A large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment and its continuous production method

Abstract

This invention discloses a large-scale multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment and a continuous production method. The equipment includes: a hydraulic press, N worktables, slide rails, an isothermal material supply assembly, and N+1 vacuum pump sets. One side of the hydraulic press is adjacent to the isothermal material supply assembly, and the other side is equipped with a slide rail. The N worktables are all slidably mounted on the slide rails. N preheating and cooling stations are set on the slide rails. Each worktable has a forging chamber. The forging chamber contains a mold and a heating element. During isothermal forging, one worktable moves along the slide rail to the bottom of the hydraulic press and connects to the isothermal material supply assembly under vacuum. At this time, the worktable at the bottom of the hydraulic press is located at the forging station. The other worktables are located at their respective preheating and cooling stations. Vacuum pump sets are correspondingly set at the N preheating and cooling stations and the forging stations to evacuate the forging chambers of the corresponding worktables. This invention can improve forging efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of isothermal forging technology, specifically relating to a large-scale multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment and a continuous production method. Background Technology

[0002] Ni-based alloys, Ti-based alloys, and Co-based alloys are common difficult-to-deform metallic materials characterized by narrow processing parameter ranges, high deformation resistance, and highly sensitive microstructure and properties to hot working processes. Isothermal forging is a high-end manufacturing process that involves heating a metal blank and a die to the same or similar temperature, and then forging the metal under isothermal conditions at a low strain rate. Isothermal forging technology allows for precise control of the microstructure and properties of difficult-to-deform metallic materials.

[0003] Fully enclosed vacuum isothermal forging equipment is mainly used in the aerospace field, including the isothermal forging of key components such as aero-engine turbine disks, titanium alloy disks, and titanium-aluminum alloy blades. This equipment places the billet and die in a vacuum, high-temperature environment. The temperature loss during billet transfer and forging is very low, and the temperature of the billet and die remains essentially unchanged during forging, achieving true isothermal forging. Simultaneously, this equipment prevents oxidation of the forgings and dies, achieving near-net-shape forming of the forgings and extending the service life of the dies.

[0004] During operation, vacuum isothermal forging equipment must maintain a vacuum environment (vacuum degree ≤100Pa) at all times when the forging chamber temperature is ≥300℃ to prevent oxidation and failure of the molds and heating elements at high temperatures. This necessitates that the molds in the forging chamber be heated and cooled via thermal radiation. Large-scale vacuum isothermal forging equipment has long heating and cooling cycles for the molds; the time required to heat to a working temperature and cool to a temperature suitable for mold replacement both exceed 24 hours. During mold replacement and cooling, the equipment is in a waiting state. Furthermore, the products produced by this equipment are characterized by diverse varieties and small batches, requiring frequent mold changes. When changing molds, the equipment must be shut down while waiting for the molds to become ready, severely impacting production time and cycle time, resulting in wasted equipment resources.

[0005] The multi-station high-speed forming hydraulic press disclosed in patent CN109483928A and the fully enclosed intelligent manufacturing production line and production method of isothermal forging press disclosed in patent CN 116408407A cannot solve the problems of long mold heating and cooling time, low forging efficiency and waste of equipment resources during vacuum isothermal forging. Summary of the Invention

[0006] In view of this, the present invention provides a large-scale multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment and a continuous production method, which can reduce the downtime of the equipment caused by changing molds and the process of heating and cooling molds, and improve forging efficiency.

[0007] This invention is achieved through the following technical solution:

[0008] A large-scale multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment includes: a hydraulic press, N worktables, slide rails, an isothermal material supply assembly, and N+1 vacuum pump groups; wherein N≥2, and N is a natural number;

[0009] One side of the hydraulic press is adjacent to the isothermal material supply component, and the other side is equipped with a slide rail;

[0010] All N worktables are mounted on slide rails, and each worktable can move along the slide rails; N preheating and cooling stations are set on the slide rails;

[0011] Each workbench is equipped with a forging chamber; the forging chamber contains a mold and a heating element; the heating element is used to heat the mold.

[0012] During isothermal forging, one worktable moves along the slide rail to the bottom of the hydraulic press and is vacuum connected to the isothermal material supply assembly; at this time, the worktable at the bottom of the hydraulic press is located at the forging station; the other worktables are located at their respective preheating and cooling stations.

[0013] Vacuum pump units are installed one-to-one at N preheating and cooling stations and forging stations to evacuate the forging chambers of the corresponding workbenches.

[0014] Furthermore, the isothermal material supply assembly includes a material platform, robot arm I, inlet and outlet chambers, material transfer channel, one or more preheating chambers, robot arm II, a fifth vacuum pump group, and a sixth vacuum pump group;

[0015] The material table and robot arm I are located in the atmospheric environment. Robot arm I is used to pick up the billet on the material table and transfer it to the loading and unloading chamber, and to pick up the formed forging from the loading and unloading chamber and transfer it to the material table, so as to realize the transfer of billet and forging.

[0016] The inlet and outlet chambers are connected to the material transfer channel. The inlet and outlet chambers are equipped with a fifth gate valve and a third gate valve. The fifth gate valve is located between the inlet and outlet chambers and the material transfer channel.

[0017] The third gate valve is located on one side wall of the inlet / outlet chamber to isolate the inlet / outlet chamber from the atmospheric environment; when the third gate valve is opened, robot arm I can enter the inlet / outlet chamber through the third gate valve.

