Patent GB-1230140-A (GB)
IPC: B29C49/00
Filed: 1968-05-21
Abstract: 1,230,140. Manufacturing holloware. H. HEYE, [trading as OBERNKIRCHEN K.G.]. 21 May, 1968 [9 Jan., 1968], No. 24251/68. Heading B5A. [Also in Division C1] In a machine for manufacturing holloware in which a number of workpieces in different stages of manufacture are dealt with by the machine simultaneously, each workpiece holder has its own drive means selectively controllable and adjustable independently of the other drives. The machine operates on the press-andblow principle and comprises a single press pre-forming station and two finish blowmoulding stations with two units each of four mouth-finishing moulds, one unit to each blow-mould station and all mouth-finishing moulds passing through the pre-forming stations. Each workpieee holder is movable unidirectionally and includes a mouth-finishing mould which is arranged to support a workpiece and which is compatible with all the processing stations. General construction (Figs. 1 and 2). The machine is built about a main frame comprising a pair of upright pillars 40, 41 connected by a cross-beam 45 through which a compressed air supply is carried. A third of the way up from the foot of pillars 40, 41 is a support plate 51, and a further third of the way up each pillar supported on a shoulder 60 is a gear stack 61, 150. Each gear stack 61 defines one unit of the machine and on an upper sealing plate 62 carries four photo-electric impulse transmitteractivated motors (e.g. m1, m2, m5, m6) each motor independently driving a gear ring in a stack 61 and thus one mouth-finish holder 82. So that all mouth-finish holders 82 rotate in the same horizontal plane the connecting rods 81 to their respective gears in the stack are of differing lengths. The pre-forming station S1 is located between the two units where the centre lines of the paths of rotation of the holders 82 is tangential. Each blow-moulding station S2, S2<SP>1</SP> (Fig. 2) is located on the perimeter of the machine 220 degrees of travel from the pre-form station S1. Each mouth-finish holder 82 is stationary when at station S1 or S2. A take-out station S3 (Fig. 14, not shown) is provided for each unit 270 degrees of travel from S1 but the finished article is released by the holder 82 without stopping, the article then being conveyed away to an annealing lehr. The pre-forming station S1 (Figs. 2 and 3). A parison mould 101 is mounted on a support 100 which projects through an arcuate slot 99 (Fig. 2) in the plate 51. The mould is movable from a lower charging position arcuately (as defined by slot 99) by a gear means 104-105 and then vertically into an upper pressing position by gear means 102-103 slidably moving the mould up a shaft 115. The vertical movement is defined by two forks 112 on a shaft 111. A mouth-finish mould 83 is timed to co-operate with a parison mould in the press position. Both are then secured by a parison clamp 90, Fig. 3 (not shown), the two halves of which are mounted about a common pivot 91 and are actuated through rotatable shafts 92, 92<SP>1</SP> and arms 181, 181<SP>1</SP>. The shafts 92, 92<SP>1</SP> are driven by a motor 96 through gearing 176-179. A press plunger 76 is mounted for vertical movement into and out of the mould on a guide housing 75 through a crank driven by a motor 77 mounted on the cross-beam 45.  The finishing stations S2 (Fig. 1). A parison held in a mouth-finish mould 83 on arrival at a final blow station 52 is enclosed by a blow-mould 123, 124. The mould base 124 is vertically movable into and out of position on a means 125. The mould halves 123 are suspended in a finishing mould clamp which is similar to the parison mould clamp and is operable through a drive 136. When the mould is clamped a blow-head 71 is actuated and lowered into position within a housing 69. The take-out station S3, Figs. 8-10 (not shown). The mouth-finish mould 83 and their holders 82 are slidably mounted on shafts 206, 207 (Fig. 10). A control member has a shaft 209 which passes through the mould holder support 81 and is rigidly connected to an index plate 208. The plate 208 has two index pins 210, 211, about each of which is hinged one eyelet of a bow-type spring 212 or 213. The other end of each spring is connected to mould half 82 or 82<SP>1</SP>. When the mouth-finish mould is closed the two springs 212, 213 overlap and lock the halves of holders 82 together. On approach to station 53 rollers 215-218 on the holder 81 contact cams 220, 221 (Fig. 8) causing clockwise rotation (as per Fig. 8) of the holder 81 through 180 degrees. This rotates plate 208 unlocking springs 212, 213 and mould-holder halves 82, 82<SP>1</SP>. The finished article is thus released and falls on to a conveyer for transfer to a lehr. Cams 222, 223 then co-operate with rollers 215-218 to cause rotation of plate 81 anti-clockwise back through 180 degrees to close and lock the mouth-finish mould ready for a further cycle. The drive means, Fig. 15 (not shown). Each gear stack 61, 150 comprises four gear rings 324-327 (Fig. 15, not shown), spacedly mounted one above the other. Each gear ring is independently driven by a motor (m 1 -m 4 ) through a reduction gear, e.g. G1, 358-361. A mouth-finish mould holder 81 is rigidly connected to each gear ring as by means 345. Each motor (m 1  &c.) is actuated by its own photo-electric impulse transmitter (U14) which transmitter comprises a perforated disc L, rotatable as the same angular velocity of motor m 1  and a double disc L 2 -L 3  rotatable at the same angular velocity as the gearing ring 324-327. These discs are arranged to vary the degree of illumination passing two photo-electric light sources (P1), (P2) and operates the speed of the motors m 1 -m 4 . Each unit 61 and 150 has two programme controllers (U5), (U6) one for movement from S1 to S2 and the other for movement from S2 to S1. The programme controllers operate such that no two mouthfinish moulds try to occupy the same position simultaneously. On completion of either pressing the parison or blowing the final article the respective programme of (U5) or (U6) switches from the one to the other for transfer to the next stage.  Operation.-As an empty mouth-finish mould 83 approaches station S1 the parison mould is charged with a gob and swung arcuately and then upwardly into engagement with the mouthfinish mould. The moulds are locked and centred by the parison mould holder and the plunger descends to press the parison. After completion the plunger is withdrawn, the parison mould swung downwardly to be re-charged. Motor m 1  is actuated and the parison is moved at constant velocity through 180 degrees when the programme (U5) causes deceleration to final stop at S2 after a total of 220 degrees rotation During this first 180 degrees of rotation reheating of the parison occurs. The blowmould base 184 and mould halves 183 close around the parison, centre it and then the blow-head descends for final forming. The blow-head retracts, the mould opens and the motor m 1  is again actuated but this time by programme (U6). The mouth-finish mould is moved at constant velocity until 320 degrees from station S1 when gradually deceleration takes place to final stop back at S1. During rotation from S2 to the 320 degree position the mould passes through S3, without change of velocity, over the centre of a conveyer, opens to discharge the blown article, closes, is cleaned and lubricated. Reference to Fig. 17 illustrates that each programmer may simultaneously be controlling more than one mould and that each station is unoccupied for only a small part of the cycle time. In the embodiment illustrated both stations S1 and S2 are occupied simultaneously. With the machine described, the two circuits for units 61, 150 are constructed so that no collision occurs at S1.