阅读说明：本技术 用于形成气密性密封管帽的方法和设备 (Method and apparatus for forming a hermetically sealed capsule ) 是由 菲利普·M·布鲁尔 于 2019-09-10 设计创作，主要内容包括：一种由管状构件形成容器的方法包括以下步骤：将管状构件定位在支撑结构上,移动注射模制模具的压板以接合管状构件从而形成腔体,并且将材料注射到腔体中。(A method of forming a container from a tubular member comprising the steps of: the method includes positioning a tubular member on a support structure, moving a platen of an injection molding mold to engage the tubular member to form a cavity, and injecting material into the cavity.)

1. A method of forming a container from a tubular member, the method comprising the steps of:

positioning the tubular member on a locator of a support such that the locator of the support locates the tubular member relative to a post of the support, the post configured to define a first side of a cavity for receiving material injected into the cavity,

moving a platen of an injection molding mold to engage the tubular member, the platen moving a portion of a structure configured to define a second side of the cavity for receiving material injected into the cavity, and a sidewall defining the cavity, the sidewall corresponding to an outer surface of the tubular member, and

injecting a material into the cavity, the material forming a plug that engages the inner surface of the tubular member so as to form an airtight seal therewith, the material also forming a cap for the tubular member, the material filling any space between the tip of the tubular member and the cavity to form an extension of the wall of the tubular member, the length of the container being defined by the distance between the locator and the tip of the cavity.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the material is injected under pressure in a plasticized state.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the material is allowed to cool in the cavity to form a final shape of the container.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising adjusting a position of the positioner along a length of the column to adjust for variations in a length of a tubular member.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the support is positioned on a carrier that is movable relative to the platen, and wherein when the platen is moved into engagement with the tubular member, the platen engages a portion of the carrier that causes the platen to be positioned relative to the support and the tubular member.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein a plurality of supports are positioned on the carrier, each support including a positioner and a post supporting a corresponding tubular member, and movement of the platen causes a corresponding cavity to be formed for each tubular member.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein each of the respective tubular members is simultaneously formed into a container as the material is injected into each respective cavity.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising adjusting a position of each respective locator along a length of each respective post to adjust for variations in a length of the respective tubular member.

9. A method of forming a container of fixed length from a tubular blank of variable length, comprising:

positioning the first end of the tubular blank relative to the injection molding die,

inserting the open end of the tubular blank into the injection moulding mould,

injection moulding a stopper in the interior of the tubular blank to form the bottom of the container while forming a cap on the tubular blank to form a wall that coincides with the existing wall of the tubular blank to form a container having a predefined length independent of the length of the tubular blank.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein positioning a first end of the tubular billet comprises positioning a first end of the tubular billet against a positioner that supports the tubular billet relative to the injection molding die.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising adjusting the position of the positioner to produce different lengths of tubular stock.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the locator is adjustable relative to a post, and the post bounds at least a portion of the plug formed in the injection molding mold.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein a portion of the injection molding mold moves relative to the post.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the locator is adjustable relative to a post, and the post bounds at least a portion of the plug formed in the injection molding mold.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein a portion of the injection molding mold moves relative to the post.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a method of forming a container having a wall by molding an integral end closure onto an open end of a tubular member.

Background

Although it is well known to use containers having an annular cylindrical sidewall with a closed bottom, such as such vials, the methods for producing such containers are widely varied. In some cases, the cylindrical container may be molded as a unit using blow molding or injection molding techniques. Such a method requires a large, dedicated tool, the size of which is adapted to the specific volume of the required container. Such a process requires a significant investment in identifying the gate position and tightly controlling the temperature across the mold to properly form the part. Such methods are expensive and cost prohibitive for small batches.

An alternative method is to apply a cylindrical blank to the end of the cylindrical member and bond a closure or cap. This method requires less capital investment than the molding methods discussed above, but is more labor intensive and requires tight control of the tolerances of the cylindrical billet and the closure to maintain consistent dimensions. In some cases, the finished unit is trimmed to length after the endcaps are added.

A key aspect of modern lean manufacturing is the need to maintain a minimum inventory and provide a flexible manufacturing process to deliver different customer needs. As customers order containers of different sizes, there is a need to provide those containers at low cost, with fast turnaround times, and with the ability to customize the size to the customer's needs.

Disclosure of Invention

The present disclosure includes one or more of the features recited in the appended claims and/or the following features which may comprise patentable subject matter in any combination.

