JP7684192B2 - Method for avoiding troubles in injection molding machine and injection molding machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for avoiding trouble in an injection molding machine and to an injection molding machine.

When a new mold is installed in an injection molding machine, new molding conditions must be set for the operation of each part of the injection molding machine. Setting new molding conditions requires time and skill on the part of the operator. It is common for the operator to operate the injection molding machine manually while the molding conditions are being set, and then operate the injection molding machine automatically once the molding conditions have been set.

Once the molding conditions are set, they are saved in the injection molding machine, and the next time the same molded product is molded using the same mold, the saved molding conditions are read and used. This eliminates the need to spend time setting new molding conditions, and even workers with relatively little experience can easily mold products using automatic operation.

Furthermore, if you want to shorten the molding time of a molded product or improve the quality of the molded product, you may need to modify the saved molding conditions. Also, it often becomes necessary to modify the saved molding conditions when parts of an injection molding machine including a mold wear out or deteriorate after many years of use, or when parts are replaced or their functions are upgraded. Furthermore, there are cases where the resin material needs to be changed in order to improve the quality of the molded product or to address issues such as raw material costs, and in these cases, it often becomes necessary to modify the saved molding conditions.

The technique described in Patent Document 1 is known as a technique for setting and displaying molding conditions as described above. In Patent Document 1, since forgetting to change the settings of multiple molding condition items can lead to operational abnormalities, the technique informs the operator by color-coding changed and unchanged items on the setting screen.

JP 2001-150507 A

However, as mentioned above, the task of setting all new molding conditions is limited to cases such as when a new mold is attached to the injection molding machine, and in cases where molding conditions corresponding to the mold are already stored in the injection molding machine, most of the time only some of the molding conditions are modified before use. When modifying such stored molding conditions, since the basic items have already been set, it is safe to say that even if a molding condition is forgotten to be set, it is unlikely that a major abnormality will occur unless there are major changes to the equipment.

On the other hand, since Patent Document 1 focuses on forgetting to enter items, it appears that its sole theme is preventing damage to the device due to forgetting to enter new molding conditions. Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a method for avoiding trouble in an injection molding machine and an injection molding machine that can avoid trouble when starting automatic operation using stored molding conditions.

Other objects and novel features will become apparent from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.

The method for avoiding trouble with an injection molding machine described in claim 1 of the present invention is a method for avoiding trouble when setting molding conditions for an injection molding machine, which compares the original molding conditions relating to the stored past molding conditions with the latest molding conditions set based on the original molding conditions, and if there is a difference between the two or a deviation of a certain amount or more, issues an alarm or prevents automatic operation from starting.

The injection molding machine trouble avoidance method of the present invention is a method for avoiding trouble when setting molding conditions for an injection molding machine, which compares the original molding conditions relating to stored past molding conditions with the latest molding conditions set based on the original molding conditions, and if there is a difference between the two or a deviation of a certain amount or more, issues an alarm or prevents automatic operation from starting, thereby avoiding trouble when starting automatic operation. The same effect can also be achieved with the injection molding machine of the present invention.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an injection molding machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a setting screen of the injection molding machine of the present embodiment. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a case where a problem occurs regarding the core operation when the molding conditions of the injection molding machine are changed and the operation is started. FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method for avoiding trouble in the injection molding machine according to the embodiment. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a case where a problem occurs regarding the operation of an ejector when a molding condition of an injection molding machine is changed and the operation is started. FIG. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a method for avoiding trouble in an injection molding machine according to another embodiment.

<Configuration of injection molding machine>
An injection molding machine 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The injection molding machine 11 includes a clamping device 13 and an injection device 14 on a base 12. The clamping device 13 includes two mold opening and closing mechanisms 19 using servo motors that move a movable platen 18 on which a movable mold 17 is attached relative to a fixed platen 16 on which a fixed mold 15 is attached, and a clamping mechanism 20 using four clamping cylinders that clamp the fixed mold 15 and the movable mold 17. In the present invention, the mold opening and closing mechanism 19 may be one using hydraulic cylinders. The mechanism of the clamping device 13 is not limited, and may be an electric toggle clamping device using a servo motor or a toggle clamping device using hydraulic cylinders. The clamping device 13 may be one in which a movable platen and a movable mold are opened and closed in the vertical direction.

