US3279002A

US3279002A - Mold shut-off arrangement

Info

Publication number: US3279002A
Authority: US
Inventors: Donald E Meves; Frenzan William Richard
Original assignee: Amsted Industries Inc
Current assignee: Amsted Industries Inc
Priority date: 1963-12-09
Filing date: 1963-12-09
Publication date: 1966-10-18
Anticipated expiration: 1983-10-18

Description

Oct. 18, 1966 D. E. MEvEs ETAL 3,279,002

MOLD SHUT-OFF ARRANGEMENT Filed Dec. 9, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Cgi PR/OR ART Oct. y18, 1966 D, E. MEvEs ETAL 3,279,002

MOLD SHUT-OFF ARRANGEMENT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Flled Deo. 9, 1963 ff? Kenia/1s United States Patent O 3,279,002 MOLD SHUT-OFF ARRANGEMENT Donald E. Meves, Alliance, Ohio, and William Richard Fenzan, Oak Lawn. Ill., assignors to Amsted Industries Incorporated, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Dec. 9, 1963, Ser. No. 328,847 9 Claims. (Cl. 22-79) The present invention relates to a .mold shut-ott arrangement and particularly such an arrangement adapted for use in connection with pressure pouring.

The mold shut-off arrangement of the present invention is particularly adapted to use with a car runing along a track and carrying .a mold, the car being moved to a pouring station in which -a pouring tube is placed and connected with the mold, and the molten metal in the ladle from which the pouring tube leads is forced by pressure upwardly through the pouring tube int-o the mold. When the mold is iilled, a shut-oit slide is moved to shut off the mold from the pouring tube.

An object of the invention is to provide a novel throwaway or one-time use shut-ott slide for use in casting apparatus of the foregoing character.

Another and .more specific object is to provide a shutoff slide of the character mentioned which is made entirely of iron or steel and consequently Iof small dimensions and correspondingly inexpensive, whereby t-o enable economic one-time use thereof.

Another object is to provide a shut-oft" slide of the character mentioned and particularly one of small dimensions whereby t-o minimize or to substantially eliminate turbulence of the molten metal and tendency thereof to migrate into the spaces between the relatively movable members that make up the shut-off slide assembly.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following detailed description taken in oonjunction with the accompanying -detailed drawings in which:

FIGURE l is a vertical sec-tional View of a shut-off slide assembly of known `kind and included herein for the purpose of pointing up the advantages of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical sectional view of a shut-olf slide assembly according to the present invention in association with a mold indica-ted in dot-dash lines;

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 2, but showing ya slightly modiiied form of mold having a chill plate;

FIGURE 4 is a view taken at line 4-4 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is ra fragmentary detail view of a formation on the shut-off slide adapted for strengthening purposes in the sliding opera-tion of the slide;

FIGURE 6 is a View similar to FIGURE 5 showing a modified form thereof;

FIGURE 7 shows another modied form of slide construction;

FIGURE 8 illustrates still another modified form; and

FIGURE 9 is a view from the right of FIGURE 8.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, attention is directed iirst to FIGURE l showin-g a known form of shut-off slide assembly. In this figure, the reference numeral 10 refers to an assembly -including a shut-oh" slide and associated parts mounted in a car indicated generally at 12. The car 12 may be any of various types, such for example, as that shown in United States Patent No. 3,090,090 .issued May l2, 1963, to lames Woodburn, Jr., and is represented here by a single element in the form of the top deck 14 thereof supporting a mold 16 of known kind having one -or more cavities 18. The car 12 is mounted on suitable wheels .and runs along -tracks to a pouring station where 'a pouring ytube 20 having a cen- 3,279,002 Patented Oct. 18, 1966 ICC tral passage 22 .is in register with -a passage 24 through the assembly Y1t), as described more in detail herein below, and therethrough with the cavity or cavities 18 of the mold. After the pouring operation is completed, the car is moved out of the pouring station and another car is moved thereinto.

