U.S. patent application number 16/011788 was filed with the patent office on 2018-12-27 for mold, method of producing product, method of producing image forming apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium.
The applicant listed for this patent is CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA. Invention is credited to Hiroki Akatsuka, Nobuharu Hoshi, Junichi Matsumura, Akira Suzuki, Toshiteru Yamasaki.
Application Number | 20180370094 16/011788 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 64691888 |
Filed Date | 2018-12-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180370094 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Yamasaki; Toshiteru ; et
al. |
December 27, 2018 |
MOLD, METHOD OF PRODUCING PRODUCT, METHOD OF PRODUCING IMAGE
FORMING APPARATUS, AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER-READABLE RECORDING
MEDIUM
Abstract
A mold includes a rotatable portion, a frame portion, a first
and second portion, and a production unit. The rotatable portion
has a plurality of surfaces and a plurality of forming portions.
The plurality of surfaces is each provided with one of the
plurality of forming portions, each having the same shape. The
frame portion rotatably supports the rotatable portion. The first
portion defines a cavity by coming into contact with one surface of
the plurality of surfaces by clamping the mold. The second portion
comes into contact with another surface of the plurality of
surfaces different from the one surface by clamping the mold. The
production unit attached to the frame portion.
Inventors: |
Yamasaki; Toshiteru;
(Yokohama-shi, JP) ; Hoshi; Nobuharu;
(Yokohama-shi, JP) ; Matsumura; Junichi;
(Numazu-shi, JP) ; Suzuki; Akira; (Naka-gun,
JP) ; Akatsuka; Hiroki; (Ushiku-shi, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA |
Tokyo |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
64691888 |
Appl. No.: |
16/011788 |
Filed: |
June 19, 2018 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B29C 45/1618 20130101;
B29C 45/1628 20130101; B29C 45/045 20130101; B29C 45/006 20130101;
B29C 45/0441 20130101; B29L 2031/7678 20130101; B29C 45/162
20130101 |
International
Class: |
B29C 45/04 20060101
B29C045/04; B29C 45/00 20060101 B29C045/00; B29C 45/16 20060101
B29C045/16 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jun 22, 2017 |
JP |
2017-122598 |
Jun 22, 2017 |
JP |
2017-122599 |
Feb 25, 2018 |
JP |
2018-101065 |
Claims
1. A mold comprising: a rotatable portion comprising a plurality of
surfaces and a plurality of forming portions, the plurality of
surfaces being each provided with one of the plurality of forming
portions, the plurality of forming portions each having the same
shape; a frame portion configured to rotatably support the
rotatable portion; a first portion configured to define a cavity by
coming into contact with one surface of the plurality of surfaces
by clamping the mold; a second portion configured to come into
contact with another surface of the plurality of surfaces different
from the one surface by clamping the mold; and a production unit
attached to the frame portion.
2. The mold according to claim 1, wherein the production unit is a
slide portion that is movable, and wherein part of the cavity is
defined by bringing the slide portion into contact with the
rotatable portion by moving the slide portion.
3. The mold according to claim 2, further comprising a movement
portion configured to bring the slide portion into contact with the
rotatable portion in a case of clamping the mold.
4. The mold according to claim 1, wherein the production unit is an
injection unit.
5. The mold according to claim 4, wherein the injection unit
injects resin toward a part of a formed member formed in the
cavity.
6. The mold according to claim 1, wherein the forming portions
include a first forming portion and a second forming portion, and
at least one of the first forming portion and the second forming
portion is formed on a piece portion.
7. The mold according to claim 6, wherein the production unit is a
movement portion configured to move the piece portion.
8. A mold configured to define a cavity by bringing a first surface
and a second surface into contact with each other, the mold
comprising a movement portion configured to move a piece portion,
wherein a first forming portion and a second forming portion are
formed on the first surface, and wherein at least one of the first
forming portion and the second forming portion is formed on the
piece portion.
9. The mold according to claim 8, wherein the first forming portion
and the second forming portion are opposed to each other by moving
the piece portion.
10. A method of producing a product by using a mold, the mold
comprising: a rotatable portion comprising a plurality of surfaces
and a plurality of forming portions, the plurality of surfaces
being each provided with one of the plurality of forming portions,
the plurality of forming portions each having the same shape; and a
frame portion configured to rotatably support the rotatable
portion, the method comprising: a step of forming a first formed
member and a second formed member on a first surface of the
rotatable portion by moving the first surface to a first position
of the frame portion; and a step of moving the first formed member
and the second formed member formed on the first surface to a
second position of the frame portion by rotating the rotatable
portion to subject part of at least one of the first formed member
and the second formed member to a production process.
11. The method of producing a product according to claim 10,
further comprising a step of, at the second position of the frame
portion, injecting resin from an injection unit attached to the
frame portion to part of at least one of the first formed member
and the second formed member to form a third formed member on part
of at least one of the first formed member and the second formed
member.
12. The method of producing a product according to claim 11,
further comprising a step of, after the step of forming the third
formed member, rotating the rotatable portion to move the first
surface to a third position of the frame portion and moving the
second formed member onto the first formed member by a movement
portion attached to the frame portion to join the first formed
member and the second formed member with each other.
13. The method of producing a product according to claim 12,
wherein, after the step of joining the first formed member and the
second formed member with each other, the rotatable portion is
further rotated to move the first surface to a fourth position of
the frame portion, and then a member obtained by joining the first
formed member and the second formed member is taken out from the
first surface.
14. A method of producing a product by using a first formed member
and a second formed member, wherein the first formed member and the
second formed member are formed at a second portion of a mold by
injecting resin into a cavity defined by a forming portion formed
in a first portion of the mold and a forming portion formed in the
second portion of the mold and releasing solidified resin, wherein
the forming portion formed in the second portion comprises a first
forming portion and a second forming portion, the second forming
portion being formed on a piece portion, and wherein the first
formed member and the second formed member are joined with each
other by moving the second formed member formed on the second
forming portion onto the first formed member formed on the first
forming portion by moving the piece portion.
15. The method of producing a product according to claim 14,
wherein the first formed member and the second formed member are
joined with each other by fitting a fitting portion.
16. The method of producing a product according to claim 14,
wherein the first formed member and the second formed member are
joined with each other by injecting resin into a space between the
first formed member and the second formed member.
17. A method of producing an image forming apparatus comprising a
part, and a mount configured to attach the part, wherein the part
is produced by the method of producing a product according to claim
10.
18. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a
control program for causing a control apparatus that controls a
mold to execute each step of the method according to claim 10.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a mold including a
rotatable portion, a method of producing a product, a method of
producing an image forming apparatus, and a non-transitory
computer-readable recording medium.
Description of the Related Art
[0002] Conventionally, a unit part constituted by a plurality of
resin members is assembled by an assembling robot or a manual work
after individually forming the members constituting the unit part
by an injection molding machine or the like and then conveying, in
other words, supplying the members to a production line of the unit
part.
[0003] In recent years, for example, as disclosed in Japanese
Patent Laid-Open No. 2011-56774, an apparatus that forms a
plurality of molded products using a rotatable intermediate mold, a
first injection unit of an injection molding machine, and a second
injection unit attached to the injection molding machine is
proposed.
[0004] However, in such a molding machine as disclosed in Japanese
Patent Laid-Open No. 2011-56774 described above, a large mechanism
for moving the second injection unit is required, and thus there is
a risk that the size of the apparatus increases. Further, since the
second injection unit is attached to the injection molding machine,
it is difficult to adjust the position of the second injection unit
with respect to a mold.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, a mold
includes, a rotatable portion having a plurality of surfaces and a
plurality of forming portions, the plurality of surfaces being each
provided with one of the plurality of forming portions, the
plurality of forming portions each having the same shape, a frame
portion configured to rotatably support the rotatable portion a
first portion configured to define a cavity by coming into contact
with one surface of the plurality of surfaces by clamping the mold,
a second portion configured to come into contact with another
surface of the plurality of surfaces different from the one surface
by clamping the mold, and a production unit attached to the frame
portion.
[0006] According to another aspect of the present invention, a mold
configured to define a cavity by bringing a first surface and a
second surface into contact with each other. The mold has a
movement portion configured to move a piece portion. A first
forming portion and a second forming portion are formed on the
first surface, and at least one of the first forming portion and
the second forming portion is formed on the piece portion.
[0007] According to another aspect of the present invention, a
method of producing a product by using a mold, the mold including:
a rotatable portion having a plurality of surfaces and a plurality
of forming portions, the plurality of surfaces being each provided
with one of the plurality of forming portions, the plurality of
forming portions each having the same shape, and a frame portion
configured to rotatably support the rotatable portion. The method
includes a step of forming a first formed member and a second
formed member on a first surface of the rotatable portion by moving
the first surface to a first position of the frame portion, and a
step of moving the first formed member and the second formed member
formed on the first surface to a second position of the frame
portion by rotating the rotatable portion to subject part of at
least one of the first formed member and the second formed member
to a production process.
