Patent Publication Number: US-2019193297-A1

Title: Method and device for removal of items from a mold

Description:
This application is a non-provisional application with priority from provisional application 62/533,424, filed Jul. 17, 2017 and is a continuation in part of non-provisional application Ser. No. 16/032,342, filed Jul. 17, 2018. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to device and methods used to remove items from molds in which they have been formed and particularly concrete samples used for compression tests. 
     BACKGROUND 
     It is a general legal safety requirement that with many constructions involving concrete mixtures, samples of the concrete mixture need to be made on a periodic basis for testing including for compression strength. Accordingly, it is a common practice, when such testing is required, for small sample molds, generally of plastic, to be manufactured and filled with the concrete mixture to be used. The concrete is removed from the mold after reaching its representative setting for the requisite testing. The samples need to be removed without or with minimal damage, from the mold. However, the concrete tends to set and effectively adhere against the inner walls of the molds with a vacuum resistance (not necessarily a chemical bond) formed during removal, thereby making them difficult to remove without or with minimal damage. 
     A common method of mold removal is the perforation of the mold base, such as with a drill or a nail. This is coupled with the subsequent application, to the perforation, after removal of the perforating drill or nail, of a fluid such as gas, and commonly air, with sufficient pressure to cause the vacuum between the concrete with the mold to break. The concrete sample is thereby enabled to be lifted out of the mold by the fluid such as with air pressure or for the mold base to be forced away from the concrete sample. This procedure is however tedious and is subject to possible sample damage by the drill or nail coming into contact with the concrete. A single forced penetration, particularly of an internal non-visible nature, such as when a concrete cylinder is still within the mold, may cause a detrimental propagating crack to be formed with resultant skewed or inaccurate compression readings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a method and device that effects removal of concrete or other materials from molds or the molds from the contained materials in a simple or even a single operation, while serving to help protect the molded object from possible damage resulting from the removal. 
     It is a further object to provide the method and device wherein the removal may be effected in any selected direction and to provide appropriate jigs for use in the removal operations, as desired or needed. 
     Generally the present invention comprises a method and device for use in the method for removal of molded samples, particularly of concrete, from open ended (or separately capped or with a hinged lid) mold receptacles, commonly of cylindrical configuration with a closed end, and comprised of a readily perforable material such as plastic. The method comprises the step of perforating the closed end or base of the mold receptacle with a fluted drill bit while simultaneously forcing fluid, such as air, around and/or through the drill bit; whereby, upon perforation of the closed end or base of the mold receptacle, the fluid immediately passes through the perforation and effectively impinges on a surface of the sample (or on movable surface elements such as sheets of plastic or paper adjacent the surface of the molded sample) within the mold receptacle with sufficient pressurized force to move the sample away from the advancing drill, with the drill bit minimally or never contacting the sample. Continued introduction of the fluid serves to either force the sample out of the mold receptacle or the mold receptacle off the sample depending on orientation of the open end of the mold receptacle. Though the fluid may be pressurized along its entire path, the fluid is pressurized at least within the perforation and between the mold sample and the mold wall to effect the forced removal. 
     A device for sample removal as used in effecting the above removal method, with removal of the molded sample from its mold receptacle, with minimal or no damage to the molded sample, comprises:
         a) a drilling structure comprising a drive mechanism and a drill bit configured to essentially perforate a mold container material at its base and further configured to simultaneously permit a fluid flow to pass through a drilled perforation in the container base. To avoid or minimize damaging the molded sample, the drill bit is, in one embodiment, provided with a relatively flat tip with one or more circumferentially positioned protrusions which, when rotated, provides an aperture cutting element;   b) an enclosing or circumferential shroud or passageway positioned at least around the perforating tip of the drill bit and configured to provide a directed fluid through the perforating tip of the drill bit to become pressurized within the mold container and to effectively impinge upon a base of the sample within the mold ahead of the drill bit; and   c) a fluid introduction conduit extending between a fluid source and the shroud or passageway as a directed source for the fluid flow such as air.   d) Optionally, depending on orientation of the mold with contained sample and the drilling structure, a jig is provided to hold the mold with contained sample during a sample removal procedure. The jig is configured to snugly enclosed the mold receptacle with testing sample contents therein, with the jig having a support such as an internal peripheral lip to support the closed end of the mold receptacle while leaving open an area for perforation; jig structures and elements in different orientations are dictated by the different orientations, such as the effect of gravity.       

