Metal mold monitoring device

Abstract

To appropriately set an image capturing timing to prevent an excessive data amount and sufficiently analyze occurrence of abnormality in mold monitoring in which a moving image is captured.SOLUTION: Respective moving images captured by a plurality of cameras 1a and 1b directed to an inside of a movable mold 91 are transmitted to a device body 2 and stored in a storage unit 3 as respective moving image files 32. In a monitoring sequence program 31, primary monitoring is performed according to a primary monitoring program 331 using a still image acquired from a moving image during a lapse of a molding time Tm after molds 91 and 92 are opened, and secondary monitoring is further performed according to a secondary monitoring program 332 using a still image acquired from a moving image during a lapse of an ejection time Tp. In the monitoring sequence program 31, the respective cameras 1a and 1b are caused to start capturing a moving image at a timing earlier than the primary monitoring by T1, and the capturing of a moving image is ended when normality is detected or is extended by a time T2 when abnormality is detected in secondary monitoring.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The invention of this application relates to a mold monitoring device that monitors molds in a molding apparatus used for molding various articles. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, molding devices equipped with dies have been used to mold various articles. For example, in an injection molding machine, which is a type of molding device, a thermoplastic resin is heated to soften it, filled into a die, and then cooled to mold an article of a desired shape. As the die, a set of dies consisting of one or more dies is used. For example, a pair of dies consisting of a fixed die and a movable die is used. Hereinafter, the molding process in which material is filled into a die in this way is referred to as a molding cycle.

[0003] In such molding devices, it is often necessary to monitor the mold. For this reason, a mold monitoring device is used. The mold monitoring device has a camera that takes pictures of the inside of the mold and a judgment unit that processes the images taken by the camera and judges whether the molding situation is normal or abnormal. The camera is often installed in a position where it can take pictures of the inside of the movable mold.

[0004] There are two main reasons for monitoring molds with cameras. One reason is to monitor the molding status after molding, while the article is held in the mold. This type of monitoring is called primary monitoring. In primary monitoring, the shape of the article on the mold is checked to determine whether it has been molded correctly. If the article has a chip or other defect and is determined to be an incorrect shape, the primary monitoring results in an abnormality, and the mold monitoring device outputs a primary monitoring abnormality. The output of the mold monitoring device is input to the main control unit of the molding device, and when a primary monitoring abnormality is output, the main control unit controls the molding device to stop operation. Then, an operator investigates the cause of the incorrect molding.

[0005] Another purpose of mold monitoring is to check whether the mold opens after molding and the product is removed properly, mainly for the next molding. This type of monitoring is called secondary monitoring. In secondary monitoring, images of the inner surface of the mold are used to determine whether the product has not been properly removed and remains, or whether some material remains. If the product has not been released or some material remains, a secondary monitoring error is output, and control is exercised to stop the operation of the molding device in the same way. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6584472 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6798794 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In the above-mentioned conventional mold monitoring device, the primary monitoring and secondary monitoring are performed by still images at the respective timings. However, monitoring by still images alone can cause problems such as insufficient monitoring and inability to fully grasp the situation when an abnormality occurs. Therefore, it is considered to perform monitoring by video.

[0008] However, when monitoring with video, the data size sent from the camera becomes huge, so unless the timing of video shooting is set appropriately, monitoring and analysis of abnormal occurrences become difficult. The present invention is intended to solve such a problem, and has an object to prevent the amount of data from becoming excessive and to enable sufficient analysis of abnormal occurrences by appropriately setting the timing of shooting in video monitoring of molds. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve the above problems, the mold monitoring device disclosed in this specification is a mold monitoring device that monitors the inside of the molds that are opened after molding, in a molding apparatus in which a set of molds, at least one of which is a movable mold, is closed while an article is molded inside the molds and then the molds are opened to remove the article, and is equipped with a camera that is pointed toward the inside of the open molds and is capable of taking video, a control unit that controls the start and stop of video recording by the camera, and a judgment unit that judges whether the molding condition is normal or abnormal based on an image of the inside of the molds taken by the camera or another camera. This mold monitoring device is provided with a video shooting span setting unit that sets the timing for starting and ending video shooting by the camera during one molding cycle, and the control unit controls the start and end of shooting by the camera in accordance with the settings in the video shooting span setting unit. The setting in the video capture span setting unit is based on the timing at which the determination unit determines whether the molding state is normal or abnormal. Greater than zero It is set in time intervals. In addition, in order to solve the above problem, this mold monitoring device can be configured so that the timing at which the judgment unit judges whether the molding state is normal or abnormal is the timing of primary monitoring after the mold is opened and before the item removal operation is performed, and the timing at which shooting in the video shooting span setting unit starts is prior to the timing of primary monitoring and is the timing at which the operation to open the mold is started or earlier. In addition, in order to solve the above problem, this mold monitoring device can be configured so that the timing at which the judgment unit judges whether the molding state is normal or abnormal is the timing of secondary monitoring that is performed after the item removal operation, the timing at which shooting in the video shooting span setting unit starts is the timing at which the item removal operation starts or earlier, and the timing at which shooting ends is the timing of secondary monitoring or later. In addition, in order to solve the above problems, this mold monitoring device can be configured so that the timing for ending photographing is set to end at the point when it is determined that the secondary monitoring is normal, and is set to extend photographing by a predetermined time width if it is determined that the secondary monitoring is abnormal. In addition, in order to solve the above problem, this mold monitoring device may be configured so that the judgment unit performs secondary monitoring again after an abnormality is determined to exist at the timing of the first secondary monitoring following the item removal operation, and the timing for ending shooting in the video shooting span setting unit is set so that shooting ends at the point when the second or subsequent secondary monitoring is determined to be normal, and is set so that shooting is extended by a predetermined time width if an abnormality is determined. In addition, in order to solve the above problem, the mold monitoring device can be configured so that a camera photographs the inside of a movable mold, and is installed so that both the start position and the end position of the movement of the movable mold when the mold is opened are within the photographing area. In addition, in order to solve the above problems, this mold monitoring device may be configured so that multiple cameras are provided so as to simultaneously capture multiple locations inside the mold, and the timing for starting and ending shooting in the video shooting span setting unit is set as a common timing for each camera. Effect of the Invention

