An injection molding apparatus includes a support that supports a molding die including an upper die and a lower die, and an injection unit that injects a molding material toward a cavity defined by the upper die and the lower die. In the state in which the molding die is supported by the support, the injection unit, the upper die, and the lower die are arranged sequentially from above in the vertical direction. The injection unit includes a rotating flat screw having a groove forming surface in which a groove is formed, a barrel having a flat screw facing surface facing the groove forming surface and having a communication hole into which the molding material flows, and a heater that heats a material supplied to the space between the groove forming surface and the flat screw facing surface, plasticizes at least part of the material through the rotation of the flat screw and the heat produced by the heater to produce the molding material, and delivers the molding material to the communication hole.

Provided are a control device and a control method for an injection molding machine that carries out a punching step with high reliability. A control device for an injection molding machine, the control device being equipped with: a mold opening/closing unit that integrally moves a fixed mold and a moving mold of a mold of the injection molding machine in the opening direction from a state where the mold is closed, thereby creating a gap between the fixed mold and a mounting plate; an insertion member control unit for inserting an insertion member into the gap; an assessment unit for assessing whether the insertion member has been inserted into the gap; and a push control unit for pushing out a punching pin when the insertion member has been assessed to have been inserted into the gap.

A method of arranging, in particular thermoplastic, semi-finished products by using an electronically controlled or regulated placing device for the semi-finished products. The method includes detecting at least one part of an outline of a semi-finished product to be placed, wherein the detecting is carried out by a detection device, determining a target position for the semi-finished product and/or for the placing device for placing the semi-finished product by matching the at least one part of the outline with a placing edge occurring on an underlying surface, and placing the semi-finished product by the placing device using the target position.

A method and device for injection moulding, in particular for micro-injection moulding, at least comprising a mould with a first mould half and a second mould half, wherein the first mould half and the second mould half define an injection moulding space in the closed state of the mould, and an insert arranged in the injection moulding space.

A method for decorative molding capable of reducing a preparation time at the time of replacing a mold and expecting improvement in positioning accuracy of a decorative pattern in a molded article includes supplying a film on which a decorative pattern is formed between a first mold and a second mold in a mold open state of a mold, imaging a mold-side alignment mark recorded in the mold and a film-side alignment mark recorded in the film by a camera, positioning the film with respect to the mold by moving the film so that the film-side alignment mark comes close to the mold-side alignment mark, injecting resin into the mold in a mold closed state in which the film is sandwiched between the first mold and the second mold and cooling the resin to form a molded article and opening the mold and taking out the molded article in which the decorative pattern of the film is transferred to the surface.

A method of arranging, in particular thermoplastic, semi-finished products by using an electronically controlled or regulated placing device for the semi-finished products. The method includes detecting at least one part of an outline of a semi-finished product to be placed, wherein the detecting is carried out by a detection device, determining a target position for the semi-finished product and/or for the placing device for placing the semi-finished product by matching the at least one part of the outline with a placing edge occurring on an underlying surface, and placing the semi-finished product by the placing device using the target position.

A work holding mechanism includes a body part having a three-dimensional shape including at least a recess or a protrusion, and an adsorption part for holding a work by adsorbing the work onto the body part in conformity to the three-dimensional shape of the recess or the protrusion provided in the body part. The work is held by being adsorbed in conformity to the three-dimensional shape of the body part, and, therefore, the amount of usage of the work in a work molding system can be reduced as compared with when the work is held so as to have a flat shape.

A work holding mechanism includes a body part having a three-dimensional shape including at least a recess or a protrusion, and an adsorption part for holding a work by adsorbing the work onto the body part in conformity to the three-dimensional shape of the recess or the protrusion provided in the body part. The work is held by being adsorbed in conformity to the three-dimensional shape of the body part, and, therefore, the amount of usage of the work in a work molding system can be reduced as compared with when the work is held so as to have a flat shape.

An injection molding apparatus includes a support that supports a molding die including an upper die and a lower die, and an injection unit that injects a molding material toward a cavity defined by the upper die and the lower die. In the state in which the molding die is supported by the support, the injection unit, the upper die, and the lower die are arranged sequentially from above in the vertical direction. The injection unit includes a rotating flat screw having a groove forming surface in which a groove is formed, a barrel having a flat screw facing surface facing the groove forming surface and having a communication hole into which the molding material flows, and a heater that heats a material supplied to the space between the groove forming surface and the flat screw facing surface, plasticizes at least part of the material through the rotation of the flat screw and the heat produced by the heater to produce the molding material, and delivers the molding material to the communication hole.

A method for decorative molding capable of reducing a preparation time at the time of replacing a mold and expecting improvement in positioning accuracy of a decorative pattern in a molded article includes supplying a film on which a decorative pattern is formed between a first mold and a second mold in a mold open state of a mold, imaging a mold-side alignment mark recorded in the mold and a film-side alignment mark recorded in the film by a camera, positioning the film with respect to the mold by moving the film so that the film-side alignment mark comes close to the mold-side alignment mark, injecting resin into the mold in a mold closed state in which the film is sandwiched between the first mold and the second mold and cooling the resin to form a molded article and opening the mold and taking out the molded article in which the decorative pattern of the film is transferred to the surface.