Multi-material tubular beam hot air expansion and die-casting injection molding integrated forming flexible production line system

Abstract

According to the multi-material pipe beam hot air expansion and die-casting injection molding integrated forming flexible production line system, various devices needed by related processes of hot air expansion, metal die casting and non-metal injection molding are organically integrated, and production line recombination can be flexibly and rapidly completed according to the design target; and the requirements of small-batch and flexible production of advanced tubular beam components are met. By designing and optimizing the automatic feeding and discharging path of the system, efficient transferring and accurate positioning of workpieces can be achieved, and the automation level and the production efficiency of the whole production process are remarkably improved. The flexible production line system can be used for manufacturing a mixed material complex structure tubular beam comprising a high-structural-strength main body and light metal and non-metal components, the high strength and light weight index requirements of current vehicle body structural components can be met, and the manpower and material resource cost in large-scale production can be greatly reduced.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application belongs to the technical field of vehicle body structure component processing and manufacturing equipment, and particularly relates to a flexible production line system for hot air expansion and die casting injection molding integrated forming of a multi-material pipe beam. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the increasing demand for lightweight and high-integration vehicle body structure components in new energy vehicles, multi-material composite pipe beam structures made of metal (such as ultra-high strength steel, aluminum alloy) and engineering plastic (such as PA6, PPS, etc.) have become an industry trend. However, the existing manufacturing technology suitable for such pipe beams still has many defects, which limits the product performance, quality and batch production efficiency, for example: the current multi-process involved in composite pipe beams relies on independent and dispersed equipment and stations, the whole production line occupies a large area, and when the process is switched, the mold, fixture and other equipment need to be disassembled and positioned repeatedly, which not only makes the production process long but also is not conducive to ensuring the precision and consistency of the products. The equipment used in processes such as die casting, injection molding and hot air expansion generally only has a single function, and when the product demand and process flow sequence change, heavy production line reorganization and debugging work is faced, which cannot adapt to the small batch and flexible production requirements of some advanced parts products. The shortcomings of the current relatively discrete production line organization form are also reflected in that the surface state (such as cleanliness, temperature, activity) of the metal semi-finished product often changes unexpectedly during transfer between equipment, especially the surface oxidation phenomenon can seriously weaken the bonding strength between dissimilar materials, and the existing production line with low automation degree is obviously insufficient to overcome this problem, resulting in high labor and material costs in manufacturing. SUMMARY

[0003] Therefore, in view of the technical problems existing in the field, the present application provides a flexible production line system for hot air expansion and die casting injection molding integrated forming of a multi-material pipe beam, which is composed of a multi-process mixed forming main equipment located at the center of the production line and a submerged melting furnace, a soup machine, a semi-solid pulper, a spraying system, a heating system, a quenching system, an air expansion system, a feeding system, an air cooling system, a slag removal system, a discharging system, a mold temperature control system, a vacuum system and an electrical control system arranged around the multi-process mixed forming main equipment.

[0004] The multi-process mixed forming main equipment includes four modules: a mold clamping system, a rack, a metal compression system and a non-metal injection system. The rack is used to support and fix each component unit of the production line. The mold clamping system is used to perform mold opening and closing, cooperate with the metal compression system to perform die casting forming to obtain a metal component pipe beam, and cooperate with the non-metal injection system to perform injection molding to obtain a mixed material pipe beam coated with a non-metal component. The mold clamping system is also used to perform hot air expansion forming process of high-strength materials such as steel and aluminum alloy pipe blanks.

[0005] Immersion furnaces are used to heat metal raw materials for die casting, melting them to form a slurry; slurry feeders are used to supply the slurry to the die-casting system or to a semi-solid pulping machine for processing.

[0006] A semi-solid pulping machine is used to form a semi-solid pulp with predetermined rheological properties and microstructure, which is then supplied to the mold-closing system by a slurry feeder.

[0007] The spraying system includes a robot and atomizing nozzles, which are used to spray atomized release agent onto the surface of the mold cavity according to a preset program, simultaneously achieving multiple functions including release agent coating, mold temperature control and cavity cleaning;

[0008] The heating system is used to heat the tube beam during the hot gas expansion process;

[0009] The quenching system is connected to the inside of the mold through a cooling medium channel to form a cooling circulation system, which is used to absorb the heat of the tube beam through the cooling medium after completing various forming processes, so as to achieve efficient cooling and quenching.

[0010] The air expansion system includes a tube beam sealing device and a high-pressure expansion medium supply system. The tube beam sealing device is used to seal the end of the tube beam to be expanded in the mold cavity, and the high-pressure expansion medium supply system is used to inject expansion fluid medium into the inner cavity of the tube beam. Together, they cause the tube beam to plastically deform and fit into the inner wall of the mold, thus obtaining the tube beam body with the predetermined structure.