[0010] As described below, according to the mold monitoring device of the disclosed invention, video of the mold being monitored is taken and stored in the memory, so that analysis can be performed more effectively when an abnormality occurs. In this case, the video becomes one video file for one molding, so file management in the memory is easy. Also, instead of having the camera keep rolling all the time, the video is taken at a span (start and end) based on the timing of the mold monitoring, so that the amount of video data does not become unnecessarily excessive, and analysis can be performed sufficiently using the video when an abnormality occurs. Furthermore, if the timing for starting filming is before the timing of primary monitoring and at or before the timing when the mold opening operation begins, this is useful for analyzing how the mold opening operation is related to an abnormality that is determined to be present in the primary monitoring. In addition, according to a configuration in which the timing for starting the image capture is the timing when the action of taking out the item starts or before that, and the timing for ending the image capture is the timing for the secondary monitoring or after that, when an abnormality is determined in the secondary monitoring, it is possible to analyze how the action of taking out the item is related to the abnormality. But It will be beneficial. Furthermore, in a configuration in which if the secondary monitoring determines that the condition is normal, recording is set to end at that point, and if the secondary monitoring determines that the condition is abnormal, recording is set to be extended for a specified period of time, it becomes possible to more thoroughly analyze cases in which the secondary monitoring determines that the condition is abnormal, while preventing the amount of video data from becoming excessive. In addition, if an abnormality is determined to be present during the first secondary monitoring following the item removal operation, secondary monitoring is performed again, and if an abnormality is determined to be present during the second or subsequent secondary monitoring, photographing is extended. This configuration makes it possible to prevent a secondary monitoring abnormality from being output in the case of a minor malfunction, and makes it possible to more thoroughly analyze cases in which an abnormality is determined to be present during the second or subsequent secondary monitoring. Furthermore, if the camera is positioned so that both the start and end positions of the movement of the movable mold when opening the mold are included in the shooting area, the entire movement of the movable mold will be captured in the video, which is particularly suitable for analyzing the relationship of abnormalities to the mold opening operation. In addition, in a configuration in which multiple cameras are provided and the start and end timings of shooting in the video shooting span setting unit are set as common timings for each camera, monitoring of large molds can be performed appropriately while obtaining the above-mentioned effects. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1]1 is a schematic plan view of a mold monitoring device according to a first embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 2] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing a span of moving image shooting input as setting information. [Diagram 3] 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a movie shooting span setting window displayed by the setting information input program. FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a schematic diagram of a monitoring sequence program implemented in the mold monitoring device of the embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 5] 13 is a schematic diagram showing a main part of a mold monitoring device according to a second embodiment, and a flowchart showing an outline of a main part of a monitoring sequence program according to the second embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG 1 is a schematic plan view of a mold monitoring device according to a first embodiment. The mold monitoring device shown in Fig. 1 includes cameras 1a and 1b capable of taking moving images, and a device main body 2 including a control unit that controls the start and stop of taking moving images by the cameras 1a and 1b. The molding device 9 includes a movable mold 91, a fixed mold 92, a moving mechanism 93 that moves the movable mold 91, a material injection system 94 that injects material into the closed molds 91 and 92, a main control unit 90 that controls each part, etc. In addition, although not shown, it includes an ejection mechanism that performs an ejection operation to remove an article after molding, etc.

