Battenfeld first showed its IMPmore injection-compression process making large automotive glazing at NPE 2003 in Chicago. At K 2004 in Germany, the system had been expanded to make panels a bit larger than 1 sq m (10.8 sq ft), and the company said it had yet another solution in the works. That solution is the newly announced HM 2P WE Series, the company?s first rotary center platen machine, which can produce glazing panels up to 1.8 sq m (19.4 sq ft).

Available in 800-, 1300-, and 2700-metric-ton models, Battenfeld says several of the machines have already been sold. The company sees a great future for automotive plastic glazing thanks to weight savings up to 50%, increased design freedom, and improved passenger safety from polycarbonate?s resistance to breaking and shattering. Numerous small auto side windows already are molded of plastic, and applications including roof modules, rear windows, and larger fixed-side glazing are in development.

The new rotary platen machine is based on Battenfeld?s established HM 2-platen Series. In the new design, two movable injection units face each other at opposite ends of the machine?s long axis. The center platen, which bears a mold half on each side, turns 180º on its vertical axis and both injections happen simultaneously.

A key feature of this machine is its fully retractable tiebars. Besides allowing the center platen to rotate freely, Battenfeld says the retracted tiebars permit easy access to the mold space for mounting and changing. Access is equally ample for automation designs. The company says the simultaneous injections minimize cycle times, and each mold can be kept at different temperatures thanks to flexibility in the access for cooling water.

The system uses VFC (vector-oriented force control) technology to measure platen parallelism at multiple points along the parting line. Each sensor is individually addressed and misalignment is actively corrected to maintain constant platen parallelism, an advantage when off-center components are being injection-compression molded.

A 1300-ton system is running in the company?s Meinerzhagen, Germany labs for demonstrations and product development.?RN

Battenfeld of America
South Elgin, IL
(847) 531-0015
www.sms-k.com

April 2005