GB2110970A

GB2110970A - A die casting machine

Info

Publication number: GB2110970A
Application number: GB08229260A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Roland Geier
Original assignee: Idra Pressen GmbH
Current assignee: Idra Pressen GmbH
Priority date: 1981-10-14
Filing date: 1982-10-13
Publication date: 1983-06-29
Also published as: IT8125847A0; GB2110970B; IT1140180B; DE3140837C2; FR2514275B3; FR2514275A1; DE3140837A1

Abstract

In a die casting machine, bores (44) are provided both in a stationary mould carrier plate (10) and in a movable mould carrier plate (18) to receive retaining elements (30) which are arranged on the mould halves of the die casting mould (22). The retaining elements (30) have recesses (40) formed therein, and a free end of each of several clamping members (52) engages in a corresponding said recess (40), each clamping member (52) being displaceably guided in a bore (46) which extends perpendicularly to the retaining element-receiving bore (44). The clamping members (52) are each actuatable by means of a hydraulic working cylinder (54), and all the working cylinders (54) are actuatable simultaneously and at the same pressure via a common control means. This renders it possible to rapidly mount and dismount the die casting mold halves. The mould halves may be initially aligned with their carrier plates by being temporarily mounted on a carrier member (28). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION A die casting machine The present invention relates to a die casting machine having a stationary mould carrier plate and a movable mould carrier plate for retaining a stationary or movable mould half, the movable mould carrier plate being displaceably guided on clamping columns which connect the stationary mould carrier plate to a stationary counter-plate.

In hitherto known die casting machines, T-shaped grooves are provided, for example, in the mould carrier plates so as to secure the mould halves on the mould carrier plates, and T-shaped retaining elements are inserted into the T-shaped grooves; the T-shaped retaining elements are then screw-connected to the base plate of the respective mould half and the mould half is thereby clamped against the mould carrier plate. Another possibility for securing the mould halves on the mould carrier plates is to provide threaded bores in the mould carrier plates to receive screw bolts which serve to screw-connect the respective mould half to the mould carrier plate.

With this method of retaining the mould halves on the mould carrier plates, a relatively long time is needed to change the moulds because all the screws have to be tightened. In addition, the mould halves can only be mounted when they are cold, and consequently the removal of used moulds has to be deferred until the mould has cooled-down, while a certain length of time has to again elapse once a new mould has been installed in order for the mould to reach its operating temperature. In each case, the operation of the die casting machine has to be disrupted fora relatively long time in order to permit the mould to be changed.

The invention seeks to provide a die casting machine of the above-described type wherein the mould can be changed rapidly without necessitating a great deal of labour or a long disruption in the operation of the die casting machine.

According to the invention, this object is achieved in that at least two retaining elements are disposed on each of the faces of the mould halves facing the mould carrier plates, in that receiving apertures for retaining elements are provided in the clamping faces of the mould carrier plates, in thateach receiving aperture is connected to one respective lateral face of the mould carrier plate via a bore, and in that a retaining or clamping member is axially and adjustably guided in the bore, the free end of said retaining member engaging in a clamping recess formed in the retaining element when the mould is clamped in position.

With the arrangement according to the invention, it is extremely simple to change a mould. As the mould halves approach the respective mould carrier plate, all the retaining elements simultaneously enter the receiving holes and, by simply displacing the clamping members, all the retaining elements can also be simultaneously locked in position so that the mould half is clamped with its base plate against the respective mould carrier plate. Conversely, the mould half is released from the respective mould carrier plate by simply extracting the Clamping members. The time-consuming process of screwing and unscrewing screw bolts is eliminated. The mould may be readily removed whilst still hot and it may be installed in a pre-heated state, so that the disruption in the operation of the die casting machine to allow for the mould to be changed is kept to a minimum.

The clamping punches are each preferably adjustable by means of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement which is actuated by pressure medium. These clamping cylinders are preferably connected to the hydraulic system of the die casting machine and are advantageously jointly actuable by means of a control mechanism. This also provides a simple method of setting the same clamping force for all the clamping cylinders.

The piston-and-cylinder arrangements are preferably secured to the mould carrier plates so that they are each a component part of the die casting machine. However, it is also possible in such case to disposed the receiving holes and the piston-and-cylinder arrangements on a respective intermediate plate which is securedly connected to each of the respective mould carrier plates. This makes it possible to clamp both types of moulds on the die casting machine, i.e. those moulds which are still adapted for a conventional type of mounting and those moulds which can be clamped in the manner according to the invention.

Depending on the size and shape of the mould, varying numbers of retaining elements and clamping cylinders may be provided, whereby it is preferable for the retaining elements on the mould and the receiving holes in the mould carrier plate to be disposed in respective pairs diametrically to the longitudinal axis of the machine.

