CN118060519A - Combined die for differential pressure casting machine, differential pressure casting machine and application of combined die - Google Patents

Abstract

The application relates to a combined die for a differential pressure casting machine, a differential pressure casting machine and application thereof. According to the application, a modular mold for a differential casting machine comprises: an upper die carrier assembly, a lower die carrier assembly and an even number of die units; the die units are opposite to each other in pairs and respectively comprise an upper die core, a lower die core and a side die core; in the die assembly state, the upper die core, the lower die core and the side die core form a die cavity for forming a blank casting; the side mould core is provided with a guiding and connecting device, so that the side mould core can move upwards relative to the lower mould core together with the upper mould core and the blank casting during mould opening, and the side mould core can simultaneously move outwards relative to the upper mould core until the side core pulling is completed. Therefore, the stability and the accuracy of the operation of the equipment are ensured under the condition of meeting the requirements of the casting lateral core-pulling manufacturing process.

Description

Combined die for differential pressure casting machine, differential pressure casting machine and application of combined die

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of differential pressure casting, in particular to a die design structure and a die design method for differential pressure casting of an aluminum alloy steering knuckle.

Background

The casting technology is developed on the basis of low pressure casting, in which a sealing cover is arranged outside a casting mould, and compressed air is introduced into a crucible and the sealing cover, but the pressure difference exists between the crucible and the sealing cover, and casting liquid (such as molten metal) in the crucible fills a cavity through a riser tube under the action of the pressure difference and is crystallized under pressure. The essence of the differential pressure casting method is that: the casting liquid is equivalent to the working condition of low-pressure casting when filling the casting mould, but solidification (crystallization) is carried out under pressure, so that a casting with no air holes, no inclusion and compact structure can be obtained, and the mechanical property of the casting liquid is greatly superior to that of common gravity casting and low-pressure casting.

At present, for a plurality of automobile parts with high requirements on strength and precision, such as aluminum alloy steering knuckles, a differential pressure casting process is adopted for production. In order to adapt to the development trend of energy conservation, emission reduction and light weight of automobiles, the requirements on the weight of products in the design process of knuckle castings are higher and higher. In order to meet the light weight requirement of the casting product, the required mechanical property and mechanical property can be achieved at the same time, so that the design of the steering knuckle casting product is more and more complicated. Since the differential pressure casting steering knuckle is generally subjected to bottom filling, a mold design of opening the mold vertically is adopted correspondingly in most cases. However, for some knuckle products, for example, based on the weight reduction requirement, the product molding is subjected to material removal and weight reduction design from the side direction, so that the upper and lower dies cannot be opened, and therefore, the design of a side core pulling mechanism is required in the process of designing the dies.

The design of the side-draw mechanism is greatly limited in view of the internal space conditions of the enclosure of the counter-pressure casting machine. Especially, aiming at certain application requirements that large side core modeling should be adopted or is suitable for being adopted, how to endow the core pulling mechanism with enough arrangement space and movement stroke becomes a technical problem facing differential pressure die design. The inclined guide pillar slide block core pulling mechanism or the inclined ejector rod lateral core pulling mechanism is known in the prior art, but the structure is quite complex, the installation and operation space is larger, the lateral core is usually smaller, and the lateral core is in a pin-shaped or columnar structure, so that the application requirement of the large-scale lateral core modeling in the differential pressure casting die cannot be met. Moreover, especially for the differential pressure casting production of automobile parts (such as aluminum alloy steering knuckles), how to integrate the lateral core-pulling mechanism into the common multi-cavity combined mold design can solve the technical problems, and the current practice and research of the industry are very pointed.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to at least partially overcome the defects in the prior art, and particularly provides an economical and feasible differential pressure casting process and equipment improvement measure for meeting the requirement of large-scale core pulling molding on the side surface, and particularly provides a combined die for a differential pressure casting machine, a differential pressure casting machine and application thereof. The technical scheme provided by the invention is particularly suitable for manufacturing differential pressure castings which are cast by adopting a large-scale side die core model, such as an aluminum alloy steering knuckle of an automobile, and the differential pressure castings are subjected to material removal and weight reduction design on the product model from the side direction, so that the die cannot be opened up and down.

To this end, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a modular mold for a differential casting machine, comprising:

An upper die carrier assembly is arranged on the upper die carrier,

A lower die frame assembly, and

An even number of die units;

The die units are opposite to each other in pairs and respectively comprise an upper die core, a lower die core and a side die core; the lower die core is fixed on the lower die frame component; the upper die core is connected with the upper die frame assembly and can reciprocate up and down relative to the lower die frame assembly along with the upper die frame assembly so as to execute die assembly or die opening of the combined die;

In the die assembly state, the upper die core, the lower die core and the side die core form a die cavity for forming a blank casting; the side mold core is provided with a guiding and connecting device, so that the side mold core can move upwards relative to the lower mold core together with the upper mold core and the blank casting during mold opening, and the side mold core can simultaneously move outwards relative to the upper mold core until lateral core pulling is completed.

According to the invention, on one hand, because each mould unit (which respectively comprises the lateral core pulling mechanisms) is opposite to each other, the stress balance of the whole combined mould and the stable movement of the movable part can be ensured when the mould is closed and butted and the mould is opened and pulled, the shaking of the equipment caused by eccentric unbalanced load can be avoided, and the running stability and the running accuracy of the equipment are ensured. On the other hand, the guide and connecting device arranged on the side mold core can enable the side core pulling action to be executed and completed along with the mold opening movement without separate side core pulling operation, so that efficient and reasonable matching in the process can be achieved, and meanwhile, the simplification and integration of the whole equipment can be realized.