[0008] According to another aspect of the present invention, a
method of producing a product uses a first formed member and a
second formed member. The first formed member and the second formed
member are formed at a second portion of a mold by injecting resin
into a cavity defined by a forming portion formed in a first
portion of the mold and a forming portion formed in the second
portion of the mold and releasing solidified resin. The forming
portion formed in the second portion includes a first forming
portion and a second forming portion, the second forming portion
being formed on a piece portion. The first formed member and the
second formed member are joined with each other by moving the
second formed member formed on the second forming portion onto the
first formed member formed on the first forming portion by moving
the piece portion.
[0009] Further features of the present invention will become
apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments
(with reference to the attached drawings).
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example of a part
produced in a first exemplary embodiment of the present
invention.
[0011] FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate a configuration of a mold, FIG.
2A being a perspective view of the mold, FIG. 2B being a top view
of the mold illustrating a production process performed by the
mold.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a front view of a fixed portion illustrating a
configuration thereof.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a front view of a rotatable portion illustrating a
configuration of a forming surface.
[0014] FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an operation
of closing the mold.
[0015] FIGS. 6A to 6C illustrate a state in which the mold is
closed at a first process position, FIG. 6A being a side view of
the mold, FIG. 6B being a longitudinal section view of the mold
taken along an A-A line of FIG. 6A, FIG. 6C being a cross-section
view of the mold taken along a B-B line of FIG. 6A.
[0016] FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate a state in which a molded product
is formed in the state of FIG. 6, FIG. 7A being a longitudinal
section view of the mold of FIG. 6A taken along the A-A line, FIG.
7B being a cross-section view of the mold of FIG. 6B taken along
the B-B line.
[0017] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the mold in an open
state.
[0018] FIG. 9 is a side view of the mold illustrating a state in
which a formed member is held by a second forming portion.
[0019] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the mold illustrating a
state in which the rotatable portion is rotated.
[0020] FIG. 11 is a side view of the mold illustrating a state in
which a second slide portion operates at a second process
position.
[0021] FIGS. 12A and 12B respectively show a section view of the
mold and illustrate a state in which resin is molded at the second
process position of FIG. 11 in detail.
[0022] FIG. 13 is a side view of the mold illustrating a state in
which the second slide portion is separated from the rotatable
surface.
[0023] FIG. 14A is a side view of the mold illustrating an
operation of a driving portion at a third process position, and
FIGS. 14B and 14C are each an enlarged side view of a part of FIG.
14A.
[0024] FIGS. 15A to 15C respectively illustrate a top view of the
driving portion illustrating how a mold piece is inverted and moved
by the operation of FIGS. 14A to 14C.
[0025] FIGS. 16A and 16B respectively illustrate a section view of
the mold illustrating a state in which resin is molded at the third
process position.
[0026] FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the mold illustrating a
different configuration in which an injection unit is provided on a
frame body.
[0027] FIGS. 18A and 18B respectively illustrate a perspective view
of the mold illustrating a state at the time of releasing a formed
member from a mold piece.
[0028] FIG. 19 is a perspective view of the mold illustrating a
state in which a produced part is taken out from the rotatable
portion at a take-out position.
[0029] FIG. 20 is a section view of the mold illustrating a state
in which molding and assembly are performed by using four forming
surfaces of the rotatable portion.
[0030] FIG. 21 is a section view of the mold illustrating an
arrangement of different forming surfaces of the rotatable portion
and molding and assembly performed in this arrangement.
[0031] FIG. 22 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a
control system of the mold of the first exemplary embodiment of the
present invention.
[0032] FIG. 23 is a flowchart illustrating a control procedure of
the mold by the control system of FIG. 22.
[0033] FIG. 24 is a perspective view of an example of a part
produced in a second exemplary embodiment of the present
invention.
[0034] FIGS. 25A and 25B illustrate a configuration of a molding
assembly apparatus according to the second exemplary embodiment,
FIG. 25A being a perspective view of the molding assembly
apparatus, FIG. 25B being a top view of the molding assembly
apparatus illustrating a production process performed by the
molding assembly apparatus.
[0035] FIG. 26 is a front view of a mold according to the second
exemplary embodiment illustrating a configuration thereof.
[0036] FIG. 27 is a front view of a forming surface of the mold
according to the second exemplary embodiment.
[0037] FIG. 28 is a perspective view of the mold illustrating how
the mold according to the second exemplary embodiment is
closed.
[0038] FIGS. 29A and 29B illustrate a state in which the mold is
closed at a first process position according to the second
exemplary embodiment, FIG. 29A being a perspective view of the
mold, FIG. 29B is a section view of the mold taken along an A-A
line of FIG. 29A.
[0039] FIG. 30 is a section view of the mold illustrating a state
in which a resin member is formed in the state of FIGS. 29A and
29B.
[0040] FIG. 31 is a perspective view of the mold according to the
second exemplary embodiment illustrating a state in which the mold
is opened.
[0041] FIG. 32 is a front view of the mold according to the second
exemplary embodiment illustrating a state in which the resin member
is held by a forming portion of the mold.
[0042] FIGS. 33A to 33C are explanatory diagrams illustrating
inversion and movement of a mold piece according to the second
exemplary embodiment.
[0043] FIGS. 34A and 34B respectively illustrate a perspective view
of the mold piece according to the second exemplary embodiment
illustrating an operation of releasing the resin member from the
mold piece.
[0044] FIG. 35 is a side view of the molding assembly apparatus
according to the second exemplary embodiment illustrating an
operation of releasing the part from the molding assembly
apparatus.
[0045] FIG. 36 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a
relationship between an injection molding machine and a mold.
DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
First Exemplary Embodiment
[0046] A first exemplary embodiment of the present invention will
be described below with reference to attached drawings. To be
noted, configurations shown below are merely examples, and, for
example, details thereof can be modified by one skilled in the art
within the scope of the present invention. In addition, numerical
values mentioned in the present exemplary embodiment are just for
reference and should not limit the present invention.
[0047] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a part 101 produced by a
mold of the present exemplary embodiment. FIG. 1 illustrates the
part 101 that has been molded and assembled by using the mold of
the present exemplary embodiment. The part 101 of FIG. 1 is, for
example, a part constituting an image forming apparatus, and
includes formed members 1, 2, and 3, and a joint member 4.
[0048] The former members 1 to 3 and the joint member 4 are
integrated as a unit as illustrated in FIG. 1 by performing a
production process by using a mold illustrated in, for example,
FIGS. 2A to 4 and 36, and thereby serves as the part 101 of the
image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus has a mount
configured to mount the part 101, which can be produced as some
cartridge part for the apparatus, by the production method of the
present exemplary embodiment. The production process includes
injection molding of a molding material, for example, molten resin,
and assembly.
[0049] In the unitized state of FIG. 1, the formed member 3 is
integrally formed with the formed member 1. In addition, the formed
member 1 and the formed member 2 are positioned each other by
engaging with each other, and are joined with each other by the
joint member 4.
[0050] FIGS. 2A to 4, 20, and 36 illustrate a configuration of a
mold serving as the mold of the present exemplary embodiment. FIG.
2A is a perspective view of the mold, and FIG. 2B is a top view of
the mold. FIG. 3 is a front view of a fixed portion 5 viewed in an
X10 direction of FIG. 2B. FIG. 4 is a front view of a first forming
surface 30a of a rotatable portion 6 viewed in an X11 direction of
FIG. 2B. FIG. 36 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between
an injection molding machine and a mold.
[0051] As illustrated in FIGS. 2A to 4, 20, and 36, a mold 900 of
the present exemplary embodiment includes a first portion 5, a
second portion 7, and a third portion 60. The first portion 5 is
also sometimes referred to as a fixed portion 5, and the second
portion 7 is also sometimes referred to as a movable portion 7. The
third portion 60 includes the rotatable portion 6 and a frame
portion 11, and the rotatable portion 6 is rotatably supported by
the frame portion 11. In the present description, a portion other
than the rotatable portion 6 in the third portion 60 is referred to
as the frame portion 11.
[0052] Further, the rotatable portion 6 includes a plurality of
forming surfaces including a first forming surface 30a, a second
forming surface 30b, a third forming surface 30c, and a fourth
forming surface 30d. These forming surfaces are each provided with
a forming portion formed thereon. The forming portion is capable of
forming a molded product of the same shape. In addition, the
forming portion may be formed such that a part thereof is movable.
Details of this will be described later. That is, the forming
surface may be formed by embedding a plurality of members serving
as piece portions on each of which the forming portion is formed,
and at least one of the plurality of piece portions may be movably
configured. In addition, the frame portion 11 of the mold of the
present exemplary embodiment includes production units, for
example, production units 7a, 7b, 9a, and 10a, for performing a
production process of molding and/or assembly. The respective
forming portions formed on the respective forming surfaces
described above are positioned at respective production process
positions in the order of the production process by pivoting the
rotatable portion 6 about a pivot center. Further, production of a
plurality of the same parts is progressed in parallel by performing
different production steps of molding and/or assembly by
respectively using the first portion 5, the second portion 7, and
the production units at the respective process positions. As a
result of this, an excellent effect of producing a part requiring a
plurality of times of injection molding and an assembly step by a
configuration of a small size and weight and low cost can be
achieved.
