Plasticizing Device Screw Gap Design for Material Backflow
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Solution Overview
Problem
In plasticizing devices with flat screws, material flow backward, reducing the capacity to supply material to communication holes, which can lead to poor material supply in injection molding machines and three-dimensional shaping apparatuses.
Innovation Solution
A plasticizing device design featuring a drive motor, screw with a groove forming surface, and a barrel with a communication hole, where a first facing region and a second facing region are defined, with the second gap being larger than the first gap, and the second facing region closer to the central portion, preventing material backflow by concentrating material towards the communication hole.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a flat screw with a spiral groove is used to move material, then the material can be transported along the screw, but the material flows backward reducing supply capacity to the communication hole
Solution Approach 1:
The facing surface is divided into two distinct regions: a first facing region with a first gap and a second facing region with a second gap. This segmentation allows different gap sizes in different zones to control material flow behavior, preventing backflow while maintaining transport efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the facing surface are given different local properties through varying gap sizes. The first facing region has a smaller first gap to control flow, while the second facing region has a larger second gap closer to the communication hole to facilitate material concentration and prevent backflow.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If the gap between the groove forming surface and facing surface is increased, then material flow backward is prevented, but material supply efficiency may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than uniformly increasing the gap, the invention applies different gap sizes locally: the first gap in the first facing region and the larger second gap in the second facing region. This local differentiation prevents backflow where needed while maintaining supply efficiency in other areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The facing surface is segmented into regions with different gap characteristics. The first facing region with the first gap handles material transport, while the second facing region with the second gap prevents backflow near the communication hole, optimizing both functions simultaneously.
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
Prevents material backflow and ensures efficient material supply to the communication hole, enhancing the performance of injection molding machines and three-dimensional shaping apparatuses by maintaining a stable material flow.
Implementation Method 1
a heating unit configured to heat at least one of the screw and the barrel
Implementation Method 2
A second gap that is a gap between the groove forming surface and the facing surface in the second facing region is larger than a first gap that is a gap between the groove forming surface and the facing surface in the first facing region
Data Source
AI summary
A plasticizing device that plasticizes a solid material includes a drive motor, a screw rotated by the drive motor along a rotation axis of the drive motor and having a groove forming surface on which a groove is formed, a barrel having a facing surface facing the groove forming surface and provided with a communication hole in a central portion thereof, and a heating unit configured to heat at least one of the screw and the barrel. A first facing region and a second facing region that is closer to the central portion than the first facing region are provided between the groove forming surface and the facing surface. A second gap between the groove forming surface and the facing surface in the second facing region is larger than a first gap between the groove forming surface and the facing surface in the first facing region.