[0013] In this embodiment, cameras 1a and 1b are attached so as to photograph the inner surface of movable mold 91 of molding device 9. In this embodiment, two cameras 1a and 1b are provided, each of which photographs a different area inside movable mold 91. Each of cameras 1a and 1b is equipped with an image sensor with, for example, about 2 to 3 million pixels, and may be monochrome, but is more preferably color.

[0014] 1, the cameras 1a and 1b are depicted as being attached to the fixed mold 92, but they may be attached to a pedestal or the like installed separately from the fixed mold 92. Also, since FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view, the cameras 1a and 1b face the movable mold 91 from an oblique side, but they may be attached to the upper surface of the fixed mold 92 and face the movable mold 91 from an obliquely upward direction. The cameras 1a and 1b photograph the inner surface of the movable mold 91, but when a molded article is held, that portion of the inner surface is covered with the article, and the cameras are in a state of photographing the article.

[0015] As described later, the shooting span of each camera 1a, 1b is set so that the camera 1a, 1b shoots a video of the opening operation of the movable mold 91. Therefore, each camera 1a, 1b is installed and the shooting area is adjusted so that the position of the movable mold 91 in the closed state and the position of the movable mold 91 in the open state are included in the shooting area. The shooting area in this case is the shooting area when the posture of each camera 1a, 1b is fixed.

[0016] The device body 2 includes a control unit that controls the shooting of the cameras 1a and 1b, as well as a judgment unit that judges whether the molding state is normal or abnormal. In this embodiment, the device body 2 is a portable computer device equipped with a processor 21, a display 22, an input / output interface 23, etc. Specifically, for example, a tablet PC equipped with a display of about 10 to 12 inches can be used as the device body 2.

[0017] The device body 2 has a storage unit 3 such as an SSD or HDD. The storage unit 3 stores a monitoring sequence program 31 including control of the operation of the cameras 1a and 1b, each video file 32 captured by each camera 1a and 1b, each monitoring program 331, 332 that performs primary monitoring and secondary monitoring based on the images captured by each camera 1a and 1b, and reference image files 341, 342 referenced by each monitoring program 331, 332. In addition, the storage unit 3 stores a setting information file 35 that records various setting information, a setting information input program 36 for inputting setting information, and the like. Therefore, in this embodiment, the control unit is composed of the device body 2 and the monitoring sequence program 31 implemented in the device body 2. Also, the judgment unit is composed of the device body 2 and each monitoring program 331, 332 implemented in the device body 2.

[0018] The display 22 also functions as a touch panel and serves as an input section for setting information, and the setting information input program 36 is a program that displays an input screen on the display 22 and records the input setting information in the setting information file 35. The mold monitoring device is connected to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9, and when an abnormality is detected in the primary or secondary monitoring, it outputs a message to the main control unit 90 via the input / output interface 23. Each of the monitoring programs 331, 332 is a program that compares the image (still image) sent from the cameras 1a, 1b with a reference image and judges whether the image is normal or abnormal based on the difference.

[0019] Next, setting information of the span of video shooting by the cameras 1a and 1b, which is a major feature of the mold monitoring device of the embodiment, will be described. Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the span of video shooting input as setting information. As shown in Fig. 2, the span of video shooting is set based on the primary monitoring timing t1 and the secondary monitoring timing t2. Specifically, the start timing of video shooting is set to be the same as or earlier than the primary monitoring timing t1. That is, the time lag from the start of video shooting to the primary monitoring (shown as T1 in Fig. 2) may be 0. Hereinafter, this time lag T1 is referred to as the shooting start advance time.

[0020] The timing of the end of video shooting is set to a timing later than the secondary monitoring timing t2. In Fig. 2, the time lag from the secondary monitoring timing t2 to the end of video shooting is indicated as T2. Hereinafter, this time lag T2 will be referred to as the shooting end delay time. These video shooting span setting information are set by being input in advance using the setting information input program 36.

[0021] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a video shooting span setting window displayed by the setting information input program 36. As shown in Fig. 3, the video shooting span setting window has a shooting start advance time input field 41 and a shooting end delay time input field 42. The shooting start advance time input field 41 is a field for inputting the advance time from the timing of primary monitoring as a numerical value (seconds) (0 can be input). The shooting end delay time input field 42 is a field for inputting the delay time from the timing of secondary monitoring as a numerical value (seconds) (0 cannot be input).

[0022] In this embodiment, it is possible to select whether or not to delay the end of shooting depending on whether an abnormality is output in secondary monitoring. Specifically, the setting information input screen has an option input field 43 for delaying the end of shooting. The option input field 43 is a field for selecting whether or not to delay the end of shooting when an abnormality is detected in secondary monitoring. When these input fields are filled in and the OK button 44 is pressed, the setting information input program 36 records the input information in the setting information file 34.

