An injection molding machine includes: a first driving device rotating a screw provided inside a heating cylinder; a second driving device moving the screw forward and backward; a metering control section configured to, by controlling the first driving device and the second driving device, to meter resin while melting the resin, and thereafter rotate the screw in reverse to thereby reduce the pressure of the resin; a first sensor unit for detecting the pressure; a second sensor unit for detecting one or more kinds of physical quantities that affect the change of the pressure; and a prediction section predicting decompressing rotation information based on the pressure detected by the first sensor unit and the one or more kinds of physical quantities detected by the second sensor unit. The metering control section controls the first driving device based on the decompressing rotation information predicted by the prediction section.

A time variation of an internal pressure of the molding cavity of a multi-phase injection molding machine is detected and represented as an internal pressure graph. An internal pressure graph recorded during a production cycle that produced an injection molded part satisfying a predefined quality characteristic is used as a reference graph. If the internal pressure graph of the current production cycle exceeds a predefined threshold value, then a current machine parameter is changed so as to adapt an internal pressure graph of a subsequent production cycle to the reference graph. Each phase of the production cycle is assigned its own machine parameter determined to have a significant impact on the quality of the parts produced. The assigned machine parameters are changed in a predefined order in a plurality of production cycles wherein exactly one assigned machine parameter is changed per production cycle.

In an injection molding machine of the present invention formed to have a plurality of injection apparatuses connected via a communication channel, a first injection apparatus among the plurality of injection apparatuses includes a display apparatus, a first control apparatus included in the first injection apparatus includes an operation screen input/output unit which obtains operation screen data from another injection apparatus and a rendering attribute converting unit which converts rendering attributes of rendering elements configuring an operation screen to be rendered based on the operation screen data. When an operation screen of the other injection apparatus is displayed on the display apparatus based on the operation screen data, the rendering attribute converting unit makes all or part of the rendering attributes of the rendering elements configuring the operation screen different from rendering attributes when an operation screen of the first injection apparatus is displayed. Thus, the operation screens of the plurality of the injection apparatuses are easily distinguishable.

Systems and approaches for controlling an injection molding machine having a mold forming a mold cavity and being controlled according to an injection cycle include obtaining a pattern for the injection cycle, operating the injection molding machine to inject a molten material into the mold cavity, and measuring a cavity pressure value of the mold cavity during the mold cycle. Upon measuring a nominal cavity pressure value, a pattern recognition portion of the injection cycle that is at least partially dependent on the obtained pattern commences where a driving force being exerted on the molten material is adjusted such that the measured cavity pressure matches the obtained pattern for the injection cycle.

A controller for an injection molding system is in communication with a melt flow control unit, a gas assist control unit, and a gas counter pressure control unit. The controller can effect real-time adjustments to gas assist pressure and/or gas counter pressure as a function of melt pressure or flow front position.

An injection molding machine uses a controller to effectively control its operation. The controller may determine and/or receive information regarding the machine's maximum load capacity, and may also determine a current operational load value of the machine. The controller may cause the machine to operate at any number of combinations of settings of operational parameters which result in the machine operating at or below the maximum load value by adjusting any number of machine parameters associated with the injection molding machine based on feedback sensors measuring real-time operating conditions of the machine.

An injection molding system comprised of: an injection machine having a barrel and a screw for injecting an injection fluid, a distribution manifold, a valve associated with a corresponding one of one or more downstream gates, a sensor adapted to sense and generate a signal indicative of pressure of the injection fluid in the barrel or an inlet that delivers injection fluid from the barrel to the manifold, and a controller receiving the signal generated from the sensor and including instructions that use the signal as a control value to adjust, during the course of an injection cycle, positioning or velocity of one or more of the valve pins.

A monitoring apparatus for molds includes a control unit connectable to a first and second sensor associable with the mold and configured for emitting respective signals representative of a deformation parameter and temperature parameter of the mold. The control unit, in order to define an alert condition, is configured for: defining a value of a threshold parameter as a function of the temperature of the mold and comparing such value of the deformation parameter with a value of a threshold parameter defined as a function of the temperature of the mold; or normalizing, at a reference temperature, the value of the deformation parameter determined at the temperature of the mold and comparing a value of a threshold parameter, defined at the reference temperature, with the value of the normalized deformation parameter at the same reference temperature. Also forming the object of the present invention is a monitoring method and a data medium.

A mold clamp control method for an injection molding machine having a toggle-type mold clamping mechanism. The mold clamp control method includes: a low-pressure mold clamping step that performs position hold control by which a crosshead is held in a set holding position in a state where a toggle link has been bent, when injection-filling is started; and a compression-press step that performs speed and position control by which the crosshead is advanced toward a set advancement position from the set holding position in a state where a first output upper limit value has been provided to a driving section. Advancement of the crosshead is continued in at least part of the compression-press step in a state where a generated output of the driving section is maintained at the first output upper limit value.

An injection molding machine uses a native controller and a retrofit controller to effectively control its operation. The controllers may determine and/or receive information regarding the machine's maximum load capacity, and may also determine a current operational load value of the machine. The retrofit controller may cause the machine to operate at any number of combinations of settings of operational parameters which result in the machine operating at or below the maximum load value by adjusting any number of machine parameters associated with the injection molding machine based on feedback sensors measuring real-time operating conditions of the machine.