The molding die 21, which is made up of the fixed die 15 and the movable die 17 and is attached to the clamping device 13, is equipped with a first core mechanism 22, a second core mechanism 23, an ejector mechanism (not shown), a gate mechanism, and other movable parts, as well as a temperature control mechanism. The molding die 21 is replaced in response to changes in the molded product to be molded by the injection molding machine 11. In addition, the injection molding machine 11 is operated under different molding conditions in response to replacement of the molding die 21 or changes in the resin used for molding with the same molding die 21. The molding conditions of the molding die 21 that was previously molded are usually stored in the control device 24 of the injection molding machine 11. However, the molding conditions may be stored in a server or a personal computer of a central management device other than the injection molding machine 11, and sent to the control device 24 of the injection molding machine 11 via various communication media for use.

In this context, "molding conditions" refers to operation setting items including set values such as the control amount, control timing, control sequence, and control/non-control commands for operating the injection molding machine by the control device 24. In particular, it refers to operation setting items including set values for the control amount, control timing, control sequence, and control/non-control commands during sequence control used in automatic operation, including semi-automatic operation and fully automatic operation. Furthermore, the "molding conditions" of the present invention include set values at the start of automatic operation, and also include cases where the control amount is changed during automatic operation, for example, in response to thermal expansion of the mold.

The injection device 14 is equipped with a screw (not shown) inside the heating cylinder 25, and the screw is rotated by a servo motor for plasticization (not shown) to plasticize the resin material. The screw is also moved forward and backward by a servo motor for injection (not shown), and the plasticized molten resin is injected and the back pressure during plasticization is controlled. Note that the mechanism of the injection device 14 is not limited in the present invention, and it may be a hydraulic injection device using a hydraulic cylinder. The number of injection devices 14 may be two, as in the case of the two-color molding die shown in Figure 3, or three or more.

The injection molding machine 11 is equipped with a setting device 26 as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The setting device 26 also functions as a display device 27, and the display device 27 is generally composed of a touch panel. The setting device 26 also includes hardware switches 28 and a numeric keypad 29 related to the operation of the injection molding machine 11 other than the display device 27 consisting of a touch panel. The hardware switches 28 include a manual button 30 for switching the mode in which all operations of the injection molding machine 11 are performed by the operator, a semi-automatic button 31 for switching the mode to an automatic operation mode for only one molding cycle, a fully automatic button 32 for continuing automatic operation until the molding cycle of the specified number of shots is completed, and an emergency stop button 33 for stopping semi-automatic operation or fully automatic operation. The display device 27 consisting of a touch panel shown in FIG. 2 is capable of displaying various molding conditions related to the injection molding machine 11 and inputting changes to the set values of the molding conditions. As shown in FIG. 2, the touch panel may also include a manual button 34, a semi-automatic button 35, a fully automatic button 36, and an enter key 37, and may also include a numeric keypad (not shown).

<Configuration of the control device>
The injection molding machine 11 also includes a control device 24. The control device 24 is connected to the clamping device 13, the injection device 14, the setting device 26, and peripheral devices such as a temperature control device outside the injection molding machine 11, and performs sequence control of the injection molding machine 11. The hardware configuration of the control device 24 includes an input/output unit (I/O) that transmits and receives signals to and from the clamping device 13, the injection device 14, the setting device 26, and the peripheral devices, a CPU and a timer that are calculation units, a volatile memory that is a storage unit, a non-volatile memory, a volatile register that is a part of the CPU, or a hard disk, etc. If the injection molding machine 11 uses a servo motor, the control device 24 is configured according to each of the servo amplifiers, etc., and is not limited to one.

Next, the relevant parts of the control device 24 according to the present invention will be conceptually explained with reference to FIG. 3. The setting input/output unit 38, manual output unit 39, and full-automatic output unit 40 of the control device 24 generally correspond to the input/output unit (I/O) and are connected to the clamping device 13 and injection device 14 of the injection molding machine 11 by signal lines to send and receive command signals and detection signals. The setting input/output unit 38 is also connected to the setting device 26 via a signal line, and reads the setting values set by the operator into the control device 24, and displays the molding conditions stored in the control device 24 and the state of the injection molding machine 11 on the display device 27. The molding condition past data storage unit 41 generally corresponds to a non-volatile memory or a hard disk, and past molding conditions corresponding to each molding die 21 are stored in this section.

