Other

Accura-tec Inc.

Cito Products, Inc.

Silver Creek Nurseries Inc.

Red E Innovations, LLC

Superior Die Set Corporation

Wieder Gmbh

Klaus A Wieder

Horst K Wieder

Joseph Haberkorn

Robert E Radke

James P Stuart

Richard J Radke

Bernd Reyer

Jeff F Falbo

Jeffrey L Edgar

Kevin D Edgar

A core lifter having lifter bar with an elongate blade which carries a coupling head received in an elongate lifter bar coupling receiver formed in the base configured to permit pivotable, swiveling and/or translational misalignment or tolerance compensation during core lifter assembly, installation, and operation in a plastic formable material molding apparatus, including during mold cycling advantageously preventing core lifter binding and extending core lifter life. A preferred lifter has a lifter bar formed of a blade to which a lifter bar coupling ball is attached that is received in an elongate longitudinally extending channel having a transverse cross section complementary to the ball defining a bearing race in which the ball is received enabling slidable pivoting, swiveling and slidable movement of the ball and blade relative thereto including while the ball and blade are slidably moving along the race in a longitudinal or lengthwise direction relative to the base.

Core lifter for molding apparatus

A core lifter having a lifter bar assembly formed of an elongate lifter bar with a replaceable lifter bar extension coupling carrying a coupling ball pivotably, rotatably, and translationally coupled to a lifter base fixed to an ejector plate of a plastic injection molding apparatus, the bar extension coupling removably coupled to the bar by a coupling joint configured to automatically self-align the bar relative to the base and mold in which the bar extends in a direction generally orthogonal to a lengthwise extent of the bar. Bar extension coupling is formed of an extension link having one end carrying the ball and an opposite end slidably coupled to an end of the bar by coupling joint. A preferred extension link is of breakaway sacrificial construction and slidably attached to the bar via a coupling joint that is a floating dovetail joint.

Core lifter with replaceable breakaway lifter blade coupling arrangement

A protective data holding vault that includes a module with onboard memory that can be configured as a drive, e.g. flash drive, attached to a machine or apparatus and which securely and protectively holds data associated with the machine or apparatus and a unique identifier thereof. The vault includes a casing with a receptacle in which the module is received and a cover that is sealingly attachable to the casing to cover the receptacle and protect the module in the receptacle. The vault is mounted in a pocket on the machine or apparatus, or a component therefor or thereof, and is linkable to a processor equipped device, such as via a USB link, enabling data stored on the vault to be retrieved and stored offboard providing secure data backup. In one system implementation, data synchronization can be performed to a remotely located storage device with bidirectional data transfer contemplated.

Data holder, system and method

A mold lock for a mold that includes a plurality of interlocking arrangements that are configured to provide at least a plurality of interlocks during mold closing. A male interlocking arrangement includes a head with a nose that has a recessed or offset portion that facilitates primary interlocking during mold closing. The nose can be configured with one or more spaced apart bosses that make contact with arms of a female interlocking arrangement at an initial point of contact that then facilitate mold alignment when a second point of contact is achieved.

Mold lock

An insert for a mold comprising a plug, having an insert face, and a receiver defined by a sidewall with one of the plug and the receiver having a groove that receives a guide that extends from the other of the plug and the receiver so as to facilitate rotation of the plug while opposing withdrawal of the plug. In one preferred embodiment, the groove has an inclined entranceway, that facilitates plug insertion and removal, and a transverse portion and extends circumferentially no more than about one and one-quarter rotation about the plug. In another embodiment, the guide is resiliently urged outwardly from the plug to ride in a groove in the sidewall and the sidewall has an access port for prying free the plug from the receiver. A detent assembly comprised of notches on the plug and a detent carried by the receiver permit the plug to be selectively indexed. The insert can be mounted to or carried by an ejector pin having a head constructed and arranged to prevent rotation of the pin during mold operation. In one preferred pin, a portion of the barrel is machined and hardened before shipment to another location, typically to an end user, where the unmachined portion is cut to length before machining the head and remainder of the barrel.

Ejector pin and method

A mold interlocking device that includes a first portion attached to a mold half that has a head with a channel and an insert therein that is received in a pocket of a receptacle of a second portion that is attached to another mold half. In one embodiment, the head comprises sidewalls each with channels that receive a replaceable insert therein. Preferred inserts include rollers, plates, plates with lubricating plugs, and plates comprised of layers. In one embodiment, each sidewall of the head has a tapered section disposed between a mounting base and a straight section and each pocket is defined by a complementarily contoured sidewall. In another embodiment, each head sidewall further includes a second tapered section adjacent the free end of the head.

Mold interlock

A mold vent and method. The vent has expanding passages. A preferred vent comprises an insert that has a plurality of passages. One insert comprises a grate formed of a plurality of portions that interleave fingers forming vent passages therebetween that preferably are vent slots. Supports can be disposed between fingers. The grate preferably is discharge-machined from a blank cut from stock made material that preferably is non-porous and smooth. The grate can be mounted in a pocket in the mold cavity or carried by a movable pin. The grate can be used in a system that includes valving, a source of fluid, and, if needed, a source of vacuum to help facilitate venting by drawing atmosphere out of the cavity during molding. The grate can also be used to introduce fluid into the mold that can be foaming moldable material or a heat transfer medium.

