Methods and systems for forming multilayer articles
OwnerGerald Hutchinson, Prasad Joshi +2inventors
InventorsGerald Hutchinson, Prasad Joshi, Said K. Farha, Heinrich Feichtinger
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Abstract
Disclosed is a mold system which comprises a cube configured to rotate about an axis, a first cavity platen comprising at least one first cavity section, a second cavity platen comprising at least one second cavity section, a fluid channel being disposed within at least one of the mandrels and a hydraulic connection member configured to connect at least one of the fluid channels to an inlet and or outlet positioned outside the cube. The cube comprises at least two sides, each side comprising at least one mandrel. The hydraulic connection member is configured to deliver a volume cooling fluid from or to the fluid channels while the cube is rotating.
Claims23
An injection mold system for producing multi-layer preforms, the system comprising:
- a first cavity platen comprising a plurality of first cavity sections;
- a second cavity platen comprising a plurality of second cavity sections;
- and
- a core portion having at least two core surfaces, each core surface comprising a plurality of cores;
- wherein the cores are configured to mate with the first cavity sections to define a plurality of first mold cavities therebetween, each of said first mold cavities configured to receive a thermoplastic material to produce a first layer of a preform;
- wherein the cores are configured to mate with the second cavity sections to define a plurality of second mold cavities therebetween, each of said second mold cavities configured to receive a thermoplastic material to produce a second layer of a preform, the second layer disposed along an exterior of the first layer;
- wherein the core portion is configured to rotate between various positions so the cores sequentially align and mate with the first cavity sections and the second cavity sections;
- and
- wherein the cores from a first core surface mate with the first cavity sections generally at a same time that the cores from a second core surface mate with the second cavity sections.
A method of producing multi-layer plastic objects, the method comprising:
- providing a mold system, the mold system comprising:
- a plurality of first cavity sections;
- a plurality of second cavity sections;
- and
- a core portion having at a first core surface and a second core surface, each of said first and second core surfaces comprising a plurality of cores, the core portion being configured to be indexed between different positions allowing the cores to sequentially mate with the first cavity sections and the second cavity sections;
- indexing the core portion to a first position wherein the cores of the first core surface mate with the first cavity sections to define a plurality of first mold cavities therebetween, and wherein the cores of the second core surface mate with the second cavity sections to define a plurality of second mold cavities therebetween;
- injecting a first moldable material within the first mold cavities to form a first layer of multi-layer plastic objects, and generally simultaneously injecting a second moldable material within the second mold cavities to form a second, outer layer on the plastic objects;
- removing the plastic objects from the cores of the second core surface;
- indexing the core portion to a second position wherein the cores of the first core surface mate with the second cavity sections and the cores of the second core surface mate with the first cavity sections;
- injecting a first moldable material along the outside of the cores of the second core surface, and generally simultaneously injecting a second moldable material along the outside of the cores of the first core surface to produce a plurality of multi-layer plastic objects thereon;
- removing the plastic objects from the cores of the first core surface;
- and
- repeating the process by indexing the core portion to the first position so that the cores of the first core surface re-mate with the first cavity sections and the cores of the second core surface re-mate with the second cavity sections.
A mold comprising:
- a plurality of first cavity sections;
- a plurality of second cavity sections;
- and
- a core portion having a plurality of cores on at least a first core surface and a second core surface, the core portion configured to move so the cores on a first core surface selectively engage the first cavity sections or the second cavity sections;
- wherein the core portion comprises internal channels adapted to circulate a cooling fluid within an inner portion of each core, the internal channels being configured so that a cooling effect produced at the cores of the first core surface can be selectively varied from a cooling effect produced at the cores of the second core surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.