Furthermore, it is worth noting that according to the present invention, since the guiding and connecting device configured by the side mold core replaces the previous oblique guide pillar slider core pulling mechanism or oblique ejector pin lateral core pulling mechanism designed separately according to the prior art, it is allowed to realize large-sized side mold core molding of the differential pressure casting machine (without being limited to the previous side core structure with a pin-shaped or columnar smaller cross section), and the side mold core itself can form the (larger) side surface of the mold cavity and can integrally perform core pulling movement so as to adapt to the manufacturing process requirements of the casting. The specific embodiments of the guide and connection device will be described in detail below.

According to some embodiments, the combined die adopts a layout mode of one die with four cavities and four quadrants, and comprises four die units which are arranged in a circumferentially uniformly distributed mode, wherein the die units are arranged in pairs from left to right, and the left die unit and the right die unit are respectively arranged in a pair, and each die unit is provided with the same technological parameters and the same control conditions and is used for manufacturing the same blank castings.

For the combined mold with the horizontal and vertical layout of the four quadrants of the four cavities of the one mold, the cooling water path can be divided into an upper part and a lower part, and the upper cooling water path and the lower cooling water path are jointly used for cooling control of the mold core of the four cavities of the one mold.

The four die units are distributed uniformly in a circumference mode, are arranged in a left-right mode, and are respectively in a pair. The symmetrical layout is beneficial in that the temperature field of the whole die can be ensured to be in an equilibrium temperature field state, and meanwhile, the same control is implemented at the same position by adopting the same process parameters. Therefore, the technical process control of each cavity mold core is controlled by the same external boundary environment condition and the same technical parameter, and the requirements on the internal quality and the appearance identity of the same casting can be met to the greatest extent.

According to some embodiments, it is advantageous if the guiding and connecting means consist of mechanical structural parts.

In this way, according to the invention, the lateral core-pulling mechanism is designed to be of a purely mechanical structure, and a core-pulling power device such as an oil cylinder or an air cylinder working on the basis of hydraulic oil or compressed air does not need to be additionally arranged, and particularly, the guiding and connecting device does not depend on hydraulic or pneumatic media to realize operation or transmission, so that under the high-temperature environment in the sealing cover of the differential pressure casting machine, the core-pulling action is not influenced by oil leakage of an oil sealing device, and the stroke of mechanical core pulling cannot interfere with peripheral equipment accessories.

In this regard, more specifically, the support frame is fixed to the lower mold frame assembly, the guiding and connecting device includes a key-groove matching mechanism provided between the side mold core and the support frame, and a guide rail mechanism provided between the side mold core and the upper mold core, and when the mold is opened or closed, the side mold core can be guided to move obliquely upward or downward relative to the lower mold core by the key-groove matching mechanism, and the side mold core can be synchronously guided to move outwards or inwards along the horizontal direction relative to the upper mold core by the guide rail mechanism.

Further, the key-groove matching mechanism may include a guide groove formed on the outer side surface of the side core and a guide key formed on the inner side surface of the support frame.

Further, the rail mechanism may include a middle rail formed on top of the side cores and side rails formed on the upper cores and located on both sides of the middle rail.

Through such structural design, especially based on this kind of concrete implementation mode of direction and connecting device, the design of former complicated oblique guide pillar slider mechanism of loosing core or oblique ejector pin side direction mechanism of loosing core is abandoned, but with direction and connecting device integrated on die carrier subassembly and mold core body completely, form a compact structure's side direction mechanism of loosing core, can be under the interior space condition that the sealed cover of differential pressure casting machine limited, reasonable, effectively dispose side direction mechanism's arrangement space and motion stroke, realize the side mould core design of the large-scale structure of differential pressure casting machine and the side direction operation of loosing core of its great stroke, satisfy the manufacturing process demand of foundry goods (such as certain knuckle products) well, this is the unable realization of former differential pressure casting mould structure.

In some embodiments, the side cores are expediently provided with limiting plates for limiting the lateral core-pulling travel thereof during the mold opening.

In some embodiments, the side cores are expediently provided with wedge plates for guiding them into the set position during clamping.

According to some embodiments, the lower die carrier assembly comprises a die carrier bottom plate and lower water splitters distributed in the peripheral area of the die carrier bottom plate, the lower die cores of the die units can be locked and fixed on the die carrier bottom plate through shaft shoulder screws, and the lower water splitters are correspondingly configured on the die units one by one and are used for cooling control of each die cavity.

In this regard, holes for installing the lift pipes may be distributed on the mold base plate, and the lift pipes are configured in the mold units in a one-to-one correspondence, and are used for supplying the casting solution to each mold cavity.

Suitably, the formwork base plate may be provided with at least one detachable transportation column. The transportation column generally plays a role in supporting and fixing only in the transportation process, so that the overall stability of the die is ensured, and the problems of collision, deformation and the like of parts cannot be caused in the transportation process. In the normal casting process, the transport column can be disassembled from the die carrier bottom plate.

According to some embodiments, the upper die frame assembly comprises a die frame upper plate and upper water splitters distributed in the peripheral area of the die frame upper plate, the upper die cores of the die units can be fixedly connected to the die frame upper plate through long screws and positioning pins, and the upper water splitters are correspondingly configured in each die unit one by one and are used for carrying out cooling control on each die cavity.

Further, an ejection operating mechanism and an ejection plate can be arranged on the die carrier upper plate and used for ejecting the blank casting downwards during die opening.

The ejector mechanism and the ejector plate are provided with a reset spring, and the reset spring is used for driving the ejector mechanism and the ejector plate to return upwards after the ejection action is completed.