[0018] The fifth vacuum pump unit is connected to the inlet and outlet chambers and is used to evacuate the inlet and outlet chambers.

[0019] One or more preheating chambers are connected to the material transfer channel, and a fourth gate valve is installed between each preheating chamber and the material transfer channel; the preheating chamber is used to heat the billet to the set temperature;

[0020] The preheating chamber is connected to the fourth vacuum pump unit for evacuating the preheating chamber.

[0021] Robotic arm II is installed in the material transfer channel and is used to transfer blanks and forgings in the vacuum.

[0022] The sixth vacuum pump unit is connected to the material transfer channel and is used to evacuate the material transfer channel.

[0023] Furthermore, each forging chamber is equipped with a first gate valve and a second gate valve; the first gate valve is used to connect to the corresponding vacuum pump assembly, and the second gate valve is used to connect to the isothermal material supply assembly under vacuum.

[0024] Furthermore, one or more preheating chambers are connected to a fourth vacuum pump unit.

[0025] A continuous production method, based on a large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment, includes the following steps:

[0026] Step 1: The control system sets the billet size and forging process required for this production task, and determines the number M of dies required for forgings, where M≥2 and M is a natural number;

[0027] Step 2: Sort the mold tasks, where the task number corresponding to the i-th mold task is wi, i=1, ..., M, and execute the tasks in order;

[0028] Step 3: According to the task sequence, pre-assemble the corresponding forging chamber, mold and workbench to form two or more mold changing units based on the billet size and forging process of the forgings in the earlier tasks.

[0029] Step 4: When i=1, determine if the forging station is available. If the forging station is available, set w... i The task is associated with the mold-changing unit, and w i The die-changing unit moves along the slide rail to the forging station; if the forging station is not available, w i The die-changing unit of the task preheats to the die-changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station until the forging station is empty, then w i The die-changing unit of the task moves along the slide rail to the forging station;

[0030] Step 5: Determine if i+1 is greater than M. If i+1 is less than or equal to M, proceed to Step 6.

[0031] If i+1 is greater than M, then w iThe task mold-changing unit moves along the slide rail to the forging station and performs forging. After forging is completed, control w i The task mold-changing unit moves along the slide rail to an idle preheating and cooling station, waiting for the w to be removed from the forging station. i After the mold-changing unit cools down, the mold is removed, and the forging process is complete.

[0032] Step Six, w i The task die-changing unit performs hot die making and forging at the forging station, while simultaneously adjusting the w... i+1 The mission is in pre-launch preparation.

[0033] Step 7, w i Task mold changing unit forging completed and w i+1 After the task mold changing unit has preheated, control w i The task mold changing unit moves along the slide rail to an idle preheating and cooling station, where the preheated mold will be changed. i+1 The task mold-changing unit moves to the forging station for forging;

[0034] Step 8: Wait for the w to be moved out of the forging workshop. i After the mold changing unit cools down, the mold is removed and replaced.

[0035] Step 9: Let i = i + 1, and determine whether i is greater than M;

[0036] If i is greater than M, forging ends;

[0037] If i is less than or equal to M, repeat steps five through nine until i is greater than M, thus completing all forging tasks.

[0038] Furthermore, in step six, the w i The steps for hot die making and forging in the die-changing unit of the task at the forging station are as follows:

[0039] Step 611: Close the sixth gate valve and connect w i The die-changing unit of the task is connected to the vacuum pump group, cooling water pipeline, heating line and compressed air pipeline at the forging station. i The task involves the mold changing unit and material supply components; opening the first gate valve at the forging station to connect the vacuum pump unit to the forging chamber; evacuating the forging chamber and then heating the mold to the set temperature.

[0040] Step 612: Use the isothermal material supply assembly to supply billets at a set temperature to the forging chamber of the forging station;

[0041] Step 613: Forging is carried out in the forging chamber of the forging station to form a forging;

[0042] Step 614: Remove the forging;

[0043] Step 615: Repeat steps 612 to 614 to complete the forging of the same type of forging in sequence;

[0044] Step 616: Close the sixth gate valve and the second gate valve at the forging station, close the vacuum pump unit at the forging station, and disconnect w i The task's die-changing unit is connected to the vacuum pump unit, cooling water pipeline, heating line, and compressed air pipeline at the forging station to complete w i Disengagement of the mold changing unit.

[0045] Furthermore, in step six, the step of w i+1 The steps for preparing for the mission are as follows:

[0046] Step 621: Place w i+1 The task is associated with the corresponding mold-changing unit;

[0047] Step 622: Connect w i+1 The task mold changing unit, along with the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump group, cooling water, heating lines, and compressed air pipelines, opens the first gate valve to evacuate the forging chamber of the mold changing unit to the set vacuum level.

[0048] Step 623: Calculate the remaining production time n at the current forging station;

[0049] Step 624: Determine the remaining production time n and w at the current forging station. i+1 The time t taken for the mold of the task to reach the set temperature i+1 The difference d; if d≥0, the control system sets a waiting time d for heating the mold. After the waiting time d, the control system controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold; if d<0, the control system directly controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold.

[0050] Step 625: After detecting that the mold has reached the mold changing temperature, stop heating;

[0051] Step 626: Turn off the vacuum pump unit of the corresponding preheating and cooling station, and disconnect w i+1 The task mold changing unit is equipped with vacuum pump sets, cooling water, heating lines and compressed air pipelines for the corresponding preheating and cooling stations.