[0023] Next, a description will be given of the monitoring sequence program 31 for operating the mold monitoring device in a predetermined sequence based on the information thus preset. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of the monitoring sequence program 31 implemented in the mold monitoring device of the embodiment. 1 is configured to receive signals indicating the operating status of the molding device 9. The monitoring sequence program 31 is always in an executed state while the molding device 9 is in operation, and in a standby state, is in a state of waiting for input of an operating status signal from the molding device 9.

[0024] The time from when molding is started to the timing t1 of primary monitoring is given as a constant to the monitoring sequence program 31. This time includes the time from when the set of dies 91, 92 are closed to when they are opened, that is, the time from when the dies 91, 92 are closed, when the material is injected, to when solidification is completed, and is a little longer than that. Hereinafter, this time is called molding time, and is indicated by Tm in FIG. 2. The monitoring sequence program 31 starts a timer count when it receives a signal indicating that the molds 91, 92 are closed at a certain time. Hereinafter, this signal indicating that the molds 91, 92 are closed will be referred to as a molding start signal.

[0025] When the timer count reaches the shaping time Tm-shooting start advance time T1, the monitoring sequence program 31 sends a control signal to start shooting to the cameras 1a and 1b. Then, when the timer count reaches the shaping time Tm, the monitoring sequence program 31 acquires still images at that time from the video sent from the cameras 1a and 1b, and passes them as arguments to the primary monitoring program 331 to perform primary monitoring.

[0026] The primary monitoring is performed by each of the cameras 1a and 1b. For convenience of explanation, the two cameras will be referred to as the first camera 1a and the second camera 1b below. The primary monitoring program 331 compares a still image taken from the video of the first camera 1a with a reference image for primary monitoring for the first camera 1a. It then determines whether the difference is within a limit, and if so, the primary monitoring for the first camera 1a is deemed normal. If the difference exceeds the limit, the primary monitoring for the first camera 1a is deemed abnormal. Next, the primary monitoring program 331 compares a still image taken from the video of the second camera 1b with a reference image for primary monitoring for the second camera 1b, and determines whether the difference is within a limit. If the difference is within the limit, the primary monitoring for the second camera 1b is deemed normal, and if so, the primary monitoring for the second camera 1b is deemed abnormal. If the result of the monitoring sequence program 31 is abnormal for either of the cameras 1a, 1b, the monitoring sequence program 31 outputs a primary monitoring abnormality to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9. At this time, information indicating which of the cameras 1a, 1b showed the abnormal result is also output.

[0027] On the other hand, the time from the timing of the primary monitoring to the timing of the secondary monitoring is given as a constant to the monitoring sequence program 31. This time includes the time required for the pushing-out operation. Hereinafter, this time will be called the pushing-out time, and is indicated by Tp in FIG. 2. At the time of primary monitoring, the monitoring sequence program 31 resets the timer count to 0 and restarts it. Then, when the timer count reaches the protrusion time Tp, the monitoring sequence program 31 acquires still images from the video sent from the cameras 1a and 1b at that time, passes them as arguments, and executes the secondary monitoring program 332 to perform secondary monitoring.

[0028] The secondary monitoring program 332 compares the still image acquired from the video of the first camera 1a with the secondary monitoring reference image for the first camera 1a. It then determines whether the difference is within a limit, and if it is within the limit, the secondary monitoring for the first camera 1a is normal. If it exceeds the limit, the secondary monitoring for the first camera 1a is abnormal. Next, the secondary monitoring program 332 compares the still image extracted from the video of the second camera 1b with the secondary monitoring reference image for the second camera 1b and determines whether the difference is within a limit. If it is within the limit, the secondary monitoring for the second camera 1b is normal, and if it exceeds the limit, it is abnormal.

[0029] Then, if the result of the monitoring sequence program 31 is abnormal for either of the cameras 1a, 1b, it outputs a secondary monitoring abnormality to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9. At this time, information indicating which of the cameras 1a, 1b showed the abnormal result is also output. 4, when the result of the secondary monitoring is normal (when both cameras 1a and 1b are normal), the monitoring sequence program 31 transmits a control signal for ending the shooting to the cameras 1a and 1b. Whether the result of the secondary monitoring is normal or abnormal, the monitoring sequence program 31 resets the timer count to 0.

[0030] In the case of a secondary monitoring abnormality, the monitoring sequence program 31 does not send a control signal for ending the shooting to the cameras 1a and 1b, and restarts the timer count. After that, when the timer count reaches the shooting end delay time T2, the monitoring sequence program 31 sends a control signal for ending the shooting to the cameras 1a and 1b. Then, the timer count is stopped and reset to 0. This completes the monitoring sequence for one molding cycle, and the monitoring sequence program 31 enters a state of waiting for the next molding start signal.

