Spray System Replaces Hand-Held Spray Wand in Plastic Injection Molding Operation
 Workers' Exposure to Release Agent Eliminated
PROBLEM: An OEM of robotic machinery had a customer who hand-sprayed a release agent onto plastic television molds. The accuracy of the hand-held spray wand made it virtually impossible to pinpoint all of the crevices, particularly in the intricate vents on the backside of the mold. This caused frequent rework of the vent section. Plus, the manual system exposed workers to airborne release agents.
SOLUTION: The OEM designed a new system which incorporates a robotic arm equipped with four 1/8JJAU automatic air atomizing nozzles. The compact nozzles are lightweight and offer the high-speed cycling of full-sized nozzles.
Now a quick spray can be precisely aimed at critical sections on the molds, including the vent. This eliminates expensive reworking of rejected parts. The spray utilizes a very short cycle with larger drop size to eliminate overspray and increase production. And, since the OEM works with many end users, a similar spray configuration could be designed for different molded parts and release agents.
The spray nozzles are attached to a portable Automatic Spraying System. The portable unit simplifies maintenance of the robotics area, since the AutoJet System can be quickly and easily wheeled out of the way. And, end users like the flexibility provided by the AutoJet System, and the ability to use a single unit for several molding applications.
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