Aligning device for vertical injection molding machine
AssigneeVan Dorn Demag Corporation
InventorPaul Zakich
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An injection molding machine with a vertically oriented clamp is equipped with a rotatable table for sequentially processing a plurality of bottom mold halves mounted thereon. An aligning device insures accurate positioning of a bottom mold half in molding relation to a top mold half in the clamp by insuring seating of a locating pin in a locating hole in the table after the table has been rotatably indexed to bring a bottom mold half into alignment with a movable top half. The locating pin is secured to an actuator mounted by a guide rail and runner block to the machine's stationary platen. As the pin is pushed into the locating hole by the actuator, the aligning device linearly moves along the guide rail and the table slightly rotates to allow seating of the locating pin into the locating hole.
Claims14
In a vertical injection molding machine having a stationary platen, a vertically movable platen with a movable mold half mounted thereon, a table rotatably mounted on said stationary platen and having a plurality of stationary mold half stations circumferentially spaced thereabout, each stationary mold half station having a plurality of mounting apertures for variably mounting a stationary mold half in each station, and a drive mechanism for rotating said table from one station to another, the improvement comprising:
- a locating hole in said table at each station;
- a locating pin having a tapered tip and a tubular body having a peripheral configuration of size and shape sufficient to establish a slip fit with said locating hole;
- an actuator secured to said locating pin for moving said locating pin from an initial position whereat said tapered tip does not extend into said table to a located position whereat said body of said locating pin is within said locating hole;
- a guide rail secured to one of said actuator and said stationary platen;
- and
- a runner block slidable in said guide rail mounted to the other one of said actuator and said stationary platen whereby movement of said tapered tip into said locating hole by said actuator from said initial position causes movement of said table in a rotating direction and movement of said locating pin in the direction of said guide rail to assure seating of said body of said locating pin into said locating hole.
A vertical injection molding machine comprising:
- an injection unit;
- a vertically movable clamp platen;
- a stationary clamp platen;
- a rotatable table resting on said stationary platen in load bearing relation when said injection unit is actuated;
- an upper mold half mounted to said movable platen and a plurality of lower mold halves mounted to said table at set circumferentially spaced stations, one of said upper and lower mold halves having guide pins protruding therefrom and the other one of said upper and lower mold halves having guide pin holes for receiving said guide pins;
- a rotating mechanism for rotating said table to cause a lower mold half at any given station to move into confronting molding relationship with said upper mold half;
- an aligning mechanism for assuring said table has stopped at a position whereat said upper and lower mold halves have guide pins and guide pin holes in alignment, said aligning mechanism including
- a locating hole in said table at each station;
- a locating pin having a tapered tip and a tubular body having a peripheral configuration of size and shape sufficient to establish a slip fit with said locating hole;
- an actuator secured to said locating pin for moving said locating pin from an initial position whereat said tapered tip does not extend into said table to a located position whereat said body of said locating pin is within said locating hole;
- a guide rail secured to one of said actuator and said stationary platen, and
- a runner block slidable in said guide rail mounted to the other one of said actuator and said stationary platen whereby movement of said tapered tip into said locating hole by said actuator from said initial position causes movement of said table in a rotating direction and movement of said locating pin in the direction of said guide rail to assure seating of said body of said locating pin into said locating hole.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.