Injection molding apparatus with cooled integrated actuator electronic drive

An injection molding method, comprising:

• providing an actuator housing adapted to support an electrical drive, wherein supporting the electrical drive includes housing the electrical drive within the actuator housing or mounting the electrical drive on or to the actuator housing via a drive mount;
• heating a manifold;
• receiving at the manifold a molten injection fluid from an injection molding machine;
• substantially maintaining the molten injection fluid at a selected temperature;
• receiving the molten injection fluid from the manifold in a flow channel formed through the manifold and at least one nozzle;
• delivering the molten injection fluid to a gate of a mold cavity;
• distributing, with the electrical drive, electrical energy in controllably varied amounts during the course of an injection cycle to a driver;
• driving an actuator in response to the controllably varied electrical energy;
• moving a valve pin with the actuator and thereby controlling a flow of molten injection fluid toward the mold cavity;
• concurrent the injection cycle, routing a heat absorptive fluid through at least one channel formed in or proximate one or the other or both of the actuator housing and the drive mount;
• and
• absorbing heat from one or the other or both of the actuator housing and the drive mount into the heat absorptive fluid.

An injection molding apparatus, comprising:

• an electrical drive having an interface arranged to receive and distribute electrical energy as controllably varied electrical energy during an injection cycle;
• an actuator configured to be driven by a driver, the driver adapted to drive the actuator via the controllably varied electrical energy from the electrical drive;
• a drive mount;
• a valve pin coupled to the actuator, the valve pin arranged to control a flow of molten injection fluid distributed through a heated manifold toward a mold cavity by controllably moving the valve pin according to the controllably varied electrical energy;
• an actuator housing that houses the actuator, wherein the electrical drive is housed within or by the actuator housing or mounted on or to the actuator housing via the drive mount;
• and
• at least one channel formed in or proximate one or the other or both of the actuator housing and the drive mount, the at least one channel being sealably interconnected to a source of heat absorptive fluid, wherein concurrent the injection cycle, the heat absorptive fluid is routed through the at least one channel in a flow that absorbs heat from one or the other or both of the actuator housing and the drive mount.