According to some embodiments, it is expedient if the lower mould carrier assembly is fixedly provided with at least one stop post, and the upper mould carrier assembly is fixedly provided with at least one return post, which contacts the top end of the stop post when the mould is closed. At this time, the whole ejection system (including the ejection operating mechanism and the ejector plate) is retracted.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a counter-pressure casting machine comprising a modular mould as described above.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided the use of a differential pressure casting machine as described above for manufacturing an aluminium alloy steering knuckle for an automobile. The mechanical lateral core-pulling structure is applied to an aluminum alloy steering knuckle differential pressure casting die, and particularly, the purpose of eliminating internal quality defects of products is achieved through core-pulling design aiming at certain special steering knuckle modeling which is difficult to design through a conventional process die opening means during casting.

Compared with the prior art, the application provides an economical and feasible differential pressure casting process and equipment improvement measure. The beneficial effects of the application and the preferred embodiments thereof at least include:

(1) The combined die can meet the requirement of large-scale core-pulling modeling of the side surface in differential pressure casting, and each die unit (comprising the lateral core-pulling mechanisms respectively) is opposite to each other in pairs, so that the stress balance of the whole combined die can be ensured during die assembly and butt joint and die opening and core pulling, and the running stability and the running accuracy of equipment are ensured, thereby improving and stabilizing the manufacturing process and the product quality;

(2) According to the design of the invention, the differential pressure casting mold integrated with the mechanical side large core-pulling sliding friction structure is realized, the core-pulling structure or mechanism is completely contained in the sealing cover of the differential pressure casting machine, the core-pulling action is not influenced by the oil leakage of an oil seal device under the high-temperature environment in the sealing cover, and the stroke of mechanical core-pulling can not interfere with peripheral equipment accessories;

(3) According to the design of the invention, a special differential pressure casting die for aluminum alloy steering knuckles is provided, and particularly, the special steering knuckle modeling (such as steering knuckle products adopting lateral material removal and weight reduction design) which is difficult to design by a conventional process die opening means during casting is aimed at, the purpose of eliminating the internal quality defects of the products is achieved through core pulling design, and the large-structure side die cores and the large-stroke lateral core pulling are beneficial to improving the problem of shrinkage porosity in differential pressure castings.

The features and advantages of the modular mold for a differential pressure casting machine provided according to the first aspect of the invention are equally applicable to the differential pressure casting machine provided according to the second aspect of the invention and to the differential pressure casting machine application provided according to the third aspect of the invention.

Drawings

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments and figures disclosed herein are to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. It is further noted that, for clarity of illustration, some of the details of construction in the drawings are not drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 is an example of a die cast aluminum alloy knuckle molding requiring a side draw design.

Fig. 2 is a general assembly structure of a combined mold for a differential casting machine, which is integrated with a mechanical side core pulling mechanism, shown in a sectional view.

Fig. 3 is a general assembly structure of a combined mold for a differential casting machine, shown in a top view, with the upper mold frame assembly omitted, showing four mold units in a two-by-two right-and-left layout, with the right and left members being in a pair, and two pairs.

Fig. 4 is an assembly view of the lower mold frame assembly shown in a top view.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the lower die carrier assembly.

Fig. 6 is an assembly view of the upper mold frame assembly shown in a side view.

Fig. 7 is a top view of the upper mold frame assembly.

Fig. 8, 9 and 10 are the left one of the pair of mold units, fig. 8 showing the left core assembly in cross-section, fig. 9 showing the left core assembly in front view, and fig. 10 showing the left core assembly in top view.

Fig. 11, 12 and 13 are the right-hand one of the pair of mold units, fig. 11 showing the right core assembly in cross-section, fig. 12 showing the right core assembly in front view, and fig. 13 showing the right core assembly in top view.

Detailed Description

The following description is presented to illustrate the invention and to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. The preferred embodiments in the following description are by way of example only and other obvious variations will occur to those skilled in the art. The basic principles of the invention defined in the following description may be applied to other embodiments, variations, modifications, equivalents, and other technical solutions without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It should also be noted that the features, structures, or characteristics described in connection with a particular embodiment are not necessarily limited to that particular embodiment, nor are they intended to be mutually exclusive with other embodiments, and that it is within the ability of one skilled in the art to implement different combinations of the features of the different embodiments.

In this application, the terms "first," "second," "third," and the like in the description and in the claims are used for distinguishing between different objects and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. Also, the terms "comprising," "including," and "having," as well as any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or elements is not limited to only those listed but may optionally further include steps or elements not listed or may optionally further include other steps or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. In the description of the present application, certain terms indicating orientation or positional relationship are based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings and do not imply that the corresponding devices or elements must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operate in a particular orientation, and therefore should not be construed as limiting the application. In addition, the terms "a" or "an" should be understood as "at least one" or "one or more", i.e., in a certain embodiment, the number of a certain element may be one, and in another embodiment, the number of the element may be plural, that is, the term "a" should not be construed as limiting the number.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art and are to be specifically interpreted according to their context in the context of the related art description.

The invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings in connection with embodiments.

FIG. 1 is an example of a die cast aluminum alloy knuckle molding requiring a side draw design. Although an aluminum alloy knuckle is described as an example, the technical solution and application of the present invention are not limited thereto.

The invention aims to provide a combined die capable of meeting the requirement of large-scale core pulling modeling of a side surface in differential pressure casting.

Specifically, the present invention provides a combination mold for a differential pressure casting machine, as shown in fig. 2 and 3, comprising: an upper die carrier assembly (see fig. 6 and 7), a lower die carrier assembly (see fig. 4 and 5) and an even number of die units (see fig. 8, 9, 10 and 11, 12, 13); the die units are opposite to each other in pairs and respectively comprise an upper die core, a lower die core and a side die core; the lower die core is fixed on the lower die frame component; the upper die core is connected with the upper die frame assembly and can reciprocate up and down relative to the lower die frame assembly along with the upper die frame assembly so as to execute die assembly or die opening of the combined die; in the die assembly state, the upper die core, the lower die core and the side die core form a die cavity for forming a blank casting; the side mold core is provided with a guiding and connecting device, so that the side mold core can move upwards relative to the lower mold core together with the upper mold core and the blank casting during mold opening, and the side mold core can simultaneously move outwards relative to the upper mold core until lateral core pulling is completed.