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a method of forming a container from a tubular member comprises the steps of: the method includes positioning a tubular member on a support structure, moving a platen of an injection molding mold to engage the tubular member to form a cavity, and injecting a material into the cavity. The step of positioning the tubular member on the locator includes positioning the locator on the support such that the locator of the support locates the tubular member relative to the post of the support. The post is configured to define a first side of the cavity for receiving material injected into the cavity. The step of moving a platen of an injection molding mold to engage the tubular member includes the platen moving a portion of a structure configured to define a second side of the cavity for receiving material injected into the cavity; and defines a sidewall of the cavity corresponding to the outer surface of the tubular member. Injecting a material into the cavity includes forming a plug of material that engages an inner surface of the tubular member to form a gas-tight seal. The material further forms a cap for the tubular member, the material filling any space between the end of the tubular member and the cavity to form an extension of the wall of the tubular member such that the container has a length defined by the distance between the locator and the end of the cavity.

In some embodiments, the material is injected in a plasticized state under pressure.

In some embodiments, the material is allowed to cool in the cavity to form the final shape of the container.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises adjusting the position of the positioner along the length of the column to adjust for variations in the length of the tubular member.

In some embodiments, the support is positioned on a carrier, the carrier is movable relative to the platen, and when the platen is moved to engage with the tubular member, the platen engages with a portion of the carrier, the engagement of the platen with the portion of the carrier causing the platen to be positioned relative to the support and the tubular member.

In some embodiments, a plurality of supports are positioned on the carrier, each support including a positioner and a post supporting a corresponding tubular member, and movement of the platen causes a corresponding cavity to be formed for each tubular member.

In some embodiments, each of the corresponding tubular members is simultaneously formed into a container as the material is injected into each corresponding cavity.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises adjusting the position of each corresponding locator along the length of each corresponding post in order to adjust for variations in the length of the corresponding tubular member.

According to a second aspect of the invention, a method of forming a container of fixed length from a tubular blank of variable length comprises positioning a first end of the tubular blank relative to an injection moulding die, inserting an open end of the tubular blank into the injection moulding die, and injection moulding a stopper in the interior of the tubular blank to form a bottom of the container, while forming a cap on the tubular blank to form a wall that coincides with an existing wall of the tubular blank to form a container of predefined length independent of the length of the tubular blank.

In some embodiments, the positioning of the first end of the tubular blank comprises positioning the first end of the tubular blank against a positioner that supports the tubular blank relative to the injection molding die.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises adjusting the position of the positioner to produce different lengths of the tubular blank.

In some embodiments, the locator is adjustable relative to the post, and the post defines a boundary of at least a portion of a stopper formed in the injection molding mold.

In some embodiments, a portion of the injection molding mold moves relative to the post.

Additional features may include patentable subject matter alone or in combination with any other feature or features (such as those listed above and/or those listed in the claims), and will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments exemplifying the best mode of carrying out such embodiments as presently perceived.

Drawings

The detailed description makes specific reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cylindrical container formed in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cylindrical container of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of a method of forming the cylindrical container of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a sub-method of the flow chart of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a piece of equipment configured to perform the method disclosed in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is another perspective view of the piece of equipment of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an injection molding mold used in the piece of equipment of FIGS. 5 and 6, the molding mold being in an open position;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the molding die of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the molding die of FIG. 7 similar to FIG. 8, FIG. 9 showing the molding die in a closed position; and is

Fig. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion of the molding die shown in fig. 9.

Detailed Description

The present disclosure relates to a process 100, as shown in fig. 3, the process 100 for producing a cylindrical container 10 having tight holding tolerances, as shown in fig. 1. The length 12 of the container 10 is not entirely dependent on the length 14 of the cylindrical member 16 shown in fig. 2, but is controlled by the process 100 to allow for overcoming variations in the length 14 and providing a consistent length 12 of the container 10. The closure 18 is applied to the container 10 by injection molding such that the combination of the closure 18 and the cylindrical member 16 cooperate to define a length 12, the length 12 being consistent with the variation in length 14 of the cylindrical member 16. Furthermore, as will be discussed in further detail below, the process 100 utilizes adjustments to allow for cylindrical members 16 having different nominal lengths, such that the same process may be used to produce cylindrical containers 10 having different lengths without requiring different molds. The illustrative container 10 is transparent. The transparency of the material is a functional aspect that allows a user to see the contents and the amount of material in the container 10. The aesthetic qualities of container 10 are an important aspect and are achieved by using a relatively thin-walled material, including, for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or derivatives of PET, such as polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG), or the like, which maintains the good rigidity of cylindrical member 16. Similarly, the end caps 18 are also illustratively made of PET, PETG, or polyvinyl chloride (PVC) having transparency. The presently disclosed method and apparatus are configured for processing the container 10 so as to maintain aesthetic aspects while reducing costs.