[0052] Furthermore, in step four, if the forging station is not available, w i The die-changing unit of the task preheats to the die-changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station until the forging station is empty, then w i The steps for the mold-changing unit to move along the slide rail to the forging station are as follows:

[0053] Step 41: Place w i The task is associated with the corresponding mold-changing unit;

[0054] Step 42: Connect w i The task mold changing unit, along with the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump group, cooling water, heating lines, and compressed air pipelines, opens the first gate valve to evacuate the forging chamber of the mold changing unit to the set vacuum level.

[0055] Step 43: Calculate the remaining production time n at the current forging station;

[0056] Step 44: Determine the remaining production time n and w at the current forging station. i The time t taken for the mold of the task to reach the set temperature i The difference d; if d≥0, the control system sets a waiting time d for heating the mold. After the waiting time d, the control system controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold; if d<0, the control system directly controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold.

[0057] Step 45: After detecting that the mold has reached the mold changing temperature, stop heating;

[0058] Step 46: Turn off the vacuum pump unit of the corresponding preheating and cooling station, and disconnect w i The task mold changing unit and the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump set, cooling water, heating lines and compressed air pipelines;

[0059] Step 47: Determine if the forging station is available. If the forging station is available, move w... i The task is associated with the mold-changing unit, and w i The task's die-changing unit moves along the slide rail to the forging station; if the forging station is not available, steps 41-47 are repeated until the forging station becomes available.

[0060] Furthermore, in step 612, the step of providing a billet at a set temperature to the forging chamber of the forging station using the isothermal material supply assembly is as follows:

[0061] Step 6121: Close the fourth gate valve corresponding to all preheating chambers, and the fifth gate valve and third gate valve corresponding to the inlet and outlet chambers, so that all preheating chambers and inlet and outlet chambers are in a closed state;

[0062] Step 6122: Activate the sixth vacuum pump group to evacuate the material transfer channel to the set vacuum level, and start the fourth vacuum pump group to evacuate the preheating chamber to the set vacuum level;

[0063] Step 6123: Inflate the inlet and outlet chambers to reach the atmospheric environment, open the third gate valve, use the robot arm I to load the billet from the material platform into the inlet and outlet chambers, close the third gate valve, start the fifth vacuum pump group, and evacuate the inlet and outlet chambers to the set vacuum level;

[0064] Step 6124: Open the fifth gate valve, and after the robotic arm II in the material transfer channel takes out the billet from the material inlet and outlet chamber, close the fifth gate valve.

[0065] Step 6125: Open the fourth gate valve of an empty preheating chamber, and after feeding the billet into the preheating chamber by the robot arm II, close the fourth gate valve;

[0066] Step 6126: The control system starts the heating system in the preheating chamber to heat the billet according to the forging process described above until the billet is heated to the set temperature.

[0067] Step 6127: Open the fourth gate valve of the preheating chamber, take out the preheated billet using robot arm II, close the fourth gate valve, open the sixth gate valve and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at the forging station, transfer the preheated billet that has reached the set temperature to the forging chamber using robot arm II, and close the sixth gate valve and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at the forging station.

[0068] Beneficial effects:

[0069] (1) The present invention provides a large multi-workbench vacuum isothermal forging equipment with two or more workbenches. When one workbench is performing isothermal forging at the forging station, the other workbenches can be cooled or preheated at the corresponding preheating and cooling stations to improve the continuity of forging products, improve equipment utilization, and improve forging efficiency.

[0070] (2) The isothermal material supply component of the present invention is equipped with multiple vacuum chambers and corresponding independent vacuum systems, preheating chambers and dual robotic arms working together through several gate valves, which provides the entire large multi-workbench vacuum isothermal forging equipment with automated, non-oxidizing high-temperature billet precise preheating and reliable conveying capabilities, ensuring the quality of forgings and improving production efficiency and continuity.

[0071] (3) Each forging chamber of the present invention is provided with a first gate valve and a second gate valve; by providing the first gate valve and the second gate valve, the vacuum level in the forging chamber can be guaranteed, and the vacuum connection and switching between the forging chamber and the vacuum pump group and the material transfer channel can be realized.

[0072] (4) In this invention, one or more preheating chambers are connected to a fourth vacuum pump group. Since all preheating chambers work synchronously, the same fourth vacuum pump group can be used for vacuuming to improve the simplicity of the equipment.

[0073] (5) The continuous production method provided by the present invention reduces the equipment waiting time caused by mold changing, improves equipment working efficiency, and realizes efficient production of large aerospace forgings with multiple varieties and small batches.

[0074] (6) The continuous production method provided by the present invention, by precisely controlling the timing of preheating start-up and ensuring the quality during the preheating process through a vacuum environment, greatly reduces the downtime caused by mold change preheating in multi-task continuous production, significantly improves equipment utilization efficiency and production cycle, and optimizes energy consumption. Attached Figure Description

[0075] Figure 1 This is a top view of a large multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment according to the present invention;

[0076] Figure 2 This is a front view of a large-scale multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment according to the present invention;

[0077] Figure 3 This is the overall flow chart of the continuous production method of the present invention;

[0078] Figure 4 This is a forging process diagram of the present invention;

[0079] Figure 5 This is a preheating process flow diagram of the present invention;