According to the invention, on one hand, because each mould unit (which respectively comprises the lateral core pulling mechanisms) is opposite to each other, the stress balance of the whole combined mould and the stable movement of the movable part can be ensured when the mould is closed and butted and the mould is opened and pulled, the shaking of the equipment caused by eccentric unbalanced load can be avoided, and the running stability and the running accuracy of the equipment are ensured. On the other hand, the guide and connecting device arranged on the side mold core can enable the side core pulling action to be executed and completed along with the mold opening movement without separate side core pulling operation, so that efficient and reasonable matching in the process can be achieved, and meanwhile, the simplification and integration of the whole equipment can be realized.

Furthermore, it is worth noting that according to the present invention, since the guiding and connecting device configured by the side mold core replaces the previous oblique guide pillar slider core pulling mechanism or oblique ejector pin lateral core pulling mechanism designed separately according to the prior art, it is allowed to realize large-sized side mold core molding of the differential pressure casting machine (without being limited to the previous side core structure with a pin-shaped or columnar smaller cross section), and the side mold core itself can form the (larger) side surface of the mold cavity and can integrally perform core pulling movement so as to adapt to the manufacturing process requirements of the casting. The specific embodiments of the guide and connection device will be described in detail below.

Conveniently, the combined die adopts a layout mode of one die with four cavities and four quadrants, and comprises four die units which are arranged in a circumferentially uniformly distributed mode, wherein the die units are arranged in pairs from left to right, and the left die units and the right die units are respectively in a pair, wherein the die units are configured with the same technological parameters and the same control conditions and are used for manufacturing the same blank castings. For the combined mold with the horizontal and vertical layout of the four quadrants of the four cavities of the one mold, the cooling water path can be divided into an upper part and a lower part, and the upper cooling water path and the lower cooling water path are jointly used for cooling control of the mold core of the four cavities of the one mold.

The four die units are distributed uniformly in a circumference mode, are arranged in a left-right mode, and are respectively in a pair. The symmetrical layout is beneficial in that the temperature field of the whole die can be ensured to be in an equilibrium temperature field state, and meanwhile, the same control is implemented at the same position by adopting the same process parameters. Therefore, the technical process control of each cavity mold core is controlled by the same external boundary environment condition and the same technical parameter, and the requirements on the internal quality and the appearance identity of the same casting can be met to the greatest extent.

Advantageously, the guiding and connecting means consist of mechanical structural parts. In this way, according to the invention, the lateral core-pulling mechanism is designed to be of a purely mechanical structure, and a core-pulling power device such as an oil cylinder or an air cylinder working on the basis of hydraulic oil or compressed air does not need to be additionally arranged, and particularly, the guiding and connecting device does not depend on hydraulic or pneumatic media to realize operation or transmission, so that under the high-temperature environment in the sealing cover of the differential pressure casting machine, the core-pulling action is not influenced by oil leakage of an oil sealing device, and the stroke of mechanical core pulling cannot interfere with peripheral equipment accessories.

In this regard, more specifically, the support frame is fixed to the lower mold frame assembly, the guiding and connecting device includes a key-groove matching mechanism provided between the side mold core and the support frame, and a guide rail mechanism provided between the side mold core and the upper mold core, and when the mold is opened or closed, the side mold core can be guided to move obliquely upward or downward relative to the lower mold core by the key-groove matching mechanism, and the side mold core can be synchronously guided to move outwards or inwards along the horizontal direction relative to the upper mold core by the guide rail mechanism. The key-slot mating mechanism may include a guide slot formed in an outer side of the side core and a guide key formed in an inner side of the support frame. The rail mechanism may include a middle rail formed on top of the side cores and side rails formed on the upper cores and located on both sides of the middle rail.

Through such structural design, especially based on this kind of concrete implementation mode of direction and connecting device, the design of former complicated oblique guide pillar slider mechanism of loosing core or oblique ejector pin side direction mechanism of loosing core is abandoned, but with direction and connecting device integrated on die carrier subassembly and mold core body completely, form a compact structure's side direction mechanism of loosing core, can be under the interior space condition that the sealed cover of differential pressure casting machine limited, reasonable, effectively dispose side direction mechanism's arrangement space and motion stroke, realize the side mould core design of the large-scale structure of differential pressure casting machine and the side direction operation of loosing core of its great stroke, satisfy the manufacturing process demand of foundry goods (such as certain knuckle products) well, this is the unable realization of former differential pressure casting mould structure.

Suitably, the side cores are provided with limiting plates for limiting the lateral core-pulling travel thereof during die opening.

The side cores are expediently provided with wedge plates for guiding them to a set position during clamping.

According to some embodiments, the lower die carrier assembly comprises a die carrier bottom plate and lower water splitters distributed in the peripheral area of the die carrier bottom plate, the lower die cores of the die units can be locked and fixed on the die carrier bottom plate through shaft shoulder screws, and the lower water splitters are correspondingly configured on the die units one by one and are used for cooling control of each die cavity.

In this regard, further, holes suitable for installing liquid lifting pipes may be distributed on the mold base plate, where the liquid lifting pipes are configured in each mold unit in a one-to-one correspondence manner, and are used for supplying casting liquid to each mold cavity.

Suitably, the formwork base plate may be provided with at least one detachable transportation column. The transportation column generally plays a role in supporting and fixing only in the transportation process, so that the overall stability of the die is ensured, and the problems of collision, deformation and the like of parts cannot be caused in the transportation process. In the normal casting process, the transport column can be disassembled from the die carrier bottom plate.

