INSTALLATION FOR PRODUCING COATED PLASTIC COMPONENTS AND MEHTOD THEREFOR

Abstract

An installation and method for producing coated plastic components, having a first plastic manufacturing device and at least a second plastic manufacturing device for producing plastic components and a coating device for the surface coating of plastic components. The coating device has a first coating line which is associated with the first plastic manufacturing device and at least a second coating line which is associated with the first and/or second plastic manufacturing device. The first and/or second plastic manufacturing device is preferably an injection molding device or an additive manufacturing device.

Claims

1. An installation for producing coated plastic components, comprising: a) a first plastic production device and at least a second plastic production device for producing plastic components; b) a coating device for the surface coating of plastic components; wherein c) the coating device comprises a first coating line, which is associated with the first plastic production device, and at least a second coating line, which is associated with the first and/or the second plastic production device.

2. The installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein the respective phasing of the first coating line and at least the second coating line corresponds to the phasing of the associated first plastic production device and the second plastic production device.

3. The installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first plastic production device and/or the second plastic production device is an injection-molding device or an additive manufacturing device.

4. The installation as claimed in claim 3, wherein a smoothing device is arranged between the first plastic production device or the second plastic production device and the coating line and the first coating line and/or second coating line.

5. The installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first coating line and at least the second coating line share coating device components.

6. The installation as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an automatic charging device which is associated with the first plastic production device and the second plastic production device, the automatic air charging device intended for charging the plastic components to a coating conveyor system by means of which the plastic components can be conveyed to the coating device and through the coating device.

7. The installation as claimed in claim 6, wherein a charging device is arranged in each case between each plastic production device and an associated coating device.

8. The installation as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a device for temperature control of the plastic components, wherein the temperature-control device is arranged downstream or upstream of the coating device.

9. The installation as claimed in claim 8, wherein a transfer device for transferring the plastic components from a coating product carrier to a temperature-control product carrier is arranged between the coating device and the temperature-control device.

10. The installation as claimed in claim 8, further comprising an automatic charging device which is associated with the first plastic production device and the second plastic production device, the automatic air charging device intended for charging the plastic components to a coating conveyor system by means of which the plastic components can be conveyed to the coating device and through the coating device wherein a coating product carrier is provided for the plastic components, and a transfer device for transferring the plastic components with the coating product carrier from the coating conveyor system to a temperature-control conveyor system is arranged between the coating device and the temperature-control device.

11. A method for producing coated plastic components, comprising the following steps: producing a first plastic part using a first plastic production device; producing a second plastic part using a second plastic production device; charging the plastic parts to a conveyor system; conveying the first plastic parts by means of the conveyor system through a first coating line of a coating installation and coating the plastic parts in the first coating line; and conveying the second plastic parts by means of the conveyor system through a second coating line of the coating installation and coating the plastic parts in the second coating line.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the production of a plastic part and the associated coating of the plastic part are tailored to one another in terms of time in such a way that no intermediate storage of the plastic part has to occur.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the coating of the injection-molded parts is followed by a temperature control of the injection-molded parts.

14. The installation as claimed in claim 5, wherein the coating device components shared by the first coating line and at least the second coating line include or more of an air supply, an air discharge, a coating material feed, a coating material discharge, a robot for handling and/or surface treatment tasks, or parts of the coating booth outer casing.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings, in which:

[0033] FIG. 1 shows in a schematic illustration a first embodiment of an installation for producing plastic components;

[0034] FIG. 2 shows in a schematic illustration a second embodiment of an installation for producing plastic components; and

[0035] FIG. 3 shows in a flow diagram an exemplary embodiment of a method according to the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

[0036] FIG. 1 illustrates in a schematic illustration a first embodiment of an installation 10 for producing plastic components, such as for example vehicle components (bumpers, radiator grilles, exterior-mirror shells, etc.). In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the installation 10 comprises two injection-molding machines, namely a first injection-molding machine 12 and a second injection-molding machine 14, which are only indicated schematically. The injection-molding machines 12, 14 inject a liquefied plastic under pressure into an injection mold. The plastics can be for example thermoplastics, thermosets or elastomers. In the present case, the two injection-molding machines 12, 14 are illustrated as structurally identical machines. It is also conceivable that the one injection-molding machine has a different structure and optionally also a different throughput than the other injection-molding machine. Alternatively, the machines in question can be machines for additive manufacturing instead of injection-molding machines. It is also possible for injection-molding machines and machines for additive manufacturing to be present jointly in the installation. On account of the different production times, more than two machines for the additive manufacturing of plastic components can also be provided.

[0037] As denoted in the figure by the letters A and B, the first injection-molding machine 12 produces plastic components 121 of a first type A, and the second injection-molding machine 14 produces second plastic components 141 of a second type B. It can be the case here that the first type A differs from the type B in shape, size, nature or some other way. However, it can also be the case that both types A and B are identical, but the throughput of the two injection-molding machines 12, 14 differs.

[0038] A setup with two injection-molding machines 12, 14 is shown in the present embodiment of the installation 10. It is also conceivable within the context of the present invention to provide more than two injection-molding machines for two or more coating lines.

