Plastic article or earthenware shaping or treating: apparatus – Female mold and charger to supply fluent stock under... – With means to heat or cool
Reexamination Certificate
2001-09-10
2004-10-12
Heitbrink, Tim (Department: 1722)
Plastic article or earthenware shaping or treating: apparatus
Female mold and charger to supply fluent stock under...
With means to heat or cool
C264S908000, C425S446000, C425S526000, C425S548000, C425S552000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06802705
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention broadly relates to injection-molding machines and, in particular, to the manner in which a molded article from an injection-molding machine is cooled.
2. Summary of the Prior Art
Injection-molding machines are very well known and there are many ways of cooling a preform created by such machines. The following references all disclose apparatus and methods for cooling such preforms.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,913 to Krishnakumar et al describes a turret-molding machine in which the preforms are first cooled to a set or crystallized state in the injection mold before they are removed from the mold cavity. When set, the preforms are rotated to a cooling position where nozzles
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direct coolant onto the tip of the preform so that the preform will cool from its tip towards the neck portion of the preform. After cooling the preform is rotated to a conditioning mold
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for final cooling of the preform. The cores
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are supplied with coolant so as to assure cooling of the preforms radially outwardly. Additional cooling to the exterior of the preforms is provided by the coolant lines
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, which open generally radially into the conditioning cavities
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. After the preform is removed from the mold cavity, the threaded neck finish portion of the preform is not directly exposed to any exterior cooling and is only exposed to interior cooling from the coolant flowing through chamber
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into the cores
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.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,472,131 to Ryder describes a preform molding machine in which alternating rows of molding and supercooling cavities are mounted on the molding plate so that as a row of preforms is molded an alternate row of preforms is supercooled. The patent does not provide a coolant flow directly to the neck portion of the preform either while the preform remains in contact with the molding surface or after removal from the molding surface.
U.S. Pat. No.4,729,732 to Schad et al describes a preform molding and blow molding process where the preforms are temperature conditioned while being transported from the preform molding station to a blow molding machine. During the temperature conditioning, the neck portion of the preform is provided with a protective cover so that it is not subjected to the temperature equalization step. The patent does not describe any means for positively cooling the neck portion of the preform.
U.S. Reissue Pat. No. 33,237 to Delfer, III, describes a preform molding system in which the carrier plate has a number of receiving cavities which is a multiple of the number of mold cavities in the injection-molding machine. This enables the preforms to be held in the carrier plate for a multiple of molding cycles and to be fully cooled in the carrier plate. The patent does not provide means for directly cooling the neck portion of a preform.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,950,152 to Brun, Jr. et al describes a preform cooling system where the preforms are moved to a cooling station in which they are expanded by the application of pressurized air to conform with a stationary mold platen that is maintained at a relatively constant temperature. The neck portion of the preform does not contact the cooling surface of the stationary platen. The patent does not show means for directly cooling the neck portion of a preform.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,114,327, 5,338,172 and 5,514,309 to Williamson et al describe an apparatus that comprises an external holder tube and an inner probe that combine in assembly to enclose the preform such that a cooling fluid, such as liquid carbon dioxide, is circulated over both the inner and outer surfaces of the preform including the neck finish portion. The preform is enclosed in a closed circuit environment so that the cooling fluid may be recovered. The patents do not disclose means for creating a specific flow direction or distribution of the cooling media in the neck finish portion so as to promote a balanced thermal transfer of heat from the preform.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,715 to Fukar describes cooling a preform wherein cooling air is provided to the interior and exterior of the preform simultaneously. The external cooling air flows over the tip of the preform towards the neck portion, which is held in a neck mold. There is no direct cooling of the neck portion.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,599,567 to Gellert describes thread split inserts for holding a preform that include cooling passages within the inserts so that the neck portion of the preform can be positively cooled at its exterior surface while held in the molding machine. The patent does not describe any means for controllably cooling the neck portion of the preform when removed from the mold.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,662 to Bright et al describes a preform cooling apparatus in which cooling fluid flows through a high thermally conductive insert, which surrounds the preform. The neck portion of the preform is not confined within the thermally conductive insert and is not directly cooled by it.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,728,409 to Schad et al describes a turret injection-molding machine in which preforms remain on the cooled mold core for an extended period of time after molding while cool air is blown over their exterior finishes. These machines have mold inserts for forming the neck finish portion of the preform and are water-cooled. The inserts remain in their molding position surrounding the neck finish portion of the molded preforms during subsequent turret positions where air-cooling is being directed onto the preform's exterior surface. The patent does not provide any means for controllably cooling the neck finish portion of the preform after the preform leaves the molding surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,837,299 to Bright et al describes a preform post mold cooling system in which a coolant medium flows around an elastic insert. This enables the transfer of heat from the preform to the coolant fluid. The neck portion of the preform is not in direct contact with the elastic insert and is not directly cooled thereby.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,059,557 to Ing et al describes a turret-molding machine in which cooling tubes cool the exterior of the preform. The neck portion of the preform is not directly cooled. The invention provides a two-turret machine with a cycle time equivalent to that of the prior art four-turret machine.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,079,972 to Gellert describes a mold-cooling core, which has opposed spiral grooves that enable turbulent coolant flow through the core. The patent does not disclose any means for cooling the preform externally of the mold.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,095,788 to Dirk van Manen et al describes a preform cooling arrangement where cooling tubes are located adjacent molding cavities so that during each cycle a preform is molded in each molding cavity and another preform is cooled in an adjacent cooling cavity. During the entire cycle the neck portion of the preform is held in a neck ring. The arrangement reduces the stroke of the machine but does not provide any direct cooling of the neck portion of the preform.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,171,541 to Neter et al describes a post mold preform cooling system in which both the interior and then the exterior of the preform are cooled in a controlled manner. While the patent describes a number of ways of cooling the exterior of the preform, it does not describe any means for directly cooling the external surface of the neck portion of the preform.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,541 to Farrag describes a post-mold preform cooling station in which coolant is provide through a tube
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to the interior surface of the preform and flows over the inner surface of the preform in a direction from the tip to the neck of the preform.
These latter two patents do not describe direct cooling of the neck portion although the partially warmed coolant flowing up the interior of the preform would surround both the interior and exterior surfaces of the neck portion on its path through the apparatus.
Japanese Patent Publication 7-171888 to Hirowatari describes a preform cooling apparatus where cooling fluid is directed toward the neck area o
Brand Tiemo D.
Rebel Jacob
Heitbrink Tim
Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd.
Muchin Katten
Rosenman Zavis
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