The assembly 10 of known type, as stated, generally includes three main elements through which :the passage 24 is formed. rI'hese main elements are xa support 26, a slide plate 28, and -a top plate 30. These three main elements or components of the assembly 10 may be reduced .to two which may be used in conjunction with the sm-all shut-ott slide plate of the present invention, and form an assembly extremely more simple than the assembly 10, as described below. In the assembly 10, the support 26 is secured to the undersurface of the car deck 14. This plate has a recess 32 in which the slide plate 28 is slidably mounted, and a second recess 34 abofve the `recess 32, in which the top plate 30 is mounted. The support 26, and thus the Iassembly, is secured to the car deck by suitable means such as bolts 36 threaded into the car deck 14. The slide plate 28 and the top plate 30 are of necessity acc-urately dimensioned .in thickness so that those two elements together with t-he support 26 tit laccurately .together without undue spaces betwen those elements. A core 38 is fitted in the central openings in the

elements

26, 28, and 30 which defines a continuous passage 24 therethrough from the pouring tube into the mold.

The foregoing description of FIGURE 1 stands in contrast to the present invention illustrated in FIGURES 2 t-o 9 and described herein below. Referring -rst to FIG- URE 2, lthe same car deck 14 is illustrated and the support 26 is secured to the undersurface of the car deck, and immediately above the support `26 .is the top plate 30. I-t will be noted that the slide plate, such as 428 referred to above, is absent from the present illustration, and the top plate directly engages and is supported by the support 26. The core 38 is also shown in this figure, but is of lesser height to correspond with the thickness or vertical dimension of the two elements, the support 26 and the top plate 30, together. IIf desired, the core 38 may be made of sections, as disclosed and claimed in the copending application of John A. Rassenfoss and Donald E. Meves, Serial No. 327,7'516 filed December 3, 1963.

In substitution of the shut-ofi slide 28 of the old form of apparatus, the present invention includes a shut-ott slide plate 40 which will be described in detail herein below, but for present purposes it may be stated that it is made up entirely of metal, such as iron or steel, and is of extremely small dimensions and particularly small thickness, such as 1A lor less. This slide plate 40, in the form of FIGURE 2, is interposed directly between the mold 16 and the top plate 30. The mold 16 is a chill mold having, for example, graphite blocks dening the cavity 18. The slide plate 40 is fitted in a hole formed between -the mold and the assembly 10 by formin-g grooves in either one or both of those members of a combined depth t-o accommodate the thickness of the slide plate. For eX- ample, yin FIGURE 2, a groove 42 is formed in the core 38, in the assembly 10, this gro-ove forming -a flat hole, rectangular in cross section oor-responding to the cross sectional shape and size of the slide plate.

Preferably, the core 38, which normally is of refractory material, is of sufficient size to enable the groove 44 to be formed therein, rather than forming such a groove in a metal part such as in the top plate 30, at least in the area limmediately surrounding the cavities of the mold.

Many ychill molds are provided with a chill plate or a sink plate, such as illustrated at 46 in FIGURE 3. This plate may be made of copper Ior other suitable high heat conductivity material .and is provided with an aperture 48 registering with each cav-ity in the mold and arranged for communication with the central passage in the core 38. This chill plate may be made of two parts, each fitted to one of the blocks of the mold, .and when the mold parts are fitted together 4these parts are similarly fitted together, to form an effective unitary plate. When a ch-ill plate 46 is used with the mold, the slide plate 40 is preferably interposed `between that chill plate and the assembly 10, and in this case also the hole for receiving the slide plate may be provided by forming va groove in either the chill plate, or the core 3S as shown, or both.

In the casting operation, in the use of the invention, the slide plate 40 is operated basically in the same manner as the slide plate 23 in a known kind of shut-off assembly. In other words, for pouring, the slide plate is positioned as in FIGURE 4 where the holes 49 therein are -in register with the holes 48 in the sink plate. The molten metal .is then poured through the pouring tube, through the core and into the mold. After the mold is filled to the desired level, the slide plate is moved to a shut-off position in which the holes 49 therein are out of register with the cavities in the mold. Thereafter, subsequent operations are performed as desired, such as removing the pouring tube 20 yand moving the car on which the mold is supported `out of the pouring station. After the molten metal in the mold has frozen, the mold is opened and the casting removed.

The shutoff plate 40, as mentioned above, is a throw- -away plate, or one designed for one-time use. This plate may be of extremely small thickness, such as 1A or less, and it has been successfully used as thin as M3". The thickness may vary according to the size of the car and mold and hence generally according to the amount of power required to move it. The plate is of ordinary iron or steel, including conventional galvanized iron, and is of a width necessary to accommodate the size of the cavities in the mold and to provide the desired strength.