[0053] That is, as illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the mold of the
present exemplary embodiment includes the first portion 5 serving
as a fixed portion, the third portion 60 including the frame
portion 11 and the rotatable portion 6 supported by the frame
portion 11, and the second portion 7 serving as a movable portion.
The fixed portion 5 is fixed to a fixed board 901 of an injection
molding machine as illustrated in FIG. 36, and the rotatable
portion 6 and the movable portion 7 can be moved in an X direction
of opening or clamping the mold with respect to the fixed portion
5. That is, the first portion 5 defines a cavity by coming into
contact with one of the plurality of surfaces of the rotatable
portion 6 by clamping the mold. Further, as a result of clamping
the mold, the second portion 7 comes into contact with a surface
different from the surface that comes into contact with the first
portion 5 among the plurality of surfaces. In the present exemplary
embodiment, production of a plurality of the same parts can be
progressed in parallel by attaching the mold 900 of the present
exemplary embodiment to an injection molding machine generally used
for forming a molded product. Specifically, the fixed portion 5 is
attached to the fixed board 901 and the movable portion 7 is
attached to a movable board 902 of the generally used injection
molding machine. An attachment portion 901 of the fixed portion 5
is connected to an injection mechanism 903 for molten resin of the
injection molding machine. The molten resin injected by the
injection mechanism 903 reaches to an inlet 903a of the fixed
portion 5 shown in FIG. 2A, through the attachment portion 901.
[0054] The frame portion 11 is, for example, a frame body including
four strut portions as illustrated, and the rotatable portion 6 is
supported to be rotatable with respect to the frame portion 11
about a pivot shaft 90 serving as a pivot center. The rotatable
portion 6 can be pivoted about the pivot shaft 90 in, for example,
an R direction, by a driving portion, and thus can be positioned at
a specific pivot position. For example, the driving portion 12 is
disposed below the frame portion 11 and includes an electric motor
and a transmission mechanism.
[0055] The rotatable portion 6 includes at least two forming
surfaces that can be positioned so as to face four opening portions
between the four struts of the frame portion 11 by being pivoted by
the driving portion 12. In the present exemplary embodiment, the
rotatable portion 6 overall has a quadrangular prism shape and
includes four forming surfaces each having the same forming
portion. The rotatable portion 6 of the mold 900 of the present
exemplary embodiment is pivotally supported by the frame portion 11
via the pivot shaft 90, and thus can be positioned with a high
precision with respect to, for example, the fixed portion 5 and the
movable portion 7 that relatively move with respect to the frame
portion 11.
[0056] As illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 36, the mold of the present
exemplary embodiment includes a plurality of guides 501 extending
in the left-right direction in the figures. In this example, four
guides 501 are provided. The guides 501 are fixed with respect to
the first portion 5 serving as a fixed portion. In the present
exemplary embodiment, the guides 501 penetrate the frame portion 11
of the third portion 60 and the second portion 7 serving as a
movable portion as illustrated. The mold can be clamped and opened
by controlling the positions of the frame portion 11 of the third
portion 60 and the second portion 7 serving as a movable portion on
the guides 501 by a driving system 904 provided in the injection
molding machine. That is, the mold can be clamped and opened by
relatively moving the rotatable portion 6 supported by the frame
portion 11 of the third portion 60 and the first portion 5 serving
as a fixed portion or relatively moving the rotatable portion 6
supported by the frame portion 11 of the third portion 60 and the
second portion 7 serving as a movable portion.
[0057] To be noted, in the present exemplary embodiment, the first
portion 5 serving as a fixed portion is fixed to a fixed board of
the injection molding machine. However, this is for the sake of
convenience, and any configuration can be employed as long as the
third portion 60 and the first portion 5 serving as a fixed portion
or the third portion 60 and the second portion 7 serving as a
movable portion are relatively movable from each other. In
addition, a configuration in which one of the first portion 5
serving as a fixed portion, the second portion 7 serving as a
movable portion, and the frame portion 11 is fixed to a fixed board
of the injection molding machine may be employed. In addition, a
configuration in which both of the first portion 5 serving as a
fixed portion and the second portion 7 serving as a movable portion
move may be employed.
[0058] In the mold of the present exemplary embodiment, as
illustrated in FIG. 2B, a first production process position 150a, a
second production process position 150b, a third production process
position 150c, and a take-out position 150d are set for the frame
portion 11. The first production process position 150a corresponds
to a position of a production process performed by the fixed
portion 5 and first slide portions 7a and 7b. The second production
process position 150b corresponds to a production process performed
by an injection unit 9a. The third production process position 150c
corresponds to a position of a production process performed by the
movable portion 7, a driving portion 10a, and an injection unit 9b.
In the present description, the first production process position
is sometimes simply referred to as a first process position, the
second production process position is sometimes simply referred to
as a second process position, and the third production process
position is sometimes simply referred to as a third process
position.
[0059] In the present exemplary embodiment, the rotatable portion 6
has a prismatic shape and includes a forming portion of the same
shape on each of four different surfaces thereof to be used for
forming the same part 101 illustrated in FIG. 1. Therefore, by
pivoting the rotatable portion 6 by the driving portion 12, the
forming portions of the four surfaces of the rotatable portion 6
can be sequentially moved to the first process position 150a, the
second process position 150b, the third process position 150c, and
the take-out position 150d. As a result of this, a different
production process of molding and/or assembly can be performed by
the fixed portion 5, the movable portion 7, or the production units
at each process position, and thus production of a plurality of the
same parts can be progressed in parallel.
[0060] The frame portion 11 of the present exemplary embodiment is
provided with the first slide portions 7a and 7b illustrated in
FIG. 2A that moves in synchronization with the relative movement of
the frame portion 11 and the fixed portion 5. The first slide
portions 7a and 7b each include an angular pin capable of moving
the first slide portion 7a or 7b by using a relative displacement
between the frame portion 11 and the fixed portion 5 at the first
process position 150a. Therefore, the apparatus does not require a
drive source such as a motor, a solenoid, or an air cylinder, and
thus can be configured at relatively low cost.
[0061] In addition, the injection unit 9a illustrated in FIG. 2B
and the injection unit 9b illustrated in FIG. 2A for injection
molding of the part 101 are respectively disposed on the frame
portion 11 and the movable portion 7. These injection units 9a and
9b are respectively used at the second process position 150b and
the third process position 150c. According to such a configuration,
the size and weight of the entirety of a production apparatus can
be reduced as compared with a conventional configuration disclosed
in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2011-56774. In the
present exemplary embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 2B, a
direction in which the fixed portion 5 and the movable portion 7
are opened and closed is set as a direction of an X axis, and a
direction perpendicular to this direction of the X axis is set as a
direction of a Y axis.
[0062] In addition, as will be described later, at the third
process position 150c, driving portions 10a and 10b illustrated in
FIGS. 14A to 15C that invert and move a formed member 2 and a piece
portion 32a thereof on forming surfaces 30a to 30d are disposed in
the frame portion 11. These driving portions 10a and 10b are
respectively driven by movement portions 110b and 110c each
including, for example, an air cylinder and an angular pin. The
configurations and operations of the driving portions 10a and 10b
will be described later in detail.
[0063] The fixed portion 5 includes forming portions 21 and 22 for
respectively forming formed members 1 and 2 illustrated in FIG. 1
constituting the part 101 as illustrated in FIG. 3.
[0064] The rotatable portion 6 of the present exemplary embodiment
has an approximately quadrangular prism shape and has four forming
surfaces therearound. FIG. 4 illustrates the forming surface 30a,
which is one of the forming surfaces of the rotatable portion 6, as
viewed from the right in FIGS. 2A and 2B. The forming surface 30a
and the other three forming surfaces 30b to 30d of the rotatable
portion illustrated in, for example, FIG. 20, all have the same
configuration, and constitute forming portions of the same shape
used for molding the same parts. That is, the rotatable portion 6
of the present exemplary embodiment is constituted by disposing a
forming portion of the same shape used for molding the same part on
each of a plurality of different surfaces disposed around a pivot
center. Although the configuration of the forming surface 30a of
the rotatable portion 6 will be mainly described below, the same
applies to the configurations of the other forming surfaces 30b to
30d.
[0065] In the present exemplary embodiment, an example in which the
mold takes four positions including process positions and a
take-out position is shown, and thus forming portions of the same
shape are formed on all of the four surfaces of the rotatable
portion 6. However, the configuration is not limited to this. For
example, in the case where only three positions including process
positions and a take-out position are set, forming portions of the
same shape may be formed on three surfaces. In addition, in the
case where only two positions including a process position and a
take-out position are set, forming portions of the same shape may
be formed on two surfaces.
