Injection molding device and device adjustment method.

Abstract

The invention relates to a molding device (1) designed to allow the molding of a molded part (2) by injecting material into a cavity (3) of the device (1). The device (1) comprises a main part (4) and a counter-part (5) designed to perform mold closing operations by coming into contact with each other to define a closing face (6) formed by the contact surface between the main part (4) and the counter-part (5). The cavity (3) defines a peripheral edge (7) of the molded part (2). The closing face (6) is inclined relative to the ejection direction (DE) of the molded part (2) in line with the peripheral edge (7) over a length (L) allowing adjustment of the cavity (3) by material removal (10a). The invention also relates to a method for adjusting the device (1) by material removal (10a). (Figure 1)

Description

Title of the invention: Injection molding device and method of adjusting the device.

[0001] The technical field relates to injection molding devices and methods of adjusting such devices.

[0002] For car manufacturers, the quality of the finish of their vehicles and their aesthetic aspects are essential to stand out from other brands. In particular, customers are attentive to the quality of the assemblies of the different elements of a vehicle and in particular the various plastic elements. Car manufacturers therefore strive to offer assemblies free from visual defects.

[0003] In this context, it is frequently necessary to improve the fit between plastic elements to take into account a design change, for example, or observed defects. Thus, it is common for an injected plastic element to have to be modified to improve its fit. However, such an adjustment requires a modification of the injection molds. Generally, a new mold must be created, which thus generates costs and a high development time.

[0004] Thus, there is a need for a solution that allows an injected plastic element to be adjusted without requiring the creation of a new injection mold.

[0005] The present invention aims to overcome the problems set out above. In this technical context, an aim of the present invention is to provide a molding device for injection molding a molded part, the molding device being able to be adjusted by implementing a suitable adjustment method.

[0006] To this end, the present invention relates to a molding device designed to allow the molding of a molded part by injection of material into a cavity of the device, the device having a main part and a counter-part designed to be mounted movably opposite each other to carry out mold closing operations, by coming into contact with each other to define, on the one hand, a closing face formed by the contact surface between the main part and the counter-part and, on the other hand, the cavity delimiting a peripheral edge of the molded part, the closing face being inclined relative to the direction of ejection of the molded part in the extension of the peripheral edge over a predefined length to allow adjustment of the cavity by removal of material.

[0007] The invention also relates to a method of adjusting a molding device, implementing a molding device according to the invention, the method comprising a step of modifying the closing face by carrying out a removal of material on the main part or the counterpart.

[0008] Thus, the molding device according to the invention makes it possible to implement an adjustment method according to the invention to adjust the molding device according to the invention, by removing material, in a simple manner to adjust the molded part accordingly. The method therefore allows adjustment of the molded part without requiring the design of a new molding device according to the invention, unlike what is usually necessary when a conventional mold is used. The molding device according to the invention therefore allows rapid adjustment of the molded part and avoids significant costs.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the invention, the counterpiece is shaped to form with the molded part, along the peripheral edge of the molded part, a docking surface inclined relative to the direction of ejection of the molded part. Such a docking surface makes it possible to promote a good finish on the side of the molded part which will be visible in the final assembly.

[0010] According to a first embodiment of the method according to the invention, the removal of material is carried out on the counterpart.

[0011] According to a second embodiment of the method according to the invention, the removal of material is carried out on the main part.

[0012] Advantageously, the adjustment method is implemented with a device whose counterpiece is shaped to form with the molded part, along the peripheral edge of the molded part, a docking surface inclined relative to the direction of ejection of the molded part.

[0013] The invention will be better understood on reading the detailed description which follows, given solely by way of non-limiting example and made with reference to the appended drawings in which:

[0014] [Fig-1] [Fig.l] represents a schematic sectional view of a device for molding according to the invention, showing a first mode of implementation of the adjustment method according to the invention;

[0015] [Fig.2] [Fig.2] represents a schematic sectional view of a molding device according to the invention, showing a second mode of implementation of the adjustment method according to the invention;

[0016] [Fig.3] [Fig.3] represents a schematic sectional view of a molding device according to the invention, showing a third mode of implementation of the adjustment method according to the invention;

[0017] In these figures, the same references are used to designate the same elements.

[0018] A molding device 1 according to the invention, shown diagrammatically in the figures, is designed to allow the molding of a molded part 2 by injection of material into a cavity 3 of the device 1. For example, the molded part 2 is made of plastic material, such as a semi-rigid plastic, in particular polypropylene. The molded part 2 can also be made of flexible plastic material such as a rubber such as, for example, an ethylene-propylene-diene monomer, an elastomeric thermoplastic and / or a vulcanized thermoplastic. In one embodiment, the molded part 2 is also composed of at least two materials, one rigid and the other semi-rigid.

[0019] As illustrated in the figures, the device 1 has, in a conventional manner, a main part 4 and a counter-part 5 designed to be mounted so as to move opposite each other in order to carry out mold closing operations, by coming into contact with each other. By coming into contact, the main part 4 and the counter-part 5 define, on the one hand, a closing face 6 formed by the contact surface between the main part 4 and the counter-part 5 and, on the other hand, the cavity 3 delimiting a peripheral edge 7 of the molded part 2. The counter-part 5 is advantageously made of steel. The main part 4 is made of steel.

[0020] In the embodiment illustrated in the figures, the closing face 6 has a flat part 8 perpendicular to the ejection direction DE, symbolized by the arrow in [Fig.l], of the molded part 2.