According to some embodiments, the upper die frame assembly comprises a die frame upper plate and upper water splitters distributed in the peripheral area of the die frame upper plate, the upper die cores of the die units can be fixedly connected to the die frame upper plate through long screws and positioning pins, and the upper water splitters are correspondingly configured in each die unit one by one and are used for carrying out cooling control on each die cavity.

In this regard, further, an ejector operating mechanism and an ejector plate for ejecting the blank casting downward when the mold is opened may be installed on the mold frame upper plate. The ejector mechanism and the ejector plate are provided with a reset spring, and the reset spring is used for driving the ejector mechanism and the ejector plate to return upwards after the ejection action is completed.

Conveniently, the lower die carrier assembly is fixedly provided with at least one stop post, the upper die carrier assembly is fixedly provided with at least one return post, and the return post contacts the top end of the stop post during die assembly. At this time, the whole ejection system (including the ejection operating mechanism and the ejector plate) is retracted.

The invention also provides a differential pressure casting machine, which comprises the combined die.

Accordingly, the present invention provides the use of a differential pressure casting machine as described above for manufacturing an aluminium alloy steering knuckle of an automobile. The mechanical lateral core-pulling structure is applied to an aluminum alloy steering knuckle differential pressure casting die, and particularly, the purpose of eliminating internal quality defects of products is achieved through core-pulling design aiming at certain special steering knuckle modeling which is difficult to design through a conventional process die opening means during casting.

The structure and composition of each part of the combined die of the invention (including the upper die frame assembly, the lower die frame assembly, the die unit and the guide and connection device configured by the integrated side core pulling mechanism/side die core) will be described in more detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, and the technical scheme of the invention will be described in further detail by taking the differential pressure casting process of the automobile aluminum alloy steering knuckle as an example.

Fig. 2 is a general assembly structure of a combined mold for a differential casting machine, which is integrated with a mechanical side core pulling mechanism, shown in a sectional view. Fig. 3 is a general assembly structure of a combined mold for a differential casting machine, shown in a top view, with the upper mold frame assembly omitted, showing four mold units in a two-by-two right-and-left layout, with the right and left members being in a pair, and two pairs.

The combined die mainly comprises four parts, namely: a left core assembly 1 (i.e. the one of the pair of mold units located on the left in fig. 3), an upper mold frame assembly 2, a lower mold frame assembly 3, and a right core assembly 4 (i.e. the one of the pair of mold units located on the right in fig. 3).

The lower die carrier component 3 is fixedly arranged on the upper part of the movable table of the differential pressure casting machine through a screw and a locating pin and is kept motionless. The left mold core component 1 and the right mold core component 4 are respectively and independently fixed on the lower mold frame component 3 through shaft shoulder screws. The left and right core assemblies 1 and 4 each include upper and lower cores and side cores. The lower mold core is fixed on the lower mold frame assembly and also kept fixed; the upper mould core is fixedly connected to the upper mould frame assembly 2. The upper die carrier component can reciprocate up and down together, so that the purpose of opening and closing the die is achieved.

As is clear from fig. 3, the layout of the die units is in a circumferentially uniform distribution, and is a two-by-two left-right layout, and the left and right pieces are in a pair. The symmetrical layout has the advantages that the temperature field of the whole die can be ensured to be in an equilibrium temperature field state, and meanwhile, the same control is implemented at the same position by adopting the same technological parameters, so that the technological process control of each cavity die core is under the control of the same external boundary environment condition and the same technological parameters, and the same internal quality and appearance identity requirements of castings are met to the greatest extent. Meanwhile, the horizontal and vertical uniformly distributed four-way layout can ensure that the movable part of the die moves stably when the die is opened and the core is pulled, so that the equipment cannot shake due to eccentric unbalanced load, and the running stability and the running accuracy of the equipment are ensured.

Fig. 4 is an assembly view of the lower mold frame assembly shown in a top view. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the lower die carrier assembly.

As shown in fig. 4, the lower mold frame assembly mainly includes: the lower water knockout drum 5, the transportation post 6, die carrier bottom plate 7, the end position post 8, transportation post lower extreme board 9. From fig. 4 it is clear that four lower water splitters 5 are located at 45 degrees four corners, respectively. The lower water separator 5 is connected with the water-cooling joint on the corresponding lower mold core through a water pipe. Each lower water separator 5 has 6 waterways, and a total of 24 waterways for cooling and controlling each mold cavity. This means that a maximum of 6 cooling water circuits can be used per cavity of the lower mould core. Four hole sites are distributed on the die carrier bottom plate 7 along the circular trend, and the hole sites correspond to the installation positions of the lift tubes. Each mold cavity adopts a liquid lifting pipe to independently supply liquid, so that the filling of each mold cavity is independent and cannot interfere with each other. The function of the stop posts 8 is that when the mold is closed, the return posts in the upper mold frame assembly contact the top ends of the stop posts 8, and at this time, the entire ejection system is retracted. In the process of the mold opening and closing movement, the lower mold frame assembly is always in a fixed state.

The transportation column 6 only plays roles in supporting and fixing in the transportation process, ensures the overall stability of the die, and can not generate problems of collision, deformation and the like of parts in the transportation process. In the normal casting process, the transport column 6 can be disassembled and not used.

Fig. 6 is an assembly view of the upper mold frame assembly shown in a side view. Fig. 7 is a top view of the upper mold frame assembly. The table in fig. 6 shows: the lifting lug 10, the upper water distributor 11, the return post 12, the ejection system/ejection operating mechanism 13, the cylindrical heightening 14, the return spring 15, the die carrier upper plate 16 and the ejection plate 17. The table in fig. 7 shows: the ejector limiter 18, the positioning block 19 and the positioning clamping plate 20 on the transport column.