[0066] Piece portions 31a and 32a for respectively forming the
formed members 1 and 2 illustrated in FIG. 1 constituting the part
101 are provided on the forming surface 30a of the rotatable
portion 6 as first and second forming portions.
[0067] Here, for example, the forming surface 30a, which is one of
the forming surfaces of the rotatable portion 6, is moved to the
first process position 150a by pivoting the rotatable portion 6. At
this time, the piece portions 31a and 32a are positioned so as to
respectively oppose the forming portions 21 and 22 of the fixed
portion 5. Further, in the case where the rotatable portion 6 is
pivoted in the R direction by 90.degree., the second forming
surface 30b illustrated in FIG. 2A is moved to a forming position
opposing the first forming portions 21 and 22 of the fixed portion
5 as illustrated in FIG. 20. In addition, as a result of the
90.degree. rotation of the rotatable portion 6, the forming surface
30a advances to the second process position 150b.
[0068] As shown below, similarly, by rotating the rotatable portion
6 by 90.degree. each time, the forming surfaces 30a to 30d can be
sequentially moved to the first process position 150a, the second
process position 150b, the third process position 150c, and the
take-out position 150d.
[0069] Next, a production procedure of the part 101 of the present
exemplary embodiment will be described. In addition, a more
detailed configuration of the mold will be also described below. In
the present exemplary embodiment, the formed members 1, 2, and 3
and the joint member 4 constituting the part 101 of FIG. 1 are
formed through first to sixth steps. Among the first to sixth
steps, some adjacent steps are performed at the same process
position.
[0070] The first step is shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 to 7. In the first
step indicated by K1 in FIG. 2B, first, as illustrated in FIG. 5,
the rotatable portion 6 is pivoted about the pivot shaft 90 of the
rotatable portion 6 such that the first forming surface 30a is
positioned at the first process position 150a defined by the fixed
portion 5. Then, the fixed portion 5 and the rotatable portion 6
are closed by relatively moving the fixed portion 5 and the
rotatable portion 6. To be noted, in FIG. 5, a direction in which
the rotatable portion 6 approaches the fixed portion 5 is indicated
by an arrow X1.
[0071] As illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6B, inclined angular pins
70a and 70b are implanted inside the fixed portion 5. These angular
pins 70a and 70b penetrate through the first slide portions 7a and
7b. The first slide portions 7a and 7b are supported so as to be
slidable in the vertical direction in FIGS. 5 and 6B with respect
to the frame portion 11. Therefore, in the case where the rotatable
portion 6 relatively moves in the X1 direction with respect to the
fixed portion 5 for clamping the mold, the first slide portions 7a
and 7b respectively linearly move downward and upward.
[0072] FIGS. 6B and 6C illustrate a state in which the fixed
portion 5 is clamped. In this clamped state, the first slide
portions 7a and 7b move along the angular pins 70a and 70b and seal
the top and bottom of the cavity 80a defined by the forming portion
21 of the fixed portion 5 and the piece portion 31a of the
rotatable portion 6. That is, as a result of the movement, the
first slide portions 7a and 7b come into contact with at least one
of the fixed portion 5 and the rotatable portion 6. As a result of
this, the cavity 80a is defined. According to such a configuration,
injection molding can be performed even for a molded product having
a relatively complex structure on end portions thereof such as the
formed member 1 of the part 101 illustrated in FIG. 1.
[0073] Subsequently, as illustrated in FIGS. 6B and 6C, a plurality
of cavities 80a and 80b are defined by the first forming portions
21 and 22 of the fixed portion 5, the piece portions 31a and 32a of
the rotatable portion 6, and the first slide portions 7a and 7b.
Then, molten resin is injected from the injection molding machine
into the cavities 80a and 80b that in the molds. According to this,
the formed members 1 and 2 are formed by injection molding as
illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B. To be noted, the format of
illustration of FIGS. 7A and 7B is the same as FIGS. 6B and 6C. The
injection of molten resin in the first step is performed by, for
example, an unillustrated injection molding machine attached to the
fixed portion 5. In addition, illustration of flow paths of the
resin such as a runner and a gate in the fixed portion 5 is omitted
in the present exemplary embodiment, and the configuration of the
flow paths of the resin does not constitute the present invention
and can be arbitrarily modified by one skilled in the art.
[0074] Next, the second step will be described with reference to
FIGS. 2A,2B, 8, and 9. FIG. 8 illustrates a state in which the
fixed portion 5 and the frame portion 11 supporting the rotatable
portion 6 are opened. FIG. 9 illustrates a state in which the
formed members 1 and 2 that have been formed are held by the piece
portions 31a and 32a.
[0075] In this second step indicated by K2 in FIG. 2B, as
illustrated in FIG. 8, the mold is opened by moving the movable
portion 7 and the frame portion 11 supporting the rotatable portion
6 in an X2 direction away from the fixed portion 5. At this time,
the first slide portions 7a and 7b move in a direction to move away
from the piece portion 31a of the rotatable portion 6 along the
angular pins 70a and 70b contrary to the case of clamping the mold.
In addition, by opening the fixed portion 5 and the frame portion
11 supporting the rotatable portion 6, the formed members 1 and 2
that have been formed are released from the first forming portions
21 and 22 of the fixed portion 5, and are respectively held by the
piece portions 31a and 32a of the rotatable portion 6 as
illustrated in FIG. 9.
[0076] Next, the third step will be described with reference to
FIGS. 2A, 2B, 10, 11, 12A, and 12B. FIG. 10 illustrates a state in
which the rotatable portion 6 is being pivoted so as to move the
forming surface 30a to the second process position 150b and move
the forming surface 30b to the first process position 150a.
[0077] FIG. 11 illustrates a state after the pivoting described
above has been completed, that is, a state in which the operation
of moving the forming surface 30b of the rotatable portion 6 to the
first process position 150a and moving the forming surface 30a to
the second process position 150b has been completed. This FIG. 11
corresponds to, for example, a side view of the rotatable portion
6, a second slide portion 8, and the injection unit 9a as viewed
from the right in FIG. 10.
[0078] As illustrated in FIG. 11, at the second process position
150b, the second slide portion 8 and the injection unit 9a attached
thereto are relatively moved in a Y1 direction with respect to the
forming surface 30a of the rotatable portion 6 by a movement
portion 110a. This movement portion 110a can be constituted by, for
example, an air cylinder.
[0079] FIG. 12A illustrates a longitudinal section view of the mold
in a state in which the second slide portion 8 is clamped
afterwards with respect to the piece portion 31a and the formed
member 1 held by the piece portion 31a constituting the forming
surface 30a of the rotatable portion 6. In addition, FIG. 12B
corresponds to a section view of the mold at the time of performing
injection molding by injecting molten resin by the injection unit
9a into a cavity defined by the forming surface 30a of the
rotatable portion 6 and the second slide portion 8 at the second
process position 150b.
[0080] In the third step indicated by K2 in FIG. 2B, as illustrated
in FIG. 10, the rotatable portion 6 is rotated in the R direction
by 90.degree. about the pivot shaft 90 with respect to the driving
portion 12, and thus the first forming surface 30a is moved to the
second process position 150b. According to this, the second forming
surface 30b moves to the first process position 150a.
[0081] Next, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the second slide portion 8
disposed in the frame portion 11 and the injection unit 9a are
moved in the Y1 direction toward the rotatable portion 6 by the
movement portion 110a. As a result of this, the second slide
portion 8 is clamped with respect to the formed member 1 held by
the piece portion 31a as illustrated in FIG. 12A. To be noted, the
second slide portion 8 may be configured to come into contact with
only the piece portion 31a or both the formed member 1 and the
piece portion 31a, or also with the rotatable portion 6. Such
details of the configuration may be appropriately modified in
accordance with the shape of the formed member 3 formed in this
step.
[0082] Next, as illustrated in FIGS. 12A and 12B, molten resin is
injected by the injection unit 9a into a cavity 80C defined by the
second slide portion 8 and the formed member 1, and thus the formed
member 3 is formed on the formed member 1. To be noted,
illustration of the configuration of flow paths of resin such as a
runner is also omitted herein. As described above, in the present
exemplary embodiment, the formed member 3 is directly formed, by
the second slide portion 8 and the injection unit 9a provided to
the frame portion 11 supporting the rotatable portion 6, integrally
with the formed member 1 held by the rotatable portion 6. With such
a configuration, the formed member 3 can be formed with a high
precision.
[0083] Next, the fourth step will be described with reference to
FIGS. 2A, 2B, 5, 10, and 13 to 17. FIG. 13 illustrates a state in
which the second slide portion 8 is separated from the rotatable
portion 6. FIGS. 14A to 14C illustrate an operation of the driving
portion 10a. FIGS. 15A to 15C illustrate a state in which the piece
portion 32a is inverted and moved by the driving portion 10a. In
addition, FIG. 16 illustrates how the joint member 4 is formed.
