Foam Molded Body Production Device with Pivotable Mold
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing production methods for molded foam bodies, such as seat pads, result in material waste and increased production costs due to the need to remove excessive thickened portions and the complexity of attaching and detaching jigs during the manufacturing process.
Innovation Solution
A production device and method that utilize an upper and lower mold with a pivotable mold to prevent excessive foam material from reaching the projection areas, allowing for the formation of molded foam bodies with reduced waste and lower costs by smoothly integrating a hard material frame within the foam body and simplifying the demolding process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the raw foam material is foamed in the cavity with the frame member arranged in the cavity, then the foam body is formed with the frame member buried, but the excessive thickened portion covers the projection portion of the frame member requiring removal work
Solution Approach 1:
The projection portion of the frame member is preliminarily arranged in the concave arrangement portion on the upper mold surface before foaming. This preliminary positioning prevents excessive foam material from reaching the projection portion, eliminating the need for subsequent removal work and reducing material waste.
Solution Approach 2:
The concave arrangement portion acts as an intermediary structure between the frame member projection portion and the foam material. It provides a designated space that guides and contains the projection portion, preventing foam material overflow while maintaining proper positioning.
2Loss of substance
If a jig is used to cover the projection portion of the frame member before foaming, then material waste is reduced, but the work of attaching and detaching the jig increases production complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The function of the jig is extracted and integrated directly into the upper mold structure through the concave arrangement portion. This eliminates the need for separate jig components and their associated attaching/detaching operations, reducing process complexity while maintaining the benefit of preventing foam material waste.
Solution Approach 2:
The jig function and the upper mold structure are merged into a single integrated component. The concave arrangement portion is formed as part of the upper mold, combining the positioning and containment functions with the molding structure, thereby simplifying the overall process.
3Productivity
If the mold is closed to form the cavity, then the foam body is formed, but the projection portion of the frame member may be covered by excessive foam material
Solution Approach 1:
The projection portion is preliminarily positioned in the concave arrangement portion before mold closing and foaming. This preliminary action ensures that when the mold is closed and foaming occurs, the projection portion remains properly positioned and is not covered by excessive foam material, maintaining both productivity and precision.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces material waste and production costs by preventing excessive foam formation around the frame projections and simplifying the demolding process, enabling the reliable and cost-effective formation of molded foam bodies.
Implementation Method 1
the raw foam material is foamed in the cavity to form the foam body
Data Source
AI summary
A production device (20) of a molded foam body includes an upper mold (21) and a lower mold (22) having a cavity (23) formed between mold surfaces (21a, 22a) facing each other, wherein a raw foam material is supplied on the mold surface (22a) of the lower mold (22) and a hard material (3) is detachably arranged on the mold surface (21a) of the upper mold (21), and the raw foam material is foamed in the cavity (23) with the hard material (3) arranged on the mold surface (21a) of the upper mold (21) to form a foam body and a portion other than a projection portion (11) of the hard material (3) is fixed to the foam body to form the molded foam body in which the projection portion (11) projects from the foam body, and wherein on the mold surface (21a) of the upper mold (21), a concave arrangement portion (28) that is opened toward the lower mold (22) side and on which the projection portion (11) is arranged is formed, and a pivotable mold (27) that opens and closes the concave arrangement portion (28) from the lower mold (22) side by rotating around a pivot shaft (26) extending in a direction along the mold surface (21a) is provided.