Abstract: A reheat blow molding machine has an improved article handling system that carries heated preforms by a carriage assembly from an oven to a roller chain conveyor which moves them to a blow mold from whence the blown product is moved to an eject station. The motions are linear and cyclical or periodic, drive means for such intermittent motions being provided. Preforms are handled in groups of four, each one being supported by its capping ring in a locating notch on the carriage and by the finish groove in a holder notch above it when it is transferred to the conveyor. All notches are open on the side facing the oven and have self-centering features to get and keep alignment for transfer and positioning at the blow mold. The carriage which moves preforms horizontally toward the conveyor and raises them to the elevation for transfer to the holder notches of the conveyor.

Abstract: A reheat blow molding machine has an improved article handling system that carries heated preforms by a carriage assembly from an oven to a roller chain conveyor which moves them to a blow mold from when the blown product is moved to an eject station. The motions are linear and cyclical or periodic, drive means for such intermittent motions being provided. Preforms are handled in groups of four, each one being supported by its capping ring in a locating notch on the carriage and by the finish groove in a holder notch above it when it is transferred to the conveyor. All notches are open on the side facing the oven and have self-centering features to get and keep alignment for transfer and positioning at the blow mold. The carriage which moves preforms horizontally toward the conveyor and raises them to the elevation for transfer to the holder notches of the conveyor.

Abstract: A reheat blow molding machine has an improved article handling system that carries heated preforms by a carriage assembly from an oven to a roller chain conveyor which moves them to a blow mold from when the blown product is moved to an eject station. The motions are linear and cyclical or periodic, drive means for such intermittent motions being provided. Preforms are handled in groups of four, each one being supported by its capping ring in a locating notch on the carriage and by the finish groove in a holder notch above it when it is transferred to the conveyor. All notches are open on the side facing the oven and have self-centering features to get and keep alignment for transfer and positioning at the blow mold. The carriage which moves preforms horizontally toward the conveyor and raises them to the elevation for transfer to the holder notches of the conveyor.

Abstract: A reheat blow molding machine has an improved article handling system that carries heated preforms by a carriage assembly from an oven to a roller chain conveyor which moves them to a blow mold from when the blown product is moved to an eject station. The motions are linear and cyclical or periodic, drive means for such intermittent motions being provided. Preforms are handled in groups of four, each one being supported by its capping ring in a locating notch on the carriage and by the finish groove in a holder notch above it when it is transferred to the conveyor. All notches are open on the side facing the oven and have self-centering features to get and keep alignment for transfer and positioning at the blow mold. The carriage which moves preforms horizontally toward the conveyor and raises them to the elevation for transfer to the holder notches of the conveyor.

Abstract: The present invention includes a tool and method for resurfacing a housing facing. The tool is adapted for use with a rotatable shaft extending from a housing, e.g. an impeller shaft of a pump. The tool includes a body having first and second halves that are removably secured to the rotatable shaft. A plurality of cutters are receivable within slots selectively disposed along the radii of the body halves. Advancing and locking screws for each cutter are utilized to position a cutter for engagement with the housing facing. The shaft is rotated, causing the cutters to produce a cut of desired depth in the facing. The depth of the cut is increased by turning an advancing screw.

Abstract: A reheat blow molding machine having an article handling system that carries heated preforms by a carriage assembly from an oven to a chain conveyor which moves them to a blow mold from whence the blown product is moved to an eject station. Attached to the chain conveyor are preform holder assemblies each of which contains a resilient spindle nose which supports the preforms by engaging an internal surface at one end of the preform.

Abstract: A reheat blow molding machine has an improved article handling system that carries heated preforms by a carriage assembly from an oven to a roller chain conveyor which moves them to a blow mold from whence the blown product is moved to an eject station. The motions are linear and cyclical or periodic, drive means for such intermittent motions being provided. Preforms are handled in groups of four, each one being supported by its capping ring in a locating notch on the carriage and by the finish groove in a holder notch above it when it is transferred to the conveyor. All notches are open on the side facing the oven and have self-centering features to get and keep alignment for transfer and positioning at the blow mold. The carriage which moves preforms horizontally toward the conveyor and raises them to the elevation for transfer to the holder notches of the conveyor.