The read molding condition storage unit 42 and the changed molding condition processing unit 43 are generally equivalent to a CPU register or volatile memory, and temporarily store molding conditions. The manual setting processing unit 44 is generally equivalent to a CPU, and displays the setting values of the molding conditions manually set by the operator and the setting values of the molding conditions changed from the read molding conditions on the display device 27 of the setting device 26. The injection molding machine 11 is also operated based on the manually set setting values. The molding condition comparison unit 45 is also generally equivalent to a CPU, and compares the original molding conditions read out with the new changed molding conditions, and in some cases generates an alarm or a signal to stop the injection molding machine 11. The alarm notification unit 46 is also generally equivalent to a CPU, and notifies the display device 27 of alarm information or generates a warning sound in response to the alarm signal. As mentioned above, some or all of the functions of the control device 24 may be provided outside the injection molding machine 11.

<How to avoid problems when changing molding conditions and starting operations>
Next, a method for changing the molding conditions of the injection molding machine 11 and for avoiding troubles when starting operation will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 4. As shown in Figure 3, when a two-color molding die 21 is attached to the injection molding machine 11 to mold a previously molded product, the operator operates the setting device 26 to read out the molding conditions to be used when the molding die 21 is used from the molding condition past data storage unit 41 (s1 in Figure 4). The original molding conditions read out at this time are temporarily stored in a volatile memory or the like, which is the read molding condition storage unit 42. The original molding conditions read out at this time are almost all the operating items of the molding conditions required for injection molding, including the molding conditions of the mold clamping device 13, the molding conditions of the injection device 14, the temperature of the molding die 21, the molding conditions of the core mechanisms 22 and 23 of the molding die 21, etc.

In this case, if only some of the original molding conditions are used in the trouble avoidance method, only certain molding conditions may be read out and temporarily stored in the molding condition storage unit 42 for comparison. Specifically, if only molding conditions related to the movable parts of the molding die 21, such as the ejector and core, are to be compared, only the molding conditions for the movable parts of the molding die 21 may be read out and stored in a register or the like of the molding condition storage unit 42. The molding conditions of the core mechanism are stored in the register by attaching an address number corresponding to the operation timing, etc. When the molding conditions are changed, this can be determined from the change in the address number. Alternatively, all molding conditions may be read out and stored in the molding condition storage unit 42 for comparison with the new molding conditions.

In this embodiment, the fixed die 15 of the molding die 21 is a convex type and has a mating convex portion 48 that mating with the second core block 47 of the movable die 17. The cavity surface 49 of the fixed die 15 has an opening for the primary injection sprue 50 and an opening for the secondary injection sprue 51. The movable die 17 is a concave type and has a first core mechanism 22 (core mechanism) and a second core mechanism 23 (core mechanism) that appear and disappear from the cavity surface 60, as well as an ejector mechanism (not shown). The first core mechanism 22 has a first core block 52 and a hydraulic cylinder 53 that moves the first core block 52 forward and backward. The second core mechanism 23 has a second core block 47 and a hydraulic cylinder 59 that moves the second core block 47 forward and backward.

The first core mechanism 22 of the molding die 21 has three molding conditions. The molding conditions for the "first operation" of the first core mechanism 22 are the molding conditions of before mold closing: first core block retreat (continuation), before primary molding after mold closing: first core block advance, and before secondary molding after mold closing: first core block retreat, which are included in the original molding conditions when the operator reads them from the molding condition past data storage unit 41. The molding conditions for the "second operation" of the first core mechanism 22 are the molding conditions of before mold closing: first core block advance, before primary molding after mold closing: first core block advance (continuation), and before secondary molding after mold closing: first core block retreat. The molding conditions for the "third operation" of the first core mechanism 22 are the molding conditions of before mold closing: first core block retreat, before primary molding after mold closing: first core block retreat (continuation), and before secondary molding after mold closing: first core block retreat (continuation), and the first core mechanism 22 is not operated during molding.