[0080] Among them, 011-Hydraulic press, 012-Workbench I, 013-Workbench II, 021-Forging chamber I, 022-Forging chamber II, 031-Mold I, 032-Mold II, 041-Forging station, 042-Slide rail, 043-Preheating and cooling station I, 044-Preheating and cooling station II, 051-First vacuum pump group, 052-Second vacuum pump group, 053-Third vacuum pump group, 061-First gate valve I, 062-First gate valve II, 071-Second gate valve I, 072 - Second gate valve II, 08- Fourth vacuum pump group, 091- First preheating chamber, 092- Second preheating chamber, 093- Third preheating chamber, 10- Material platform, 11- Robotic arm I, 121- Third gate valve, 122- Inlet / outlet chamber, 13- Fifth vacuum pump group, 14- Sixth vacuum pump group, 151- Fourth gate valve I, 152- Fourth gate valve II, 153- Fourth gate valve III, 154- Material transfer channel, 155- Fifth gate valve, 156- Sixth gate valve, 16- Robotic arm II. Detailed Implementation

[0081] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0082] Example 1:

[0083] This embodiment provides a large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment. See attached document. Figure 1 and 2It includes a hydraulic press 011, N worktables, slide rails, isothermal material supply components, and N+1 vacuum pump sets; where N≥2 and N is a natural number;

[0084] One side of the hydraulic press 011 is adjacent to the isothermal material supply component, and the other side is equipped with a slide rail;

[0085] All N worktables are mounted on slide rails, and each worktable can move along the slide rails; N preheating and cooling stations are set on the slide rails;

[0086] Each workbench is equipped with a forging chamber; the forging chamber contains a mold and a heating element; the heating element is used to heat the mold.

[0087] During isothermal forging, one worktable moves along the slide rail to the bottom of the hydraulic press 011 and is vacuum connected to the isothermal material supply assembly; at this time, the worktable at the bottom of the hydraulic press 011 is located at forging station 041; the other worktables are located at their respective preheating and cooling stations.

[0088] Vacuum pump units are installed one-to-one at N preheating and cooling stations and forging station 041 to evacuate the forging chamber of the corresponding worktable.

[0089] This embodiment provides a large-scale multi-worktable vacuum isothermal forging equipment, which is equipped with two or more worktables. When isothermal forging is performed on one worktable at forging station 041, the other worktables can be cooled or preheated at the corresponding preheating and cooling stations to improve the continuity of forged products, increase equipment utilization, and improve forging efficiency.

[0090] Furthermore, each forging chamber is equipped with a first gate valve and a second gate valve; the first gate valve is used to connect to the corresponding vacuum pump group, and the second gate valve is used to connect to the isothermal material supply assembly under vacuum.

[0091] The isothermal material supply assembly includes a material platform 10, a robotic arm I 11, an inlet / outlet chamber 122, a material transfer channel 154, one or more preheating chambers, a robotic arm II 16, a fifth vacuum pump group 13, and a sixth vacuum pump group 14;

[0092] The material table 10 and the robotic arm I 11 are located in the atmospheric environment. The robotic arm I 11 is used to pick up the billet on the material table 10 and place it into the loading and unloading chamber 122, and to pick up the formed forging from the loading and unloading chamber 122 and place it onto the material table 10, so as to realize the transfer of billet and forging.

[0093] The inlet / outlet chamber 122 is connected to the material transfer channel 154. A fifth gate valve 155 and a third gate valve 121 are installed on the inlet / outlet chamber 122. The fifth gate valve 155 is located between the inlet / outlet chamber 122 and the material transfer channel 154. When the inlet / outlet chamber 122 is in an atmospheric environment, the fifth gate valve 155 ensures that the vacuum level of the material transfer channel 154 does not drop drastically, with a vacuum pressure rise rate ≤ 0.5 Pa / h. The third gate valve 121 is located on one side wall of the inlet / outlet chamber 122 to isolate it from the atmospheric environment. When the third gate valve 121 is open, the robotic arm I11 can enter the inlet / outlet chamber 122 through the third gate valve 121. The fifth vacuum pump unit 13 is connected to the inlet / outlet chamber 122 and is used to evacuate the inlet / outlet chamber 122.

[0094] One or more preheating chambers are connected to the material transfer channel 154, and a fourth gate valve is provided between each preheating chamber and the material transfer channel 154; the preheating chamber is used to heat the billet to the set temperature;

[0095] One or more preheating chambers are connected to a fourth vacuum pump group 08 to evacuate the preheating chambers. Since all preheating chambers work synchronously, the same fourth vacuum pump group 08 can be used for evacuation to improve the simplicity of the equipment.

[0096] In addition, a fourth vacuum pump group 08 can be set up for each preheating chamber to evacuate the preheating chamber.

[0097] The aforementioned "a workbench moves along the slide rail to the bottom of the hydraulic press 011 and is vacuum connected to the isothermal material supply component" refers to the vacuum connection between the forging chamber located at forging station 041 and the material transfer channel 154.

[0098] The robotic arm II16 is installed in the material transfer channel 154 and is used to transfer billets and forgings in vacuum, such as transferring billets from the inlet / outlet chamber 122 to the preheating chamber, transferring preheated billets from the preheating chamber to the forging chamber located at the forging station 041, and transferring formed forgings from the forging chamber to the inlet / outlet chamber 122.

[0099] The sixth vacuum pump unit 14 is connected to the material transfer channel 154 and is used to evacuate the material transfer channel 154.

[0100] Example 2:

[0101] This embodiment, based on Embodiment 1, provides a specific implementation method, see Appendix. Figure 1 and attached Figure 2 There are two worktables, namely worktable I012 and worktable II013;

[0102] There are two preheating and cooling stations, namely preheating and cooling station I043 and preheating and cooling station II044. Preheating and cooling station I043 is located at the end of slide rail 042, and preheating and cooling station II044 is located on the branch of slide rail 042, so that the worktable I012 and worktable II013 do not interfere with each other when they move.

