Thermoforming method and apparatus
AssigneeCorvac Composites, LLC
InventorJames Richard Fitzell, Jr.
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A thermoforming apparatus having a mold with an internal vacuum chamber and a quench for cooling a thermoplastic sheet while it remains on the mold. Because the quench cools the sheet, conventional cooling lines are eliminated from the mold. One method of using the thermoforming apparatus includes pushing a heated sheet towards the mold with a plug assist, drawing the heated sheet over the mold, creating a partial vacuum in the vacuum chamber of the mold to maintain the sheet on the mold and quenching the sheet on the mold in a quenching tank by moving the quenching tank to the mold.
Claims24
A thermoforming apparatus for forming a sheet of thermoplastic material, comprising:
- a vacuum mold having a surface and an internal vacuum chamber, said mold defining a plurality of vacuum holes extending between said surface and said vacuum chamber, said vacuum holes applying a partial vacuum to the thermoplastic material to draw the thermoplastic material onto said surface during vacuum forming;
- a quench containing a quench media, the apparatus having a first position in which the thermoplastic material is disengaged from said quench media and a second position in which the material is engaged with said quench media, said quench media being comprised of at least one of a liquid and ceramic beads;
- and
- an actuator for moving the apparatus from said first position to said second position after vacuum forming while the thermoplastic material is retained on said mold.
A thermoforming system comprising:
- a first station including a heater;
- a second station including a vacuum mold, a quenching reservoir, and an actuator, said actuator moving at least one of said vacuum mold and said quenching reservoir between a drawing position wherein said vacuum mold draws a thermoplastic sheet against said vacuum mold with a partial vacuum, and a quenching position wherein said vacuum mold is quenched in said quenching reservoir by a quench media comprised of at least one of a liquid and ceramic beads, said quenching reservoir disengaged from said vacuum mold and the thermoplastic sheet when said actuator is in said drawing position;
- and
- a rack including a plurality of sheet-receiving openings, the rack being supportive of the thermoplastic sheet, wherein said rack moves said thermoplastic sheet to said first station and said second station.
A thermoforming apparatus comprising:
- a cooling tank, said tank containing a quench media comprised of at least one of a liquid and ceramic beads;
- a mold including at least one of a vacuum cabinet and a vacuum line network in fluid communication with the environment through a plurality of vacuum holes defined by said mold;
- and
- an actuator system, said actuator system actuatable between a draw position wherein said mold draws a thermoformable sheet against said mold with a partial vacuum, and a quench position wherein said mold is quenched in said quench media, said cooling tank disengaged from said vacuum mold and the thermoplastic sheet when said actuator system is in said drawing position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.