On the other hand, the second core mechanism 23 of the molding die 21 also has three molding conditions. The molding conditions for the "first operation" of the second core mechanism 23 are the molding conditions of before mold closing: second core block advance (continuation), before primary molding after mold closing: second core block retreat, and before secondary molding after mold closing: second core block retreat (continuation), which are included in the original molding conditions when the operator reads them from the molding condition past data storage unit 41. The molding conditions for the "second operation" of the second core mechanism 23 are the molding conditions of before mold closing: second core block retreat (continuation), before primary molding after mold closing: second core block advance, and before secondary molding after mold closing: second core block retreat. The molding conditions for the "third operation" of the second core mechanism 23 are the molding conditions of before mold closing: second core block retreat, before primary molding after mold closing: second core block retreat (continuation), and before secondary molding after mold closing: second core block retreat (continuation), and the second core mechanism 23 is not operated during molding.

In this embodiment, an example will be described in which three molding conditions are typically stored for each of the operation of the core mechanisms 22 and 23, but in reality, the number of molding conditions is much greater because there are many different operating sequences and timings for each core mechanism. Alternatively, in addition to the forward and backward movement of the core mechanisms 22 and 23, the forward and backward speeds, forward and backward positions, etc. may also be set as operation items of the molding conditions.

The molding conditions read out as above are displayed as shown in FIG. 2(a). That is, for the first core mechanism 22, the molding conditions read out are displayed as "First operation" in the molding condition setting display section 56 of the core mechanism molding condition setting screen 55. For the second core mechanism 23, the molding conditions read out are displayed as "First operation" in the molding condition setting display section 57 of the core mechanism molding condition setting screen 55. According to these molding conditions, as shown in FIG. 3(a), before the mold is closed (when the mold is opened), the first core block 52 moves backward and the second core block 47 moves forward. Then, after the mold is closed and before the primary molding, as shown in FIG. 3(b), the first core block 52 moves forward and the second core block 47 moves backward while engaging with the mating protrusion 48 of the fixed mold 15 inserted into the rear part of the block.

However, after mounting the mold 21 on the injection molding machine 11, there are cases where it is desired to check the operation of the first core mechanism 22 and the second core mechanism 23 or to modify the molding conditions before actually performing automatic molding of a molded product. For example, as shown in the molding condition setting display section 56 of the core mechanism molding condition setting screen 55 in FIG. 2B, there are cases where it is desired to change the molding conditions of the first core mechanism 22 to "third operation" in which the first core block 52 is not advanced at all. Or, as shown in the molding condition setting display section 57 in FIG. 2B, there are cases where it is desired to change the molding conditions of the second core mechanism 23 from the initial "first operation" to "second operation" in which the second core is retreated (continued) before the mold is closed. If there are any changes to these molding conditions (s2) = Y, the operator inputs the change to the molding conditions of "third operation" from the molding condition setting display section 56. The operator also inputs the change to the molding conditions of "second operation" from the molding condition setting display section 57. The input of the molding conditions is sent to the manual setting processing unit 44 via the setting input/output unit 38. The manual setting processing unit 44 then performs a change process, and the changed molding conditions are temporarily read in as new molding conditions in the changed molding conditions processing unit 43 (s3). Note that the molding conditions may also be changed by inputting operation settings such as set values from the numeric keypad or the like on the touch panel of the setting device 26.

Then, when the operator no longer needs to change the molding conditions by operating the setting device 26 (s2=N), he/she presses either the semi-automatic button 35 or the full-automatic button 36 on the touch panel of the setting device 26 to input the start of automatic operation (s4). However, if the operator forgets to change the molding conditions of the first core mechanism 22 from the molding conditions of the "third operation" to the molding conditions of the original "first operation" as shown in FIG. 3(c), not only will the shape of the primary molded product not be the desired shape, but the primary molding material will be injected into the secondary sprue side, and other problems will occur. Also, if the operator forgets to change the molding conditions of the second core mechanism 23 from the molding conditions of the "second operation" to the molding conditions of the original "first operation" as shown in FIG. 3(c), the second core block 47 in the retreated position will collide with the mating protrusion 48 of the fixed mold 15 when the mold is closed, which will lead to damage to the molding mold 21.

