BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of injection molding, and more particularly to a rotatable mold carrier for controlling inner stresses in a component manufactured by injection molding.

Injection molding is a manufacturing process that is widely used to produce parts in the electronic industry. Injection molding involves injecting molten material into a mold. Injection molding can be performed with a host of materials including metals (for which the process is called die-casting), glasses, elastomers, confections, and many thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers. Material for the part is fed into a heated barrel, mixed, and injected into a mold cavity, where it cools and hardens to the configuration of the cavity.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a mold carrier. The mold carrier comprises a mold bearing chassis, a pressure bearing plate, and a tie bar. The mold bearing chassis includes a plurality of molds disposed therein. Each mold has one or more mold cavities. The pressure bearing plate is configured to physically couple to the mold bearing chassis during an injection molding process. The tie bar runs through the center of the mold bearing chassis and the pressure bearing plate. The mold bearing chassis is configured to allow components to be removed from their molds without separating the mold bearing chassis from the pressure bearing plate.

Further embodiments of the present disclosure include a method, computer program product, and system for controlling inner stresses of components manufactured using an injection molding process. The method includes injecting molten material into a first mold disposed on a mold carrier using an injection molding machine to create a component. The mold carrier includes a plurality of molds. The component in the first mold is then allowed to at least partially solidify. After the component has partially solidified, the mold carrier is rotated such that a second mold of the plurality of molds is aligned with a nozzle of the injection molding machine. A temperature of the first mold is then controlled according to a stress release profile.

The above summary is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the present disclosure.