Mold vent and method

In a flow meter, especially for liquid cooling media in injection molds, comprising a housing with an inlet and outlet conduit and inside the housing a piston that is slidable against the force of an axially acting spring by the pressure of the fluid flowing through the housing in such a way that the displacement of the piston takes place in dependence upon the flow rate and is indicated through a window, provision is made, to attain a high measuring accuracy with a simple construction, for a helical spring ( ) that is guided in extension of the inlet conduit ( ) in an axial direction to be disposed in such a way that the entering fluid is transported around the centrically disposed helical spring ( ).

Flow meter

A vent, system and method for controlling flow of fluid into and out of a mold cavity. The vent has a plurality of passages that each have narrow oblong slot-shaped openings in the mold cavity and which each expand in size in a direction leading away from its opening. The vent preferably is an insert that comprises a grate with at least a plurality of vent slots. The grate preferably is formed of two halves with fingers that interleave to form the slots when assembled. The grate preferably is discharge machined from disc-shaped blanks cut from elongate stock made a material that preferably is non-porous and smooth. The grate can be mounted in a pocket in the mold cavity or carried by a movable pin. A system uses valving and a source of fluid and, if needed, a source of vacuum to help facilitate venting by drawing atmosphere out of the cavity during molding. The system can also be used to introduce fluid through a vent such as for foaming moldable material in the cavity. The system can also be used to introduce a heat transfer medium into the mold cavity. The system can also be used to accelerate venting during one part of a mold cycle and then introduce fluid into the cavity during the same cycle.

Mold vent

Mold insert

An apparatus for measuring and storing a tree characteristic that preferably is tree diameter and other data related to location, variety and grade of a tree being measured. The apparatus has a handle, a wand extending therefrom, and a measurement head carried by the wand for measuring diameter. The wand has a control handle connected by a cable to a movable caliper jaw carried by the head to measure a diameter of a tree between the movable jaw and another jaw. A vernier having measurement locator slots and a home position slot is carried by the cable and communicates with slot sensors that send signals to an on-board computer to determine direction and distance of jaw movement for enabling the distance between the jaws to be determined. Two optoisolators and the computer comprise a jaw motion and direction detecting quadrature detector. A third optoisolator detects when the movable jaw is in its home position. The computer includes a microcontroller, a memory for storing tree data, a port for transferring stored data from memory to a PC, and inputs for selecting and storing data. A memory cartridge can be used to store tree data. Software running on the PC enables data to be downloaded, sorted, stored, displayed or printed. The software is also used to configure cartridges by downloading at least a portion of a master list of locations and varieties to a cartridge being configured that can later be selected in the field during apparatus operation.

Apparatus for measuring and recording a tree characteristic

A conventional injection mold of the type having two half parts, and slides connected to core parts which slide inwardly and outwardly as the mold half parts open and close, have mounted therein slide retainers which lock the slides in position with respect to a slide plate in one of the mold half parts when the mold halves are fully opened. The retainers include a latch portion mounted to the slide and having a camming surface facing away from the core of the mold and a V-shaped notch therein, and a slide lock mounted below the surface of the slide plate and having a plunger with a head which extends upwardly above the flat surface of the slide plate. The head of the plunger is formed in a V-shape to match the V-shaped notch of the latch and is spring biased upwardly to provide a firm engagement between the plunger head and the latch when the slide is in the fully opened position. A stack of bowed, spring loaded washers may be utilized to apply the spring bias against the plunger to drive it upwardly. By mounting the slide lock below the surface of the slide plate and the latch within the slide, very little machining of standard mold parts is required and minimal space within the mold is occupied by these parts, so that the normal operation of the mold is not obstructed and no substantial modification of the mold is required.

Slide retainer for injection molds

A method and apparatus (10) is disclosed which provides automatic control of the temperature of a fluid cooled plastic mold (12) during successive injections of liquid plastic into the mold. The temperature of the mold (12) is sensed by a probe (18) which provides a signal indicative of the temperature of the mold. The signal from the probe (12) is compared by the apparatus with a selected control temperature signal indicative of the proper operating temperature of the mold. When the sensed temperature is above the control temperature, a solenoid operated control valve (50) is activated so that cooling fluid, such as ordinary tap water, is passed through cooling channels (13) in the mold. Flow of cooling fluid is shut off when the sensed temperature drops below the selected operating temperature. The apparatus (10) also includes an undertemperature signal light (54) which lights to inform the operator that the mold is below a minimum operating temperature; and an overtemperature alarm light (46) and a speaker (44) which are both activated to warn the operator when an unacceptable overtemperature in the mold is sensed.

Growing community of inventors

Helenville, WI, United States of America

Klaus A Wieder