What is Softgel Machine Die Roller Set?
The softgel die roller is an important part of the softgel encapsulation machine. It can determine the shape and filling volume of soft capsules. It is installed on the die roller housing of the soft capsule machine, and consists of a segment(wedge), a distribution plate, a gear and a pair of completely symmetrical rolling cylinders. The two cylinders move relative to each other to extrude the rubber, and the wedge plays the role of heating and injecting the material liquid, and finally completes the production and packaging of the capsule.
Composition of The Die Roller Set
A complete set of softgel die roller set is consist of: a pair of cylinders(rollers), a piece of injection segment(wedge), a piece of distribution plate, a piece of timing gear. But for new servo motor driving softgel encapsulation machines, no timing gear is needed.
Softgel Machine Die Roller Material
Cylinder(rollers): In the 1990s, China’s softgel machine die rollers were made of duralumin (LY12). The hardness (HB) of duralumin is about 120, and it has strong ductility and corrosion resistance. Later, we studied the Italian Phamagel soft capsule machine die rollers and found that they used ultralumin, which is harder than duralumin. The hardness (HB) of this ultralumin can reach 150~160, which belongs to the international standard 7 series aluminum. So our Chinese soft capsule machine manufacturers have also started to use this aluminum material. After decades of continuous trials and improvements, the quality of our 7-series aluminum produced in China is very good, the hardness (HB) can reach about 160, and the fatigue and corrosion resistance are also very strong. Thousands of times of mutual extrusion will not damage the slag. The corrosion resistance of this alloy aluminum material is greatly enhanced by anodizing the surface. At present, the best aluminum plant in China is the Southwest Aluminum Plant, and the quality of the 7-series aluminum produced by the Southwest Aluminum Plant ranks among the top in the entire Asian region. JANGLI’s softgel die rollers are made of alloy aluminum produced by Southwest Aluminum Plant, so the quality of our die roller material itself is very good.
Segment(Injection wedge): This part material is copper(brass or bronze). Because copper has better heat conductivity than stainless steel and aluminum
Distribution Plate: Distribution plates are available in Teflon, nylon and stainless steel. JANGLI mainly uses food-grade Teflon material, and other materials can also be made according to the special requirements of customers.
Timing Gear: Gears are not in direct contact with food materials, generally iron or stainless steel
Softgel Die Roller Processing(Processing equipment precision requirements)
It is well known that softgel die roller have very high requirements on precision, and the precision of the die rollers affects the sealing of the capsule and the beauty of the shape of the softgels. If you have a good softgel encapsulation machine, but you don’t have good softgel die rollers, you can’t produce high-quality softgel capsule products. Therefore, the equipment precision requirements for processing softgel machine die rollers are also very high. The most important core equipment for the production of softgel die rollers is a fully automatic four-axis machining center. After the operator inputs the designed program into the equipment, the machining center can automatically process according to the input program without stopping. The four-axis machining center has X-axis, Y-axis, Z-axis movement in three directions and angular movement A value. There are three main values to measure the accuracy of machining centers: repeatability, A-value angular motion accuracy, and speed. The machining center currently used by JANGLI is the famous brand NIKKEN. Its repeatability and A-value angular motion accuracy can be controlled at 1‰. His The speed can reach 20000RPM, ensuring that the softgel die roller does not deform during processing.
Softgel Machine Die Rollers Service Life and Influencing Factors
The service life of a set of die roller set is generally related to the time of use, the type of soft capsules manufactured, and the working habits of the operator. If we follow an eight-hour, five-day-a-week working system, under good maintenance and equipment operation conditions, the service life of one set of die roller can be as long as 8 to 10 months. For suspension soft capsules and soft capsules with thick gelatin film, the service life of the die roller can reach 6 to 8 months.
Judgment of die roller damage: when the die roller is cutting the gelatin film, it cannot be cut well or smoothly. It proves that the mold is severely worn and needs to be replaced with a new set.
The main factors affecting the service life of softgel die rollers are as follows:
- Normal wear and tear during the use of softgel die roller
The friction generated in the production process of the softgel die roller is rolling friction, and the impact of this friction on the die roller is actually very small, almost negligible.
- There are foreign objects stuck in the die rollers during production process
During the working process of the softgel encapsulation machine, it is necessary to keep the workbench clean and tidy, and the tools are stored in an orderly manner. During the tool picking process, the die roller housing area should be bypassed to avoid foreign objects falling onto the cylinders and causing damage to the softgel mold.
- Bumps caused by improper operation
Softgel production enterprises need to strengthen softgel encapsulation machine operator training, teach them correct die roller disassembly process, standardize the management of softgel die roller sets and designate special personnel to manage the molds, and avoid damage to the molds due to improper operation
- Bad die roller alignment
Before starting production, it is necessary to do a good job of adjusting the die roller alignment and injection timing. Use carbon paper to test the alignment results and then start capsule encapsulation after the alignment results are OK to prevent damage caused by die roller misalignment.
- Improper die roller cleaning
Use suitable cleaning agents for cleaning, improper cleaning agents will corrode the die rollers.
- Inappropriate storage of softgel die rollers
Dry the die roller sets totally after cleaning to keep them from corrosion
Correct Use of Die Roller Set
Softgel machine die roller set is a very precise machine part. If it is damaged or scratched, the whole set cannot be used any more. As long as one of the cavities is scratched, the entire set cannot be used. Therefore, extra attention should be paid in the using process. The correct use of die roller set is as follows:
- Before using a new die roller set, first clean the dirt on the surface, soak it in lubricating oil for four to five hours, or overnight, the die roller cylinders after soaking is not easy to stick to the gelatin film(or gelatin film)
- Be extra careful when transferring, taking out, and putting down, avoid operating in a messy environment, and be careful not to bump into the die rollers
- After the die roller set is installed in the equipment, a second inspection is required to check whether the die roller seat is tightened, whether the alignment is correct, whether the direction of the injection wedge, the direction of the distribution plate and die roller direction are correct
- After the installation, separate the two cylinders immediately, Let them get closer after the gelatin film is delivered between the the two cylinders(rollers)
- When starting the capsule encapsulation process, give pressure to the cylinders(rollers) slowly, and let them press each other bit by bit, until the gelatin film can be cut off totally.
- Disassembly Principle: Installation order: Die rollers(cylinders) first, then injection wedge; Disassembly order: injection wedge first, then cylinders(rollers)
Die Roller Maintenance:
After each batch of production, the cylinders, injection wedge, and distribution plate need to be cleaned. Cleaning can be done with equipment or by hand. First remove the large particles remaining on the surface or inner holes of all parts including roller cylinders, injection wedge and distribution plate. You can use nylon brushes or silicone brushes, but hard objects such as steel wool balls cannot be used. After cleaning, put all the parts into the ultrasonic cleaning machine, turn on the heating, turn on the ultrasonic wave, and add cleaning agents (neutral and mild cleaning agents are required, acidic and alkaline agents are easy to cause corrosion and oxidation on the surface of the die rollers) . Rinse with clean purified water after sonication. After rinsing, use compressed air or a blower to dry the remaining water on the surface of the cylinders(die rollers) and segment. If there is residual water, it may cause oxidation and corrosion. After drying, spray lubricating oil on the surface of the cylinders(die rollers) and the surface of the segment. Put it in the storage box for next use.
Price of Softgel Machine Die Roller Set
The price mainly depends on the dimension of the die rollers . The larger the dimension of the die roller, the more expensive it is, and it has nothing to do with the shape of the cavity and the number of steps(single step, bi-lips or multiple steps) of the cavity.
