JP4359826B2 - Metal material forming equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a metal material forming apparatus for injecting a metal material into a casting mold.

As shown in FIG. 5, a molding apparatus for casting a metal material 102 melted in a melting furnace 101 into a cavity 104a of a casting mold 104 by using a shear 103 is conventionally known (for example, Patent Document 1). reference). In this conventional molding apparatus, a sand mold that is easy to manufacture and low in production cost can be used. On the other hand, it is necessary to pour the metal material 102 into the casting mold 104 with a shank 103, and the workability is poor. Since the amount of the metal material 102 poured into the casting mold 104 varies, the excess metallic material 102 may overflow from the casting mold 104. In particular, when the metal material 102 used for forming is a combustible material such as magnesium, a flameproof gas 105 such as SF6 having a greenhouse effect must be introduced into the melting furnace 101 to prevent ignition, It included environmental issues.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-77278 (FIG. 1)

  The present invention has been completed on the basis of the above circumstances, and a metal material forming apparatus that does not vary in the amount of metal material injected into a casting mold, has good forming workability, and is good for the environment. The purpose is to provide.

As means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is melted by charging a predetermined amount of metal material according to the injection amount into a cylinder in which a piston is disposed. After that, an injection molding machine that injects the molten metal material at a high pressure by moving the piston forward, and the metal material injected from the injection molding machine is transported and held in the space inside thereof, and provided at the lower end portion A holding part for dropping the molten metal material through the drain hole and flowing into the casting mold disposed below, the injection molding machine from a temperature at which the metal material in the cylinder is completely melted The piston is formed with a screw on its outer periphery, and the metal material in the cylinder is rotated to stir the metal material in a semi-molten state. A fixed member provided with the injection molding machine, and a movable member configured to be movable in an approaching or separating direction with respect to the fixed member. The fixing member includes an injection path for guiding the metal material injected from the injection molding machine to the holding unit side, and a first heating unit is provided in the middle of the injection path. In the course of the path, the temperature is set to a temperature at which the metal material can be maintained in a semi-molten state, and a second heating unit is provided in the vicinity of the exit of the injection path. At the time of non-injection in which the material is not injected to the holding part side, the metal material is set to a temperature lower than the temperature at which the metal material can be maintained in a semi-molten state, and at the time of injection to inject the metal material to the holding part side, the metal material of The temperature is set to a temperature at which the outer peripheral portion can be melted, and the movable member is slidably provided with respect to the movable member, and is extruded to be able to protrude toward the fixed member side. A pin is provided, and the extrusion pin has a crank-shaped tip portion, and the tip portion can attach a solidified material of the metal material ejected from the outlet of the injection path during the injection. The metal material forming apparatus is characterized in that when the movable member is separated from the fixed member, the solidified material adhering to the tip of the extrusion pin is collected .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, at the time of non-injection, a metal coagulation plug formed by solidifying the metal material is formed in the vicinity of the outlet of the injection path, and the metal coagulation plug seals the outlet. The metal material forming apparatus according to claim 1 is characterized.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the metal material forming apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein the metal material is magnesium.

  The invention of claim 4 includes a casting mold moving mechanism for moving the casting mold in a horizontal direction, and the casting mold moving mechanism includes a plurality of the casting molds arranged side by side, each time the injection molding machine injects a metal material. The metal material forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the metal material forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the metal material forming apparatus is sequentially replaced one by one below the holding portion.

<Invention of Claim 1>
By providing an injection molding machine that injects a semi-molten metal material at a high pressure by moving the piston forward, the metal material injected into the casting mold can be accurately measured by accurately managing the stroke of the piston. No metal material overflows from the casting mold. In addition, the workability of the injection is good without the need for shears. Furthermore, by providing a holding part that holds the metal material injected from the injection molding machine, the holding part becomes a cushion, and the casting mold does not directly receive the high-pressure metal material at the time of injection, A sand mold that is easy to manufacture can be used as the casting mold, and the casting cost can be reduced. In addition, the piston is heated at a temperature lower than the temperature at which the metal material in the cylinder is completely melted, and the screw formed on the outer periphery rotates to stir the metal material in the cylinder and inject it in a semi-molten state. By doing so, the temperature difference before and after the metal material injected into the casting mold is solidified can be reduced, so that the occurrence of sink marks in the molded product is reduced.

<Invention of Claim 2>
The metal coagulation plug enables the outlet to be sealed.