The slide plate, according to the invention, is used in casting molten steel of temperatures of in the neighborhood of 2900 F. In the use of any kind of shut-off slide assemblies heretofore utilized, the spaces between the relatively movable members were quite critical. The shut-olf slide, such as 28 in FIGURE 1, usually in the neighborhood of 1" thick or more, Agenerally is moved to shut-off position while the pouring step is being performed, and the molten metal becomes turbulent .as the result of this fact. The molten metal tends .to pass into the spaces between the shut-off slide and the other elements engaged thereby, and produces a binding effect on the shut-off slide, Vrendering it difficult to `recondition the slide after the pouring operation due to the necessity of removing frozen particles or po-rtions of the molten metal in the slide channel etc. Also, the molten metal that remains in the central aperture in the shut-off slide, of course, freezes and tends to freeze to the adjoining surfaces, including the upwardly facing surface of the support 26 and the downwardly facing surface of the .top plate 30. It requires considerable effort and time to remove all traces of such frozen metal from the elements 26 -and 30 and from the shut-off slide. Additionally, a great amount of force was required to remove a lar-ge and massive slide plate such as 28.

In the present instance, the thin slide plate 40 can be easily slid to shut-off position, and that portion, or disc, of 4molten metal in the aperture of the slide plate cools much faster than heretofore because of lthe great conductivity of the metal of the slide plate. As a result, any tendency of this disc of molten metal to freeze to the adjoining surfaces was practically eliminated. This disc froze to the slide plate, but this `fact actually eliminates the freezing of the disc to other members. The slide plate 40 bein-g of extremely small dimensions and particularly small thickness, comprises .a relatively small mass and it can be thrown .away with a minimum of economic loss due to the cost of the material making up the slide plate.

An additional advantage of the invention is thatthe other hand if those spaces were too great, the molten metal would find its way into them resulting in serious difficulties, as will be appreciated. In the case of the present invention, the spaces may be consistently made on the smaller side with minimum difculty in moving the slide plate because of the small size thereof and correspondingly less power required.

The thin slide plate 40 of the present invention performs a cutting operation, displacing only an extremely thin disc of molten metal, while on the other hand the relatively thick slide plate such as 2'8 moved a relatively great mass of molten metal.

A further and great advantage of the invention is that although the slide plate is disposable, there is substantially no waste of material because of that. The slide plate being made entirely of metal, together with the disc of newly frozen metal therein, may be used as scrap in `a subsequent casting operation, with -the ancillary advantage that no time-consuming effort is required for removing yany frozen metal from the slide plate, as was the case in the use of devices heretofore known.

Attenti-on is now directed to special detailed constructions of slide plate for accommodating a pulling action for moving it to `shut-off position.V These detailed constructions yare for the purpose of reinforcing and strengthening the slide plate at the appropriate place. The slide plate may be either pushed or pulled, but more conveniently; pulled, and especially in the case of such a thin slide plate, Y

pulling eliminates all tendency to buckling thereof.' Referrin-g rst t-o FIGURE. 4, the pulling end of the slide plate is turned under, as indicated at 50, and the double l thickness end thereby formed provided wit-h a pair of holes 52 to receive hooks in the pulling motor.

In FIGURE 5, the pulling end is provided with a turned over piece to form a .transverse cylindrical hole 54 for receiving a pin on the puller.

In FIGURE t6, the slide plate is provided with an eXtra transverse piece S6 secured thereto -as by welding, this piece having a length, transversely of the slide plate,

greater `than the width of the latter, forming shoulders 58 for receiving elements of the puller.

In FIGURE 7, the pulling end of the slide plate is provided with notches 60 in the opposite side edges for receiving a pair of elements such as pins in the puller.

In FIGURES 8 and 9, the side plate 40 at its pulling L end is cut inwardly vfrom its side edges forming tabs 62` which are bent upwardly to a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane of the slide plate, these tabs forming shoulders 64 for engagement by a pair of elemen-ts in the puller.