[0103] The N+1 vacuum pump sets are three vacuum pump sets, namely the first vacuum pump set 051, the second vacuum pump set 052 and the third vacuum pump set 053; the first vacuum pump set 051 is set at the forging station 041, the second vacuum pump set 052 is set at the preheating and cooling station I 043, and the third vacuum pump set 053 is set at the preheating and cooling station II 044.

[0104] Workbench I012 is located at forging station 041. The forging chamber on workbench I012 is forging chamber I021. Forging chamber I021 is equipped with mold I031. The two adjacent side walls of the forging chamber are respectively equipped with a first gate valve I061 and a second gate valve I071. The first gate valve I061 is connected to the first vacuum pump group 051, and the second gate valve I071 is connected to the sixth gate valve 156 of the material transfer channel 154. After the forging chamber is moved out, the sixth gate valve 156 can ensure that the vacuum degree of the material transfer channel 154 will not drop drastically, and the vacuum pressure rise rate is ≤0.5Pa / h.

[0105] Workbench Ⅱ013 is located at preheating and cooling station Ⅰ043. The forging chamber of workbench Ⅱ013 is forging chamber Ⅱ022. Mold Ⅱ032 is installed in forging chamber Ⅱ022. The two adjacent side walls of forging chamber Ⅱ022 are respectively equipped with first gate valve Ⅱ062 and second gate valve Ⅱ072. First gate valve Ⅱ062 is connected to second vacuum pump group 052, and second gate valve Ⅱ072 is closed.

[0106] There are three preheating chambers, namely the first preheating chamber 091, the second preheating chamber 092 and the third preheating chamber 093;

[0107] The second preheating chamber 092 and the third preheating chamber 093 are located on one side of the material transfer channel 154, while the first preheating chamber 091 and the inlet / outlet chamber 122 are located on the other side of the material transfer channel 154.

[0108] The first preheating chamber 091 is connected to the material transfer channel 154 via the fourth gate valve I151;

[0109] The second preheating chamber 092 is connected to the material transfer channel 154 via the fourth gate valve II 152;

[0110] The third preheating chamber 093 is connected to the material transfer channel 154 via the fourth gate valve Ⅲ153.

[0111] Example 3:

[0112] This embodiment, based on Embodiment 1, provides a continuous production method using a large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment. The method is as follows:

[0113] Step 1: The control system sets the billet size and forging process required for this production task, and determines the number M of dies required for forgings, where M≥2 and M is a natural number;

[0114] Step 2: Sort the mold tasks, where the task number corresponding to the i-th mold task is w. i i=1, ..., M, execute tasks in sequence;

[0115] Step 3: According to the task sequence, pre-assemble the corresponding forging chamber, mold and workbench to form two or more mold changing units based on the billet size and forging process of the forgings in the earlier tasks.

[0116] Step 4: When i=1, determine if forging station 041 is available. If forging station 041 is available, set w... i The task is associated with the mold-changing unit, and w i The die-changing unit of the task moves along slide rail 042 to forging station 041; if forging station 041 is not vacant, w i The die-changing unit of the task is preheated to the die-changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station until the forging station 041 is empty, and then w i The mold-changing unit of the task moves along slide rail 042 to forging station 041;

[0117] Furthermore, "if forging station 041 is not vacant, w i The die-changing unit of the task is preheated to the die-changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station until the forging station 041 is empty, and then w i The specific implementation method of the task's mold changing unit moving along slide rail 042 to forging station 041 is as follows:

[0118] Step 41: Place w i The task is associated with the corresponding mold-changing unit;

[0119] Step 42: Connect w i The task mold changing unit, along with the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump group, cooling water, heating lines, and compressed air pipelines, opens the first gate valve to evacuate the forging chamber of the mold changing unit to the set vacuum level.

[0120] Step 43: Calculate the remaining production time n of the current forging station 041;

[0121] Step 44: Determine the remaining production time n and w at the current forging station 041. iThe time t taken for the mold of the task to reach the set temperature i The difference d; if d≥0, the control system sets a waiting time d for heating the mold. After the waiting time d, the control system controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold; if d<0, the control system directly controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold.

[0122] Step 45: After detecting that the mold has reached the mold changing temperature, stop heating;

[0123] Step 46: Turn off the vacuum pump unit of the corresponding preheating and cooling station, and disconnect w i The task mold changing unit and the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump set, cooling water, heating lines and compressed air pipelines;

[0124] Step 47: Determine if the forging station 041 is available. If forging station 041 is available, then... i The task is associated with the mold-changing unit, and w i The task's mold-changing unit moves along slide rail 042 to forging station 041; if forging station 041 is not available, steps 41-47 are repeated until forging station 041 is available.

[0125] It should be noted that even if the die-changing unit has been preheated to the die-changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station, there will still be temperature loss during the waiting and transfer along slide rail 042. Before forging, it needs to be reheated to the set forging temperature.

[0126] Step 5: Determine if i+1 is greater than M. If i+1 is less than or equal to M, proceed to Step 6.