<Invention of Claim 3>
Even if magnesium is used as the metal material, the amount of the metal material put into the cylinder is limited, so that it is not necessary to use a fireproof gas having a greenhouse effect, which is good for the environment.

<Invention of Claim 4>
Since the casting mold is moved in the horizontal direction, each time the injection molding machine injects the metal material, a casting mold moving mechanism is provided in which a plurality of casting molds are sequentially placed below the holding portion. The molding workability is good and the molding tact time can be shortened.

  An embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, the left side is the front. In FIG. 1, a metal material forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs a forming process using magnesium as a material, and includes an injection molding machine 10, a holding unit 30, a casting mold 40, and a moving device 50. The moving device 50 includes a tie bar 51 provided as a top and bottom structure member, a fixed platen 52 fixed to the rear end of the tie bar 51 (the right end in FIG. 1), and a fixed platen 52 in front of the fixed platen 52. The movable platen 53 is provided so as to be movable in the front-rear direction on the tie bar 51 by a platen moving device (not shown).

  An injection molding machine 10 that performs so-called thixo molding that injects a metal material that is in a semi-molten state includes a cylinder body 11 that is mounted so as to face a recessed mounting portion 52a formed on the side surface of the stationary platen 52. A fixed hot water supply die 16 fixed via a support plate 54 is provided on the side surface of the fixed side platen 52 opposite to the side on which the cylinder body 11 is attached. The cylinder body 11 has a cylinder 11a formed therein, a piston 12 movable in the front-rear direction is disposed in the cylinder 11a, and a melting chamber 11b is formed between the front end of the cylinder body 11 and the cylinder 11a. ing.

  A screw (spiral groove) 12 a is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the piston 12, and the piston 12 is connected to a piston drive device (not shown). It can be rotated within 11a. A hopper 13 for inserting magnesium chips is erected on the rear upper end of the cylinder body 11, and the inside of the hopper 13 communicates with the cylinder 11 a through a supply hole 11 c formed in the cylinder body 11. . An injection port 14 is fixed to the tip of the cylinder body 11, and the tip of the injection port 14 is in contact with the support plate 54.

  Inside the cylinder body 11, the injection port 14, the support plate 54, and the fixed hot water supply mold 16, there is formed an injection path IR that communicates with and penetrates between the cylinders 11a. A nozzle NZ opening at the front end surface of the fixed hot water supply mold 16 is formed. A plurality of heaters 15a for heating magnesium in the cylinder 11a are attached to the cylinder body 11, and a plurality of heaters 15b for heating metal materials in the injection path IR are similarly attached to the injection port 14. It has been. Further, hot runners 17 and 18 for heating the injection path IR and the nozzle NZ, respectively, are disposed inside the fixed hot water supply mold 16. Further, the temperatures of the heating targets of the heaters 15a and 15b and the hot runners 17 and 18 are always measured by thermocouples (not shown), respectively, and the heaters 15a and 15b and the hot runners 17 and 18 are managed in order to manage them at a predetermined temperature. Is controlled.

  The movable hot water supply mold 19 constituting the injection molding machine 10 is fixed to the movable platen 53 via the support plate 55, so that the movable hot water supply mold 19 is moved in the front-rear direction so as to close the front end surface of the fixed hot water supply mold 16. It is arranged to be movable. A molten metal introduction path 19 a is formed on the surface of the movable hot water supply mold 19 facing the fixed hot water supply mold 16. In addition, a pin moving hole 19b is formed in the movable hot water supply mold 19 so as to communicate with the molten metal introduction path 19a, and a large-diameter slide hole 19c is movable so as to be connected to the pin moving hole 19b. The hot water supply mold 19 is formed so as to open on the mounting surface to the support plate 55.

  The push pin 20 has a left end portion in FIG. 1 connected to a slide mechanism (not shown) and a large diameter portion 20a slidably disposed in the slide hole 19c of the movable hot water supply die 19. A small-diameter pushing portion 20b of the pin 20 is movably fitted in the pin moving hole 19b. Moreover, the front-end | tip part of the extrusion pin 20 is formed in the crank shape, and is comprised as the plug catcher 20c which adheres and collect | recovers the magnesium coagulation plug PS (after-mentioned) ejected from the fixed hot water supply type | mold 16 side. By moving the push pin 20 to the right in FIG. 1 by the slide mechanism, the plug catcher 20 c can protrude from the rear end surface of the movable hot water supply die 19.