[0011] The feeding system includes a feeding fixture and a robot; the feeding fixture is used to place the tube beam blank; the robot is used to automatically identify and grab the tube beam blank from the fixture, accurately position the blank to be placed in the mold, and feed the tube beam blank into the mold according to a predetermined trajectory.

[0012] The air-cooling system is used to cool the die-cast tubular beam skeleton;

[0013] The slag removal system is used to remove the tube beam skeleton from the mold and perform post-processing to remove the slag and slag formed during die casting and injection molding.

[0014] The unloading system is used to automatically receive the pipe beam skeleton after it has been processed by the slag bag removal system, and convey it to the inspection table or unloading station for quality inspection or other subsequent processing steps.

[0015] Mold temperature control systems are used to heat or cool the mold to provide the temperature environment required for the die casting process;

[0016] Vacuum systems are used in the die-casting process to help remove gas from the mold cavity and reduce the back pressure of the cavity;

[0017] The electric control system is used for providing power for other modules in the flexible production line system and controlling the operation of the modules.

[0018] Further, the submerged melting furnace specifically comprises a furnace body, a submerged heater, an intelligent temperature control system and a degassing and purification unit; the furnace body is used for storing metal molten slurry; the submerged heater is arranged at the bottom of the furnace body and is used for heating the metal in the furnace body under the control of the intelligent temperature control system, so as to make the slurry generate strong convection while keeping the temperature of the slurry stable, and remove hydrogen and dross in the slurry in cooperation with the degassing and purification unit.

[0019] Further, the slurry feeding machine specifically comprises a mechanical arm, a molten slurry spoon and a control unit; the molten slurry spoon is arranged at the end of the mechanical arm, and the mechanical arm can drive the molten slurry spoon to scoop the slurry provided by the submerged melting furnace or the semi-solid slurry maker under the control of the control unit, and send the slurry to the mold closing system according to a pre-planned path for direct die casting forming, or first send the slurry to the semi-solid slurry maker for processing and then send the slurry to the mold closing system for die casting forming.

[0020] Further, the semi-solid slurry maker specifically comprises a high-strength shearing unit and a rapid cooling module; the high-strength shearing unit is used for stirring or vibrating the slurry, and the rapid cooling module is used for controlling the temperature of the slurry, and the high-strength shearing unit and the rapid cooling module jointly act to finally form semi-solid slurry with predetermined rheological properties and microstructure.

[0021] Further, the heating system specifically adopts a low-voltage high-current direct current power supply and electrodes arranged at both ends of the pipe beam to form a loop, and the pipe beam realizes self-resistance heating by energization.

[0022] Further, the air cooling system specifically comprises a fan array and an air cooling control unit; the fan array is used for forced convection cooling of the pipe beam skeleton after die casting; and the air cooling control unit is used for adjusting the air speed, air volume and cooling time of the fan array.

[0023] Further, the feeding system specifically comprises a conveying mechanism for automatically receiving and transferring the pipe beam and a workpiece positioning and identifying device.

[0024] Further, the mold temperature control system specifically adopts a circulating system composed of a heat exchanger, a heater, a pump set and a medium pipeline, and can realize heating and cooling of the mold through circulation of heat conducting oil or water and other media; the medium temperature, flow and pressure are all controlled by PID closed loop control.

[0025] Further, the vacuum system specifically comprises a vacuum pump, a vacuum valve, a vacuum pump and an exhaust passage communicated with the mold.

[0026] The multi-material pipe beam hot gas expansion and die casting injection integrated forming flexible production line system provided by the application integrates various devices required by the related processes of hot gas expansion, metal die casting and non-metal injection, can flexibly and quickly complete production line reorganization according to the design target, meets the requirements of advanced pipe beam component small batch and flexible production, and can realize efficient transfer and accurate positioning of the workpiece through the design and optimization of the automatic feeding and discharging path, thereby significantly improving the automation level and production efficiency of the whole production process. The flexible production line system can be used to manufacture mixed material complex structure pipe beams containing high structural strength main bodies and light metal and non-metal components, can meet the higher strength and light weight index requirements of the current vehicle body structure components, and can greatly reduce the labor and material costs in large-scale production. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 The overall structure of the system provided by the application is shown in the schematic diagram.

[0028] Figure 2 The optional right view of the three-dimensional structure of the system provided by the application is shown.

[0029] Figure 3 The optional left view of the three-dimensional structure of the system provided by the application is shown.

[0030] Figure 4 The optional pipe beam component processing flowchart executed based on the system provided by the application is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The technical solutions of the application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the application, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor fall within the scope of protection of the application.