The retaining elements themselves may be formed by pins which have the corresponding clamping recesses provided therein and are non-rotatably screw-connected to the base plate of the respective mould half. In consequence, the retaining elements may be attached to a new mould when an old mould is no longer required or has become unusable.

The clamping recess in the retaining element is advantageously provided with a clamping face which extends inclinedlyto the axis of said retaining element and co-operates with a complementary clamping face on the clamping member. In consequence, the force by means of which the mould half is clamped against the mould carrier plate can be set by inserting the clamping member into the clamping recess to a greater or lesser extent. It is also possible to set and control the clamping force by monitoring the adjustment path. This may be effected, for example, by means of limit switches which are disposed in the adjustment path of the piston rod of the respective piston-and-cylinder arrangement.

The arrangement of the die casting machine The drawing(s) originally filed were informal and the print here reproduced is taken from a later filed formal copy.

according to the invention permits a mould to be mounted in such a manner that the mould halves are detachably secured to a carrier which is so mounted on the die casting machine that the retaining ele ments on the mould are in alignment with the receiving holes. The retaining elements are then introduced into the receiving holes by displacing the movable mould carrier plate and are locked in position by the clamping members. It now only remains for the connection between the mould and the carrier to be released. Bayonet-type locking elements may be arranged, for example, on the carrier, which locking elements may engage in appropriate recesses in the mould halves and be locked in position with the mold halves by a simple rotational movement.

Where moulds fit between the clamping columns of the die casting machine, the carrier is advantageously slidingly guided on the upper clamping columns of the die casting machine, and semicircular bearing shells are provided in the carrier for this purpose. If, however, the moulds are so large that the upper clamping columns, or one of these clamping columns, have to be withdrawn or drawnout for the insertion of such moulds, the carrier may be placed on the machine bed and be slidingly guided along the machine bed. In the particular case of relatively small moulds, a lifting means such as, for example, a crane may also be disposed on the stationary mould carrier plate and the lifting means is capable of raising the mould and retaining it during the mounting operation.

The invention will be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view of a mould carrying component of a die casting machine; Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of a mould carrier plate which is provided with a plurality of clamping cylinders shown in sectional form; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 2 viewed in the direction of arrow A; Fig. 4 is a detailed sectional view of a working cylinder and a retaining element showing these components in their clamped positions; Fig. 5 is a sectional view, corresponding to Fig. 4, of a second embodiment of the invention; Fig. 6 is a schematic sectional view along the line 6-6 of Fig. f, and Fig. 7 is a sectional view, corresponding to Fig. 6 illustrating a mould which is supported on the machine bed.

Mould carrier means of a die casting machine are schematically illustrated in Fig. 1 comprising a mould carrier plate 10 which is connected to a stationary counter-prate 16 by a machine bed 72 (Figs. 6 and 7) and four horizontal tie rods or clamping and guide columns 14. A movable mould carrier plate 18 is located between the counter-plate 16 and the stationary mould carrier plate 10 and is displaceably mounted on the four clamping columns 14. The displacement and closure mechanisms for displacing the movable mould carrier plate 18 is simply indicated by a hydraulic cylinder 20. Any kind of known closure mechanism may, of course, be provided here.

A die cast mould 22 comprising a movable mould half 24 and a stationary mould half 26, is shown in Fig. 1 between the movable mould carrier plate 18 and the stationary mould carrierplate 10. The mould 22 is suspended, for mounting purposes, on a transverse carrier 28, which, in turn, is displaceably mounted on the upper clamping columns 14 of the die casting machine. The reason for suspending the mould 22 on the transverse carrier 28 will be given in more detail hereinafter when the mounting operation for the die casting mould 22 is described.

Each mould half 26 has a plurality of post-- or pin-like retaining elements 30 which are non-rotatably and securely mounted on a base plate 34 of the respective mould half by means of screw bolts 32 so that the axis of said retaining elements 30 extends towards the respective mould carrier plate 10 or 18 parallel to the longitudinal axis 36 of the machine. In the present example, the base plate 34 of the respective mould half is substantially square in shape and a retaining element 30 of this type is located in each corner of the square. The bolt-like retaining elements 30 are located in recessed portions 38 which are provided in the face of the base plate 34 facing the respective mould carrier plate.

Each retaining element 30 has a recess 40 formed therein, and the boundary face 42 of said recess 40 extends diagonally to the axis of the retaining element 30 and said face 42 is located close to the free end of the retaining element 30. The purpose of this face 42 will be explained more fully hereinafter.

The retaining elements 30 are intended for engagement in bores 44 which are provided in the respective mould carrier plate 10 or 18 on the side facing the mould half and have axes which extend parallel to the longitudinal axis 36 of the machine.