To address the problem of operators forgetting to reset the molding conditions or the setting input values included in the molding conditions, the molding condition comparison unit 45 compares the original molding conditions read out initially and stored in the register of the read molding condition storage unit 42 with the new molding conditions after the change temporarily stored in the changed molding condition processing unit 43 (s5). Only if the two match (s5=Y) does automatic operation start (s6). Also, if there are no changes from the molding conditions read out initially, only the original molding conditions exist, and there are no new molding conditions after the change, there is no change in the address, so "there is no difference between the two" and automatic operation starts. In these cases, the original molding conditions are the molding conditions used in the past, so no major problems will occur in the injection molding machine 11.

If the original molding conditions and the new molding conditions are different (s5=N), an alarm signal is sent from the molding condition comparison unit to the alarm notification unit, which notifies the display device 27 of the setting device 26 that the molding conditions have been changed and automatic operation cannot be started. At this time, an alarm sound may also be generated. In addition, together with the alarm notification ( s7 ), the injection molding machine 11 enters an automatic operation disabled state (s8). However, this state in which automatic operation is disabled means that automatic operation is at least temporarily disabled, and automatic operation can be started by the method described below.

If the operator is satisfied that there are no problems with the new molding conditions during manual operation, the operator can press the molding condition update automatic operation start button 58 on the molding condition core mechanism molding condition setting screen 55 (s9) to cancel the automatic operation start disable and forcibly start automatic operation (s6). At this time, the operator may be asked to confirm the automatic operation start twice, such as by asking "Are you sure you want to start automatic operation?". Alternatively, the automatic operation start button for semi-automatic or full-automatic operation may be pressed again. If the molding condition update automatic operation start button 58 is not pressed, the automatic operation disable state based on the comparison of the original molding conditions and the new molding conditions will remain in effect.

If this automatic operation disabled state is valid, return to (s2) and change the new molding conditions to the same state as the original molding conditions (s3). Specifically, in the case of the first core mechanism 22, operate the molding condition setting display section 56 of the core mechanism molding condition setting screen 55 to return the molding conditions from "third operation" to "first operation". Or, in the case of the second core mechanism 23, operate the molding condition setting display section 57 to return the molding conditions from "second operation" to "first operation". Then, perform automatic operation start input again (s4). Then, in the next (s5), the new molding conditions after the change have been returned to the same as the original molding conditions (s5=Y), so automatic operation will start. By incorporating the trouble avoidance method of the present invention into the control device 24, it is possible to avoid troubles occurring in the injection molding machine 11 due to unexpected operation, even when semi-automatic operation or full automatic operation is started.

Note that in the above, "new molding conditions" usually refer to the latest molding conditions temporarily saved when automatic operation starts (at the time of comparison). However, it is also possible to make it possible for the molding conditions temporarily saved immediately prior to the start of automatic operation to also become "new molding conditions". In addition, if molding conditions not used for comparison (molding conditions not related to problems with the injection molding machine 11) are saved after important molding conditions (molding conditions related to problems with the injection molding machine 11) used for comparison to determine whether to start automatic operation are saved, or if both are saved at the same time, only the important molding conditions will become the "new molding conditions" used for comparison.

Alternatively, the ability to update molding conditions using the molding condition update automatic operation start button 58 may be limited to only operators with specific authority. In that case, the operator must have his/her own information read into the injection molding machine 11 when starting up the injection molding machine 11, when reading out the molding conditions, or when pressing the molding condition update automatic operation start button 58. This may be done by entering a password or ID card, or by biometric information recognition such as a fingerprint, voice, or iris.

<Example of changing molding conditions for ejector mechanism>
A case where a problem occurs with respect to ejector operation when changing molding conditions of the injection molding machine 11 and starting operation is described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 shows an example where molding conditions of an ejector mechanism 62, which is a movable part of a molding die 61, instead of the core mechanisms 22, 23, which are movable parts of the molding die 21 shown in Fig. 3, are changed. Fig. 5(a) shows a state where the ejector pin 64 of the ejector mechanism 62 provided on a movable die 63 is retreated, Fig. 6(b) shows a state where the ejector pin 64 is advanced when the mold is opened, and Fig. 6(c) shows a state where the ejector pin 64 is advanced from before the mold is closed to after the mold is closed, or a state where the ejector pin 64 is advanced after the mold is closed. If automatic operation is started after manually moving the ejector pins 64 forward at a low speed and then stopping the ejector pins 64 and forgetting to return them to their original positions from the original molding conditions that were initially read out, or if the molding conditions are changed to those in which the ejector pins 64 move forward in a closed mold state, then similar to the core mechanisms 22 and 23, problems may occur in the injection molding machine 11 including the molding die 61, such as the ejector pins 64 colliding with the cavity surface 66 of the fixed die 65. In addition to these simple examples, problems may also occur if the molding conditions are set with the wrong timing for the operation of the ejector mechanism 62 and the core mechanisms 22 and 23.