Referring to the cross-sectional view of the cylindrical vessel 10 in fig. 2, the cylindrical member 16 includes an annular wall 20, the annular wall 20 defining an interior region 22, the interior region 22 having a tip 24 at a first end 26 of the cylindrical member 16. The end closure 18 is formed on the second end 28 of the cylindrical member 16 such that the interior region 22 is bounded by an interior surface 30 of the annular wall 20 and an interior surface 32 of the end closure 18. The closure 18 is formed to include a plug portion 34 and a cap portion 36. It should be understood that the closure 18 is a unitary structure and the plug portion 34 and cap portion 36 are integrally formed as a single unit. However, the plug portion 34 is defined by an interface 38, which interface 38 engages a portion of the inner surface 30 of the cylindrical member 16, thereby forming a hermetic seal between the plug portion 34 and the cylindrical member 16. The plug portion 34 is further defined by the inner surface 32. Cap portion 36 has a length 40 extending between second end 28 and an outer surface 42 of end closure 18. Cap portion 36 is defined by a cylindrical outer surface 44, cylindrical outer surface 44 being substantially coincident with a cylindrical outer surface 46 of cylindrical member 16. The plug portion 34 has a length 48 that cooperates with the length 40 to define a length 50 of the closure 18, but the lengths 48 and 40 "float" to allow for variations in the length of the cylindrical member 16 while maintaining the length 12 of the container 10.

This ability to vary the lengths 48 and 40 while maintaining the overall length 12 of the container 10 provides for a final product container 10 having consistent exterior dimensions for the final product container 10 while moving any variation to the length 52 of the interior region 22 between the interior surface 32 of the closure 18 and the first end 26 of the cylindrical member 16. In fact, moving the change in length to interior region 22 does not affect the utility of container 10, as interior region 22 is sized to have more than sufficient capacity to hold any amount of material that may be stored therein. However, having consistent external dimensions in the form of the length 12 of the container 10 allows for easy handling of the container 10 before the container 10 is used for storage. Thus, the ability to consistently maintain length 12 is an advantage. Moreover, the ability to maintain length 12 while allowing length 14 to vary reduces the cost of producing cylindrical member 16 because cylindrical member 16 is cut to length without requiring tight tolerance controls. This allows the cylindrical member 16 to be extruded and cut to length at high speed, thereby reducing cost.

Referring to the apparatus 60 shown in fig. 5 and 6, the overall process 100 is shown in fig. 3. The production cycle starts at a start step 102, and the cycle is started in step 102. At process step 104, the cylindrical member or tube 16 is loaded onto a carrier 62, the carrier 62 including a plurality of supports 64, as will be described in further detail below. The vector 62 is positioned on the right hand side 70 of the shuttle assembly 68. As tube 16 is loaded, device 60 proceeds to process step 106 where carrier 62 is shuttled into vertically oriented injection molding machine 66 at process step 106. Notably, a separate but similar vector 62' is shuttled out of machine 66 for positioning on the left hand side 72 of shuttle assembly 68. In subsequent cycles, the carriers 62, 62 'are shuttled back and forth so that when one carrier 62 or 62' is processed in the machine 66, the other carrier is unloaded and reloaded on opposite sides 70, 72 of the shuttle assembly 68, respectively.

With carrier 62 positioned in machine 66, platen 74 is closed at process step 108 and machine 66 injection molds the end closure 18 onto tube 16. The process 108 is described in more detail below with reference to fig. 4. At the completion of molding process 108, carrier 62 is shuttled out of machine 66 and carrier 62' is shuttled into machine 66 at process step 110. The completed container 10 is then unloaded at process step 112 and the cycle ends at step 114. Another cycle may be initiated and the process 100 re-run. It should be understood that the carrier 62 ' may be processed while the carrier 62 is being unloaded and reloaded, thereby utilizing the machine 66 in alternating cycles, or only one of the carriers 62 or 62 ' may be processed, while the other of the carriers 62, 62 ' is not present or processed.

When carrier 62 (or 62') is positioned in machine 66, molding process 108 begins at step 116. When the molding process 108 begins at step 116, the molding die 80 is in an open position as shown in FIG. 7. The mold 80 is moved to the closed position shown in fig. 8 at process step 118. With the platens closed 118, plasticized endpiece material is injected under pressure into the mold in process step 120. In process step 122, the machine 66 is left for a period of time to allow the injected material to set into the final shape of the closure 18. The mold 80 is then opened at step 124 and the molding process 108 is ended at step 126.