The respective spacings between the bores 44 and the diameters thereof correspond to the respective spacings between the retaining elements 30 and the diameters thereof.

A bore 46 is provided in the mould carrier plate 10 or 18 respectively perpendicular to each bore 44 and extends towards the bore 44 from a lateral wall 50, which extends perpendicularly to the clamping face 48 of the mould carrier plate 10,or 18, and the bore 46 intersects the bore 44.A clamping member 52 is displaceably guided in this bore 46 (cf. in particular, Figs. 4 and 5), and the free end of said clamping member 52 is intended to engage in the recess 40 formed in a respective retaining element 30. For this purpose, the free end of the clamping member 53 provided with an inclined face 55 (Fig.4) which # complementary to the face 42 on the retaining element30 and causes the retaining element30to be drawn into the bore 44 when the clamping member 52 is introduced into the recess 40, thereby causing the respective mould half to be clamped against the clamping face 48 of the respective mould carrier plate.

A hydraulically actuable, double-acting working cylinder 54 serves as the means for adjusting the clamping member 52, and the piston 56 of said working cylinder 54 is connected to the clamping member 52. The working cylinder 54 is mounted on the respective lateral face 50 of the respective mould carrier plate by means of a flange in the manner as illustrated in Fig. 2.

The working cylinders 54 are connected to a common source of pressure medium (not shown) via lines 58 so that they can be actuated jointly and with the same pressure. All the retaining elements may thereby be simultaneously locked in position or released.

A piston rod 60 extends from the working cylinder 54 and is disposed on the end of a respective piston 56 remote from the clamping member 52. Limit switches 62 and 64 are disposed in the path of the piston rod 60 externally of the working cylinder 54, and they serve as the means for monitoring the travel of the piston 56, and therewith the travel of the clamping member 52. By setting the travel of the piston 56 and of the clamping member 52, the clamping force can be adjusted, by means of which clamping force the respective mould half is clamped against the associated mould carrier plate.

In Fig. 2, a mould carrier plate is shown with a plurality of bores 44 and 46, but only the axes of said bores are illustrated. Depending on the size and shape of the mould to be clamped in position, a working cylinder 54 may be provided with the associated clamping member 52 at each of the locations of the bores or even at only some of these locations. As a rule, however, it will be ensured that the working cylinders are each disposed symmetrically to the longitudinal centre axis 36 of the die casting# machine. To make Fig. 2 less complicated, however, the additional working cylinders 54 have not been included in this Figure.

The embodiment illustrated in Fig. 5 differs from the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 4 in that the recess 40a in the retaining element 30a extends completely therethrough so that the free end of the clamping member 52a is also able to pass through the retaining element 30a. This allows for a smaller angle of inclination to be selected for the clamping faces 4Za and 54a compared to the axis of the bore 46. A more delicately sensitive setting of the clamping force can thereby be achieved with the clamping member 52a having the same displacement path.

With reference to Figs. 1 and 6, a first kind of process for mounting the die casting mould 22 on the die casting machine wilt now be described. The die casting mould 22 is detachably secured to the transverse carrier 28 by means of locking bolts 66.

The locking bolts 66 extend through the transverse carrier 28from top to bottom, the free end of one respective locking bolt 66 engaging in a suitable recess 68 formed in the mould half 24 or 26 respectively. The locking bolt 66 is then locked in position in the recess 68 in the manner of a bayonet lock. A centering pin 70 is also provided for correctly aligning the mould half 24 or 26 respectively relative lytothetransverse ta tt#e transverse carrier 28.

The transverse carrier 28 is subsequently placed upon the upper clamping and guide columns 14, so that, with bearing shells 72, it is slidingly displaceably guided along the upper clamping columns. This presupposes that the mould 22 can be inserted from above between the upper clamping columns 24. If necessary, it is also possible to place the transverse carrier 28 initially upon the clamping columns 14, then introduce the mould 22 between the upper and lower clamping columns and lock the mould 22 in position on the transverse carrier 28. If the transverse carrier 28 is in its position on the upper clamping columns 14, the mould 22 is, in consequence, also positioned in such a manner that the respective retaining elements 30 are in alignment with the bores or receiving holes 44.The movable mould carrier plate 18 is now displaced in the direction of the stationary mould carrier plate 10 by means of the closure mechanism 20 until the retaining elements 30 are introduced into the bores 44 and the mould halves 24 and 26 abut, with their respective base plate 34, against the clamping face 48 of the respective mould carrier plate 10 or 18. The pressure chamber 74, which is connected to the stationary mould half 25, thereby passes through an appropriate bore 76 in the stationary mould carrier plate 10. All the clamping cylinders 54 are now actuated by a common control means, and the mould halves 24 and 26 are clamped to the respective mould carrier plate by the insertion of the clamping members 52 into the recesses 40. The bayonet-type locks 66 and 68 are then released, and the transverse carrier 28 can be removed thereafter.

