The core of ATC-Mould’s precision injection molding solution lies in integrating advanced simulation analysis technology, high-precision process control, and systematic optimization methods, aiming to efficiently produce high-quality and highly complex plastic products. The following provides an in-depth analysis of its key technologies, applications, and benefits.
Core Technologies and Components
- Mold Flow Analysis (CAE) and Moldflow Application
In precision injection molding, Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE), particularly mold flow analysis software such as Autodesk Moldflow, plays a crucial role.
Defect Prediction and Optimization: By simulating the flow, packing, cooling, and other processes of the plastic melt in the mold cavity, the software can predict potential defects such as weld lines, air traps, sink marks, and warpage. This allows engineers to identify and resolve these issues before mold manufacturing.
Gating and Cooling System Design: The software can analyze and determine the optimal gate location and quantity, design a rational cooling channel layout, ensure uniform mold temperature, and minimize deformation caused by uneven cooling.
Process Parameter Optimization: Through simulation analysis, key parameters such as injection speed, packing pressure and time, and mold and melt temperatures can be optimized. Research shows that optimizing process parameters using methods like orthogonal experiments can significantly reduce warpage deformation.
Material Shrinkage Control: Precision injection molding requires high uniformity in volumetric shrinkage rate. Through Moldflow’s average volumetric shrinkage analysis, product shrinkage can be controlled within 2%, effectively avoiding appearance defects.
- High-Precision Injection Molding Machine Control System
Precision injection molding requires injection molding machines with high response speed and control accuracy.
Multi-Stage Closed-Loop Control: Advanced control systems (e.g., PPC series) enable multi-stage (e.g., ten-stage injection/packing, five-stage screw) adaptive closed-loop control of injection speed, packing pressure, back pressure, and screw rotation speed, ensuring a stable molding process.
High-Speed Switching Technology: Using TPU control technology, the system’s response time for switching from speed control to pressure control is only a few hundred microseconds, effectively preventing pressure overshoot and ensuring smooth pressure transition.
Intelligent Temperature Control: Smart PID temperature control technology automatically optimizes tuning parameters, offers high temperature control accuracy, and allows arbitrary expansion of temperature control zones, ensuring stable material plasticization.
Motion Curve Optimization: Unique hydraulic drive control technology automatically calculates the optimal motion control curve based on set basic motion parameters, enabling fast, smooth, and precise positioning while shortening the cycle time.
- Intelligent Gating System Design
The design of the gating system has a critical impact on plastic part quality.
Intelligent Gate Selection and Positioning: Based on a comprehensive analysis of the plastic part’s shape, technical requirements, material type, and number of cavities, suitable gate types and optimal locations can be recommended, taking into account weld lines, warpage, filling balance, pressure loss, and venting.
Runner Size Optimization: Based on factors such as plastic type and shear rate, reasonable dimensions for sub-runner cross-sections and main runner diameter are provided to balance the runner system.
- Process Parameter Optimization and Orthogonal Experimental Method
Faced with multiple process parameters that affect quality, the orthogonal experimental method is an efficient optimization approach.
Factor and Level Screening: By rationally selecting experimental factors (e.g., melt temperature, mold temperature, injection pressure) and their levels, significant optimization effects can be achieved with a small number of experiments.
Range and Variance Analysis: Range analysis can determine the order of influence of various factors on optimization targets (e.g., warpage deformation). Variance analysis, on the other hand, can mitigate experimental errors, yield more accurate conclusions, and determine the optimal combination of process parameters.