  Further, a gas passage 19 d penetrating in the vertical direction is formed inside the movable hot water supply mold 19, and one end of the gas tube 21 is connected to the gas passage 19 d at the upper end of the movable hot water supply mold 19. The other end of the gas tube 21 is connected to an unillustrated gas cylinder containing argon gas via an opening / closing valve 22. The gas passage 19d is opened at the lower end surface of the movable hot water supply die 19, and argon gas can be supplied toward the holding unit 30 described later so that the molten magnesium MG does not oxidize due to contact with air. Since argon gas does not have a greenhouse effect, there is no problem for the environment.

  The holding unit 30 disposed below the movable hot water supply mold 19 includes a holding body 31 connected to the lower end surface of the fixed hot water supply mold 16, and molten metal located above is introduced into the holding body 31. A molten metal receiver 31a, which is a space that opens greatly toward the passage 19a, is formed, and a drain hole 31b extending downward is provided at the bottom of the molten metal receiver 31a, and the molten metal introduced into the molten metal receiver 31a. The configured magnesium MG can be caused to flow into the casting mold 40. The holding body 31 is made of metal, a heat-resistant synthetic resin, ceramics, or the like, has heat resistance, and has strength to withstand injected high-pressure magnesium.

  The speed of the molten magnesium MG flowing into the casting mold 40 can be adjusted by rotating the lower portion of the holding body 31 to adjust the amount of protrusion to the drain hole 31b and changing the flow passage area of the drain hole 31b. A flow path adjusting screw 32 is provided. A plurality of heaters 33 for heating the molten magnesium MG introduced into the molten metal receiver 31 a are attached to the outer peripheral surface of the holding body 31. Note that a coating agent is applied to the surface of the molten metal introduction path 19a, the molten metal receiver 31a, the drain hole 31b, and the like to prevent adhesion of magnesium.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the casting mold 40 includes a lower mold 41 placed on a conveyor 56 (corresponding to the casting mold moving mechanism of the present invention) composed of a pair of belts 57 facing each other, and a lower mold. The upper mold 42 and the lower mold 41 are both formed of a sand mold or a gypsum mold, and a cavity (not shown) is formed between both molds. A molten metal inflow portion 43 is provided on the upper end surface of the upper mold 42, and an inflow hole 43a is formed therein, and the molten magnesium MG held in the molten metal receiver 31a is cast through the inflow hole 43a. It flows into the mold 40.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of casting molds 40 are juxtaposed on the conveyor 56, and the conveyor 56 is moved downward in FIG. Thus, each time the injection molding machine 10 injects the molten magnesium MG, the casting mold 40 is moved in the horizontal direction and sequentially replaced one by one below the holding unit 30.

  Next, based on FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the operating method of the metal material shaping | molding apparatus 1 in a shaping | molding process is demonstrated. 3 and 4, only the fixed hot water supply mold 16, the movable hot water supply mold 19, the holding unit 30, and the configuration associated therewith are shown. First, FIG. 3 (A) shows a state where the previous molding process is completed. In FIG. 3A, the fixed hot water supply mold 16 and the movable hot water supply mold 19 are closed to each other, and the magnesium MG melted in the melting chamber 11b is accommodated in the injection path IR of the fixed hot water supply mold 16. . Further, the piston 12 is in the most retracted initial position (right side in FIG. 1) in the cylinder 11a.

  The magnesium chip in the cylinder 11a is heated by the heater 15a to a temperature lower than the liquidus temperature of magnesium (the temperature at which the metal material is completely melted to become a liquid), and the piston 12 having the screw 12a. Is agitated by rotating and is in a semi-molten state in the melting chamber 11b. Further, the magnesium MG in the injection path IR is also brought into a predetermined heating state by the heater 15b and the hot runner 17, and is maintained in a semi-molten state. However, the hot runner 18 is controlled to be in a temperature state lower than the temperature at which magnesium solidifies, so that the magnesium coagulation plug PS formed by solidifying magnesium in the nozzle NZ of the fixed hot water supply mold 16. The magnesium MG in a semi-molten state is not ejected from the nozzle NZ.

  In the state shown in FIG. 3A, since the previous molding process has been completed, magnesium MG does not exist in the molten metal receiver 31a of the holding unit 30. Therefore, the opening / closing valve 22 is closed, and no argon gas is introduced into the molten metal receiver 31a. In this state, the push pin 20 is located on the leftmost side in FIG.

