It is an objective of the present invention to provide an injection molding machine capable of preventing a molding defect and a method of controlling the injection molding machine. An injection molding machine according to the present embodiment is an injection molding machine that molds a product for each execution of a molding cycle through an injecting process of injecting a material into clamped molds, a dwell process of controlling dwell pressure of the material in the molds, and a cooling process of cooling the material in the molds, the injection molding machine including a mold opening amount sensor and a controlling unit, the mold opening amount sensor being configured to detect a mold opening amount of the molds, the controlling unit being configured to control clamping force of the molds and the dwell pressure based on the mold opening amount during the molding cycle.

When an injection molding machine performs molding, the mold clamping force on the mold is adjusted on the basis of a mold displacement of the mold or the injection peak pressure and injection foremost position so that the molding is performed without causing flash and by an appropriate mold clamping force with which energy can be reduced. The amount of mold displacement and also the injection peak pressure and the injection foremost position are monitored during automatic operation. If there occurs no mold displacement change exceeding a threshold or if there occurs no injection peak pressure anomaly or injection foremost position anomaly exceeding thresholds, the automatic operation is continued. If the mold displacement change occurs or if the injection peak pressure anomaly and the injection foremost position anomaly occur, the operation of the injection molding machine is stopped.

An injection apparatus includes (a) a barrel; (b) a nozzle at a front end of the barrel; (c) a screw in the barrel; and (d) a drive assembly including: (i) a housing having a front end coupled to the barrel; (ii) a spindle in the housing and fixed to the screw; (iii) a first motor in the housing and having a hollow first rotor through which the spindle passes. The first rotor is coupled to the spindle for driving rotation of the screw about the axis. The drive assembly further includes (iv) a second motor in the housing axially rearward of the first motor. The second motor has a hollow second rotor through which the spindle passes. The second rotor is coupled to the spindle for translating the screw along the axis in response to rotation of the second rotor relative to the spindle.

The present invention relates to extrusion molding machines and methods of producing extrusion molded parts and, more particularly, to extrusion molding machines that adjust operating parameters of the extrusion molding machine during an extrusion molding run to account for changes in material properties and pressures of the extrusion material and methods of accounting for changes in extrusion molding material properties during an extrusion molding run and/or compounding of materials.

An injection molding apparatus and method of fabricating a molded part are provided. The apparatus may include a barrel, a nozzle enclosing an end of the barrel and defining an opening in fluid communication with an inside of the barrel, and an extrusion screw positioned at least partially inside the barrel and rotatable relative to the barrel. The extrusion screw may include a screw tip. Relative axial movement between the barrel and the extrusion screw may open or close the opening of the nozzle to permit or prevent, respectively, material flow through the opening of the nozzle. The method may include clamping a mold, opening a nozzle, rotating the extrusion screw to pump a molten material into the mold until the mold is filled, closing the nozzle, and unclamping the mold to release a molded part.

Systems and approaches for controlling an injection molding machine and a mold forming a mold cavity and being controlled according to an injection cycle. The systems and methods include analyzing a model of at least one of the injection molding machine, the mold, and a molten material to determine initial values for one or more control parameters of the injection molding machine, and executing a run of injection cycles at the injection molding machine; measuring operation of the injection molding machine during a particular injection cycle of the run of injection cycles; determining one or more operational parameters exceed a threshold; and upon determining that the one or more operational parameters exceed the threshold, adjusting the one or more control parameters for subsequent injection cycles of the run of injection cycles.

A system is disclosed for micro-molding articles. The system melts and pre-pressurizes thermoplastic material to a first level, within a plasticizing barrel. The melt pressure of the thermoplastic material is manipulated to a second level, within a hot runner. The melt pressure of the thermoplastic material is manipulated to an ultra-cavity packing pressure within a valve gate nozzle.

In one aspect, a method of coinjection molding a multilayer article using a coinjection nozzle having inner outlet, an outer outlet, and an intermediate outlet between the inner and outer outlets is provided. A stream of surface layer material is injected into a mold cavity from the intermediate outlet. With the injection ongoing, two streams of internal layer material are injected from the inner and outer outlets of the coinjection nozzle respectively. The two streams sandwich the stream of surface layer material and flow behind a melt front of the surface layer material. The sandwiched stream of surface layer material continues to supply the melt front with surface layer material at least until the melt front nears a distal end of the mold cavity. The resultant article is substantially or entirely encapsulated by a skin of the surface layer material and contains a high proportion of internal layer material.

An injection molding apparatus including a mold, an injection device and at least one sensor is provided. The mold has a mold cavity. The injection device is adapted to inject a material into the mold cavity such that the material is formed into a forming article. The at least one sensor is disposed on the mold and adapted to sense at least one of a temperature and a pressure in the mold cavity. The at least one sensor is located at an inner surface of the mold cavity and corresponds to a non-appearance surface of the forming article. In addition, an injection molding method is also provided.

A hot runner device for an injection molding machine, wherein the hot runner device has at least one hot runner system, and at least one sensor, actuator and/or initiator which can be connected to a control and regulating device via one or more signal and/or data paths, in particular lines, wherein process data and/or process signals can be transmitted via the one or more signal and/or data lines, characterized in that the hot runner device further comprises a data acquisition and backup device which is designed at least for acquiring and storing part or all of the process data and/or signals acquired on the hot runner system during operation of the injection molding machine and which is a functionally integral component of the hot runner device.