[0031] As an example of each time, for example, the shooting start advance time T1 is set to 5 seconds, and the primary monitoring is set to be performed 1 second after the completion of the opening operation of the movable mold 91. The opening operation of the movable mold 91 takes about 3 seconds, and shooting of the video starts about 1 second before the opening operation of the movable mold 91 starts. Further, the protruding time Tp is set to, for example, 5 seconds. The protruding operation starts immediately after the timing of the primary monitoring and is completed about 2 to 3 seconds before the timing of the secondary monitoring. The time for the protruding operation itself is about 1 to 2 seconds. And the shooting end delay time T2 is set to, for example, 5 seconds. The video shooting ends at the earliest at the timing of the secondary monitoring, so in either case, the video shooting ends after the protruding operation is completed.

[0032] Although the explanation is omitted, the above example is a case where video recording is extended when a secondary monitoring abnormality occurs. This setting information is set by the setting information input program 36 as described above, and this setting information is passed as an argument when the monitoring sequence program 31 is started. In the above monitoring sequence, if an abnormality is output in the primary monitoring, the molding device 9 usually stops operating. In this case, an end of photography signal is output at that point, photography ends, and secondary monitoring is not performed. However, photography may be continued. If it is continued, photography ends when the timer count reaches the protrusion time Tp, and the timer count is reset to zero.

[0033] In the above monitoring sequence, the primary monitoring may be performed when a signal indicating that the movable mold 91 is open is sent from the molding device 9. In this case, too, a video capture start signal is sent to the cameras 1a and 1b when the time Tm-T1 has elapsed since the timer started counting.

[0034] As can be seen from the above description, in the monitoring sequence, one moving image file 32 is generated and stored for one molding cycle and one camera. The storage unit 3 is provided with a folder for storing the moving image file 32. The folder for storing the moving image file 32 is divided into a folder for storing the moving image file 32 when the mold monitoring is normal (hereinafter, the normal folder) and a folder for storing the moving image file 32 when the mold monitoring is abnormal (hereinafter, the abnormal folder). Furthermore, the abnormal folder has a subfolder for the first camera 1a and a subfolder for the second camera 1b.

[0035] When an abnormality occurs in the mold monitoring, each video file 32 is stored in the abnormality folder for the corresponding camera. That is, when an abnormality occurs in the first camera 1a, the video file 32 is stored in the abnormality folder for the first camera 1a, and when an abnormality occurs in the second camera 1b, the video file 32 is stored in the abnormality folder for the second camera 1b. At this time, each video file 32 is stored with the date and time when the video was shot (the start date and time of shooting or the end date and time of shooting) as the file name. The moving image file 32 when both the first and second mold monitoring are normal may be stored in a normal folder without using the shooting date and time as the file name and be constantly overwritten. Alternatively, an upper limit may be set on the size of the normal folder, and when the upper limit is reached, the oldest moving image file 32 may be deleted. In addition, when an abnormality occurs, each video file 32 may be stored in the same folder with a file name that allows distinction between the video captured by the first camera 1a and the video captured by the second camera 1b. This point is the same for the video file 32 when normal.

[0036] The overall operation of the mold monitoring device of this embodiment and the overall operation of the molding device 9 will be described below. In a manufacturing line for an article in which molding is performed using a molding device 9, an operator inputs necessary setting information to a mold monitoring device. The setting information includes molding time Tm, ejection time Tp, advance time T1 for starting image capture, and delay time T2 for ending image capture. Then, the mold monitoring device is operated, and molding is performed by the molding device 9.

[0037] The molding device 9 injects material into the molds 91, 92 with the set of molds 91, 92 closed. At this time, a molding start signal is sent to the mold monitoring device. Upon receiving the molding start signal, the mold monitoring device starts counting on a timer. When the set molding time Tm has elapsed, the molding device 9 moves the movable mold 91 to open the molds 91, 92. During this time, when the time (molding time Tm - shooting start advance time T1) has elapsed, a shooting start signal is sent to the cameras 1a, 1b, and the cameras 1a, 1b start shooting video. Then, immediately after the molds 91, 92 are opened, the mold monitoring device performs primary monitoring. That is, still images at the time of primary monitoring are obtained from the data of each video sent from the cameras 1a, 1b, and each is compared with a reference image to judge whether the molding situation is normal or abnormal.

[0038] If the primary monitoring determines that an abnormality has occurred, a message to that effect is sent to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9. This causes the main control unit 90 to operate and interrupt the molding cycle. If no primary monitoring abnormality is output, the molding device 9 performs an ejection operation. As a result, the article is ejected and removed from the molds 91 and 92.

