Worry about the Clamping Force Issue? Try This New Function…

Do these problemsfrequently occurduring your injection molding process?

Having no idea about the appropriate clamping force of a mold?

Unable to cope with the fluctuation of product quality due to the clamping force changes in production?

Cannot judge whether the flash is caused by inadequate clamping force or mold defect?

Have to repeatedly adjust the clamping force and venting slot because of poor venting and flash when changing the mold？

Shall shortened mold life be attributed to bad mold quality or improper operation?

The clamping force of injection molding machines plays an essential role in plastic parts production. However, the IMM operators often get stuck on some problems in their daily work, no matter experienced operators or green hands. The SCFM System (Smart Clamping Force Management System) was born under this circumstance. As a new function of YIZUMI electric injection molding machines, the system focusing on the actual requirements of operators is able to intelligently recommend the most appropriate clamping force.

What is the SCFM system?

In short, it is a system that can automatically adjust the clamping force according to the set figure based on the automatic mode. It has a variety of functions, including real-time measurement, smart recommendation, adjusting without stopping the machine, automatic holding, etc., which enable the operators to control the injection molding machine and set appropriate clamping force in a quick and convenient way.

Q&A

Q: How to check the real-time clamping force of the injection molding machine?

A: Real-time value of the clamping force is available on the computer interfaces through the new SCFM system equipped on YIZUMI electric injection machine.

Clamping Force Sensor

Q: Why does the clamping force change? How to ensure its stability?

A: During the machine operation, the clamping force may be affected by the mold temperature, water temperature, injection molding process, plastic viscosity, etc. For example, influenced by these factors in a practical operation, 100T of clamping force probably turns into 110T or 90T. The unstable clamping force also results in the quality deviation of final products, like product weight and wall thickness. Thus, a stable clamping force is necessary for the stability of product size and weight.

This problem can be solved by the SCFM system on YIZUMI electric injection molding machine. Its automatic holding function can automatically adjust the clamping force to ensure the same value for an extended period when the clamping force changes during operation.

Q: What will happen if the clamping force is too large or too small?

A: The clamping force directly affects product quality and the wear of machines and molds. Inadequate clamping force leads to a relatively loose mold clamping that easily causes flash and considerably decreases the yield. We also found that some of our customers frequently used excessive clamping force, which isn’t a good habit. Because an excessive clamping force is proved to be a kind of “abuse” to the equipment that will increase wear to the molds and machines, shorten their service life, be unfavorable for cavity exhaust as well, resulting in trapped gas, burn marks, and energy waste.

The SCFM maintains stable clamping force and ensures product yield

Q: How to set the optimal clamping force?

A: Theoretically, the clamping force should be capable of overcoming the cavity pressure for stable and qualified production and is expected to be as small as possible after determining the injection process parameters. The SCFM system on YIZUMI electric injection molding machine will select the optimal clamping force and then recommend it to the customers by real-time monitoring. The optimal value perhaps is a little smaller than the original value, but more appropriate, while avoiding the problems caused by excessive clamping force. To some extent, we can say the system has self-learning ability that enables no matter experienced operators or green hands to find out the optimal clamping force, achieving rapid and stable production and reducing enterprise cost.

Q: What value can it bring to customers?

A: Using the SCFM system on YIZUMI electric injection molding machine to identify the optimal clamping force makes production scheduling more reasonable and operating costs more competitive; Reasonable clamping force can prolong the service life of molds and machines, and reduce the energy consumption and maintenance cost; Product quality stability can be improved to a certain extent; With the statistical analysis of monitoring data, the fault diagnosis is more clear and accurate. When there is a clamping problem, you can quickly determine whether the clamping force is insufficient or the mold accuracy is reduced. It is also easy to determine even if the mold is used to other injection molding equipment.

Q: What if the worn mold needs a larger clamping force to avoid the flash?

A: The SCFM system on YIZUMI electric injection molding machine can modify the clamping force to the optimal value to adapt to the actual production when the mold is worn out or imprecise. Without stopping the machine, operators just need to input the clamping force value on the computer screen and modification can be realized within several trials, shortening the operation time. If the modification exceeds the rated range, the machine will remind the operators to improve the mold.