flow of material downwards by gravity and avoids material stagnation at the bottom of the hopper.

[0044] In terms of specific structure, refer to the appendix. Figure 4 and 5 The fixed-volume silo 2 is located at the top of the device and is mainly used to temporarily store a certain volume of granular material to provide a fixed amount of material to the mixing silo 3.

[0045] Refer to the appendix Figure 4 and 5 The upper end of the fixed volume bin 2 is provided with a granule inlet 8, which is used for the input of granular materials (mainly plastic granules). In actual use, the granule inlet 8 is connected to the granular material conveying equipment or bin (not shown in the attached figure) through an external pipe.

[0046] In this embodiment, the opening and closing control of the particle feed inlet 8 adopts a push-pull opening and closing mechanism 7. This mechanism includes a base plate 701 fixed at the particle feed inlet 8 and having a guide groove, and a horizontal valve plate 702 inserted into the guide groove of the base plate 701. The base plate 701 of the push-pull opening and closing mechanism 7 is installed at the particle feed inlet 8, and a horizontal guide groove is formed on the base plate 701. The horizontal valve plate 702 can slide in the guide groove. The horizontal valve plate 702 is controlled to move horizontally in a straight line by a telescopic motion drive unit 703 located on the body 1, thereby flexibly controlling the opening and closing state of the particle feed inlet 8 and preventing the overflow or leakage of particle material.

[0047] To further prevent particulate material from getting stuck at the particulate feed inlet 8, the surface of the substrate 701 is designed with a guide port with a guide slope to ensure that the material flows smoothly into the volume control chamber 2. The lower end of the volume control chamber 2 is provided with a connection opening 6 with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5. This connection opening 6 is used to introduce particulate material from the volume control chamber 2 into the mixing chamber 3.

[0048] To ensure production continuity and safety, level sensors 12 are installed in both the fixed-volume silo 2 and the discharge silo 4. The level sensors 12 are used to detect the amount of material filling in the silos, ensuring that the material is sufficient and enters the mixing silo 3 in a timely manner.

[0049] In this embodiment, refer to the appendix Figure 8 The flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5 includes a flap 502, a base shaft 503, and a rotary drive device 501. In terms of specific structural connections, the base shaft extends out of the main body 1 and is connected to the rotating shaft of the rotary drive device 501 located on the outer surface of the main body 1. The flap 502 is integrally connected to the base shaft 503, allowing the flap 502 to rotate synchronously with the base shaft 503. When the rotary drive unit 501 is activated, the base shaft 503 drives the flap 502 to rotate forward or backward and fix it to a preset angle, thereby opening and closing the connection opening 6. During operation, the surface shape and size of the flap 502 are adapted to the connection opening 6, and the tight fit with the connection opening 6 effectively prevents material leakage.

[0050] In this embodiment, the mixing chamber 3 is located below the fixed-volume chamber 2 and is responsible for mixing granular materials (plastic granules) with powdered materials (one or more color powders). The mixing chamber 3 is circular or inverted D-shaped. The circular chamber ensures uniform flow of materials during mixing and reduces material stagnation areas. The inverted D-shaped design makes the chamber nearly circular, allowing materials to flow downwards more quickly under gravity, improving mixing efficiency and preventing material accumulation.

[0051] In terms of specific structure, for the purpose of feeding powder, the upper end of the mixing hopper 3 is provided with a powder inlet 301. The powder inlet 301 is used to receive powdered materials. It should be noted that the powdered materials are fed in by an external feeding mechanism or device.

[0052] The internal structure of the mixing chamber 3 is designed to optimize the mixing effect, and a stirring rod 14 is provided. The stirring rod 14 is driven to rotate by a stirring drive mechanism 15 installed on the outer side of the main body 1, thereby stirring the materials in the mixing chamber 3.

[0053] More specifically, to achieve uniform mixing, the stirring rod 14 is designed based on the shaft 1401 and includes a stirring section 1402 connected to the shaft 1401. The stirring section 1402 has an arc-shaped structure, which can effectively stir the materials. This structure allows the stirring rod 14 to effectively push the materials along the bin wall, further accelerating the flow rate of the materials. The arc-shaped design of the stirring section 1402 matches the shape of the inner wall of the mixing bin 3, which can generate a certain spiral flow during stirring, helping the materials to be fully mixed throughout the mixing bin.

[0054] In addition, refer to the appendix Figure 9 The mixing rod 14 inside the mixing chamber 3 is designed to be detachable, allowing it to be easily removed for individual cleaning. The mixing rod 14 has a smooth surface with no dead corners, preventing material accumulation and reducing cleaning difficulty.