[0039] Meanwhile, the timer of the mold monitoring device is reset to 0 at the timing of primary monitoring and restarted. When the timer count reaches the ejection time Tp, the mold monitoring device stops the timer count and resets it to 0, and performs secondary monitoring. That is, still images at the ejection time Tp are obtained from each video sent from the cameras 1a and 1b, and each is compared with a reference image to judge whether the molding situation is normal or abnormal.

[0040] If the secondary monitoring is judged to be normal, the mold monitoring device outputs a control signal to end image capture to the cameras 1a and 1b. If the secondary monitoring is judged to be abnormal, the mold monitoring device outputs a message to that effect to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9 and restarts the timer count. Then, when the timer count reaches the image capture end delay time T2, the mold monitoring device sends a control signal to end image capture to the cameras 1a and 1b. On the other hand, the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9 that receives the output of the secondary monitoring abnormality stops the next molding cycle and keeps the dies 91, 92 open. If the secondary monitoring is normal, the molding device 9 closes the dies 91, 92 again, injects material, and performs the next molding cycle.

[0041] In the above operation, if the primary monitoring detects an abnormality and the operation of the molding device 9 stops, the worker investigates the situation. At this time, in addition to checking the molds 91, 92, the worker also plays the video file 32 stored in the mold monitoring device to check the video. The worker then identifies the cause of the primary monitoring abnormality and takes necessary measures. The same applies if the secondary monitoring detects an abnormality; the worker checks the molds 91, 92, checks the video from the mold monitoring device, and takes necessary measures. The device main body 2 is equipped with a program for playing the video file 32 on the display 22, and this program is used when checking the video.

[0042] According to the embodiment of the mold monitoring device relating to the above operation, video is taken of the molds 91, 92 undergoing primary and secondary monitoring and stored in the memory unit 3, so that analysis can be performed more effectively if an abnormality occurs during primary or secondary monitoring. In this case, the moving image becomes one moving image file 32 for one molding cycle, so that file management in the storage unit 3 is easy. For example, if a lot number is assigned to each molding cycle in the molding device 9, each moving image file 32 can be managed in correspondence with this lot number.

[0043] Also, since the cameras 1a and 1b are not constantly rotating, but rather the video is taken at a span (start and end) based on the timing of the mold monitoring, the amount of video data does not become unnecessarily excessive. In other words, video can be recorded only during the time periods required for primary and secondary monitoring, and necessary video can be recorded while saving the storage area of ​​the storage unit 3 for video storage. Therefore, when an abnormality occurs, analysis can be performed sufficiently using the video.

[0044] The fact that there is one video file 32 for one molding cycle is significant in that it allows easy identification of the video file 32 for the molding cycle in which an abnormality has occurred. That is, the date and time when the mold monitoring device outputs an abnormality and the molding operation is stopped is stored in the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9. Therefore, the video file 32 with the date and time closest to this date and time in its file name is the video file 32 when the abnormality occurred, and by playing back this video file 32, the occurrence of the abnormality can be confirmed through video.

[0045] In addition, in this embodiment, since the video recording can be started at any time before the timing of the primary monitoring, a video of an appropriate span can be stored in relation to the opening operation of the movable mold 91. For example, by setting the video recording start advance time T1 to a time slightly longer than the time required for the movable mold 91 to open, the entire situation of the mold opening can be captured in the video. This has an important significance in the analysis of the occurrence of a primary monitoring abnormality. That is, it is possible to analyze from the video whether the opening operation of the movable mold 91 is related to the cause of the occurrence of the primary monitoring abnormality. In this case, since the video recording start advance time can be set according to the time required for the movable mold 91 to open, the analysis of the primary monitoring abnormality is optimized according to the molding of various articles and various molding devices 9.

[0046] In relation to the above, in this embodiment, the cameras 1a and 1b are installed so that both the start and end positions of the movable mold 91 during the opening operation of the molds 91 and 92 are included in the shooting area. This point is also significant. That is, since the entire movement of the movable mold 91 is captured in the video, it is particularly suitable for analyzing the relationship between an abnormality and the opening operation.

[0047] In addition, when an abnormality occurs in the secondary monitoring, the video recording is extended by the delay time of the end of the recording, which is very useful for checking the situation of the abnormality in the secondary monitoring and the situation after that. In particular, when a secondary monitoring abnormality is output, if an operator goes to the molds 91, 92 to investigate, the article may be correctly ejected and not abnormal. This situation is often the case where the article is caught on the movable mold 91 at the time of the secondary monitoring and is determined to be abnormal, but then falls off and is in a normal state when the operator arrives. In this case, such a situation cannot be determined by just looking at the still image at the time of the secondary monitoring, but it can be immediately determined by looking at the video after the secondary monitoring. In this way, according to the mold monitoring device of the embodiment, the situation when an abnormality occurs in each mold monitoring can be analyzed in more detail and accurately.