Abstract: A loader inserts articles into a conveyor from underneath. Each article is received in a gripper and depends thereform. The gripper is supported from the conveyor facing down at the point of loading (insert station). A predetermined number of articles (here, three plastic preforms to be heated then blown into plastic bottles) is fed by gravity down a chute to a reception point where they are temporarily stopped forming a queue. The reception point is upstream of and lower than the grippers. The loader has a device to grasp a group (the first three in the queue) from the side (or cross-machine direction) and move the group horizontally and lineally downstream to the insert station underneath a corresponding number of grippers while at the same time increasing the center-to-center distances to the same as the center distances spacing the three grippers in the group.

Abstract: The mold clamping force exerted in a toggle plastic injection molding machine is measured by determining the amount the tie rods stretch. A link is clamped on a lower tie rod near the backing platen and supports a contact that is adjustable in the direction of tie rod stretch. The contact in turn engages a probe portion of a sensor that is secured to the machine base. The contact, hence the sensor probe, move the amount that the tie rod stretches at the point of clamping. The motion is directly proportional to clamping force which latter can then be adjusted by operating the adjusting nut drive motor a suitable amount.

Abstract: A pallet has a plurality of reciprocable spindles mounted thereon. Each spindle can be reciprocated and has an improved bearing support and bias means urging the spindle to one end of its reciprocation path. An improved spindle nose is provided to mount on the spindle as an exchangeable chuck thereby changing the size of the workpiece that can be handled. The spindle nose features an improved means to maintain seal with the preform finish that includes a base from which protrudes a flexible skirt which is extending from the other side of said base, said skirt being sufficiently resilient to maintain sealing engagement with the inside diameter of the preform finish during blow molding; and an air passage extending completely through said locating stud, base, and skirt region.

Abstract: An endless belt type of conveyor for small flat workpieces (chips) provides a series of pockets on a perforate belt, each pocket adapted to support a chip during conveyance through a zone wherein high velocity air jets are directed against the chip. The pockets are formed by facing pairs of series of "H" or "I" shaped crossbars connected between a spaced-apart pair of roller chains. The perforate belt is formed by a Teflon (polytetraflouroethylene) coated fiberglass screen (alternatively silicon rubber) supported by the H crossbars. This construction permits the pockets to move readily around the sprockets about which the roller chains are wound.

Abstract: An improved method and apparatus for compacting a composite tape tail which is formed by making a cut along an oblique line across the tape and manipulating first and second compaction means. The cut, however, severs only the tape while it is adhered to the backing but does not sever the backing or subjacent support (which is usually a strip of paper). The backing is then peeled away from the strip at a location between the first compaction means shoe, blade, or pad) and a second compaction means (preferably a roller) and conveys the discarded portion of tape to storage, disposal etc. The first compaction means bears down on the assembly of tape and backing. The second compaction means engages the tape after the peeling away, hence bears down on only the tail. Only one compaction means is used at a time. The second compaction means compactingly engages the tail not later than the arrival of the tail leading edge at said second means by which time the first compacting means has stopped compacting.

Abstract: A tapping lubricant dispenser apparatus is provided for use in numerically controlled automatic toolchanger machining systems to dispense tapping lubricant into a previously drilled hole before tapping. The tapping lubricant is usually a viscous tapping compound of the consistency of paste, grease or the like. The apparatus includes a toolholder of the type to fit into the machine spindle, a reservoir for a supply of lubricant--typically sufficient to run unattended for several complete cycles, e.g. at least one shift--and a reciprocating pump that dispenses the lubricant responsive to actuation by the numerical control system when the toolholder of this apparatus is fitted into the machine tool spindle. The reservoir reloads the pump after each dispensing action. The numerical control and toolchanger system is programmed to select the apparatus, put it in the spindle, align same with the hole to be tapped, and causes pump reciprocation and dispensing and then remove the apparatus from the spindle.

Abstract: An article carrier is provided for blow molding equipment which permits relatively simple exchange of the article gripping chuck portion of the carrier. The carrier includes a carrier body, a spindle rotatably supported by the body, an article gripping chuck removeably attached to the spindle and seals between the chuck and the spindle and between the chuck and a preform retained thereby. The chuck is provided with article gripping levers preferably rotatably supported by ball and socket joints. The levers have preform grasping projections at one end and first and second ball ends at the other end. The first ball end mates with the chuck body socket and the second ball end is engaged by a lever actuating ring slidably mounted on the outside of the chuck body.