[0039] It is also possible, as already mentioned, to provide additive manufacturing devices instead of the injection-molding machines or else together with injection-molding machines. Particularly when combining the two production technologies (injection-molding/additive manufacturing), the highly different production rates can be taken into consideration by the provision of two or more coating lines without having to provide additional buffering. Thus, the different component parts for a component can be produced with different production technologies and divided between the respective associated coating lines corresponding to the different production rates.

[0040] Each of the two injection-molding machines 12, 14 is assigned a charging device 16, 18. The charging devices 16, 18 take the plastic components 121, 141 produced by the injection-molding machines 12, 14 and place them on coating product carriers 20. In the present case, structurally identical coating product carriers 20 are provided both for the plastic components 121 of the first injection-molding machine 12 and for the plastic components 141 of the second injection-molding machine 14. However, it could also be the case that, on account of the nature of the respective plastic component, different coating product carriers have to be used.

[0041] The charging devices 16, 18 operate automatically, are phased with the respective injection-molding machine 12, 14 and generally require no operator attendance. Particularly in additive manufacturing, the charging devices 16, 18 can also perform separating operations, where appropriate by means of image recognition. Each charging device 16, 18, and thus also in the present embodiment each injection-molding machine 12, 14, is assigned a coating installation 30 in the form of a painting line 22, 24 which are each charged by means of a transport device 26, 28 with the coating product carriers 20 (which carry produced injection-molded components 121, 141).

[0042] The painting lines 22, 24 are part of a painting installation 30 and can be set up and phased independently of one another. The painting lines 22, 24 can thus be adapted to the respective requirements of the associated injection-molding machines 12, 14 and the corresponding plastic components 121, 141. The steps required for coating the plastic components, such as for example deflashing, grinding, cleaning, pretreating, coating, flashing-off, repeated coating, etc., will be carried out in the painting installation 30. The pretreatment can in particular also comprise the smoothing of the surface, as may be necessary in particular after additive manufacturing, with the aforementioned methods, or the additional cleaning after the additive manufacturing steps or after the smoothing in order to create a clean surface with optimal adhesion properties for the subsequent coating.

[0043] It is possible here, depending on the throughput, to carry out manual or automated handling processes, for example with the use of painting robots, and, where appropriate, also inspection/audit or function-checking processes.

[0044] The painting lines 22, 24 can be designed to be completely separated from one another and can be controlled and operated separately from one another. However, there can advantageously also be provision that the two painting lines 22, 24 have components which can be used jointly. For example, the painting lines 22, 24 can have a common air-conditioning, a common energy supply or a common painting material supply and, where appropriate, can also be correspondingly jointly activated.

[0045] In the presently shown embodiment, after running through the painting installation 30 the transport devices 26, 28 are coupled to a common transfer means 32 which carries out a transfer of the plastic components 121, 141 to temperature-control product carriers 34. The temperature-control product carrier can be for example an individual product carrier for the individual component. The product carriers can then additionally be placed on painting frames. The use of product carriers offers the advantage that the coating product carriers 20, for example still before fixing by heating of the coating applied in an undesired manner, can be cleaned, for example stripped of paint, in a considerably simpler manner.

[0046] The coated plastic components 121, 141 are fed to an oven 36 by means of the temperature-control product carriers 34 and a corresponding conveying system. The plastic components 121, 141 are subjected to a temperature-control step in the oven 36, this step causing the coating to be fixed, for example by heating. Additionally or alternatively, it is of course also possible to carry out other further-processing steps after running through the painting lines 22, 24. This is symbolically illustrated in FIG. 1 by the further-processing station 38.

[0047] FIG. 2 illustrates in a schematic illustration a second embodiment of an installation 200. In order to avoid repetitions, features of the installation 200 which are identical or comparable to features of the installation 10 described in relation to FIG. 1 are not explained separately again and are designated by the same reference signs.

[0048] The installation 200 is likewise designed for producing plastic components and likewise comprises two injection-molding machines 12, 14 which produce plastic components 212, 214. The plastic components 212, 214 are charged by means of charging devices 16, 18 to transport devices 26, 28. By contrast to the embodiment of FIG. 1, the plastic components 212, 214 are connected, for and during transport, to product carriers 220, 222 over a plurality of work steps. The connection can be established for example by laying on, plugging on, suspending, gluing on, screwing on, etc. As can be gathered from FIG. 2, the plastic components 212, 214 remain connected to the product carriers 220, 222 even after the coating operation and transfer from the conveying system 26, 28, which conveys them toward the painting installation 30 and through the painting installation 30, to the conveying system which conveys the plastic components 212, 214 to the oven 36.

[0049] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary method according to the invention in a flow diagram. The method provides the following steps:

[0050] A first injection-molded part is produced using a first injection-molding device, and a second injection-molded part is produced using a second injection-molding device (S1). The separate production of the injection-molded parts with separate injection-molding devices allows for example a separate phasing for different components. Instead of one of the two injection-molding devices, additive manufacturing devices can also be present for the production of components.

[0051] In a subsequent step (S2), the injection-molded parts/components are charged to a conveyor system with product carriers. The conveyor system is designed to convey the first injection-molded parts/components on the product carriers through a first coating line of a coating installation and the second injection-molded parts/components on the product carriers through a second coating line (S3).

[0052] Coating of the respective injection-molded parts/components occurs in the respective coating line (S4).