[0055] During installation and disassembly, the connection between the stirring rod 14 and the stirring drive unit 13 is made using a simple locking device, which allows operators to quickly disassemble and thoroughly clean the parts without the need for special tools.

[0056] Based on the above structure, and further, refer to the appendix. Figure 9 The mixing chamber 3 has a removable inner lining structure 11. The inner wall of the mixing chamber 3 is in direct contact with the material, which helps to protect the inner wall of the mixing chamber from direct corrosion by the material and makes it easier to clean.

[0057] It should be noted that the agitator rod 14 must be removed first before the inner lining structure 11 can be disassembled.

[0058] It is important to understand that the arc-shaped design of the mixing section 1402 helps to propel the material over a wide area during the mixing process, avoiding material accumulation and stagnation, thereby improving the uniformity of mixing.

[0059] In this embodiment, the lower end of the mixing hopper 3 is connected to the discharge hopper 4 through a connecting opening 6 with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5. The flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5 has the same structure as the flap-type opening and closing mechanism 5 between the constant volume hopper 2 and the mixing hopper 3, but the shape and size of the flap 502 are adapted to the corresponding connecting opening 6.

[0060] In this embodiment, the discharge hopper 4 is located at the bottom of the device and is mainly used for storing and discharging the mixed material. The lower end of the discharge hopper 4 is provided with a mixed material outlet 15 for discharging the mixed material.

[0061] In practical applications, the mixture outlet 15 is usually connected to an external discharge pipe, enabling the mixture to be transported to downstream processes or injection molding equipment. Depending on the requirements, the mixture outlet 15 can also be equipped with an opening and closing control mechanism for control.

[0062] In summary, the vertical mixing device provided in this embodiment has been optimized in terms of material flowability, mixing efficiency, cleanliness, safety, and automated control. It is suitable for multiple industries, can improve production efficiency, reduce manual labor intensity, and ensure product uniformity and quality stability.

[0063] While exemplary embodiments of this disclosure have been described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes and modifications can be made to the exemplary embodiments of this disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Therefore, all changes and modifications are included within the scope of protection of this disclosure as defined by the claims. This disclosure is defined by the appended claims, and equivalents of those claims are also included.

Claims

1. A vertical mixing and stirring device, characterized in that: The mixing device consists of a volume control silo, a mixing silo, and a discharge silo from top to bottom. The volume control silo has a particle inlet with an opening and closing control mechanism at its upper end, and its lower end is connected to the upper end of the mixing silo via a connecting opening with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism. The mixing silo contains a stirring rod, which is driven to rotate and stir by an external stirring drive unit. The mixing silo also has a powder inlet at its upper end for powder to enter. The lower end of the mixing silo is connected to the discharge silo via a connecting opening with a flap-type opening and closing mechanism. The discharge silo has a mixed material outlet at its lower end.

2. The vertical mixing device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The fixed-volume silo, mixing silo, and discharge silo are all equipped with openable doors for easy cleaning.

3. The vertical mixing device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The fixed-volume silo, mixing silo, and discharge silo are all equipped with observation windows for observing the conditions inside the silo.

4. A vertical mixing and stirring device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The lower part of the grain storage silo and the mixing silo gradually narrows towards the connection port, so that the inner wall of the silo forms a conical channel and / or an arc-shaped channel facing the connection port.

5. A vertical mixing and stirring device as described in claim 4, characterized in that: The mixing hopper is circular or inverted D-shaped.

6. A vertical mixing and stirring device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The opening and closing control mechanism in the fixed volume chamber is a push-pull opening and closing mechanism, which includes a base plate with a horizontal guide groove located in the particle feed, a horizontal valve plate that can be horizontally inserted into the base plate, and a drive unit that drives the horizontal valve plate to move in a horizontal straight line.

7. A vertical mixing and stirring device as described in claim 6, characterized in that: The substrate is provided with a guide slope to prevent particles from getting stuck in the particle inlet.

8. A vertical mixing and stirring device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The mixing chamber is equipped with a removable lining structure, which facilitates quick cleaning of the mixing chamber.

9. A vertical mixing device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The flap-type opening and closing mechanism includes a base shaft, a flap connected to the base shaft, and a rotary drive unit that drives the base shaft to rotate. During operation, the rotary drive unit drives the base shaft to rotate, thereby realizing the opening and closing control of the connecting opening by the flap.

10. A vertical mixing and stirring device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The flap-type opening and closing mechanism used to control the mixing hopper and the discharge hopper is located on the same side as the discharge hopper, and the base shaft avoids the connection opening.

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