While we have herein shown and described certain preferred embodimen-ts of 4the invention, it will be under-` stood that changes may be made therein within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. Mold apparatus comprising a sub-assembly including core means defining a central passage therethrough, a

mold superposed upon said sub-assembly and having a cavity in register with said passage, and a shut-olf slide` plate interposed between the sub-assembly and mold, said slide plate being constituted entirely by a strip of iron of `a thickness not substantially greater than on the order of Mi and having an aperture therein, said slide plate being movable between a filling position in which the aperture is in register with said passage and cavity, and a shut-or position in which it is out of such register.

2. r["he inventi-on .set out in claim 1 in which said subassembly and mold forma passage therebetween receiving said shutoff slide plate, said passage being formed by at least one rgroove in one of said sub-'assembly and mold, said sub-assembly and mold having .interengaging support surfaces of substantial area on opposite sides of said passage.

3. The invention set out in claim 2 in which each sub- -assembly and mold has a groove formed therein, together forming a hole receiving said slide plate, said hole being in cross-section shaped oonformably to said slide plate, and the slide plate iitting snugly therein to substantially prevent yflow of molten metal therebetween.

4. The invention set out in claim 1 .in which said shutott slide plate is on the order of 1A" thick.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 adapted for use with molten metal of a temperature in the neighborhood of 2900 F. and in which the slide plate is constituted entirely of steel.

6. 'Ilhe invention set out in claim 1 in which the mold includes a bottom chill plate of high Iheat conductivity metal, .and said shut-oli slide .plate is interposed between said chill plate and said sub-assembly.

7. The invention set out in claim 1 Vin which said core means is composed of refractory material and the mold includes graphite in engagement with said refractory material, and said shut-ot slide plate is engaged solely by said refractory material and graphite at least in regions surrounding said aperture in said shutdoff slide plate in all positions of the latter, said sub-assembly and mold `having interengaging support surfaces of substantial area on opposite sides of said passage.

y8. The invention set out in claim 1 in which the slide plate is of such dimensions and proportions Vas to buckle in response to pushing action in a casting operation, and is provided with means for engagement by a puller for pulling the slide plate to shut-off position.

`9. A method of cast-ing, in conjunction with a mold anda shut-oit sub-assembly, molten steel at a temperature in the neighborhood of 2900 F., comprising utilizing, by a pulling action, a one-time shut-Cif slide plate composed entirely of steel for shutting-oilr communication between the sub-assembly and mold, the slide plate being of such small thickness and of such other dimensions and proportions so .as to buckle in response to pushing action in a casting operation.

References Cited bythe Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,090,090 5/ 1963 Woodburn 22--134 XR 3,186,039 l6/ 1965 Sylvester 22-69 3,192,581 7/ 1965 Sylvester 22-69 XR I. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner.

R. S. ANNEAR, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. MOLD APPARATUS COMPRISING A SUB-ASSEMBLY INCLUDING CORE MEANS DEFINING A CENTRAL PASSAGE THERETHROUGH, A MOLD SUPERPOSED UPON SAID SUB-ASSEMBLY AND HAVING A CAVITY IN REGISTER WITH SAID PASSAGE, AND A SHUT-OFF SLIDE PLATE INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE SUB-ASSEMBLY AND MOLD, SAID SLIDE PLATE BEING CONSTITUTED ENTIRELY BY A STRIP OF IRON OF A THICKNESS NOT SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN ON THE ORDER OF 1/4" AND HAVING AN APERTURE THEREIN, SAID SLIDE PLATE BEING MOVABLE BETWEEN A FILLING POSITION IN WHICH THE APERTURE IS IN REGISTER WITH SAID PASSAGE AND CAVITY, AND A SHUT-OFF POSITION IN WHICH IT IS OUT OF SUCH REGISTER.

9. A METHOD OF CASTING, IN CONJUNCTION WITH A MOLD AND A SHUT-OFF SUB-ASSEMBLY, MOLTEN STEEL AT A TEMPERATURE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF 2900*F., COMPRISING UTILIZING, BY A PULLING ACTION, A ONE-TIME SHUT-OFF SLIDE PLATE COMPOSED ENTIRELY OF STEEL FOR SHUTTING-OFF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE SUB-ASSEMBLY AND MOLD, THE SLIDE PLATE BEING OF SUCH SMALL THICKNESS AND OF SUCH OTHER DIMENSIONS AND PROPORTIONS SO AS TO BUCKLE IN RESPONSE TO PUSHING ACTION IN A CASTING OPERATION.