LOAD CELL DEFLASHER ASSEMBLY AND METHOD

摘要

A load cell deflasher for the punch and die deflash processing of product from an extrusion includes a load cell pressure transducer (34) interconnected with a punch (14) to sense pressure measurements of the punch against the extrusion (98) at the die (16) and communicate the measurements to a programmable logic controller (136) that controls the extension and retraction of the punch to the die and the structure accommodating pre-punch alignment of the extrusion to the die. The pressure measurements are logged in a trending database (138) of the programmable logic controller. If a pressure measurement exceeds a threshold value, the programmable logic controller can command instruct a positioning actuator (12) of the punch to abort its punch stroke prior to completion. If the programmable logic controller determines an upward trend of pressure measurements, an auto-tune mode (140) of the programmable logic controller can command instruct an extrusion card transfer positioning actuator (74) to adjustably position a gripper carriage (76) transferring the extrusion in intervening proximity between the punch and die to an optimal position for extrusion deflashing.