  Next, the pressure of the semi-molten magnesium MG in the melting chamber 11b and the injection path IR is increased by advancing the piston 12 (to the left in FIG. 1) by the piston driving device. By raising the temperature of the runner 18 to a predetermined temperature, the outer peripheral portion of the magnesium coagulation plug PS that has sealed the nozzle NZ is melted to release the fixed state to the nozzle NZ, and the pressure of the magnesium MG in the injection path IR. Then, it is ejected to the plug catcher 20c (shown in FIG. 3B).

  The magnesium coagulation plug PS is blown from the nozzle NZ by the pressure of magnesium in the injection path IR and adheres to the crank-shaped plug catcher 20c and the pin moving hole 19b of the movable hot water supply mold 19, thereby causing a half in the injection path IR. The molten magnesium MG can be injected from the nozzle NZ, and the magnesium MG injected at a high pressure from the nozzle NZ by the advance of the piston 12 is transferred into the molten metal receiver 31a through the molten metal introduction path 19a. Magnesium MG is once heated by the heater 33 in the molten metal receiver 31a and held for a short time, then falls through the drain hole 31b and flows into the casting mold 40 (gravity casting). . When magnesium MG in a semi-molten state is injected, the amount of magnesium MG that the injection molding machine 10 injects at one time is accurately controlled by accurately controlling the movement stroke from the initial position of the piston 12 by the piston drive device. Is weighed.

  When injecting the semi-molten magnesium MG from the nozzle NZ, the open / close valve 22 is opened, and argon gas is introduced into the molten metal receiver 31a from the gas cylinder through the gas tube 21 and the gas passage 19d. The magnesium coagulation plug PS attached to the plug catcher 20c reacts with oxygen in the air and changes to magnesium oxide MO.

  When the inflow of magnesium MG from the holding part 30 to the casting mold 40 is completed, next, as shown in FIG. 3 (C), the hot runner 18 is cooled again to form the magnesium coagulation plug PS in the nozzle NZ again. This prevents magnesium MG from being injected. Further, the opening / closing valve 22 is closed again, and the supply of argon gas to the molten metal receiver 31a is stopped.

  Further, the conveyor 56 is moved downward in FIG. 2 by the conveyor moving device to move the casting mold 40 into which the magnesium MG has been introduced to the outside of the holding section 30, and the new casting mold 40 is moved to the holding section 30. It is arranged below. Thereafter, the casting mold 40 (located at the lower end in FIG. 2) into which magnesium has flowed on the conveyor 56 is removed, and a new casting mold 40 is replenished (at the upper end in FIG. 2) onto the conveyor 56.

  On the other hand, after an amount of magnesium chip sufficient to generate a single injection amount of molten magnesium MG is charged into the hopper 13, the piston 12 is moved forward by the piston drive device, and the magnesium chip is screwed into the screw 12a. The entire piston 12 is retracted to the initial position while rotating in the direction to move forward (leftward in FIG. 1). In this manner, the piston 12 is stirred while heating the inside of the cylinder 11a, thereby forming the semi-molten magnesium MG to be injected next time.

  Thereafter, the movable platen 53 is moved with respect to the fixed platen 52 by the platen moving device, and the movable hot water supply mold 19 is moved to the left in FIG. 4 with respect to the fixed hot water supply mold 16 as shown in FIG. After the molds are opened by moving them toward each other, as shown in FIG. 4 (E), the push pin 20 is moved to the right in FIG. The magnesium oxide MO adhering to is pushed and pushed out from the movable hot water supply die 19 and discharged so as not to enter the molten metal receiver 31a of the holding unit 30. Thereafter, the movable platen 53 is moved with respect to the fixed platen 52, and the movable hot water supply mold 19 and the fixed hot water supply mold 16 are closed to each other, so that the state shown in FIG.

  According to the present embodiment, by providing the injection molding machine 10 that injects magnesium at a high pressure by moving the piston 12 forward, the stroke of the piston 12 is accurately managed, so that the magnesium injected into the casting mold 40 Can be accurately measured, and magnesium does not overflow from the casting mold 40. In addition, the workability of the injection is good without the need for shears. Further, by holding the holding unit 30 that temporarily stores and holds the magnesium injected from the injection molding machine 10, the holding unit 30 serves as a cushion, and the casting mold 10 directly receives the high-pressure magnesium at the time of injection. Therefore, a sand mold or a gypsum mold that can be easily manufactured can be used for the casting mold 40, and the casting cost can be reduced.