In the upper die carrier assembly, six upper water separators 11 are designed, each upper water separator is provided with 10 groups of water paths, 60 groups of water paths are total, each 45-degree inclined four corner part is provided with one water separator, the water separators respectively correspond to the positions of the lower water separators of the lower die carrier assembly, and each horizontal water separator is provided with one group of water separators. That is, in the process of designing the mold, at most 60 waterways can be designed for the upper mold core, and at least 10 waterways can be distributed for each mold core. The two ends of each water separator are provided with long screws, and the long screws penetrate through the bottom of the water separator to the upper part and are fixedly connected with the upper plate of the differential pressure casting machine, so that the differential pressure casting machine can drive the upper die frame assembly to lift up together when the differential pressure casting machine is opened, and the purpose of opening the die is achieved. During ejection, an ejection ring of an ejection system (for example, designed to be actuated and operated in a hydraulic mode) of the differential pressure casting machine is firstly contacted with a round lifting 14 at the upper part of an ejection plate, the round lifting 14 at the upper part of the ejection plate is locked on a round ejection plate 17 through long screws, so that the ejection plate 17 moves downwards, and the ejection plate 17 is fixedly connected with an ejection operating mechanism 13, so that an ejector rod is driven to move downwards, and casting ejection is realized. After the ejection action is finished, the return spring 15 is in a compressed state, and after the hydraulic ejection system of the differential pressure casting machine returns, the return spring 15 also rebounds, so that the ejection operating mechanism 13 and the ejection plate 17 are driven to return upwards together.

Fig. 8, 9 and 10 are the left one of the pair of mold units, fig. 8 showing the left core assembly in cross-section, fig. 9 showing the left core assembly in front view, and fig. 10 showing the left core assembly in top view.

For the left core assembly, fig. 8, 9 and 10 show: the upper left mold core heightening 21, the upper left mold core 22, the left water-cooling joint 23, the left lock nut 24, the left lower mold core 25, the left split cone 26, (left) side mold cores 27, the middle guide rail 28, the limiting plate 29, the wedging plate 30, the left lower water-cooling disc 31, the left vent plug 32 and the left blank casting 33. Upper left rail 34, upper right rail 35, right core support 36, left core support 37. The left core assembly includes a left lower core 25, a left upper core 22, and a side core 27 that together form a mold cavity in a closed state for forming a left blank casting 33. The left lower mold core 25 is locked on the bottom plate of the mold frame through a shaft shoulder screw, and the upper part of the left upper mold core 22 and the left upper mold core heightening 21 are fixedly connected with the upper plate of the mold frame through long screws and positioning pins. The left split cone 26 is locked to the left upper core 22 by the left lock nut 24. The left water-cooling joint 23 is locked on the left upper mold core 22 and the left lower mold core 25 through a conical screw connection and is communicated with a water channel to execute cooling control. The left lower water cooling disc 31 is fixed below the left lower mold core 25 by screws.

The top of the side mold core 27 is provided with a middle guide rail 28, and a left upper guide rail 34 and a right upper guide rail 35 are used for being matched with the middle guide rail to play a role in horizontally and stably guiding the side mold core 27 during mold opening and closing. The side mold core 27 is provided with a left side mold core supporting frame 37 and a right side mold core supporting frame 36 at both sides. The outer side surface of the side mold core 27 is designed with a guide groove, and inclined long guide keys are arranged or formed on the inner side surfaces of the right side mold core supporting frame 36 and the left side mold core supporting frame 37 and are used for being matched with the guide groove to play a role in guiding the side mold core 27 obliquely upwards or obliquely downwards when the mold is opened and closed.

When the die is opened, the left upper die core 22 and the side die core 27 are fixedly connected through the guide rail, and the left upper die core 22 and the side die core 27 move upwards together with the left blank casting, so that the left blank casting is separated from the left lower die core 25. The left side die core supporting frame 37 and the right side die core supporting frame 36 are fixedly locked on the die carrier bottom plate through long bolts and are fixed. The long and oblique guide key is mounted or formed on the inner side walls of the left side core holder 37 and the right side core holder 36 so that the long and oblique guide key is also fixed. During the mold opening action, the side mold cores 27 are guided by the inclined long guide keys to move outwards along the horizontal direction and upwards along the vertical direction, so that the side mold cores 27 are mechanically opened. After the side cores 27 have moved outwards for a certain distance, stopping is required to reach the core-pulling stroke, for which purpose a limiting plate 29 is designed for limiting the further outwards movement of the side cores 27 so that they can be stopped at the specified limit stroke position.

During die assembly, the guide grooves of the side die cores 27 firstly contact with the upper end heads of the inclined long guide keys arranged or formed on the left die core supporting frame 37 and the right die core supporting frame 36, and are guided to move inwards along the horizontal direction and downwards along the vertical direction, so that the side die cores execute die assembly action. When the side mold cores 27 are assembled in place, a wedging plate 30 is designed below the side mold cores 27 to ensure accurate assembly, and the wedging guide action of the wedging plate 30 enables the side mold cores 27 to move to a designated assembly position.

Fig. 11, 12 and 13 are the right-hand one of the pair of mold units, fig. 11 showing the right core assembly in cross-section, fig. 12 showing the right core assembly in front view, and fig. 13 showing the right core assembly in top view.

For the right core assembly, fig. 11, 12 and 13 show: the upper right mold core heightening 38, the upper right mold core 39, the right water-cooled joint 40, the right lock nut 41, the lower right mold core 42, the right split cone 43, (right) side mold cores 44, the middle guide rail 45, the limiting plate 46, the wedging plate 47, the lower right water-cooled disk 48, the right vent plug 49 and the right blank casting 50. Upper right rail 51, upper left rail 52, left core support 53, right core support 54.