Next, another embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart in Figure 6. First, when the molding die 21 or the like is changed, the molding conditions stored for the corresponding molding die are read out and saved as the original molding conditions in the molding condition saving unit 42. Next, if there is a change in the molding conditions (s2) = Y, the operator inputs the operation setting items such as the set values from the touch panel of the setting device 26, or selects and inputs different molding conditions. As a result, the newly input molding conditions are overwritten on the read molding conditions, and saved as the original molding conditions (s3).

When there is no need to further change the molding conditions (s2=N), the operator presses either the semi-automatic button 35 or the full-automatic button 36 on the touch panel of the setting device to input the start of automatic operation (s4). At this time, in another embodiment, even if the original molding conditions and the new molding conditions do not match, if the difference between the two is smaller than a certain value (s6=N), automatic operation is started (s7). However, if the difference between the two is greater than a certain value (S6=Y), an alarm is issued (s8) and automatic operation is disabled (s9). When automatic operation is disabled, the operator can check and then press the molding condition update automatic operation start input button 58, etc., to start automatic operation (s10=Y). At this time, it is desirable to determine whether the difference between the two is within a range by setting a threshold value for each item in advance and using the threshold value as a criterion.

As an example of another embodiment, the injection stroke (the distance from the injection start position to the holding pressure switching position) is set in the molding conditions for injection, but the value may be changed. However, if the injection stroke is set to a significantly large value when changing the molding conditions (if there is a certain deviation or more), it may cause problems such as overpacking. Therefore, if there is a certain deviation or more between the original molding conditions and the new molding conditions for the injection stroke, it is desirable to prevent automatic operation from starting. In addition, if a value that deviates from the original molding conditions is entered for the moving stroke of the movable mold when closing the mold (the distance from the mold opening completion position to the mold closing completion position) and automatic operation is started with the new molding conditions, it may cause problems such as the movable mold colliding with the fixed mold when closing the mold. Therefore, if there is a certain deviation or more between the original molding conditions and the latest molding conditions for the mold closing stroke, it is desirable to prevent automatic operation from starting.

In the above examples, in most cases the injection molding machine 11 is already protected by an interlock mechanism. However, even if the interlock mechanism is manually released or the sensor breaks down, it is possible to prevent major problems with the injection molding machine 11.

<Another embodiment (1) not shown>
Next, another embodiment (1) will be described. In the above two embodiments, the read molding conditions read from the molding condition past data storage unit 41 are used as the original molding conditions as they are. However, in another embodiment (1), the original molding conditions may be those that the operator further overwrites and saves on the read molding conditions read from the molding condition past data storage unit 41. Specifically, the original molding conditions may be those that the operator creates new molding conditions by referring to the read molding conditions and manually setting or manually molding, and saves them as molding conditions without any problems after performing manual molding. In that case, the address of the molding conditions saved in the read molding condition storage unit 42 is also rewritten. Then, after saving the original molding conditions, when the operator changes the setting values or setting conditions based on the original molding conditions and adds new molding conditions, and then performs an automatic operation start input, the original molding conditions overwritten and saved with the read molding conditions as the starting point are compared with the new molding conditions, and if there is a difference between the two or a certain amount of deviation, an alarm is issued or automatic operation cannot be started.

<Another embodiment (2) not shown>
Next, another embodiment (2) will be described regarding the original molding conditions used for comparison. In the above-mentioned further embodiment (1), the original molding conditions used for comparison are read molding conditions read from the molding condition past data storage unit 41 or temporarily stored in the register of the read molding condition storage unit 42. However, the original molding conditions used for comparison may be data stored in the molding condition past data storage unit 41 and used as is at the time of comparison.