Abstract: A mold changer for an injection molding machine has a carriage with two mold stations mounted next to the molding machine. The carriage is movable parallel to the tie rods (or platen movement) of the molding machine to position a selected work station in register for mold changing. There are rollers on the machine platens and at each carriage work station to support the mold weight while permitting lateral movement of the mold into or out of the machine or carriage as part of mold changing. Separate drive means to power such lateral mold movement are on each of the machine and carriage. Each of the drive means selectively moves a mold the first part of the way from the device in which it is mounted (i.e. machine or carriage) into the other device (carriage or machine) and at some point the drive means in the receiving device assumes driving and completion of the mold change. The mold is constructed and arranged to engage and disengage the drive means.

Abstract: An impingement oven wherein a carrier-type conveyor passes between hot air plenums located above and below the conveyor. Horizontally adjacent plenums have their fans located in an off-set position to overhang the other one of the pair. Each plenum has a nozzle plate to direct heated air toward the conveyor so that the air flow is substantially perpendicular to the conveyor and such workpiece(s) as may be thereon. An oven module having four sets of plenums and four conveyors in the same enclosure is described. A plurality of such modules serially arranged provide a multizone oven. The oven is especially suited to heating flat workpieces of thermoplastic resin which are to be processed elsewhere into hollow objects such as containers.

Abstract: A control for the heating section of a blow-molding machine is provided. The control permits independent selection of periods for high and low power energization of each radiant heating element of the heating section heater assembly. Power is provided by an alternating current source and switching of the power to the heating elements is accomplished at the zero crossing points of the supply voltage. To regulate the power in the heating elements against variations of supply voltage from a nominal value, a duty cycle control scheme is provided for selectively applying and withholding full cycles of the supply voltage to the heating elements. The determination of whether a cycle is to be applied or withheld is made by computing a duty cycle ratio comparing the power available from a minimum voltage expected to the power available from the actual supply voltage. Supply cycle switching is accomplished to distribute the application of cycles in two during the periods.

Abstract: A machine for high rate production of molecularly oriented thermoplastic bottles is disclosed. The machine is of the reheat-and-blow type. A blow molding station simultaneously blow molds article preforms arranged in matrices by modular article carriers for conveying the preforms and articles through the machine. The carriers are designed to retain the preforms throughout all operations of the machine from a preform load station through a thermal conditioning section, a blow molding station, and to a bottle eject station, thereby eliminating the need for other preform transferring apparatus. The article carriers together with the associated conveying apparatus comprise a sufficiently flexible structure that minor misalignments of the carriers with the blow molding mechanism do not adversely affect bottle production. Both loading of preforms and ejection of finished bottles are accomplished by operation upon matrices of preforms and bottles as defined by the carriers and conveyor lanes.

Abstract: A machine for high rate production of molecularly oriented thermoplastic bottles is disclosed. The machine is of the reheat-and-blow type. A blow molding station simultaneously blow molds article preforms arranged in matrices by modular article carriers for conveying the preforms and articles through the machine. The carriers are designed to retain the preforms throughout all operations of the machine from a preform load station through a thermal conditioning section, a blow molding station, and to a bottle eject station, thereby eliminating the need for other preform transferring apparatus. The article carriers together with the associated conveying apparatus comprise a sufficiently flexible structure that minor misalignments of the carriers with the blow molding mechanism do not adversely affect bottle production. Both loading of preforms and ejection of finished bottles are accomplished by operation upon matrices of preforms and bottles as defined by the carriers and conveyor lanes.

Abstract: An article carrier is provided for blow molding equipment which permits relatively simple exchange of the article gripping chuck portion of the carrier. The carrier includes a carrier body, a spindle rotatably supported by the body, an article gripping chuck removeably attached to the spindle and seals between the chuck and the spindle and between the chuck and a preform retained thereby. The chuck is provided with article gripping levers preferably rotatably supported by ball and socket joints. The levers have preform grasping projections at one end and first and second ball ends at the other end. The first ball end mates with the chuck body socket and the second ball end is engaged by a lever actuating ring slidably mounted on the outside of the chuck body.