     In the above steps and elements, the shroud or passageway may be comprised of a portion of the drill tip itself such as an opening in the drill head. 
     Other objects, features and advantages will become more evident from the following discussion and drawings in which: 
    
    
     
       SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  depicts a typical concrete mold sample contained with a plastic mold receptacle; 
         FIG. 2  depicts the mold sample of  FIG. 1  as being inserted within a jig structure having the drill structure of the invention; 
         FIG. 3  is an enlarged view of the drill bit with flat head as used in the drill structure; 
         FIG. 4  is a side cross sectioned view of the operative portion of the drill structure with drill bit and air inlet and conduits (shroud or passageway elements); and 
         FIG. 5 , depicts the drill bit with mold base perforation and air pressure influx for sample movement relative to the mold receptacle. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION AND DRAWINGS 
     In a further embodiment, the drilling structure has a gas retention and directing enclosure (shroud or passageway) around the drill bit with an inlet for fluid and most commonly gas, such as air from a source. Alternatively, the drill bit has a drill tip with an integrated passageway. The air is directed through the shroud or passageway and into the mold interior, after wall perforation, where it becomes pressurized under the pent up conditions. Pressurization is not necessarily required and the air is not necessarily even hermetically retained by an enclosure or shroud prior to ingress into the mold interior. Pressurization is provided within the mold interior and between the mold sample and the mold wall. To facilitate such pressurization, in an embodiment, an engaging lip of the shroud or passageway seals with the container base, though not necessarily hermetically, in order to retain build up sufficient gas pressure in the mold receptacle to force the mold specimen out of the mold receptacle. 
     In order to permit the influx of gas, simultaneously with the drilling, the drill is provided with passages such as flutes to enable gas or air to travel around the drill and come from the tip of the drill through the perforation, into the mold receptacle and into contact with the base of the concrete sample once the drill has perforated a wall (usually the base) of the mold. If the mold, with contained sample is inverted, the base wall is on top with mold being held while the sample is pushed out of the bottom opening. Perforation is generally in a wall of the mold receptacle opposite an opening of the receptacle. 
     Continued pent up continued supply of the gas or air within the mold receptacle builds up pressurization of the gas or air within the mold receptacle against the mold sample. The simultaneous application of drill and gas pressurization within the mold receptacle serves to prevent the drill from over-travel and excessive contact with the mold sample. As the drill extends past the base of the mold, the mold sample is lifted or pushed away from contact with the drill. 
     As part of the method, if necessary, gas pressure sufficient to lift the specimen out of the mold is determined prior to the drilling. The shroud enclosure is sufficient to resist the gas pressure and to maintain sufficient gas pressure to force the molded sample out of the mold at a rate of about several seconds. Prolonged extraction is not desired in order to facilitate specimen removal for testing particularly if there are numerous samples. Nevertheless a slow rate of removal is encompassed herein. It is, of course, not desirable that the force of the gas pressure be overly excessive whereby the specimens rapidly shoot out of the mold unless checked. 
     The drill structure may be in an upward orientation with the mold sample in a jig above the drilling structure. Perforation is in an upward direction and the mold sample is lifted from the mold receptacle by the applied air or fluid pressure. Alternatively, the mold is placed with the open end facing down and the mold base facing up. In this orientation the drilling structure is configured similar to a drill press with the air pressure serving to raise the mold receptacle upwardly with removal of the mold receptacle from the sample. In this latter embodiment less pressure is required for the removal based on the relative weights of the concrete sample and plastic receptacle. Greater care is however required to ensure that the downward movement of the drill bit does not overtake the air pressure removal of the mold receptacle with inadvertent damage to the sample by the drill bit. 
     With respect to the drawings, in  FIG. 1 , a molded concrete sample  1  is shown, as contained within cylindrical plastic mold container  2  and capped with loosely fitting cap  3 . In  FIG. 2 , the mold  2  with contained concrete sample  1  is snugly seated within a cylindrical tube jig  4  having an internal retaining lip  5 . A drill structure  10  is retained slightly below the retaining lip  5  via cross bar  6 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , a drill bit  11  having extending flutes  12  and a flat cutting head  13  is used to perforate the mold receptacle at its base. Cutting head  13  is provided with slight peripheral protrusion  13   a  which minimizes any damaging extension area while providing a rotatable perforation element. The protrusion is angled so as to cause pressurized air to more easily flow between the mold sample and the adjacent mold receptacle wall in order to facilitate initiating separation of the mold sample from the adjacent receptacle wall. 
       FIG. 4 , shows, in cross section, drill bit  11  contained with shroud  14  and spaced therefrom by an air passage  15 . Air inlet  16  feeds into the air passage  15  at  16   a  whereby pressurized air is able to pass through the air passage around drill bit  11  and the air pressure is also directed through the flutes  12  an out of space  13   b  at the drill cutting head  13 . 
       FIG. 5  shows the effect of the air pressure exiting at the drill head  13  in impinging on the base  1   a  of sample  1  after the drill head  13  has cut through the base  2   a  of mold receptacle  2 . The snug fit interface  7  between the mold sample  1 , as molded within the receptacle  2 , provides sufficient frictional resistance whereby the sample is able to be controllable removed from the mold sample by air pressure alone and without detrimental contact with a drill, nail, awl or any perforating device. The snug fit also serves to minimize air build-up leakage whereby pressurization of the air is facilitated. The shroud or passageway which direct the air to be pressurized within the mold interior is shown in the figures as passages  13   b ,  14 , and  15 . 
     It is understood that the above example and description is only illustrative of the invention and that changes in structure and materials including materials being molded and mold shape are possible without departing from the invention as defined by the following claims.