The substantial advantage in this kind of mounting operation is that the mould is aligned automatically when the transverse carrier is located on the upper clamping columns. The mould halves are clamped very rapidly on the mould carrier plates. The mould halves may also just as rapidly be released again from the mould carrier plates by reversing the above-described steps. Finally, it is possible to heat the mould 22 even prior to installation and to clamp it while it is hot, so that it is necessary to disrupt the production process for only a short period of time.

It should also be mentioned that, in the case of relatively small moulds, the mould 22 suspended on the transverse carrier 28 may also be displaced manually until the retaining elements 30 engage in the bores 44.

Finally, a modification is illustrated in Fig. 7 for the case where the external dimensions of the mould are greater than the spacings between the clamping columns, so that the upper clamping columns have to bedrawn-outfortheinstallation of the mould. In this case, the mould is deposited on atransverse carrier 78 which extends transversely over the machine bed 12 and is slidingly displaceably guided, with its ends, along tie rods 80 of the machine bed 12. Here also, the mould may in turn be positioned by means of the transverse carrier since, in this case, it is possible for the transverse carrier 78 to remain in the machine as a mould supporting member or, however, for the transverse carrier 78 to be removed from the machine. This kind of mounting operation applies also in the case where the mould has core extensions which necessitate at least one of the upper clamping columns having to be drawn-out during the mounting operation.

Claims

1. A die casting machine having a stationary mould carrier plate and a movable mouldcarrier plate for respectively retaining stationary and movable halves, the movable mould carrier plate being displaceably guided on clamping columns which connect the stationary mould carrier plate to a stationary counter-plate, characterised in that at least two pin-like retaining elements (30) are disposed on each of the faces (34) of the mould halves [ 24,26) facing the mould carrier plates (10, 18), in that receiving holes (44) for the retaining elements '30) are provided in the clamping faces of the mould carrier plates (10, 18), in that each receiving holes '44) is connected to on respective lateral face (50) of the mould carrier plate (10, 18) via a bore (46), and in that a clamping member (52) is axially and adjust sbly guided in the bore (46), the free end of said lamming member (52) engaging in a clamping recess (40) formed in the retaining element (30) Nhen the mould (22) is clamped in position.

2. A die casting machine as claimed in claim 1, in which the clamping recess (40) in the retaining element (30) is provided with a clamping face (42) which extends inclinedly to the axis of said retaining cement (30) and co-operates with a complementary clamping face (54) on the clamping member (52).

3. A die casting machine as claimed in claim 1 or 2, in which the clamping member (52).is adjustable by means of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement (54, 56) which is actuated by pressure medium.

4. A die casting machine as claimed in claim 3, in which the piston-and-cylinder arrangements (54,56) are disposed on the mould carrier plates (10, 18).

5. A die casting machine as claimed in claim 3, in which the receiving holes (44) and the piston-and-cylinder arrangements (54, 56) are each disposed on a respective intermediate plate which is securedly zonnectable to the mould carrier plates (10, 18).

6. A die casting machine as claimed in any of claims 3 to 5, in which the piston-and-cylinder arrangements (54, 56) are jointly actuable by a control mechanism.

7. A die casting machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, in which the retaining elements (30) on the mould (22) and the receiving holes (44) in the mould carrier plates (10, 18) are both disposed in respective pairs diametrically to the longitudinal axis (36) of the machine.

8. A die casting machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, in which the retaining elements (30) are non-rotatably screw-connected to the respective base plate (34) of the mould halves (24,26).

9. A die casting machine as claimed in any one of claims 3 to 8, in which limit switches (62, 64) for controlling the adjustment path are disposed in the path of the piston rod (60) of the piston-and-cylinder arrangement (54, 56).

10. A die casting machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, in which a lifting means for raising and retaining the mould (22) in its mounted position is provided on the stationary mould carrier plate (10).

11. A process for mounting a die cast mould on a die casting machine according to any of claims 1 to 10, characterised in that the mould halves (24, 26) are detachably secured to a carrier (28,78) which is so mounted on the die casting machine that the retaining elements (30) on the mould (22) are in alignment with the receiving holes (44), and in that, by displacing the movable mould carrier plate (18), the retaining elements (30) are introduced into the receiving holes (44ì and are locked in position by the clamping members (52), whereupon the connection between the mould (22) and the carrier (28,78) is released.

12. A mounting process as claimed in claim 11, in which the carrier (28) is slidingly guided along the upper clamping columns (14) of the die casting machine.

13. A mounting process as claimed in claim 11, in which the carrier (78) is slidingly guided along the machine bed (12).

14. A die casting machine constructed and arranged to operate substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.