[0127] If i+1 is greater than M, then i=M, indicating that w M The task mode-changing unit has been preheated; only w needs to be adjusted. M The task-oriented die-changing unit is forged; specifically: w i The task mold-changing unit moves along slide rail 042 to forging station 041 and performs forging. After forging is completed, control w i The task mold-changing unit moves along the slide rail to an idle preheating and cooling station, waiting for the w to be removed from the forging station. i After the die-changing unit cools down, the die is removed, and the forging process is complete.

[0128] Step Six, w i The task die-changing unit performs hot die making and forging at forging station 041, while simultaneously changing the w... i+1 The mission is in pre-launch preparation.

[0129] Among them, participants Figure 4 w i The steps for hot die making and forging at forging station 041 in the task's die-changing unit are as follows:

[0130] Step 611: Close the sixth gate valve 156, connect w i The die-changing unit of the task is connected to the vacuum pump set, cooling water pipeline, heating line and compressed air pipeline at forging station 041. i The task's mold changing unit and material supply components; open the first gate valve at forging station 041 to connect the vacuum pump unit to the forging chamber; after evacuating the forging chamber, heat the mold to the set temperature;

[0131] Step 612: Use the isothermal material supply assembly to supply billets at the set temperature to the forging chamber of forging station 041; this is specifically achieved through the following methods:

[0132] Step 6121: Close the fourth gate valve corresponding to all preheating chambers, the fifth gate valve 155 and the third gate valve 121 corresponding to the inlet and outlet chambers 122, so that all preheating chambers and inlet and outlet chambers 122 are in a closed state;

[0133] Step 6122: Activate the sixth vacuum pump group 14 to evacuate the material transfer channel 154 to the set vacuum level, and start the fourth vacuum pump group 08 to evacuate the preheating chamber to the set vacuum level.

[0134] Step 6123: Inflate the inlet / outlet chamber 122 to reach the atmospheric environment, open the third gate valve 121, use the robot arm I11 to load the billet from the material platform 10 into the inlet / outlet chamber 122, close the third gate valve 121, start the fifth vacuum pump group 13, and evacuate the inlet / outlet chamber 122 to the set vacuum level.

[0135] Step 6124: Open the fifth gate valve 155, and after the robotic arm II 16 in the material transfer channel 154 takes out the billet in the material inlet / outlet chamber 122, close the fifth gate valve 155.

[0136] Step 6125: Open the fourth gate valve of an empty preheating chamber, feed the billet into the preheating chamber by the robot arm II16, and then close the fourth gate valve;

[0137] Step 6126: The control system starts the heating system in the preheating chamber to heat the billet according to the aforementioned forging process until the billet is heated to the set temperature; at the same time, the mold in the forging chamber is heated to the set temperature.

[0138] Since the mold heating time is much longer than the billet heating time, the mold in the forging chamber is actually heating up during the entire billet transfer and heating process, and the mold and billet can reach the working temperature at the same time in the end.

[0139] Step 6127: Open the fourth gate valve of the preheating chamber, take out the preheated billet by the robot arm II 16, close the fourth gate valve, open the sixth gate valve 156 and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at forging station 041, transfer the preheated billet that has reached the set temperature to the forging chamber by the robot arm II 16, and close the sixth gate valve 156 and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at forging station 041.

[0140] Step 613: Forging is carried out in the forging chamber of the forging station to form a forging;

[0141] Step 614: Remove the forging. Specifically: Open the sixth gate valve 156 and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at forging station 041; remove the forging using robot arm II 16; close the sixth gate valve 156 and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at forging station 041; open the fifth gate valve 155; robot arm II 16 transfers the forging to the inlet / outlet chamber 122; close the fifth gate valve 155; inlet / outlet chamber 122 is filled with atmospheric pressure; open the third gate valve 121; remove the forging using robot arm I 11; close the third gate valve 121.

[0142] Step 615: Repeat steps 612 to 614 to complete the forging of the same type of forging in sequence;

[0143] Step 616: Close the sixth gate valve 156 and the second gate valve at forging station 041, close the vacuum pump unit at forging station 041, and disconnect w i The task's die-changing unit is connected to the vacuum pump unit, cooling water pipeline, heating line, and compressed air pipeline at forging station 041 to complete w i Disengagement of the mold changing unit;

[0144] See appendix Figure 5 The aforementioned w i+1 The steps for preparing for the mission are as follows:

[0145] Step 621: Place w i+1 The task is associated with the corresponding mold-changing unit;

[0146] Step 622: Connect w i+1 The task mold changing unit, along with the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump group, cooling water, heating lines, and compressed air pipelines, opens the first gate valve to evacuate the forging chamber of the mold changing unit to the set vacuum level.

[0147] Step 623: Calculate the remaining production time n of the current forging station 041;

[0148] Step 624: Determine the remaining production time n and w at the current forging station 041. i+1 The time t taken for the mold of the task to reach the set temperature i+1The difference d; if d≥0, the control system sets a waiting time d for heating the mold. After the waiting time d, the control system controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold; if d<0, the control system directly controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold.

[0149] Step 625: After detecting that the mold has reached the mold changing temperature, stop heating;

[0150] Step 626: Turn off the vacuum pump unit of the corresponding preheating and cooling station, and disconnect w i+1 The task mold changing unit and the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump set, cooling water, heating lines and compressed air pipelines;

[0151] Step 7, w i Task mold changing unit forging completed and w i+1 After the task mold changing unit has finished preheating, the control unit moves along the slide rail to an idle preheating and cooling station, where the preheated mold changing unit is moved. i+1 The task mold-changing unit moves to the forging station for forging;

[0152] Specifically, w i At the same time as the task mold changing unit forging is completed, w i+1 The task mold-changing unit has completed preheating;

[0153] Step 8: Wait for the w to be moved out of the forging workshop. i After the mold-changing unit cools down, the mold is removed and replaced. Specifically, when the temperature of the mold is detected to be less than or equal to 400°C, the forging chamber is backfilled with air, and the conditions for mold replacement are met. The mold can then be replaced in preparation for the next task.

