Insert Mold System
This insert molding system, designed and built by TCA for a plastics manufacturer, is used to overmold electrical terminals for an automotive application. Able to produce finished parts within very tight tolerances, the system consists of three zones: a terminal handling dial, a mold tending robot, and a finished part handling dial.
The system is also set up to allow quick changeover to accommodate both left- and right-handed parts. As the electrical terminals are singulated and loaded, a 6-axis robot picks them up, places them into the mold, removes them when overmolding is complete, and loads the parts to an 8-position electromechanical rotary indexer. Hi-pot and continuity testing ensure their electrical integrity, and the terminals are passed through a trim press and fed to a discharge conveyor.
An aluminum extrusion frame with PVC and clear panels for visibility ensure complete operator safety. The cycle time for this system is 4 parts every 24 seconds, providing the customer with the high-throughput solution they were looking for.
TCA was able to design, manufacture, and deliver this complex, highly efficient system to the customer in only 20 weeks.