[0048] Next, a description will be given of a mold monitoring device according to a second embodiment. Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the main parts of the mold monitoring device according to the second embodiment, and a flow chart showing the outline of the main parts of a monitoring sequence program in the second embodiment. In the mold monitoring device of the second embodiment, if an abnormality is determined in the secondary monitoring, a configuration is adopted in which the secondary monitoring is performed again after a time has elapsed. To be more specific, as shown in Fig. 5, in the second embodiment, if an abnormality is determined in the secondary monitoring, at this point in time, no secondary monitoring abnormality is output to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9, and the timer count is reset to zero and then restarted. Also, at this point in time, a photography end signal is not output to each of the cameras 1a and 1b, and photography is extended.

[0049] Then, when the timer count reaches a predetermined value (hereinafter, referred to as the second monitoring time T3), the monitoring sequence program 31 executes the second monitoring program 332 by passing the still images acquired from the video of each camera 1a, 1b at that time as arguments. In the camera If the execution result indicates an abnormality, a secondary monitoring abnormality is output to the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9. In the cameraIf the execution result is also determined to be normal, no secondary monitoring abnormality is output to the main control unit 90. If an abnormality is detected in the second secondary monitoring, similarly, the shooting end signal is not output at that point, and the shooting end signal is output when the shooting end delay time T2 has elapsed. The second monitoring time T3 is shorter than the shooting end delay time T2 extended after the first secondary monitoring, so that shooting is not interrupted. For example, if the shooting end delay time T2 is 5 seconds, the second monitoring time T3 is set to 2 seconds.

[0050] In the second embodiment, even if secondary monitoring detects an abnormality once, secondary monitoring is performed again after a predetermined time has elapsed, and if it is still determined to be abnormal, a secondary monitoring abnormality is output to the main control unit 90 of the forming device 9, so that the problem of outputting a secondary monitoring abnormality is eliminated even when a minor malfunction occurs, such as an article being slightly caught during ejection and naturally falling within a short time. In this case, too, the occurrence of such a minor malfunction can be confirmed later on in a video, so that appropriate measures can be taken for the minor malfunction, and it is possible to prevent the situation from developing into one in which an abnormality is detected in the second secondary monitoring as well.

[0051] Note that video files 32 that are determined to be abnormal in the first secondary monitoring but become normal in the second secondary monitoring are also stored in the abnormality folder in the storage unit 3. In this case, it is preferable to store the files in a folder different from the folder for cases where an abnormality is detected in the first secondary monitoring, since this makes subsequent analysis easier.

[0052] In the second embodiment, if an abnormality occurs in the second secondary monitoring, it is also useful for later analysis to further extend the imaging end delay time T2. For example, in the above example, if the re-secondary monitoring time T3 is 2 seconds and an abnormality occurs again at that time, the timer count is reset to zero and another imaging end delay time of 5 seconds is provided. In this example, the imaging end delay is 7 seconds from the timing of the first secondary monitoring. If an abnormality is also detected during the secondary monitoring, a configuration may be adopted in which a second secondary monitoring time T2 is added and the third and subsequent secondary monitoring are performed. In this case, if an abnormality is detected during the second secondary monitoring, the shooting end delay time T2 is further added to extend the shooting, so that shooting will not be interrupted until the third and subsequent secondary monitoring.

[0053] In each of the above-described embodiments, a method using a color image can be adopted as a method for the primary monitoring and the secondary monitoring. Specifically, the method disclosed in JP 2019-197146 A can be adopted. Furthermore, still images acquired for primary and secondary monitoring may not be acquired from videos captured by the cameras 1a and 1b, but a separate camera for still images may be provided and the primary and secondary monitoring may be performed using still images captured by the separate camera. However, if the cameras 1a and 1b for capturing videos are also used for acquiring still images, the number of cameras can be reduced, which has a significant cost advantage.

[0054] In each embodiment, camera Although it was supposed to be two, only one was used. camera But it's okay, 3 or more camera may also be used. The camera When used, each camera A reference image is stored for each of the camera If the deviation of the image from the reference image is equal to or greater than a certain limit, the primary or secondary monitoring is determined to be abnormal. The video capture span is set to a common setting for each camera. Also, the object of monitoring may be the fixed mold 92 rather than the movable mold 91. Furthermore, both the movable mold 91 and the fixed mold 92 may be monitored, and both of a pair of molds may be movable molds and each may be monitored.