Further, FIG. 17 illustrates a modification example in which the
frame portion 11 a is provided with an injection unit 9c.
[0084] In the fourth step indicated by K3 in FIG. 2B, as
illustrated in FIG. 13, the second slide portion 8 is moved in a
direction Y2, away from the rotatable portion 6. Then, in a state
in which the formed member 1 on which the formed member 3 has been
formed and the formed member 2 are respectively held by the
rotatable portion 6, and the rotatable portion 6 is rotated in the
R direction by 90.degree. about the pivot shaft 90 as illustrated
in FIG. 10 and is thus moved to the third process position 150c
illustrated in FIG. 2B.
[0085] FIGS. 14A to 14C illustrate the rotatable portion 6, the
second slide portion 8, and the injection unit 9a as viewed in a
direction opposite to FIG. 13, for example, from the left in FIG.
10.
[0086] As illustrated in FIG. 14A, at the third process position
150c illustrated in FIG. 2B, driving portions 10a and 10b are
respectively disposed at top and bottom end portions of the frame
portion 11. The driving portions 10a and 10b have equivalent
configurations although the orientations of main components thereof
are vertically inverted.
[0087] In the present exemplary embodiment, movement portions 110b
and 110c are each constituted by an air cylinder and an angular
pin. By using these movement portions 110b and 110c, the driving
portions 10a and 10b supported by the frame portion 11 can be
respectively moved downward and upward. That is, by moving the
movement portions 110b and 110c in the Y2 direction, the driving
portions 10a and 10b can be moved closer to end surfaces 39a and
39b of the piece portion 32a by which the formed member 2 is held
and thus can be brought into contact with the piece portion 32a as
illustrated in FIGS. 14B and 14C.
[0088] Meanwhile, the piece portion 32a holding the formed member 2
is provided with shafts 40a and 40b at the end surface 39a that
comes into contact with the driving portion 10a as illustrated in
FIGS. 14A to 14C and 15A to 15C. In addition, the end surface 39b
that comes into contact with the driving portion 10b is provided
with shafts 40c and 40d as illustrated in FIG. 14A. According to
such a configuration, the piece portion 32a can be inverted and
moved by the driving portions 10a and 10b, and thus the formed
member 2 can be engaged with the formed member 1 supported by the
piece portion 31a.
[0089] That is, when the driving portions 10a and 10b are
respectively moved downward and upward by the movement portions
110b and 110c, the shafts 40a and 40b that are implanted in top and
bottom end surfaces of the piece portion 32a engage with a groove
50a of a guide portion included in the driving portion 10a as
illustrated in FIG. 15A. As illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C, the
U-shaped groove 50a constituting the guide portion is defined in a
flat plate portion of the driving portion 10a. In addition, gears
120a and 121a that engage with each other are provided within the
U-shape of the groove 50a, and, for example, the gear 120a is
driven by a rotation driving portion such as an electric motor
whose details are not illustrated. In addition, a lever 51a is
fixed to a pivot shaft of the gear 121a as illustrated in FIGS. 14B
and 14C.
[0090] As illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C, in the case where the
gear 120a is rotated in an arrow Ra direction in a state in which
the shafts 40a and 40b are engaged with the groove 50a of the guide
portion, the gear 121a rotates in an arrow Rb direction. Then, in
accordance with the rotation of the gear 121a, the lever 51a is
rotationally displaced as illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C, and
moves the shaft 40a of the piece portion 32a along the U-shaped
groove 50a.
[0091] That is, the lever 51a comes into contact with the shaft 40a
and moves the shafts 40a and 40b along the groove 50a of the guide
portion. The piece portion 32a is configured to be separable from
the rotatable portion 6, and can be inverted, that is, flipped over
by 180.degree., and moved toward the formed member 1 as illustrated
in FIGS. 15B and 15C.
[0092] As described above, by inverting and moving the formed
member 2 with the piece portion 32a, the formed member 2 can be
assembled with, in other words, mounted on the formed member 1. To
be noted, appropriate engagement portions such as engagement claws
and grooves may be provided between the formed members 1 and 2
whose details are not illustrated, and the mutual positioning of
the formed member 1 and 2 may be performed by pushing the formed
member 2 by the driving portions 10a and 10b.
[0093] Then, the movable portion 7 is moved in the X1 direction
illustrated in FIG. 5, that is, toward the rotatable portion 6 and
the frame portion 11, and thus the movable portion 7 and the
rotatable portion 6 are closed. Then, molten resin is injected by
the injection unit 9b to form the joint member 4 of FIG. 1, and
thus the formed member 2 and 1 are joined.
[0094] That is, in the case where the piece portion 32a is inverted
and the formed member 2 is mounted on the formed member 1 as
illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C, the section is as illustrated in
FIG. 16A. In the case where the movable portion 7 and the rotatable
portion 6 are closed at this time, the movable portion 7 presses
the piece portion 32a, and thus opposing surfaces la and 2a of the
formed members 1 and 2 are brought into firm contact as illustrated
in FIG. 16A.
[0095] In the state of FIG. 16A, a cavity 80d for forming the joint
member 4 illustrated in FIG. 1 is defined in a portion around the
formed member 2 between the formed members 1 and 2. Therefore, by
injecting molten resin from the injection unit 9b provided at the
movable portion 7 into the cavity 80d defined by the formed members
1 and 2 and the piece portion 32a as illustrated in FIG. 16B, the
joint member 4 is formed, and thus the formed members 1 and 2 are
joined.
[0096] To be noted, in the present exemplary embodiment, the
injection unit 9b for injection molding of the joint member 4 is
disposed on the movable portion 7 as illustrated in FIG. 5.
However, the injection of resin into the mold may be performed from
the side of the piece portion 32a of the rotatable portion 6
instead of the side of the movable portion 7. In this case, as
illustrated in FIG. 17, for example, a configuration in which an
injection unit 9c is disposed on a frame portion 11a and an
unillustrated flow path for resin is appropriately joined between
the injection unit 9c and the piece portion 32a at the third
process position 150c may be employed. However, injection molding
of the joint member 4 is not always necessary. For example,
depending on the specification of the part 101, a configuration in
which the formed members 1 and 2 are assembled into a single
assembly by connecting engagement portions or fitting portions
disposed on the formed member 1 and 2 by inverting and moving the
piece portion 32a as illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C may be
employed.
[0097] As described above, in the present exemplary embodiment, a
plurality of forming portions, which are the piece portions 31a and
32a in the present exemplary embodiment, respectively for the
formed members 1 and 2 are disposed on each of the forming surfaces
30a to 30d of the rotatable portion 6. Further, by inverting and
moving the piece portion 32a toward the piece portion 31a at the
third process position 150c as illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C, the
formed members 1 and 2 are combined and assembled, or further
joined by resin. As described above, in the present exemplary
embodiment, since the formed members 1 and 2 whose combination is
limited is combined on the same forming surface of the rotatable
portion 6, the part 101 can be produced with a high precision.
[0098] Next, the fifth step will be described with reference to
FIGS. 2A, 2B, 8, 14, 15, and 18. FIG. 18 illustrates how the formed
member 2 is released from the piece portion 32a of the rotatable
portion 6.
[0099] In the fifth step indicated by K3 in FIG. 2B, the mold is
opened by moving the movable portion 7 in an X2 direction away from
the rotatable portion 6 illustrated in FIG. 8. As illustrated in
FIGS. 18A and 18B, the driving portion 10a is operated in an order
reversed from the order illustrated in FIGS. 15A to 15C as
illustrated in FIGS. 18A to 18B, and the state is returned to the
state of FIG. 15A. The same applies to the case of the driving
portion 10b. At this time, the formed member 2 is released from the
piece portion 32a.
[0100] For example, as illustrated in FIGS. 18A and 18B, the gear
120a of the driving portion 10a is rotated in an Rc direction. As a
result of this, the lever 51a and the gear 121a rotate in an Rd
direction, the lever 51a comes into contact with the shaft 40b, and
causes the piece portion 32a to invert and move in a direction
opposite to FIG. 15 along the groove 50a. As a result of this, the
piece portion 32a is inverted and moved in a direction away from
the formed member 1. In addition, although what has been described
above is an operation related to the driving portion 10a, a similar
operation is performed on the driving portion 10b side.
[0101] At this time, the formed member 2 has been already joined to
the formed member 1 by the joint member 4, and the joining force
thereof is stronger than the holding force between the piece
portion 32a and the formed member 2. Therefore, the formed member 2
is released from the piece portion 32a and remains on the formed
member 1. Then, the driving portions 10a and 10b are operated in
the order reversed from FIGS. 14B and 14C to respectively move
upward and downward, and thus are separated from the piece portion
32a.
[0102] Next, the sixth step of taking out the part 101 that has
been molded and assembled will be described with reference to FIGS.