[0154] Step 9: Let i = i + 1, and determine whether i is greater than M;

[0155] If i is greater than M, it means that all M tasks have been completed and the forging is finished;

[0156] If i is less than or equal to M, it means that M tasks have not been completed; repeat steps five to nine until i is greater than M, and all forging tasks are completed.

[0157] Using the above method for vacuum isothermal forging, the die-changing temperature can reach 1300 degrees Celsius, and the vacuum degree in the forging chamber can be less than 100 Pa. Under the premise of ensuring the quality of vacuum isothermal forgings, continuous production of forgings can be realized, and forging efficiency can be improved.

[0158] In summary, the above are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment, characterized in that, include: The system includes a hydraulic press, N worktables, slide rails, an isothermal material supply assembly, and N+1 vacuum pump units. Where N≥2, and N is a natural number; One side of the hydraulic press is adjacent to the isothermal material supply component, and the other side is equipped with a slide rail; All N worktables are mounted on slide rails, and each worktable can move along the slide rails; N preheating and cooling stations are set on the slide rails; Each workbench is equipped with a forging chamber; the forging chamber is equipped with a mold and a heating unit; the heating unit is used to heat the mold; each forging chamber is equipped with a first gate valve and a second gate valve; the first gate valve is used to connect to the corresponding vacuum pump group, and the second gate valve is used to connect to the isothermal material supply assembly in a vacuum. During isothermal forging, one worktable moves along the slide rail to the bottom of the hydraulic press and is vacuum connected to the isothermal material supply assembly; at this time, the worktable at the bottom of the hydraulic press is located at the forging station; the other worktables are located at their respective preheating and cooling stations. Vacuum pump units are installed one-to-one at N preheating and cooling stations and forging stations to evacuate the forging chambers of the corresponding workbenches.

2. The large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The isothermal material supply assembly includes a material platform, robot arm I, inlet and outlet chambers, material transfer channel, one or more preheating chambers, robot arm II, a fifth vacuum pump group and a sixth vacuum pump group; The material table and robot arm I are located in the atmospheric environment. Robot arm I is used to pick up the billet on the material table and transfer it to the loading and unloading chamber, and to pick up the formed forging from the loading and unloading chamber and transfer it to the material table, so as to realize the transfer of billet and forging. The inlet and outlet chambers are connected to the material transfer channel. The inlet and outlet chambers are equipped with a fifth gate valve and a third gate valve. The fifth gate valve is located between the inlet and outlet chambers and the material transfer channel. The third gate valve is located on one side wall of the inlet / outlet chamber to isolate the inlet / outlet chamber from the atmospheric environment; when the third gate valve is opened, robot arm I can enter the inlet / outlet chamber through the third gate valve. The fifth vacuum pump unit is connected to the inlet and outlet chambers and is used to evacuate the inlet and outlet chambers. One or more preheating chambers are connected to the material transfer channel, and a fourth gate valve is installed between each preheating chamber and the material transfer channel; the preheating chamber is used to heat the billet to the set temperature; The preheating chamber is connected to the fourth vacuum pump unit to evacuate the preheating chamber; Robotic arm II is installed in the material transfer channel and is used to transfer blanks and forgings in the vacuum. The sixth vacuum pump unit is connected to the material transfer channel and is used to evacuate the material transfer channel.

3. The large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment as described in claim 2, characterized in that, One or more preheating chambers are connected to a fourth vacuum pump unit.

4. A continuous production method, based on the large-scale multi-table vacuum isothermal forging equipment described in claim 3, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Step 1: The control system sets the billet size and forging process required for this production task, and determines the number M of dies required for forgings, where M≥2 and M is a natural number; Step two, task sequencing for the mold, where the i-th mold task corresponds to a task number w i , i = 1, …, M, execute the tasks in order; Step 3: According to the task sequence, pre-assemble the corresponding forging chamber, mold and workbench to form two or more mold changing units based on the billet size and forging process of the forgings in the earlier tasks. Step four, when i = 1, judge whether the forging station is empty, if the forging station is empty, w i The task is associated with the die changing unit, w i The die changing unit of the task moves along the slide rail to the forging station; if the forging station is not empty, w i The die changing unit of the task is preheated to the die changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station until the forging station is empty, w i The die changing unit of the task moves along the slide rail to the forging station; Step 5: Determine if i+1 is greater than M. If i+1 is less than or equal to M, proceed to Step 6. If i+1 is greater than M, w i The task die changing unit moves along the slide rail to the forging station and performs forging. After the forging is completed, w i The task die changing unit moves along the slide rail to the idle preheating and cooling station and waits for w i After the task die changing unit is cooled, the die is taken out, and the forging is completed; Step six, w i The task die changing unit performs hot die and forging at the forging station while preheating the w i+1 task; the w i The task die changing unit performs hot die and forging at the forging station while preheating the w Step 611: Close the sixth gate valve and connect w i The die-changing unit of the task is connected to the vacuum pump group, cooling water pipeline, heating line and compressed air pipeline at the forging station. i The task involves the mold changing unit and material supply components; opening the first gate valve at the forging station to connect the vacuum pump unit to the forging chamber; evacuating the forging chamber and then heating the mold to the set temperature. Step 612: Use the isothermal material supply assembly to supply billets at a set temperature to the forging chamber of the forging station; Step 613: Forging is carried out in the forging chamber of the forging station to form a forging; Step 614: Remove the forging; Step 615: Repeat steps 612 to 614 to complete the forging of the same type of forging in sequence; Step 616: Close the sixth gate valve and the second gate valve at the forging station, close the vacuum pump unit at the forging station, and disconnect w i The task's die-changing unit is connected to the vacuum pump unit, cooling water pipeline, heating line, and compressed air pipeline at the forging station to complete w i Disengagement of the mold changing unit; Step 7, w i Task mold changing unit forging completed and w i+1 After the task mold changing unit has preheated, control w i The task mold changing unit moves along the slide rail to an idle preheating and cooling station, where the preheated mold will be changed. i+1 The task mold-changing unit moves to the forging station for forging; Step 8: Wait for the w to be moved out of the forging workshop. i After the mold changing unit cools down, the mold is removed and replaced. Step 9: Let i = i + 1, and determine whether i is greater than M; If i is greater than M, forging ends; If i is less than or equal to M, repeat steps five through nine until i is greater than M, thus completing all forging tasks.