<Another embodiment (3) not shown>
In the above embodiment, the original molding conditions related to the stored past molding conditions are compared with the new molding conditions set based on the original molding conditions, and if there is a difference between the two or a deviation of a certain amount or more, an alarm is issued or automatic operation cannot be started, and if the two match or the deviation is smaller than a certain amount, automatic operation is started. However, the present invention may also compare the original molding conditions related to the stored past molding conditions with the new molding conditions set based on the original molding conditions, and start operation only if the new molding conditions match a predetermined condition in terms of the original molding conditions.

Specifically, molding conditions involve a complex intertwining of two or more set values, and it may be difficult to determine whether the molding conditions are good or not without considering the relationship between the two or more set values. For example, a higher injection speed is possible if the temperature of the heating cylinder is higher, but it may not be possible to determine whether the molding conditions are optimal based on the injection speed alone. In addition, the timing of ejector operation and forward speed (including acceleration) may also be used to determine whether they are optimal molding conditions in relation to the mold temperature and cooling time. Taking these interlocking conditions into consideration, it is necessary to determine in advance what molding conditions are within the range in which automatic operation can be started. Alternatively, after new molding conditions are input, a calculation is performed when the automatic operation start input is made to determine whether automatic operation can be started.

In such a case, AI technology using deep learning or the like may be utilized. That is, when the molding conditions are changed from the original molding conditions, the AI learns by machine learning to what extent the operator inputs a button to cancel the automatic operation disablement and starts automatic operation, or returns to the original molding conditions because the new molding conditions have a problem, and the data is accumulated. Then, in the end, it may be possible to determine by deep learning whether the new molding conditions match the specified conditions in view of the original molding conditions, and to start operation only when the AI determines that the specified conditions are met. In addition, when the specified conditions are not met, the AI may display at least one suitable molding condition proposal on the display screen of the display device 27. In addition, the learning results can also refer to the results of other injection molding machines connected directly or via a server or PC.

Although we will not list each of the embodiments, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but also applies to modifications made by those skilled in the art based on the spirit of the present invention, and to individual combinations of parts of each of the above-described embodiments.

Reference Signs List 11 Injection molding machine 13 Clamping device 14 Injection device 15 Fixed mold 17 Movable mold 21 Molding mold 24 Control device 26 Setting device 27 Display device 55 Core mechanism molding condition setting screen 42 Read molding condition storage section 43 Changed molding condition processing section 44 Manual setting processing section 45 Molding condition comparison section

Claims (5)

A method for avoiding problems when setting molding conditions for an injection molding machine, comprising:
When an automatic operation start command is input, original molding conditions relating to the stored past molding conditions are compared with new molding conditions set based on the original molding conditions,
Automatic operation starts only if there is no difference between the two or if there are no new molding conditions after the change.
A method for avoiding trouble with an injection molding machine that issues an alarm whenever new molding conditions are changed from the original molding conditions and there is a discrepancy between the two. A method for avoiding problems when setting molding conditions for an injection molding machine, comprising:
When an automatic operation start command is input, original molding conditions relating to the stored past molding conditions are compared with new molding conditions set based on the original molding conditions,
Automatic operation starts only if there is no difference between the two or if there are no new molding conditions after the change.
A method for avoiding troubles in an injection molding machine, which prevents automatic operation from starting at least temporarily when new molding conditions are changed from original molding conditions and there is a difference between the two, and enables automatic operation to start by operator input. 3. The method for avoiding troubles in an injection molding machine according to claim 2, wherein the start of automatic operation by an operator's input is realized by changing the molding conditions to the same conditions as the original molding conditions, by pressing the automatic operation start button again, or by pressing the molding condition update automatic operation start button . 3. The method for avoiding troubles in an injection molding machine according to claim 1, wherein the molding conditions are molding conditions related to the operation of a core mechanism of a mold . An injection molding machine that avoids problems when setting molding conditions,
When the automatic operation start is input, original molding conditions related to the molding conditions of the core mechanism of the past mold stored are compared with molding conditions of the core mechanism of the new mold set based on the original molding conditions;
Only when the new molding conditions are consistent with the original molding conditions or when there are no new molding conditions after the change, automatic operation including the operation of at least the core mechanism of the mold can be started;
When the new molding conditions do not match the original molding conditions, the injection molding machine cannot start automatic operation as it is, but can start automatic operation including at least the core mechanism of the mold by input from an operator .

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