Referring now to fig. 7, carrier 62 includes supports 64 each configured to support cylindrical member 16. Support 64 includes a post 82 and a locator 84 secured to post 82 to locate cylindrical member 16 along post 82. The retainer 84 includes a ring 86 and a set screw 88, the set screw 88 being used to secure the retainer 84 to the post 82. The set screw 88 allows the locator to be positioned along the post 82 to change the position of the locator 84, thereby creating cylindrical members 16 of different lengths. Thus, to process containers 10 having different lengths 12, the positioner 84 is appropriately positioned for the original length 14 of the cylindrical member 16. While the present disclosure shows the locators 84 all aligned to the same length on the post 82, it should be understood that different lengths of the cylindrical member 16 may be processed in a single cycle, with the locators 84 being adjusted for the different lengths. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the carrier 62 is configured to support four cylindrical members 16 in two rows such that eight containers 10 are formed in a single cycle. It should be understood that the number of supports 64 may vary with the number of cavities in the molding die 80 to correspond to the number of supports 64 so that other numbers of containers 10 may be formed in a single cycle depending on customer needs and efficiency requirements.

Carrier 62 includes a plate 90, plate 90 including four locating pins 92, locating pins 92 being engaged by molding die 80 to locate molding die 80 relative to carrier 62. The post 82 is supported on a block 94 mounted to the plate 90. It should be noted that during the molding process 108, the carrier 62 is effectively stationary and the post 82 serves as one side of the cavity 158 of the cap 18. The remaining operation of the molding die 80 is shown in the cross-sectional views of fig. 8-10.

Referring to fig. 8, when mold 80 is opened or retracted, molding mold 80 includes four components that are movable during closure during engagement of mold 80 with carrier 62. Mold 80 includes a base 140, base 140 configured to engage locating pins 92 of carrier 62 as mold 80 moves relative to carrier 62, and corresponding cavities 142 engage pins 92 and align mold 80 with carrier 62. The base 140 engages the die plate 144, wherein the die plate 144 engages a plurality of guide pins 146, the guide pins 146 aligning the die plate 144 as the die plate 144 moves relative to the base 140. Further, the mold plate 144 engages a seal assembly 148, the seal assembly 148 being secured to a frame 150 of the base 140 such that when the mold plate 144 is moved into engagement with the frame 150, a seal 152 of the seal assembly 148 engages a tapered surface 154, the tapered surfaces 154 being formed in each of the cavities so as to cause the interface between the mold plate 144 and the base 140 to be pressure sealed. The die plate 144 is formed to include a die body 156, the die body 156 extending into the space 200 in the frame 150 to form a second portion of the cavity 158, the cavity 158 being used to form the closure 18. Each mold body 156 has a hollow passageway 160, and injected material 162 is pushed through the hollow passageway 160 by the machine 66. The passage 160 terminates in a tip 164, as best shown in fig. 10.

Referring to fig. 9, when molding die 80 is closed, nozzle 166 extends through pressure plate 168 and injector plate 170 to align with counterbore 172, which counterbore 172 is the end of passage 160 opposite tip 164. Material 162 is pushed into passageway 160 by machine 66 and fills cavity 158 with material 162. In addition, the passages 160 and counterbores 172 are also filled with material 162 such that the material 162 forms the closure end piece 18 as well as overflow material 178, the overflow material 178 being in the form of gates 174 interconnected by runners 176, as shown in fig. 8. As is known in the art, the injector plate 170 separates the overflow material 178 from the nozzle 166.

Referring now to fig. 10, the cavity 158 is formed between an upper surface 180 of the post 82 and a lower surface 182 of the die body 156 and is generally bounded by the inner surface 30 of the cylindrical member 16. The cylindrical member 16 is positioned to contact the annular wall 190 of the body 184 of the seal assembly 148. The body 184 is formed to include a ridge 186 that provides a boundary for the cavity 158. In some cases, cylindrical member 16 may be slightly shorter and insufficient to engage ridge 186. In these instances, material 162 flows into the gap between ridge 186, cylindrical member 16, outer annular surface 188 and annular wall 190 of die body 156, thereby forming material 162 into an extension of surface 46 by forming surface 44 of container 10, as shown in fig. 2. Thus, variations in the length 14 of the cylindrical member 16 are accounted for in the cavity 158 such that the length 12 of the container 10 is maintained with tight tolerances.

At the completion of the process 108, the containers 10 are ejected from the columns 82 by using jets of compressed air that pass through the central passageways 192 of the respective columns 82 and through the passages 194 so that the containers 10 are pushed off the columns 82 and into the grippers 196 of the machine 66. The gripper 196 transfers the container 10 to a chute 198 where the container 10 is transferred to a packaging operation.

Although the present disclosure describes a process for molding the end cap 18 onto the cylindrical member 16, it should be understood that the member 16 may take on a variety of cross-sectional shapes, such that the end cap may be applied to any shape of extruded member. For example, a non-exhaustive list of various tubular shapes includes shapes having a triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, or regular shape. Still further, the cross-section of the tubular member is not limited to a regular cross-sectional shape, and may be applied to any tubular member (e.g., an elongate member having a passageway therein) that may have an injection mold configured to engage the shape and apply a closure, such as the closure 18.

While the present disclosure has been with reference to particular embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the subject matter set forth in the appended claims.