Drip molding technology utilizes the variable state property of thermoplastic polymers—that is, they exhibit viscous flow under certain conditions and can revert to a solid state at room temperature. Using appropriate methods and specialized tools, ink is sprayed onto the material in its viscous flow state to create the desired shape, which is then cured at room temperature. Drip molding is widely used in the decoration of various trademarks, nameplates, cards, daily hardware products, tourist souvenir badges, exquisite handicrafts, and high-end book covers. Xinshida Operation Control, relying on CNC machining technology, has replaced the manual dispensing step in the drip molding process with automated machine dispensing, greatly improving production efficiency.
As shown in the figure, the dispensing machine adopts a gantry design and mainly consists of a bed, operation and control system, X/Y/Z three-axis motion system (servo system driving ball screw transmission), feeding module, and dispensing module.
Figure 1. Drip molding machine
The operation and control system mainly provides functions such as G-code map processing, motion trajectory planning, dispensing valve drip molding process control, HMI handheld touch control and button control of graphic processing flow.
The AC servo system of the X/Y/Z three-axis motion system receives command information from the control system, which is then amplified and shaped into linear displacement motion of the dispensing machine's actuators. Its performance directly affects the technical indicators of the dispensing machine, such as accuracy and speed. It is required to have good fast response performance, accurately and sensitively track the digital command signals issued by the controller, and faithfully execute the commands from the upper controller to improve the dynamic following characteristics and static tracking accuracy of the system.
The dispensing machine relies on an X/Y/Z three-axis motion system to direct the PVC paste dispensing needle to the designated position of the dispensing mold. The amount of glue dispensing is controlled by adjusting the time of resin extrusion and the speed of needle movement to achieve a certain dispensing effect.
The relevant operating procedures are as follows:
Figure 2 Start-up process of the drip molding machine
The Xinshida motion control drip molding machine system solution mainly consists of a motion controller, servo driver, servo motor, HMI, and extended I/O.
The system topology is shown below:
Figure 3. Topology of Xinshida's motion control dripping solution
The core control of this solution consists of an AMC1600 motion controller and a Sigriner Ω6s-APR series pulse AC servo system. This solution supports G-code trajectory mapping, 18-channel dispensing valve drip molding process, and 36 external button controls for rapid switching between processes.
The system configuration list is shown in Table 1:
Table 1 System Configuration
The advantages of the Xinshida motion control plastic machine solution are as follows:
(1) More dispensing valve control, supporting up to 18 dispensing valves, completing multiple formula functions, and supporting up to 36 sets of product processing.
(2) Added online parameter setting and file upload/download functionality for networked devices via computer host computer, and supports the collection of device operation data by host computer.
Figure 4. Host computer debugging interface
(3) Supports handheld touchscreen adjustment and full button operation; processing G-code and parameters can be imported and exported via USB flash drive. Maximizes convenience for operators during debugging.
Figure 5 HMI control interface
(4) Larger parsing cache support, with a maximum of 30,000 lines of G-code instructions in a single processing file.
(5) CNC’s powerful acceleration and speed curve planning ensures that the equipment runs at high speed and smoothly, improving efficiency by 8%-10% compared to traditional models.
Figure 6 CNC Speed Planning
(6) After long-term testing and summarization, Sigriner has customized a set of servo system parameters to match the plastic molding process. The newly developed automatic tuning function of the Ω6s-ARR series servo saves 90% of the equipment debugging time. The processing result is shown in the figure below, which meets the customer's ideal requirements.
Figure 7 During the drip molding process; Figure 8 Finished product.
Solution Summary:
The Ω6 series AC servo system and AMC1600C motion controller products of Xinshida Motion Control are a series of products developed by Xinshida Group's Central Research Institute and the Singlina team. The products are widely used in general industrial control applications. In addition to the drip molding machine solution shared here, which has been recognized by customers, the products have also achieved good application results and consistent user praise in the fields of industrial robots, engraving machines, laser cutting, and packaging.
The ability to successfully help users solve complex problems and high maintenance costs demonstrates the high performance and reliability of Siasun products, showcasing Siasun's commitment to innovation-driven and high-quality development. Siasun's Motion Control Division integrates related interface equipment with motion control as its core, providing comprehensive automation control solutions to meet the needs of customers in various sub-sectors for improving quality, expanding production capacity, and reducing costs.
