Plastic injection molding machine

Approach

Introduction

A plastic injection molding machine is a machine used in the industry to manufacture plastic parts through the injection molding process. This is one of the most common methods for mass-producing plastic components, such as automotive parts, toys, household appliances, packaging, and more. How does a plastic injection molding machine work?

The basic process involves the following steps:

            Plastic melting:
            Plastic, in the form of granules or pellets, is fed into a heated barrel. Inside the barrel, a rotating screw or plunger melts the material through heat and pressure.
    
            Injection:
            Once the plastic is melted, the screw or plunger pushes it forward with high pressure, injecting it into a closed mold.
    
            Molding:
            The melted plastic completely fills the mold cavity, taking the desired shape. The mold is cooled (often through an internal cooling system), solidifying the plastic.
    
            Ejection:
            Once the part solidifies, the mold opens, and an ejection system removes the finished part.

Main Ideas

The command "git add ." was used to add all the changes saved in Visual Studio, then "git status" to know if all the changes were saved, then we tried to upload the files with "git commit -m \"title\"", but since there was no registered user or email, they had to register them with "git config –global user.email \"your@example.com\"" and "git config –global user.name \"your name\""

Other design details:

          Horizontal plasticizing cylinder
          This makes it easier to use a motor with a gearbox.
    
          Different nozzle sizes
          The possibility of having different nozzles for various functions is being considered.
    
          Auger screw
          Although there is a method to build this injector without the auger screw (using a metal cylinder and lever to compress the material), I prefer to implement the screw in this case.
    
          Motor with gearbox
          While it's possible to use the motor without the gearbox, including it seems like a better option.
    
          Adjustable temperature
          Modules will be added to regulate the resistance temperature, allowing the use of different types of plastics.
    
          Adjustable motor speed
          By including speed control for the motor, better results can be achieved in the generated shapes.

Project Details

What does it do?
The plan is for the machine to be able to melt, compress, and finally mold PLA plastic in custom molds made of heat-resistant resin.

Who's done what beforehand?
Throughout industrialization, multiple methods of plastic injection have been used for mass-producing various parts. In this case, the inspiration does not come from large industrial machinery, but rather from the people at Precious Plastic

What did you design?
I plan to design the structure and possibly some mechanical connection components if necessary, but it seems unlikely.

What sources did you use?
As mentioned before, exclusively the website of the people from Precious Plastic.

What materials and components were used?
I plan to use metal profiles to build a frame to mount the system, and I'm still evaluating which motor to use for pushing the material.

Bill of materials (Main components):

Type	Amount	Price per unit (USD)	Origin site
PID temperature control	2	16.46	MercadoLibre
Industrial band heater	4	22.40	MercadoLibre
2-inch surgical steel tube (3 meters)	1	35.64	Local metal shop

What parts and systems were made?

Type	Amount	Price per unit (USD)
Phenolic plate	-	-
Electronic components	-	-
Printables	-	-
Laser cutting	-	-
Machined in Haas	-	-

3D modeled parts

This one was downloaded from this website

Overview

What processes were used?
Still under development.

What questions were answered?
Still under development.

What worked? What didn't?
Still under development.

How was it evaluated?
Still under development.

What are the implications?
Still under development.

This is intended to be used by students or people in general with a slightly advanced knowledge of 3D printing or plastics