5. The continuous production method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, In step six, the step of w i+1 The steps for preparing for the mission are as follows: Step 621: Place w i+1 The task is associated with the corresponding mold-changing unit; Step 622: Connect w i+1 The task mold changing unit, along with the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump group, cooling water, heating lines, and compressed air pipelines, opens the first gate valve to evacuate the forging chamber of the mold changing unit to the set vacuum level. Step 623: Calculate the remaining production time n at the current forging station; Step 624: Determine the remaining production time n and w at the current forging station. i+1 The time t taken for the mold of the task to reach the set temperature i+1 The difference d; if d≥0, the control system sets a waiting time d for heating the mold. After the waiting time d, the control system controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold; if d<0, the control system directly controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold. Step 625: After detecting that the mold has reached the mold changing temperature, stop heating; Step 626: Turn off the vacuum pump unit of the corresponding preheating and cooling station, and disconnect w i+1 The task mold changing unit is equipped with vacuum pump sets, cooling water, heating lines and compressed air pipelines for the corresponding preheating and cooling stations.

6. A continuous production method as described in claim 4 or 5, characterized in that, In step four, if the forging station is not available, w i The die-changing unit of the task preheats to the die-changing temperature at the preheating and cooling station until the forging station is empty, then w i The steps for the mold-changing unit to move along the slide rail to the forging station are as follows: Step 41: Place w i The task is associated with the corresponding mold-changing unit; Step 42: Connect w i The task mold changing unit, along with the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump group, cooling water, heating lines, and compressed air pipelines, opens the first gate valve to evacuate the forging chamber of the mold changing unit to the set vacuum level. Step 43: Calculate the remaining production time n at the current forging station; Step 44: Determine the remaining production time n and w at the current forging station. i The time t taken for the mold of the task to reach the set temperature i The difference d; if d≥0, the control system sets a waiting time d for heating the mold. After the waiting time d, the control system controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold; if d<0, the control system directly controls the heating circuit and heating part to heat the mold. Step 45: After detecting that the mold has reached the mold changing temperature, stop heating; Step 46: Turn off the vacuum pump unit of the corresponding preheating and cooling station, and disconnect w i The task mold changing unit and the corresponding preheating and cooling station's vacuum pump set, cooling water, heating lines and compressed air pipelines; Step 47: Determine if the forging station is available. If the forging station is available, move w... i The task is associated with the mold-changing unit, and w i The task's die-changing unit moves along the slide rail to the forging station; if the forging station is not available, steps 41-47 are repeated until the forging station becomes available.

7. The continuous production method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, In step 612, the steps for providing billets at a set temperature to the forging chamber of the forging station using the isothermal material supply assembly are as follows: Step 6121: Close the fourth gate valve corresponding to all preheating chambers, and the fifth gate valve and third gate valve corresponding to the inlet and outlet chambers, so that all preheating chambers and inlet and outlet chambers are in a closed state; Step 6122: Activate the sixth vacuum pump group to evacuate the material transfer channel to the set vacuum level, and start the fourth vacuum pump group to evacuate the preheating chamber to the set vacuum level; Step 6123: Inflate the inlet and outlet chambers to reach the atmospheric environment, open the third gate valve, use the robot arm I to load the billet from the material platform into the inlet and outlet chambers, close the third gate valve, start the fifth vacuum pump group, and evacuate the inlet and outlet chambers to the set vacuum level; Step 6124: Open the fifth gate valve, and after the robotic arm II in the material transfer channel takes out the billet from the material inlet and outlet chamber, close the fifth gate valve. Step 6125: Open the fourth gate valve of an empty preheating chamber, and after feeding the billet into the preheating chamber by the robot arm II, close the fourth gate valve; Step 6126: The control system starts the heating system in the preheating chamber to heat the billet according to the forging process described above until the billet is heated to the set temperature. Step 6127: Open the fourth gate valve of the preheating chamber, take out the preheated billet using robot arm II, close the fourth gate valve, open the sixth gate valve and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at the forging station, transfer the preheated billet that has reached the set temperature to the forging chamber using robot arm II, and close the sixth gate valve and the second gate valve of the forging chamber at the forging station.

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