The right core assembly includes a right lower core 42, a right upper core 39, and a side core 44 that together form a mold cavity for forming a right blank casting 50 in a closed state. The right lower mold core 42 is locked on the mold frame bottom plate through a shaft shoulder screw. The upper part of the right upper mold core 39 and the right upper mold core heightening 38 are fixedly connected with the upper plate of the mold frame through long screws and positioning pins. The right split cone 43 is locked to the right upper core 39 by the right lock nut 41. The right water-cooled joint 40 is locked to the right upper mold core 39 and the right lower mold core 42 by means of a taper screw connection, and communicates with a waterway to perform cooling control. The right lower water-cooled disc 48 is fixed below the right lower mold core 42 by screws.

The top of the side mold core 44 is provided with a middle guide rail 45, and a left upper guide rail 52 and a right upper guide rail 51 are used for being matched with the middle guide rail to play a role in horizontally and stably guiding the side mold core 44 when the mold is opened and closed. The side mold core 44 is provided with a left side mold core supporting frame 53 and a right side mold core supporting frame 54 respectively. The outer side surface of the side mold core 44 is designed with a guide groove, and inclined long guide keys are arranged or formed on the inner side surfaces of the left side mold core supporting frame 53 and the right side mold core supporting frame 54, so as to cooperate with the guide groove to play a role in guiding the side mold core 44 obliquely upwards or obliquely downwards during mold opening and closing.

When the die is opened, the right upper die core 39 and the side die core 44 are fixedly connected through the guide rail, and the right upper die core 39 and the side die core 44 move upwards together with the right blank casting, so that the right blank casting is separated from the right lower die core 42. The left side die core supporting frame 53 and the right side die core supporting frame 54 are fixedly locked on the die carrier bottom plate through long bolts and are fixed. The long and oblique guide key is installed or formed on the inner side walls of the left side core support 53 and the right side core support 54, so that the long and oblique guide key is also fixed. During the mold opening action, the side mold cores 44 are guided by the inclined long guide keys to move outwards in the horizontal direction and upwards in the vertical direction, so that the side mold cores 44 are mechanically opened. After the side cores 44 are moved outwardly a certain distance, stopping is required to achieve the core-pulling stroke, and for this purpose, a limiting plate 46 is provided for limiting the further outward movement of the side cores 44 so that they can be stopped at the prescribed limit stroke position.

During die assembly, the guide grooves of the side die cores 44 are firstly contacted with the upper end heads of the inclined guide keys arranged or formed on the left die core supporting frame 53 and the right die core supporting frame 54, and are guided to move inwards along the horizontal direction and downwards along the vertical direction, so that the side die cores execute die assembly action. When the side mold core 44 is about to be clamped in place, a wedging plate 47 is designed below the side mold core 44 to ensure accurate clamping, and the wedging guide action of the wedging plate 47 enables the side mold core 44 to move to a specified clamping position.

Therefore, a mechanical lateral core pulling mechanism integrated on the die frame component and the die core body of the differential pressure casting die is formed, and the lateral die core design of a large structure and the lateral core pulling operation with a large stroke can be realized. The mold closing movement process and the mold opening movement process of the mold are combined, and are generally described as follows:

As described above, the lower die carrier assembly 3 is fixedly mounted on the upper part of the movable platen of the differential pressure casting machine by the screws and the locating pins, and is kept still. The left mold core component 1 and the right mold core component 4 are respectively and independently fixed on the lower mold frame component 3 through shaft shoulder screws. The left and right core assemblies 1 and 4 each include an upper core, a lower core, and a side core that together form a mold cavity (one each) for molding a blank casting. The lower mold core is fixed on the lower mold frame assembly and also kept fixed; the upper die core is fixedly connected to the upper die frame assembly 2, and can realize up-and-down reciprocating motion along with the upper die frame assembly, so that the purpose of opening and closing the die is achieved. The following is a description of the design structure of the mechanical side-draw mechanism in the above preferred embodiment of the present invention, taking the left core assembly as an example, and explaining the function and operation mode thereof in combination with the mold opening and closing movement process, and it is apparent that the right core assembly is completely similar thereto.

The design structure of the mechanical lateral core-pulling mechanism comprises: the top of the side mold core 27 is provided with a middle guide rail 28, and a left upper guide rail 34 and a right upper guide rail 35 are used for being matched with the middle guide rail to play a role in horizontally and stably guiding the side mold core 27 during mold opening and closing. The side mold core 27 is provided with a left side mold core supporting frame 37 and a right side mold core supporting frame 36 at both sides. The outer side surface of the side mold core 27 is designed with a guide groove, and inclined long guide keys are arranged or formed on the inner side surfaces of the right side mold core supporting frame 36 and the left side mold core supporting frame 37 and are used for being matched with the guide groove to play a role in guiding the side mold core 27 obliquely upwards or obliquely downwards when the mold is opened and closed.

And (3) a mold opening movement process: when the die is opened, the left upper die core 22 and the side die core 27 are fixedly connected through the guide rail, and the left upper die core 22 and the side die core 27 move upwards together with the left blank casting, so that the left blank casting is separated from the left lower die core 25. The left side die core supporting frame 37 and the right side die core supporting frame 36 are fixedly locked on the die carrier bottom plate through long bolts and are fixed. The long and oblique guide key is mounted or formed on the inner side walls of the left side core holder 37 and the right side core holder 36 so that the long and oblique guide key is also fixed. During the mold opening action, the side mold cores 27 are guided by the inclined long guide keys to move outwards along the horizontal direction and upwards along the vertical direction, so that the side mold cores 27 are mechanically opened. After the side cores 27 have moved outwards for a certain distance, stopping is required to reach the core-pulling stroke, for which purpose a limiting plate 29 is designed for limiting the further outwards movement of the side cores 27 so that they can be stopped at the specified limit stroke position.

