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Understanding Vertical Injection Moulding Machines

Dec. 30, 2024

Understanding Vertical Injection Moulding Machines

In today's world, plastic components are indispensable, yet their manufacturing can be challenging. Vertical injection moulding machines simplify and accelerate the production of certain plastic parts, making the process much more efficient. Let's delve into the realm of vertical injection moulding and insert moulding, exploring how these machines operate and why they are essential.

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Vertical injection moulding machines

In this blog series, we will address four key topics:

What are vertical injection moulding machines?
Why are they important?
How do vertical injection moulding machines work?
Types of Vertical injection moulding machines

Let's start with what
vertical injection moulding machines
are.

Vertical injection moulding machines are specialized systems where the entire injection moulding process occurs in the vertical direction. Both the clamping unit and the injection unit operate vertically, offering numerous benefits for insert moulding and the overall injection moulding process.

In conventional injection moulding machines, the clamping unit opens and closes the mould horizontally during the operation cycle, while the injection unit, responsible for melting material and injecting it into the clamped mould cavity, also functions horizontally. This arrangement presents both advantages and disadvantages for the complete process.

In contrast, vertical injection moulding machines feature a vertical layout, with the clamping and injection units stacked on top of each other. This configuration results in a compact physical footprint and provides several advantages over conventional horizontal machines, particularly in insert moulding, overmoulding, two-color moulding, and more.

Vertical injection moulding machines offer significant advantages for insert moulding, over-moulding, two-colour moulding, and two-material moulding. With a vertically functioning clamping unit, the mould opens and closes vertically, ensuring that inserts are placed securely and do not shift within the mould cavity.

The vertical setup of the injection unit also reduces the machine's footprint and enhances injection control, providing high-precision injection due to the natural influence of gravity.

This vertical configuration minimizes physical space requirements, enabling specialized applications that boost production output from a single machine. Features like single-station sliding tables, two-station sliding or rotary tables, and the use of multiple moulds can significantly increase production output compared to standard machines. Additionally, in two-colour or two-material injection moulding, multiple moulds and injection units within a single machine further elevate production efficiency.

How Do Vertical Injection Moulding Machines Operate?

Vertical injection moulding machines are electro-hydraulic, meaning they are electronically controlled and hydraulically operated. When the operator presses a button, the machine converts that electrical signal into hydraulic pressure. Cylinders and hydraulic pressure then perform the desired function.

The machines feature an advanced graphical controller that allows users to set various parameters, such as:

Clamping unit open and closing pressure, speed, and position
Clamping force
Injection pressure, speed, and position

These parameters ensure the machine operates according to user specifications. The controller offers four modes of operation: Manual, Semi-auto, Full auto, and Setup mode. Depending on the selected mode and function, the controller sends an electrical signal to the main hydraulic system. This system generates pressure and flow based on user parameters, directing the required cylinders through electronically controlled directional valves. A multitude of sensors and measuring devices continuously monitor the machine&#;s operation, ensuring it performs as set up by the user.

Material melting occurs inside the machine's barrel, heated by ceramic heaters. This heating process is measured with thermocouples and controlled via electronic switchgear.

These machines utilize an efficient servo-hydraulic package, known in our case as the Greendrive package. This system offers high accuracy and precision, extended operational life, and increased efficiency.

Structure of Vertical Injection Moulding Machines.

Detailed structure of vertical injection moulding machine

The Two Main Parts of a Vertical Injection Moulding Machine

A vertical injection moulding machine consists of two primary components:

For more vertical injection molding machine benefitsinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.

Clamping Unit
Injection Unit

Clamping Unit

The clamping unit is responsible for opening and closing the moulds and locking them in position for the production process. It performs various functions critical to the injection moulding process, including maintaining the necessary clamping force to keep the mould closed during injection.

Injection Unit

The injection unit handles melting the material and injecting it into the mould cavity. Both units must work in harmony to facilitate the injection moulding and insert moulding processes.

To learn more about how vertical injection moulding machines operate, continue to the next blog in the series.

Advantages of Vertical Molding Machines vs Horizontal ...

While horizontal molding machines were the first of their kind to become a standard in plastic manufacturing, vertical molding machines may be a more sustainable way of molding for certain applications and many manufacturers are now to utilize their many advantages. With the advancement of injection molding becoming more standard in consumer products, it's time to delve deep into the differences of its sub-groups.

This article will map out the difference between vertical and horizontal molding machines and will mention the advantages of vertical injection molding.

If you were to visit the American Injection Molding Institute, you would see a variety of molding machines. But only by working on the machines would you be able to know exactly what works best for you.

Vertical molding machines are more flexible in terms of efficient production cycles, cost, and types of products it can handle. Take insert molding as an example. This is when a pre-formed product is inserted into a mold that needs plastic formed around it (see pictures).

Each cycle requires having the finished product taken out of the mold, and a new one added before the molding process begins.

Attempting to do this on a horizontal machine would be difficult and awkward as you would be fighting gravity, slowing down production and raising the risk of bad parts. Horizontal molding creates even greater risks when it comes to medical injection molding, which requires high tolerance parts.

With a vertical molding machine, the parts can easily be placed in the mold quickly and comfortably without having to worry about the insert becoming misaligned.

Learn about injection molding basics and how injection molding works here.

An added advantage to vertical molding machines is pairing book molds with a rotary table.

Book molds close on the inserts and hold the pieces tightly in place before, during, and after the molding process. Rotary tables can hold between 1-12 molds at a time and rotate giving the mold technician to time to replace the insert without holding up the molding process.

Multiple book molds on a rotary table can offer the fastest cycles and highest possible yields in molding. They also allow different molds for a family of products to be run at one time.

The video at the top of this article shows an example of a vertical injection molding machine with rotary table.

Another advantage of vertical injection moulding machine vs horizontal is that they take up well over half the space required for a horizontal molding machine. See the two machines pictured side-by-side:

Additionally, the vertical clamp units on vertical molding machines are versatile and allow maximum flexibility with associated mold tooling.

Vertical injections can offer more control when the resin reaches the mold cavity through a short distance. Often times with horizontal machines, the plastic has to travel a longer distance to reach the mold which makes room for resin to cool too quickly and produce bad shots.

Two huge factors that play a major role in the quality of a product formed by vertical insert molding are clamping force and shot size.

Clamping force is the amount of pressure required to keep the mold and product closed during the injection process. On vertical machines, especially when using book molds, the clamp is more of an added precaution since the top of the mold will be kept in place by gravity.

Additionally, the vertical clamp units on vertical molding machines are robust and allow maximum flexibility with associated mold tooling.

Shot size is the amount of molten plastic required in the injection process of the mold. Since the plastic is coming from the top, the size of the runner needed to complete a part is much less than that of a horizontal molding machine. This helps cut costs and reduce waste while keeping the process as efficient as possible.

What did we miss? Tell us below what you think are the main differences between vertical and horizontal molding machines.

Stuck on a project? Request a risk-free evaluation to see how medical injection molding experts Aberdeen Technologies can help move your project forward.

Want more information on vertical injection molding machine specifications? Feel free to contact us.

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