  Further, by injecting magnesium in a semi-molten state, the temperature difference before and after solidification of the magnesium injected into the casting mold 40 is small, so that the occurrence of sink marks in the molded product is reduced. Furthermore, since the amount of magnesium charged into the cylinder 11a is limited to a predetermined amount, it is not necessary to use a flame-retardant gas having a greenhouse effect, which is good for the environment. Further, by moving the casting mold 40 in the horizontal direction, each time the injection molding machine 10 injects magnesium, a conveyor 56 is provided in which a plurality of casting molds 40 are sequentially placed under the holding unit 30 one by one. Therefore, the molding workability is good and the molding tact time can be shortened.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and further depart from the gist other than the following descriptions. Various modifications can be made without departing from the scope.
(1) The injection molding machine may be heated to a temperature at which the metal material is completely melted and injected in a completely melted state.
(2) You may apply this invention to the injection molding apparatus of metal materials other than magnesium, such as aluminum.
(3) The metal material put into the cylinder of the injection molding machine at one time does not necessarily have to be an amount corresponding to the amount injected at one time, and can be appropriately changed according to the molding process. It is.

1 is an overall view of a metal material forming apparatus according to an embodiment. It is a top view at the time of removing the fixed hot water supply type | mold, movable hot water supply type | mold, and holding | maintenance part of FIG. FIG. 1A shows an operation method of the metal material forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and shows a state before injecting molten metal (A), an injecting state (B), and a state in which injection has been completed. It is a figure (C). FIG. 4D is a diagram (D) showing a state in which hot water supply molds are opened to each other and a diagram (E) showing a state in which magnesium oxide is discharged following the operation method of the metal material forming apparatus shown in FIG. 3. It is a figure explaining the metal material shaping | molding apparatus by a prior art.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Metal material shaping | molding apparatus 10 ... Injection molding machine 11a ... Cylinder 12 ... Piston 12a ... Screw 15a, 15b, 33 ... Heater 17, 18 ... Hot runner 30 ... Holding part 31a ... Molten metal receptacle 31b ... Drain hole 40 ... Casting type 56 ... Conveyor MG ... Semi-molten magnesium

Claims (4)

A predetermined amount of metal material corresponding to the injection amount is put into a cylinder in which a piston is disposed and melted by heating, and then the molten metal material is injected at a high pressure by advancing the piston. An injection molding machine;
The metal material injected from the injection molding machine is transferred to and held in the internal space, and the molten metal material is dropped through the drain hole provided at the lower end, and the casting material is arranged below. A holding portion for inflow ,
The injection molding machine heats the metal material in the cylinder at a temperature lower than the temperature at which the metal material is completely melted, and a screw is formed on the outer periphery of the piston and rotates to stir the metal material in the cylinder. By injecting the metal material in a semi-molten state,
The fixed member provided with the injection molding machine, and the fixed member is divided and configured, and has a movable member configured to be movable toward or away from the fixed member.
The fixing member includes an injection path for guiding the metal material injected from the injection molding machine to the holding unit side,
A first heating unit is provided on the way of the injection path, and the way of the injection path is set to a temperature at which the metal material can be maintained in a semi-molten state,
A second heating unit is provided near the exit of the injection path, and the metal material is maintained in a semi-molten state in the vicinity of the exit of the injection path when the metal material is not injected toward the holding unit. It is set to a temperature lower than the temperature that can be set, and at the time of injection for injecting the metal material to the holding unit side, it is set to a temperature that can melt the outer peripheral portion of the metal material,
The movable member is provided with an extrusion pin that is slidable with respect to the movable member and that can protrude toward the fixed member.
The extruding pin has a crank-shaped tip, and can attach a solidified material of the metal material ejected from the outlet of the injection path during the injection at the tip.
When the movable member is separated from the fixed member, the solidified material adhering to the tip of the push pin is collected . 2. The metal coagulation plug formed by solidifying the metal material is formed near the outlet of the injection path at the time of the non-injection, and the metal coagulation plug seals the outlet. Metal material forming apparatus of description.     The metal material forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the metal material is magnesium.   A casting mold moving mechanism for moving the casting mold in a horizontal direction, wherein the casting mold moving mechanism sequentially moves the casting molds one by one each time the injection molding machine injects a metal material; The metal material forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the metal material forming apparatus is arranged so as to be exchanged below the holding portion.

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