[0021] The device 1 has the particularity that the closing face 6 is inclined relative to the ejection direction DE of the molded part 2 in the extension of the peripheral edge 7 over a predefined length L to allow adjustment of the cavity 3 by removal of material.

[0022] As illustrated in the figures, the counterpiece 5 is shaped to form with the molded part 2, along the peripheral edge 7 of the molded part 2, a docking surface 9 inclined relative to the ejection direction DE of the molded part 2. The inclination is chosen so that the docking surface 9 is invisible when the face of the molded part 2 formed by the main part 4 is assembled, for example, on a motor vehicle.

[0023] The molding device 1 according to the invention makes it possible to implement the adjustment method according to the invention in order to adjust the device 1 when the molded part 2 requires adjustment. Indeed, the method comprises a step consisting of modifying the closing face 6 by removing material 10a, 10b, 10c from the main part 4 or the counter part 5.

[0024] Advantageously, the adjustment method is implemented with the molding device 1 whose counterpart 4 is shaped to form with the molded part 2, along the peripheral edge 7 of the molded part 2, the docking surface 9 inclined relative to the ejection direction DE of the molded part 2.

[0025] As illustrated in [Fig.l], according to a first mode of implementation of the method, the removal of material 10a is advantageously carried out on the counterpiece 5. In the example illustrated in the figures, the removal of material 10a consists of carrying out a removal of steel. The removal of material is carried out by a person skilled in the art with suitable tools. Thus, the removal of material 10a makes it possible in particular to increase the preload of the device 1 by a first quantity PI symbolized by the corresponding arrow in [Fig. 1]. This first mode of implementation has the advantage of affecting the side 11 of the molded part 2 formed by the counterpiece 5, which is generally invisible when the molded part 2 is assembled, for example on a motor vehicle.

[0026] A second embodiment of the method according to the invention consists of carrying out a removal of material 10b on the main part 4. This second embodiment is particularly suitable for a device 1 whose main part 4 is made of steel. With this second embodiment, the removal of material 10b makes it possible in particular to increase the preload of the device 1 by a second quantity P2 symbolized by the corresponding arrow in [Fig.2]. However, it should be noted that the second quantity P2 is generally less than the first quantity PI.

[0027] [Fig. 3] illustrates another embodiment of the method according to the invention consisting in carrying out a removal of material 10c when the device 1 according to the invention comprises an inclination of the docking surface 9 which is reversed with respect to the inclination of the docking surface 9 of the device 1 of FIGS. 1 and 2. By reversed it is meant that the docking surface 9 forms an angle measured with respect to the ejection direction DE in a clockwise direction while the inclination of the docking surface 9, in the devices 1 illustrated in [Fig. 1], is measured in an anticlockwise direction. Such a device 1 is particularly suitable for forming the visible side of the molded part 2 using the counterpiece 5.With this device 1, the implementation of the method according to the invention makes it possible to carry out a removal of material 10c which in particular allows the preload of the device 1 to be increased by a third quantity P3 symbolized by the corresponding arrow in [Fig.3].

[0028] It should be noted that if necessary, the method according to the invention can be implemented a second time in order to carry out an additional material removal to complete the material removal 10a, 10b, 10c. To this end, it should be ensured during the design of the device 1 that the distance D (illustrated in [Fig.l]), measured along the ejection direction DE between the peripheral edge 7 and the flat part 8, is sufficient to comply with all the constraints, in particular the strength constraints, of the device 1, once the material removal(s) 10a, 10b, 10c have been carried out.

[0029] Thus, the molding device 1 according to the invention makes it possible to implement an adjustment method for adjusting the molding device 1, thanks to the removal of material 10a, 10b, 10c. The removal of material 10a, 10b, 10c is relatively simple to carry out in order to adjust the molded part 2. The method therefore allows an adjustment of the molded part 2 without requiring the design of a new molding device 1 according to the invention, as is usually necessary when a conventional mold is used. The molding device 1 therefore allows rapid adjustment of the molded part 2 and avoids significant costs.

[0030] The invention is not limited to the embodiment of the molding device described above, only by way of example, but other embodiments can be designed by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and scope of the present invention.

Claims

Claims

1. Molding device (1) designed to allow the molding of a molded part (2) by injecting material into a cavity (3) of the device (1), the device (1) having a main part (4) and a counter part (5) designed to be mounted movably opposite each other to carry out mold closing operations, coming into contact with each other to define, on the one hand, a closing face (6) formed by the contact surface between the main part (4) and the counter part (5) and, on the other hand, the cavity (3) delimiting a peripheral edge (7) of the molded part (2), the closing face (6) being inclined relative to the ejection direction (DE) of the molded part (2) in the extension of the peripheral edge (7) over a predefined length (L) to allow adjustment of the cavity (3) by material removal (10a, 10b, 10c).

2. Molding device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the counterpiece (5) is shaped to form with the molded part (2), along the peripheral edge (7) of the molded part (2), a docking surface (9) inclined relative to the ejection direction (DE) of the molded part (2).

3. A method of adjusting a molding device (1), implementing a molding device (1) according to claim 1 or 2, the method comprising a step of modifying the closing face (6) by removing material (10a, 10b, 10c) from the main part (4) or the counter part (5).

4. Adjustment method according to claim 3, characterized in that the removal of material (10a) is carried out on the counterpiece (5).

5. Adjustment method according to claim 4, characterized in that it is implemented with a device (1) whose counterpiece (5) is shaped to form with the molded part (2), along the peripheral edge (7) of the molded part (2), a docking surface (9) inclined relative to the ejection direction (DE) of the molded part (2).

6. Adjustment method according to one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the removal of material (10b) is carried out on the main part (4).

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