2, 10, 19, and 20. FIG. 19 illustrates how the formed members 1, 2,
and 3 are released from the rotatable portion 6. In addition, FIG.
20 illustrates a section view of the mold illustrating a state in
which molding, assembly, or taking out is performed on all of the
forming surfaces 30a to 30d of the rotatable portion 6.
[0103] In the sixth step indicated by K4 of FIG. 2B, the rotatable
portion 6 is pivoted in the R direction by 90.degree. about the
pivot shaft 90 by a driving portion 12 in a state in which the
formed members 1 to 4 have been molded and assembled on a forming
surface of the rotatable portion 6, for example, the forming
surface 30a, as illustrated in FIG. 10. As a result of this, the
forming surface 30a is moved to the take-out position 150d as
illustrated in FIG. 19. At this take-out position 150d, the formed
members 1 to 3 are included in the rotatable portion 6, pushed out
and released by, for example, ejector pins 100 driven by a solenoid
or an air cylinder, and thus taken out. The drive source of the
ejector pins 100 used at this time, for example, the solenoid or
air cylinder may be provided on the frame portion 11 side instead
of in the rotatable portion 6. In the manner described above, the
formed members 1 to 3 are molded and assembled, and thus the part
101 illustrated in FIG. 1 is completed.
[0104] In the present exemplary embodiment, as illustrated in FIG.
20, the part 101 completed by the formed members 1 to 3 is taken
out at the take-out position 150d in a state in which the rotatable
portion 6 and the frame portion 11 and the movable portion 7 and
the fixed portion 5 are closed. According to this, at the first
process position 150a, formed members 1d and 2d can be formed on
the forming surface 30d. In addition, at the second process
position 150b, a formed member 3c can be formed on a formed member
1c on the forming surface 30c by the slide portion 8 and the
injection unit 9a. Further, at the third process position 150c, a
formed member 2b can be joined with a formed member 1b on the
forming surface 30b by inversion and movement of the piece portion
32a and injection molding of the joint member 4. In addition, at
the take-out position 150d, the part 101 constituted by the formed
members 1 to 3 that have been molded and assembled is released by
ejector pins 108 corresponding to the ejector pins 100 of FIG. 19
and is thus taken out.
[0105] As described above, in the present exemplary embodiment, the
steps described above can be sequentially performed in parallel on
the four different forming surfaces 30a to 30d of the rotatable
portion 6 having the same configuration, and thus molding and
assembly can be successively performed with a high precision. As a
result of this, a large number of parts 101 can be successively
produced with a remarkably high efficiency.
[0106] To be noted, although a configuration in which the four
different forming surfaces 30a to 30d having the same configuration
are disposed on the rotatable portion 6 has been described above,
the number of forming surfaces disposed on the rotatable portion 6
may be arbitrarily selected depending on the number of steps for
production of the part. For example, FIG. 21 illustrates an
exemplary configuration in which two different forming surfaces
having the same configuration are disposed as opposing surfaces of
the rotatable portion 6 and molding and assembly are performed at
the first process position 151a and the second process position
151b. Alternatively, a configuration in which molding and assembly
are performed by using three surfaces of the rotatable portion 6
similarly having a quadrangular prism shape may be employed. In
addition, although there is a possibility that the mechanism for
opening and closing the mold becomes more complex, a configuration
in which the rotatable portion 6 has the same forming surface on
each of n side surfaces, for example, having an n-angular prism
shape, may be employed. According to such a configuration, the
production process can be progressed sequentially and in parallel
by using the n forming surfaces having the same shape, and thus the
production efficiency of the mold can be remarkably improved.
[0107] Here, a configuration of a control system of the mold of the
present exemplary embodiment and an example of a control procedure
of production of the part will be described with reference to FIGS.
22 and 23.
[0108] A control apparatus of FIG. 22 controls the molding and
assembly described above by controlling a driving apparatus 611
serving as a driving system of the mold described above and an
injection molding apparatus 612 serving as an injection system that
is involved in injection of molten resin and maintaining or
reducing the temperature of the mold. The driving apparatus 611
serving as a driving system includes the driving portion 12 that
pivots the rotatable portion 6, the electric motor that drives the
gear 120a of the driving portion 10a, and the solenoid or air
cylinder that drives the movement portions 110b and 110c, the
ejector pins 100, and so forth. In addition, the injection molding
apparatus 612 serving as a driving system includes the injection
units 9a and 9b, or an injection unit of an unillustrated injection
molding machine that supports the fixed portion 5 that is a fixed
mold.
[0109] The control apparatus of FIG. 22 includes a central
processing unit: CPU 601 serving as a main controller, a read-only
memory: ROM 602 serving as a storage device, and a random access
memory: RAM 603. The ROM 602 is capable of storing a control
program of the CPU 601 and constant information for realizing a
control procedure that will be described below. In addition, the
RAM 603 is used as a work area or the like for the CPU 601 when
executing the control procedure that will be described later.
[0110] To be noted, the control program of the CPU 601 for
realizing the control procedure that will be described later can be
also stored in storage portions such as an unillustrated external
storage device such as a hard disk drive: HDD or a solid state
drive: SSD and the ROM 602, for example, in an electrically
erasable programmable read-only memory region: EEPROM region. In
this case, the control program of the CPU 601 for realizing the
control procedure that will be described later is supplied to the
storage portions described above via a network interface 606 and
can be updated to a new or different program. Alternatively, the
control program of the CPU 601 for realizing the control procedure
that will be described later can be supplied to the storage
portions described above via storage media such as various magnetic
disks and optical disks and flash memories and drive devices
therefor, and the content thereof can be updated. The various
storage media and storage portions storing the above-described
control program of the CPU 601 for realizing the control procedure
constitute computer readable recording media storing the control
procedure of the present invention.
[0111] The CPU 601 is connected to a user interface device: UI
device 607 via an interface 605. The UI device 607 can be
constituted by a terminal such as a handy to terminal or a control
terminal constituted by a keyboard, a display, a pointing device,
and so forth.
[0112] In addition, the CPU 601 is connected to the network
interface 606 serving as a communication portion. Via this network
interface 606, the CPU 601 can transmit and receive a control
signal required for production control and a notification signal 9
that notifies the occurrence of abnormality described above. In
this case, it can be considered that the network interface 606 is
constituted by a communication standard of, for example, wired
communication such as IEEE 802.3 or wireless communication such as
IEE 802.11 or 802.15. The network interface 606 can be used for
communication with an overall control apparatus, a management
server, and so forth. Examples of the overall control apparatus
include a programmable logic controller: PLC that is disposed in a
production line of the part including the mold of the present
exemplary embodiment and performs production control.
Alternatively, in the case where another production apparatus
constituted by a robot arm, an X-Y stage and the like is disposed
in the production line of the part including the mold, the network
interface 606 can be used for communication with the production
apparatus.
[0113] FIG. 23 schematically illustrates the control procedure
related to the production of the part 101 by the mold including the
rotatable portion 6 described above. The illustrated procedure can
be stored in the storage portion described above, for example, the
ROM 602 as the control program of the CPU 601. To be noted, in the
description below, for example, the forming surfaces 30a to 30d
described above are respectively regarded as a first surface, a
second surface, a third surface, and a fourth surface, and an
expression like "n-th surface" will be used as a general expression
thereof. In addition, similarly, as a general expression of the
first to third process positions described above, "m-th process
position" will be used. To be noted, although a production step on
the n-th surface is illustrated for simplicity, production steps on
the (n+1)-th surface, the (n+2)-th surface, the (n+3)-th surface,
and so forth can be similarly progressed in parallel.
[0114] In step S11 of FIG. 23, the CPU 601 causes the driving
portion 12 of the driving apparatus 611 serving as a driving system
to pivot the rotatable portion 6 to move an n-th surface of the
forming surfaces 30a to 30d to an m-th process position. In the
arrangement of FIG. 20, the rotatable portion 6 is pivoted by
90.degree.. As can be seen from the above-described configuration
of the rotatable portion 6, the (n+1)-th surface, the (n+2)-th
surface, the (n+3)-th surface, and so forth can be simultaneously
moved to the (m+1)-th process position, the (m+2)-th process
position, the (m+3)-th process position, and so forth,
respectively, by this pivoting operation of the rotatable portion 6
as illustrated in, for example, FIG. 20.
[0115] In steps S12 and S13, the CPU 601 causes the m-th step to be
performed on the n-th surface of the forming surfaces 30a to 30d at
the m-th process position by controlling the driving apparatus 611
serving as a driving system of the mold and the injection molding
apparatus 612 serving as an injection system. In this case,
corresponding steps can be simultaneously performed on other
forming surfaces at the (m+1)-th process position, the (m+2)-th
process position, the (m+3)-th process position, and so forth.