[0055] As described above, the imaging start advance time T1 is a value greater than 0, but it may be set to 0. For example, it is set to 0 when the time required for the opening operation of the movable mold 91 is very short or when the opening operation of the movable mold 91 does not cause a primary monitoring abnormality. Since the total imaging time of the video is shortened, setting the imaging advance time to 0 has the advantage of requiring less storage capacity for saving the video. Regarding the end of shooting, in the above embodiments, in the case of a secondary monitoring abnormality, the end of shooting is delayed by a time greater than 0, but a configuration in which no delay is imposed even in the case of a secondary monitoring abnormality may be adopted. Since the total shooting time of the video is shortened, the memory capacity for saving the video can be reduced as well.

[0056] Also, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, if an abnormality is detected in the primary monitoring, the video recording is stopped, but it may be resumed after a temporary interruption (resuming as a video of the same lot). That is, if an abnormality is detected in the primary monitoring, the video of the molding device may be resumed after an operator checks and finds no problems, or it may be resumed after necessary measures are taken. In such a case, the video recording is also resumed, the timer is started again from zero, and secondary monitoring is performed when the ejection time Tp is reached. In such a case, the video file after the restart may be a different file from the video file before the restart, or they may be the same video file (using the recording pause function).

[0057] In the above embodiments, an injection molding apparatus using thermoplastic resin as a material has been described as an example of the molding apparatus 9, but the use of the mold monitoring device of the present invention is not limited to this. The mold monitoring device of the present invention can be used to monitor molds in various molding apparatuses, such as injection molding apparatuses using other materials, molding apparatuses performing press molding, and molding apparatuses performing forging and casting. Also, although the device main body 2 was a portable computer device similar to a tablet PC, it may be a computer device similar to a desktop PC. Furthermore, it may be a computer device mounted in the main control unit 90 of the molding device 9. However, if the device main body 2 is portable, it is preferable because the worker can watch the video wherever he or she is in the factory. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 1 Camera 2. Device body 21 Processors 22 Display 23 Input / Output Interface 3 Storage section 31 Monitoring sequence program 32 Video files 331 Primary Surveillance Program 332 Secondary Surveillance Program 36 Setting information input program 9 Molding equipment 90 Main control unit 91 Movable Mold 92 Fixed mold

Claims

1. A molding apparatus in which a set of molds, at least one of which is a movable mold, is closed to mold an article within the molds and then the molds are opened to remove the article, comprising: a mold monitoring device for monitoring the inside of the molds that are opened after molding, a camera directed toward the inside of the open mold and capable of taking video; A control unit that controls start and stop of video capture by the camera; a judgment unit for judging whether a molding state is normal or abnormal based on an image of the inside of the mold captured by the camera or another camera; Equipped with a video shooting span setting unit is provided which sets a timing for starting and ending video shooting by the camera in one molding operation, and the control unit controls the start and end of shooting by the camera in accordance with the setting in the video shooting span setting unit; A mold monitoring device characterized in that the setting in the video capture span setting unit is set to a time width greater than zero based on the timing at which the judgment unit judges whether the molding state is normal or abnormal.

2. The timing at which the judgment unit judges whether the molding state is normal or abnormal is the timing of primary monitoring after the mold is opened and before an article removal operation is performed, The mold monitoring device according to claim 1, characterized in that the timing at which shooting begins in the video shooting span setting unit is prior to the timing of primary monitoring and is the timing at or before the start of the mold opening operation.

3. The timing at which the determination unit determines whether the molding state is normal or abnormal is the timing of secondary monitoring that is performed after the article pick-up operation, A mold monitoring device as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the timing of starting shooting in the video shooting span setting unit is the timing at which the item removal operation begins or earlier, and the timing of ending shooting is the timing of secondary monitoring or later.

4. The mold monitoring device according to claim 3, characterized in that the timing for ending the photographing is set so that if the secondary monitoring determines that the condition is normal, the photographing ends at the point in time at which it is determined that the condition is normal, and is set so that if the secondary monitoring determines that the condition is abnormal, the photographing is extended by a predetermined time period.

5. the determination unit performs secondary monitoring again after determining that an abnormality has occurred at the timing of the first secondary monitoring after the item pick-up operation, The mold monitoring device according to claim 4, characterized in that the timing for ending recording in the video recording span setting unit is set so that recording ends at that point if the second or subsequent secondary monitoring is judged to be normal, and is set so that recording is extended by a predetermined time width if the secondary monitoring is judged to be abnormal.

6. A mold monitoring device as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the camera is adapted to photograph the inside of the mold, which is a movable mold, and is installed so that both the start position and the end position of the movement of the movable mold when the mold is opened are within the photographing area.

7. A plurality of cameras are provided so that a plurality of locations inside the mold can be photographed simultaneously, 7. The mold monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the timings for starting and ending the image capture in said video image capture span setting unit are set as common timings for each camera.

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