Electric actuator for a melt flow control pin
AssigneeSynventive Molding Solutions, Inc.
InventorsMark Moss, David Kazmer, James R. Rinderle, Christopher Lee
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
In an injection molding machine, an apparatus for controlling movement of a pin comprising a plastic melt flow channel having an output end for delivering molten plastic injected into the channel under pressure to a mold cavity, wherein the pin comprises an elongated rod having an axis and an end, the pin being slidably mounted within the channel for movement along its axis within the channel, an electrically driven motor drivably interconnected to an actuating mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism is drivably interconnected to the end of the pin, the motor being controllably drivable to drive the pin through movement along its axis within the channel
Claims35
In a method for operating an injection molding machine having a plastic melt flow channel with a pin slidably mounted within the channel, wherein the channel has an output end for delivering molten plastic injected into the channel under pressure to a mold cavity, and wherein the pin comprises an elongated rod having an axis and an end, the pin being slidably mounted for movement along its axis within the channel, a method for controllably driving movement of the pin along its axis comprising:
- drivably interconnecting a rotatable central rotor of an electrically driven motor to an actuating mechanism which is drivably movable along a predetermined path of travel;
- interconnecting the actuating mechanism to the end of the pin such that movement of the actuating mechanism along its predetermined path of travel simultaneously moves the pin along its axis according to a predetermined path of travel;
- controllably driving the motor to controllably drive the actuating mechanism and to controllably drive the pin through its predetermined path of travel within the channel.
The method of clam 1 wherein the actuating mechanism comprises a screw and a complementary nut screwably engaged with each other, at least one of the screw and the nut being drivably interconnected to the motor to travel along the predetermined path of travel of the actuating mechanism, the pin being simultaneously driven along its axis through its path of travel according to the predetermined path of travel of the screw or the nut.
In a method of operating an injection molding system, a method of opening and closing a gate leading to a mold cavity comprising controllably driving, with an electrically powered motor, a pin which is slidably mounted within a channel leading to the gate along a predetermined path of axial travel in which the gate is closed by the pin in at least one position and opened by the pin in at another position along the predetermined path of travel.
In a method of operating an injection molding system, a method of dynamically altering the flow of molten plastic in a melt flow channel comprising controllably driving, with an electrically powered motor, a pin which is slidably mounted within the melt flow channel along predetermined path of axial travel in which the flow of the melt through the channel varies according to the position of the pin along the predetermined path of travel.
In an injection molding machine, an apparatus for controlling movement of a pin comprising:
- a plastic melt flow channel having an output end for delivering molten plastic injected into the channel under pressure to a mold cavity, wherein the pin comprises an elongated rod having an axis and an end, the pin being slidably mounted within the channel for movement along its axis within the channel,
- an electrically driven motor drivably interconnected to an actuating mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism is drivably interconnected to the end of the pin, the motor being controllably drivable to drive the pin through movement along its axis within the channel.
In an injection molding machine, a plastic melt flow control valve apparatus comprising:
- a plastic melt flow channel having an output end for delivering molten plastic injected into the channel under a selected pressure to a mold cavity;
- an elongated valve pin having an axis and an end, the pin being slidably mounted within the channel for movement along its axis within the channel to control flow of the molten plastic;
- an electrically driven motor drivably interconnected to an actuating mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism is interconnected to the end of the pin, the motor being controllably drivable to drive the pin through movement along its axis within the channel.
In an injection molding machine, an apparatus for controlling movement of a pin to open and close a gate leading a mold cavity comprising:
- a plastic melt flow channel having an output end for delivering molten plastic injected into the channel under pressure to the gate, wherein the pin comprises an elongated rod having an axis and an end, the pin being slidably mounted within the channel for movement along its axis within the channel,
- an electrically driven motor drivably interconnected to an actuating mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism is interconnected to the end of the pin, the motor being controllably drivable to drive the pin through movement along its axis within the channel.
In an injection molding machine, an apparatus for controlling movement of a pin to control rate of flow of molten plastic within a melt flow channel comprising:
- a plastic melt flow channel having an output end for delivering molten plastic injected into the channel under pressure to a mold cavity, wherein the pin comprises an elongated rod having an axis and end, the pin being slidably mounted within the channel for movement along its axis along determined path of travel within the channel, wherein the position of the pin along its path of travel controls the rate of flow of the molten plastic through the channel;
- an electrically driven motor drivably interconnected to an actuating mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism is interconnected to the end of the pin, the motor being controllably drivable to controllably drive the pin along its axis along its predetermined path of travel within the channel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.