[0116] When completion of the m-th step is confirmed in step S13,
the CPU 601 determines, in step S14, whether or not all the steps
on the n-th surface have been completed. In the case where it has
been determined in step S14 that all the steps on the n-th surface
have been completed, the part 101 has been moved to a take-out
position, the take-out position 150d in the example described
above, in step S15, and the part 101 is taken out in this step by
using ejector pins, the ejector pins 100 or 108 in the example
described above. In contrast, in the case where it has been
determined that not all the steps on the n-th surface are completed
yet in step S14, in step S16, the CPU 601 increments control data
of a counter, or a pointer or the like, for managing the process
position to indicate the next step, that is, m=m+1 is performed.
Then, the control returns to step S11, and the (m+1)-th step, the
(m+2)-th step, the (m+3)-th step, and so forth can be performed on
the n-th surface of the forming surfaces 30a to 30d by repeating
the operation described above.
[0117] By performing the control procedure schematically
illustrated in FIG. 23 by using such a control system as
illustrated in FIG. 22, a production process can be performed
sequentially and in parallel on n forming surfaces of the same
shape with a delay or advance of one step. Therefore, according to
the configuration of the control system of FIGS. 22 and 23, the
production efficiency of the mold can be remarkably improved.
Second Exemplary Embodiment
[0118] A second exemplary embodiment of the present invention will
e described. FIG. 24 illustrates a part 200 that is produced in the
present exemplary embodiment.
[0119] The part 200 is, for example, a cleaning unit used for a
cartridge of an image forming apparatus, and is assembled from
molded resin members that are each a single separate member. As
illustrated in FIG. 24, the part 200 is constituted by resin
members 701 and 702. The resin members 701 and 702 are integrated
and unitized to be a cleaning unit by performing injection molding
of molten resin se ng as a material for each member and assembly by
using a mold that will be described later.
[0120] In particular, the resin members 701 and 702 are each formed
by injection molding using a forming portion formed in the mold.
Then, a piece portion holding one of the resin members 701 and 702
that have been formed is inverted and moved to mount the one of the
resin members 701 and 702 on the other of the resin members 701 and
702. In the following example, the resin member 702 is mounted on
the resin member 701. At this time, the resin members 701 and 702
are joined via a fitting or engaging structure including, for
example, a projection and a groove.
[0121] Next, a mold for assembling the part 200 and a mold
configuration thereof will be described with reference to FIGS. 25A
to 27. FIGS. 25A to 27 illustrate a configuration of the mold of
the present exemplary embodiment. FIG. 25A is a perspective view of
the mold, and FIG. 25B is a top view of the mold. FIG. 25A
illustrates an overall configuration of the mold including a fixed
portion 705 and a movable portion 706. The fixed portion 705 will
be sometimes also referred to as a first portion 705, and the
movable portion 706 will be also sometimes referred to as a second
portion 706. FIG. 26 illustrates the first portion 705 as viewed
from the right in FIG. 25A, and FIG. 27 illustrates the second
portion 706 as viewed from the left in FIG. 25A.
[0122] As illustrated in FIG. 25, the mold of the present exemplary
embodiment is constituted by the fixed portion 705 and the movable
portion 706. As illustrated in FIG. 26, the fixed portion 705
includes forming portions 721 and 722 for forming the resin members
701 and 702. The forming portions 721 and 722 are both provided on
the same forming surface of the fixed portion 705.
[0123] In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 27, the movable portion
706 includes forming portions 731 and 732 formed to oppose the
forming portions 721 and 722 of the fixed portion 705. These
forming portions 731 and 732 are both provided on the same forming
surface of the movable portion 706.
[0124] The forming portion 732 of the movable portion 706 that is a
forming portion for the resin member 702 is constituted by a piece
portion 732a that is attachable to and detachable from the movable
portion 706. The piece portion 732a is illustrated in, for example,
FIG. 28. Driving portions 710a and 710b are respectively provided
on end portions of the movable portion 706 along a Za direction of
the forming portion 732. The driving portions 710a and 710b
correspond to an inversion movement apparatus that inverts and
moves the piece portion 732a, in a state in which the resin member
702 that has been formed is held by the piece portion 732a, to
mount the resin member 702 on the resin member 701 held by the
forming portion 731. The detailed configuration of the driving
portions 710a and 710b will be described below.
[0125] In the mold of the present exemplary embodiment, the fixed
portion 705 can be fixed to a fixed board of the injection molding
machine, and the mold can be opened and clamped by moving the
movable portion 706 with respect to the fixed portion 705. It is
assumed that an unillustrated injection mechanism of molten resin
of the injection molding machine is connected to the fixed portion
705. Although an example in which the attachable and detachable
piece portion 732a is formed on the movable portion 706 as
illustrated in, for example, FIG. 28, has been shown in the present
exemplary embodiment for the sake of convenience, the piece portion
732a may be formed on the fixed portion 705. That is, although one
has been named the fixed portion 705 and the other has been named
the movable portion 706 for the sake of convenience, a
configuration in which the movable portion 706 is attached to the
fixed board of the injection molding machine and the fixed portion
705 is movable may be also employed.
[0126] As illustrated in FIG. 25A, the mold of the present
exemplary embodiment includes a plurality of guides 801 extending
in the horizontal direction in FIG. 25A. In this example, four
guides 801 are provided. For example, the guides 801 are fixed with
respect to the fixed portion 705 and penetrate the movable portion
706 to guide the movable portion 706. For example, by controlling
the position of the movable portion 706 on the guides 801 by an
unillustrated driving system of the injection molding machine, the
movable portion 706 can be moved with respect to the fixed portion
705 to clamp or open the mold.
[0127] Next, a molding and assembly operation and a production
method of the part 200 in the configuration described above will be
described. In the present exemplary embodiment, the resin members
701 and 702 illustrated in FIG. 24 are molded and integrated as a
unit to form the part 200 through first to fourth steps. These
steps will be described below.
[0128] First, the first step will be described with reference to
FIGS. 28 to 30. FIG. 28 illustrates how the fixed portion 705 and
the movable portion 706 are closed. FIG. 29A illustrates a state in
which the fixed portion 705 and the movable portion 706 are closed,
and FIG. 29B is a horizontal section view of the mold taken along
an A-A line of FIG. 29A. In addition, FIG. 30 illustrates a state
in which injection molding of the resin members 701 and 702 are
performed, in a similar manner to FIG. 29B.
[0129] In the first step serving as a molding step, as illustrated
in FIG. 28, the movable portion 706 is moved in an X1 direction of
the fixed portion 705, that is, in a direction in which the movable
portion 706 and the fixed portion 705 become closer to each other,
and thus the mold is closed in a state in which a first surface of
the fixed portion 705 facing the movable portion 706 and a second
surface of the movable portion 706 facing the fixed portion 705 are
brought into contact with each other. For the movement of the
movable portion 706, a driving portion disposed in the
unillustrated injection molding machine is used. To be noted,
regarding the relative movement between the fixed portion 705 and
the movable portion 706, in the case where the movable portion 706
is attached to the fixed board of the unillustrated injection
molding machine, the fixed portion 705 may be moved. In this case,
the unillustrated injection mechanism of molten resin of the
injection molding machine is connected to the movable portion
706.
[0130] FIGS. 29A and 29B illustrate a state after the fixed portion
705 and the movable portion 706 are closed. Particularly, FIG. 29B
illustrates a horizontal section of the fixed portion 705 and the
movable portion 706 taken along the A-A line of FIG. 29A in this
closed state. As illustrated in FIG. 29B, in this closed state, the
forming portions 721 and 722 of the fixed portion 705 oppose the
forming portions 731 and 732 of the movable portion 706, and
cavities 780a and 780b for respectively forming the resin members
701 and 702 are defined therebetween.
[0131] As described above, the forming portions 731 and 732 of the
movable portion 706 are specifically constituted by the piece
portions 731a and 732. In the description below, the forming
portion 731 and the piece portion 731a will be sometimes referred
to as a first forming portion, and the forming portion 732 and the
piece portion 732a will be sometimes referred to as a second
forming portion.
[0132] In the present exemplary embodiment, among these forming
portions, at least the second forming portion 732, particularly the
piece portion 732a is configured to be detachable from the movable
portion 706. This second forming portion 732, particularly the
piece portion 732a, can be detached from the second surface of the
movable portion 706, which is a surface opposing the fixed portion
705, and inverted and moved with respect to the second surface by
the driving portions 710a and 710b. According to this, as will be
described later, the second forming portion 732, particularly the
piece portion 732a, is inverted and moved to oppose the first
forming portion 731, particularly 731a, and thus the resin members
701 and 702 formed in the respective forming portions are
assembled.
[0133] Subsequently, as illustrated in FIG. 30, molten resin is
injected into the plurality of cavities 780a and 780b respectively
defined by the forming portions 721 and 722 of the fixed portion
705 and the forming portions 731 and 732 of the movable portion
706, and thus the plurality of resin members 701 and 702 are
molded. For this injection of molten resin, for example, an
unillustrated injection mechanism of the injection molding machine
connected to the fixed portion 705 is used.
