Method and apparatus for adaptive powder fill adjustment on powder metal compacting presses

摘要

An automatic adaptive fill cavity adjust system for a powder metal press to control trend variations in the weight of multi-level parts as the result of the flowability and apparent density characteristics of the powder metal. The system comprises a monitoring component to monitor compacting load or tonnage changes, or part weight changes. A computer control is provided to receive the monitor signals, to keep a running average of a small sample of parts, to execute the proper logic to determine when a fill adjustment is needed, and to calculate the new fill position for each moveable platen bearing a tooling member to assure that the percent change in powder column height is the same for all columns. The system further includes a motor drive component responsive to the control computer output to position the up stop of each moveable platen bearing a tooling member and the core rod mechanism (if used), to achieve proportionally correct adjustments to the fill cavity.