Method of molding and mold with succesive stage cooling channels

摘要

Various embodiments provide methods and apparatus for cooling a mold in a compression molding assembly, thereby enabling increased cycling speed and efficiency. Embodiments include a coolant flow path that transports a fluid coolant into and out of a cooling ring around the molding assembly's core. The coolant flow path may divide into several channels within the cooling ring. The coolant flow path may also include a series of stages with varying volumes or cross sectional areas designed to regulate the flow of coolant.

主权项

1. A molding device for molding a plastic material, comprising:
a center core concentric about a central axis of the molding device, the center core comprising a plurality of center core inlets and a plurality of center core outlets; a cooling ring disposed around the center core and concentric about the central axis of the molding device, the cooling ring comprising:
a plurality of internal grooves extending in an axial direction on an inner surface of the cooling ring;a plurality of traversing channels extending between the inner surface of the cooling ring and an outer surface of the cooling ringa plurality of arcuate grooves; anda plurality of external grooves extending in the axial direction on the outer surface of the cooling ring and offset from the internal grooves by an angle about the central axis of the molding device; and a thread core concentric about the central axis of the molding device and disposed around the cooling ring, wherein the center core, the cooling ring, and the thread core are configured to define a fluid coolant flow path through which coolant may flow into the plurality of center core inlets, through a plurality of internal channels bounded by the plurality of internal grooves and the center core, through the plurality of traversing channels, through a plurality of arcuate channels bounded by the plurality of arcuate grooves and the thread core, through a plurality of external channels bounded by the plurality of external grooves and the thread core, and through the plurality of center core outlets.