[0134] Next, the second step will be described with reference to
FIGS. 31 and 32. This second step corresponds to a preparation step
for the third step serving as an assembly step that will be
described above, and is mainly a step of opening the fixed portion
705 and the movable portion 706. FIG. 31 illustrates a state in
which the fixed portion 705 and the movable portion 706 are open,
and FIG. 32 illustrates a state in which the resin members 701 and
702 that have been formed by injection molding are held by the
forming portions 731 and 732.
[0135] In this second step, as illustrated in FIG. 31, the mold is
opened by relatively moving the movable portion 706 in an X2
direction away from the fixed portion 705. At this time, as
illustrated in FIG. 32, the resin members 701 and 702 are
respectively released from the forming portions 721 and 722 of the
fixed portion 705 and respectively held by the forming portions 731
and 732 of the movable portion 706. To open the mold in this
manner, the holding force of each forming portion is determined in
advance by, for example, selecting the shapes of forming portions
respectively disposed on the movable portion 706 and the fixed
portion 705. Alternatively, a structure in which a pin or the like
for release is disposed on the fixed portion 705 as necessary may
be employed.
[0136] Next, the third step serving as an assembly step will be
described with reference to FIGS. 32 and 33A to 33C. FIGS. 33A to
33C each correspond to a top view of the mold viewed in a Z1
direction of FIG. 32. In this third step serving as an assembly
step, the resin member 702 held by the forming portion 732 of the
mold is inverted and moved on the second surface by using the
driving portions 710a and 710b, and thus is mounted on the resin
members 701 held by the forming portion 731.
[0137] FIGS. 33A to 33C illustrate a configuration and operation of
the driving portion 710a at the upper part in FIG. 32 for inverting
and moving the second forming portion 732, particularly the piece
portion 732a to oppose the first forming portion 731, particularly
the piece portion 731a. To be noted, the structure of the driving
portion 710b of FIG. 32 is the same as the structure of the driving
portion 710a except that the arrangement of components is
vertically inverted. In FIG. 33A, the driving portion 710a includes
a U-shaped groove 750a provided as a guide portion. Shafts 740a and
740b are provided to project from the top end surface of the
forming portion 732, that is, the piece portion 732a, and are
engaged with the groove 750a.
[0138] Meanwhile, a lever 751a is fixed to a pivot shaft of a gear
821a as illustrated in FIGS. 34A and 34B, and this lever 751a is
engaged with a space between the shafts 740a and 740b. The gear
821a engages with a gear 820a, and the gear 820a is rotated by a
drive source such as an electric motor, although details thereof
are not illustrated. The rotation directions of the gears 820a and
821a in this third step serving as an assembly step are
respectively Ra and Rb directions illustrated in FIGS. 33A and 33B.
According to this structure, in the case where the lever 751a of
the driving portion 710a is swung, the shafts 740a and 740b
provided to project from the forming portion 732, that is, the
piece portion 732a, move along the groove 750a as illustrated in
FIGS. 33A to 33C.
[0139] According to this, as indicated by two-dot chain lines in
FIGS. 33A to 33C, the forming portion 732, that is, the piece
portion 732a holding the resin member 702 is detached from the
second surface of the movable portion 706 opposing the fixed
portion 705, inverted and moved with respect to the second surface,
and controlled at a position and orientation opposing the forming
portion 731, that is, the piece portion 731a.
[0140] As described above, the resin member 702 held by the forming
portion 732, that is, the piece portion 732a, can be opposed to the
resin member 701 held by the forming portion 731, that is, the
piece portion 731a, by inverting and moving the forming portion
732, that is, the piece portion 732a, with respect to the second
surface by using the driving portion 710a. Then, for example, by
further pressing the forming portion 732, that is, the piece
portion 732a, by the driving portion 710a, the resin member 702 can
be mounted on the resin member 701. To be noted, it is assumed that
fitting structures such as a projection and a groove that can be
joined by the driving force of the driving portion 710a are formed
on the resin members 701 and 702 by injection molding. Examples of
the fitting structure include a clickstop. Although an operation of
the driving portion 710a provided at an upper portion of the
forming portion 732, that is, the piece portion 732a, has been
described, it goes without saying that the driving portion 710b at
a lower portion of the forming portion 732, that is, the piece
portion 732a, operates in a similar manner.
[0141] Next, the fourth step of releasing and taking out the part
200 that has been molded and assembled from the mold will be
described with reference to FIGS. 33A to 35. FIGS. 34A and 34B
illustrate an operation of the driving portion 710a releasing the
resin member 702 from the forming portion 732, and FIG. 35
illustrates an operation of releasing the part 200 that has been
molded and assembled from the movable portion 706.
[0142] As described above, for example, after the part 200 having a
space therein is assembled from the resin members 701 and 702, the
forming portion 732 is moved in an order reversed from the order
described above, that is, in an order from FIG. 33C to FIG. 33A. In
addition, FIG. 34A is a perspective view of the mold illustrating a
state in which the driving portion 710a is at a position
corresponding to FIG. 33C. FIG. 34B is a perspective view of the
mold illustrating a state in which the driving portion 710a is at a
position corresponding to FIG. 33B.
[0143] The rotation directions of the gears 820a and 821a of the
driving portion 710a in this fourth step are respectively Re and Rd
directions as illustrated in FIG. 34A. To be noted, it goes without
saying that the driving portion 710b performs a similar operation
although details thereof are not illustrated. In the case where the
driving portions 710a and 710b are operated in directions opposite
to the Ra and Rb directions as described above, the resin member
702 is released from the forming portion 732, that is, the piece
portion 732a, as illustrated in FIGS. 33C to 33A. Then, the part
200 that has been assembled remains on the forming portion 731,
that is, the piece portion 731a, as illustrated in FIG. 34B.
[0144] To realize such a configuration of mold releasing, the joint
force, in other words, the holding force between the resin members
701 and 702 assembled in the third step serving as an assembly step
may be set to be larger than a holding force between the forming
portion 732 and the resin member 702. Such a joint force, that is,
holding force between the resin members 701 and 702 can be easily
realized by selecting a design condition of the fitting structure
such as a clickstop therebeween.
[0145] Further, as illustrated in FIG. 35, the part 200 can be
released by ejector pins 100 included in the movable portion 706,
and thus the part 200 that has been molded and assembled can be
taken out from the molding assembly apparatus.
[0146] As described above, according to the present exemplary
embodiment, the resin members 701 and 702 constituting the part 200
is formed by injection molding in the same molding process by the
first forming portion 731 and the second forming portion 732
provided on the same mold surface, the second forming portion 732
being detachable from the mold surface. Therefore, the resin
members 701 and 702 can be formed by injection mold with a
remarkably high precision. Further, in the present exemplary
embodiment, the second forming portion 732 is detached from the
mold surface and inverted and moved with respect to the mold
surface of the movable portion 706 by the driving portions 710a and
710b serving as an inversion movement device. Then, the second
forming portion 732 is opposed to the first forming portion 731,
and the resin member 702 formed by the second forming portion 732
is mounted on the resin member 701 formed by the first forming
portion 731. As described above, according to the present exemplary
embodiment, the resin members 701 and 702 are assembled on the same
mold surface of the movable portion 706 while being held by holding
portions thereof, and thus assembly can be performed with a high
precision. Therefore, the part 200 can be produced with a high
precision.
Other Embodiments
[0147] Embodiment(s) of the present invention can also be realized
by a computer of a system or apparatus that reads out and executes
computer executable instructions (e.g., one or more programs)
recorded on a storage medium (which may also be referred to more
fully as a `non-transitory computer-readable storage medium`) to
perform the functions of one or more of the above-described
embodiment(s) and/or that includes one or more circuits (e.g.,
application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)) for performing the
functions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s), and
by a method performed by the computer of the system or apparatus
by, for example, reading out and executing the computer executable
instructions from the storage medium to perform the functions of
one or more of the above-described embodiment(s) and/or controlling
the one or more circuits to perform the functions of one or more of
the above-described embodiment(s). The computer may comprise one or
more processors (e.g., central processing unit (CPU), micro
processing unit (MPU)) and may include a network of separate
computers or separate processors to read out and execute the
computer executable instructions. The computer executable
instructions may be provided to the computer, for example, from a
network or the storage medium. The storage medium may include, for
example, one or more of a hard disk, a random-access memory (RAM),
a read only memory (ROM), a storage of distributed computing
systems, an optical disk (such as a compact disc (CD), digital
versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD).TM.), a flash memory
device, a memory card, and the like.
[0148] While the present invention has been described with
reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the
invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments.
The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest
interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and
equivalent structures and functions.
[0149] This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent
Application No. 2017-122598 filed on Jun. 22, 2017, No. 2017-122599
filed on Jun. 22, 2017, and No. 2018-101065 filed on May 25, 2018,
which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their
entirety.
* * * * *