Injection molding device, injection molding system, and three-dimensional shaping device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11571844-B2
Application number	US-202017070272-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 14, 2020
Priority date	Oct 17, 2019
Publication date	Feb 7, 2023
Grant date	Feb 7, 2023

Abstract

An injection molding device includes: a material storage unit storing a material; a drive motor; a plasticization unit including a rotor that rotates by rotation of the drive motor, a barrel facing the rotor, and a heater, and configured to plasticize and flow out the material supplied from the material storage unit; a nozzle through which the material after plasticization is injected toward a mold from the plasticization unit; and a material drying unit configured to collect waste heat of the drive motor and dry the material in the material storage unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An injection molding device comprising:
a material storage unit storing a material;
a screw drive motor;
a plasticization unit including a rotor that rotates about a rotation axis by the screw drive motor, a barrel having a facing surface facing an end surface of the rotor, and a heater, the plasticization unit being configured to plasticize the material supplied from the material storage unit to produce a molten material that flows through a communication hole of the barrel, wherein a length of the rotor in a direction along the rotation axis is less than a length of the rotor in a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis;
a nozzle through which the molten material is injected toward a mold;
an injection control unit including an injection cylinder, a plunger and a plunger drive unit configured to drive the plunger, wherein the plunger slides inside the injection cylinder and pumps the molten material in the injection cylinder to the nozzle through the communication hole; and
a material drying unit configured to collect waste heat of the screw drive motor and the plunger drive unit and dry the material in the material storage unit,
wherein, the injection cylinder is couples to the communication hole, separate from the rotor, and receives the molten material from the communication hole, and
wherein, the material drying unit includes:
a flow path at least partially in contact with the screw drive motor and the plunger drive unit, wherein the flow path extends to the material storage unit; and
a blowing mechanism configured to supply air to the flow path and feed the air warmed by the waste heat of the screw drive motor and the plunger drive unit into the material storage unit or to an outer wall of the material storage unit.

2. The injection molding device according to claim 1 , wherein
at least a part of the flow path is further in contact with the plasticization unit.

3. The injection molding device according to claim 1 , wherein
the plasticization unit plasticizes the material supplied from the material storage unit between the rotor and the barrel by rotation of the rotor and heating by the heater.

4. An injection molding system comprising:
the injection molding device according to claim 1 ;
a robot configured to take out a molded object from the mold;
an inspection device configured to inspect the molded object; and
a moving mechanism configured to move a tray on which the molded object is placed to a take-out enabled position where a user takes out the tray.

5. The injection molding system according to claim 4 , wherein
the mold includes a fixed part, a movable part to be moved with respect to the fixed part, and an ejector pin protruding from the movable part toward the fixed part by movement of the movable part with respect to the fixed part, and
the robot takes out the molded object extruded from the movable part by the ejector pin.

6. A three-dimensional shaping device comprising:
a material storage unit storing a material;
a screw drive motor;
a plasticization unit including a rotor that rotates by rotation of the screw drive motor, a barrel having a facing surface facing an end surface of the rotor, and a heater, the plasticization unit being configured to plasticize the material supplied from the material storage unit to produce a molten material that flows through a communication hole of the barrel, wherein a length of the rotor in a direction along the rotation axis is less than a length of the rotor in a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis;
a nozzle through which the molten material is discharged toward a table;
an injection control unit including an injection cylinder, a plunger and a plunger drive unit configured to drive the plunger, wherein the plunger slides inside the injection cylinder and pumps the molten material in the injection cylinder to the nozzle through the communication hole; and
a material drying unit configured to collect waste heat of the screw drive motor and the plunger drive unit and dry the material in the material storage unit,
wherein, the injection cylinder is couples to the communication hole, separate from the rotor, and receives the molten material from the communication hole, and
wherein, the material drying unit includes:
a flow path at least partially in contact with the screw drive motor and the plunger drive unit, wherein the flow path extends to the material storage nit; and
a blowing mechanism configured to supply air to the flow path and feed the air warmed by the waste heat of the screw drive motor and the plunger drive unit into the material storage unit or to an outer wall of the material storage unit.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Sasagawa Kakeru
• Yokota Kei
• Anegawa Kenta
• Yamashita Seiichiro
• Shinbaru Yuji
• Maruyama Kazunobu
• Miyashita Daichi

Classifications

• B29C45/03

  Injection moulding apparatus (transfer moulding B29C45/02) · CPC title

• B29C64/307

  Handling of material to be used in additive manufacturing · CPC title

• B33Y40/00

  Auxiliary operations or equipment, e.g. for material handling · CPC title

• B33Y30/00

  Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor · CPC title

• B29C2045/0096

  drying the moulding material before injection, e.g. by heating · CPC title