A controller of an injection molding machine includes a receiving part configured to receive a selection of an injection molding process and a selection of an item that indicates either setting information indicative of a setting of the process or a performance value detected in the process, and an output part configured to output display information that graphically represents changes in the setting information or in the performance value based on the item preliminarily associated with the process for which the selection was received when the receiving part receives the selection of the process.

Methods of monitoring and controlling a molding process using a sensed change in strain provided by a strain gauge are provided. A target strain profile is created for a molding process of a molding apparatus. An upper and lower deviation limit from the target strain profile for the molding process is provided. If a sensed change in strain exceeds a deviation limit, an alarm is activated.

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 method and system for co-injection molding of two molten plastic materials that allows monitoring and utilization of injection pressure and optionally melt pressure and/or flow front pressure during an injection run. A controller alters the injection pressure so as to achieve and maintain optimal or desired ratios of injection pressure, and optionally melt pressure and/or flow front pressure, of the two molten plastic materials. This allows for more precise part manufacture, including reducing the thickness of a skin or shell layer compared to a core layer of a molded part.

An edge device interface system and method for monitoring, recording, and calculating control and response signals generated by and between an injection molding system including an injection-molding machine and a robotic handling device. The edge device interface system of the invention includes an edge device interposed between the connector of the injection-molding machine and the connector of a robotic handling device using standardized connectors. The edge device interface system may be interposed between the connector of the injection-molding machine and the connector of a robotic handling device to emulate the function of either device as desired. The edge device interface system and method utilizes data observed both from standardized connectors and auxiliary inputs to provide insight into molding process steps and equipment, including what components of the injection molding system that may be contributing to any molding process instability or inefficiency, and for generating signals for real-time adjustment of the molding process.

A control device for an injection molding machine including a cylinder into which a resin is supplied, and a screw that moves forward and rearward and rotates inside the cylinder, includes a suck back control unit that sucks back the screw based on a predetermined suck back speed and a suck back distance or a suck back time period, a pressure acquisition unit that acquires a pressure of the resin, a calculation unit which calculates a compensation amount of the suck back speed, based on a difference between the pressure of the resin at a time when sucking back is completed and a predetermined target pressure, and a speed determination unit that newly determines the suck back speed based on the compensation amount.

A method for monitoring a molding process carried out in cycles includes determining at least two nearest neighbors in the form of cycle data from at least two past cycles, such that the cycle data of the at least two nearest neighbors lie nearer to the current cycle data than the cycle data which do not pertain to the at least two nearest neighbors. Only those past cycles for which quality data are contained in the data collection are used for the determination of the at least two nearest neighbors. A predictability criterion is checked to determine whether a quality variation of the quality data of the cycles of the at least two nearest neighbors is smaller than a maximum variation and/or larger than a minimum variation. If the predictability criterion is not met, a first notification that a quality and/or a quality datum of the molded part is not reliably predictable is issued.

Method for improving a cycle time of a molding system operating in cycles, wherein the molding system is set up to produce molded parts in cycles, wherein the cycles include partial phases, for at least one partial phase or at least one group of partial phases a partial phase duration is measured or ascertained with reference to settings of the molding system, an optimum partial phase duration is calculated for the at least one partial phase or the at least one group of partial phases on the basis of a machine configuration, if the measured or ascertained partial phase duration deviates from the optimum partial phase duration by more than a predefined amount, an indication that the setting of the molding system is improvable with respect to the at least one partial phase or the at least one group of partial phases is issued.

An artificial intelligence-based injection molding system in which molding conditions can be changed to manufacture fair-quality products when defective products are manufactured because of disturbances during the injection molding including an injection molding machine which performs injection molding by injecting a molding material into a mold; an injection state data acquisition unit for acquiring, during injection molding, current injection state data that includes the viscosity profile of the molding material injected into the mold and/or the injection pressure value thereof; a determination unit, which inputs the current injection state data into a molding quality maintenance model trained with predetermined target injection state data, so as to determine whether to maintain molding quality; and a molding condition setting unit for changing a preset molding condition so that the current injection state data follows the target injection state data, when the determination unit determines not to maintain the molding quality.

A molding machine management device that is able to couple to a molding machine includes a storage unit configured to store, in chronological order, numerical value information on a molding process when a molded product is molded by the molding machine and four-factor information on four factors of production which includes a man, a machine, a material, and a method when the molded product is produced, and an output control unit configured to classify the numerical value information into a plurality of groups for periods divided according to time when the four factors of production changes, and output the numerical value information classified into the plurality of groups to an output unit in group units.