And (3) a mold closing movement process: during die assembly, the guide grooves of the side die cores 27 firstly contact with the upper end heads of the inclined long guide keys arranged or formed on the left die core supporting frame 37 and the right die core supporting frame 36, and are guided to move inwards along the horizontal direction and downwards along the vertical direction, so that the side die cores execute die assembly action. When the side mold cores 27 are assembled in place, a wedging plate 30 is designed below the side mold cores 27 to ensure accurate assembly, and the wedging guide action of the wedging plate 30 enables the side mold cores 27 to move to a designated assembly position.

It is noted that in the description of the present application, certain terms such as "longitudinal", "transverse", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., are indicated in terms of orientation or positional relationship based on that shown in the drawings, which are merely for convenience of description and simplification of the description, and do not mean that the corresponding apparatus or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and thus the above terms should not be construed as limiting the present application. In particular, in the foregoing paragraphs and/or in some embodiments, the description of the units, assemblies, components and parts as left and right is made only for the purpose of describing the mold units (for example, four mold units in a two-to-one-to-two-in-one arrangement, two-to-one in each case), and the structure, function and operation of each mold unit are not different in the sense of the present application, and the mold units can be operated synchronously while undoubtedly, with reference to the drawings, for example, the plural mold units of the combined mold of the present application are corresponding to the "left mold core assembly" or the "right mold core assembly", and the upper mold core/lower mold core/side mold core are corresponding to the "upper left mold core"/"lower left mold core"/"(left) or the" upper right mold core "/" (right side mold core "), and so forth.

The above description is only illustrative of the preferred embodiments of the present application and of the principles of the technology employed. It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the scope of the application referred to in the present application is not limited to the specific combinations of the technical features described above, but also covers other technical features formed by any combination of the technical features described above or their equivalents without departing from the inventive concept. Such as the above-mentioned features and the technical features disclosed in the present application (but not limited to) having similar functions are replaced with each other.

Claims (16)

1. A modular mold for a differential casting machine, the modular mold comprising:

An upper die carrier assembly is arranged on the upper die carrier,

A lower die frame assembly, and

An even number of die units;

The die units are opposite to each other in pairs and respectively comprise an upper die core, a lower die core and a side die core; the lower die core is fixed on the lower die frame component; the upper die core is connected with the upper die frame assembly and can reciprocate up and down relative to the lower die frame assembly along with the upper die frame assembly so as to execute die assembly or die opening of the combined die;

In the die assembly state, the upper die core, the lower die core and the side die core form a die cavity for forming a blank casting; the side mold core is provided with a guiding and connecting device, so that the side mold core can move upwards relative to the lower mold core together with the upper mold core and the blank casting during mold opening, and the side mold core can simultaneously move outwards relative to the upper mold core until lateral core pulling is completed.

2. The combined die as claimed in claim 1, wherein the combined die adopts a four-cavity four-quadrant layout mode and comprises four die units which are arranged in a circumferentially uniformly distributed mode, the die units are arranged in pairs from left to right, and the left and right die units are respectively in a pair, wherein each die unit is provided with the same technological parameters and the same control conditions for manufacturing the same blank castings.

3. A modular die as claimed in claim 1 wherein the guide and connection means is comprised of mechanical structural components.

4. A combination mold according to claim 3, wherein the lower die frame assembly is fixed with a supporting frame, the guiding and connecting device comprises a key-groove matching mechanism arranged between the side die core and the supporting frame and a guide rail mechanism arranged between the side die core and the upper die core, when the mold is opened or closed, the side die core can be guided to move obliquely upwards or downwards relative to the lower die core through the key-groove matching mechanism, and the side die core can be synchronously guided to move outwards or inwards along the horizontal direction relative to the upper die core through the guide rail mechanism.

5. The modular mold of claim 4 wherein the key-slot mating mechanism comprises a guide slot formed in the outer side of the side core and a guide key formed in the inner side of the support frame.

6. The modular mold of claim 4 wherein the rail mechanism comprises a center rail formed on top of the side cores and side rails formed on the upper cores on either side of the center rail.

7. The combination mold according to claim 1, wherein the side cores are provided with stopper plates for limiting a lateral core-pulling stroke thereof at the time of mold opening.

8. A modular mold according to claim 1, wherein the side cores are provided with wedge plates for guiding them to a set position when closing the mold.

9. The combination mold according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the lower mold frame assembly comprises a mold frame base plate and lower water splitters distributed at a peripheral area of the mold frame base plate, the lower mold cores of the mold units can be locked and fixed on the mold frame base plate through shoulder screws, and the lower water splitters are arranged in each mold unit in a one-to-one correspondence manner and are used for performing cooling control on each mold cavity.

10. The combined die set according to claim 9, wherein holes for installing liquid lifting pipes are distributed on the die set base plate, and the liquid lifting pipes are arranged on each die unit in a one-to-one correspondence manner and are used for supplying casting liquid to each die cavity.

11. The combination mold according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the upper mold frame assembly comprises a mold frame upper plate and upper water splitters distributed at a peripheral area of the mold frame upper plate, the upper mold cores of the mold units can be fixedly connected to the mold frame upper plate through long screws and positioning pins, and the upper water splitters are configured in each mold unit in a one-to-one correspondence manner for performing cooling control on each mold cavity.

12. The modular mold of claim 11, wherein the upper plate of the frame is provided with an ejector operating mechanism and an ejector plate for ejecting the blank casting downward during mold opening.

13. The modular mold of claim 12, wherein the ejector mechanism and ejector plate are provided with a return spring for driving the ejector mechanism and ejector plate back up after the ejector action is completed.

14. The combination mold according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the lower mold frame assembly is fixedly provided with at least one stopper post, and the upper mold frame assembly is fixedly provided with at least one return post, the return post contacting a top end of the stopper post when the mold is closed.

15. A differential pressure casting machine, characterized in that it comprises a modular mould according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

16. The use of a differential pressure casting machine as claimed in claim 15 for manufacturing an aluminum alloy knuckle of an automobile.