[0032] The multi-material pipe beam hot gas expansion and die casting injection integrated forming flexible production line system provided by the application, as shown in Figures 1-3 The system is composed of a multi-element process mixed forming main body device 1 located at the center of the production line, an immersion melting furnace 2, a soup machine 3, a semi-solid pulping machine 4, a spraying system 5, a heating system 6, a quenching system 7, a gas expansion system 8, a feeding system 9, an air cooling system 10, a slag removal handle ladle system 11, a discharging system 12, a mold temperature control system 13, a vacuum system 14 and an electrical control system 15 arranged around the device 1.

[0033] The multi-process mixed forming main body device 1 comprises four modules of a mold closing system, a rack, a metal injection system and a non-metal injection system; the rack is used for supporting and fixing each component unit of the production line; the mold closing system is used for performing mold opening and closing, cooperating with the metal injection system to perform die casting forming to obtain a metal component pipe beam skeleton, and cooperating with the non-metal injection system to perform injection molding to obtain a mixed material pipe beam coated with a non-metal component; the mold closing system is also used for performing high structural strength pipe beam hot gas expansion forming process;

[0034] The immersion smelting furnace 2 is used for heating and melting metal raw materials for die casting to form a molten bath slurry; the bath feeding machine 3 is used for supplying the molten bath slurry to the mold closing system for die casting, or to the semi-solid slurry preparation machine 4 for processing;

[0035] The semi-solid slurry preparation machine 4 is used for forming a semi-solid slurry with predetermined rheological properties and microstructure, which is then supplied to the mold closing system by the bath feeding machine 3; when there is no special requirement for the slurry, the slurry provided by the immersion smelting furnace 2 can be directly supplied to the mold closing system by the bath feeding machine 3 without the processing process of the semi-solid slurry preparation machine 4;

[0036] The spraying system 5 comprises a robot and an atomizing nozzle, which is used for directing spraying of atomized release agent to the surface of the mold cavity according to a preset program, and simultaneously realizing multiple functions including release agent coating, mold temperature control and cavity cleaning; specifically, an isolation film is formed on the surface of the cavity to ensure smooth demolding of the casting; the mold is periodically cooled by using the heat absorption principle of liquid droplet vaporization to maintain thermal balance; the residues of the previous cycle are removed through fluid impact; by precisely controlling the spraying time, flow, trajectory and atomizing pressure, the system realizes efficient use of release agent and optimization of production rhythm while ensuring the surface quality of the casting and long-term use of the mold;

[0037] The heating system 6 is used for heating the pipe beam when performing the hot gas expansion process;

[0038] The quenching system 7 is in communication with the mold interior through a cooling medium flow channel and constitutes a cooling circulation system, which is used for absorbing the heat of the pipe beam through the cooling medium after completing various forming processes to realize efficient cooling and quenching;

[0039] The gas expansion system 8 comprises a pipe beam sealing device and a high-pressure expansion medium supply system; the pipe beam sealing device is used for plugging the end of the pipe beam to be expanded in the mold cavity; the high-pressure expansion medium supply system is used for injecting expansion fluid medium into the inner cavity of the pipe beam; the two work together to make the pipe beam plastically deform and fit the inner wall of the mold to obtain a pipe beam body with a predetermined structure;

[0040] The feeding system 9 comprises a feeding jig and a robot; the feeding jig is used for placing the pipe beam blank; the robot is used for automatically identifying and grabbing the pipe beam blank from the jig, accurately positioning the position of the blank to be placed in the mold, and feeding the pipe beam blank into the mold according to the predetermined trajectory;

[0041] The air cooling system 10 is used for cooling the pipe beam skeleton after the die casting is completed;

[0042] The de-burring and slag removal system 11 is used for taking out the pipe beam skeleton from the mold and performing the post-processing of removing the burr and slag;

[0043] The unloading system 12 is used for automatically receiving the pipe beam skeleton processed by the de-burring and slag removal system 11 and conveying to an inspection table or an unloading station for quality inspection or other subsequent processing steps;

[0044] The mold temperature control system 13 is used for heating or cooling the mold to provide a temperature environment required by the die casting process;

[0045] The vacuum system 14 is used for assisting in discharging the air and water vapor in the paint in the mold cavity in the die casting process, effectively reducing the back pressure of the cavity, thereby reducing the porosity defect inside the casting, improving the filling flowability, and improving the density and mechanical properties of the material;

[0046] The electrical control system 15 is used for providing power to other modules in the flexible production line system and controlling the work of the modules.

[0047] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the submerged melting furnace 2 specifically comprises a furnace body, a submerged heater, an intelligent temperature control system, and a degassing and purification unit; the furnace body is used for storing the metal molten slurry; the submerged heater is arranged at the bottom of the furnace body and is used for heating the metal in the furnace body under the control of the intelligent temperature control system, maintaining the temperature of the slurry stable while making it generate strong convection, and removing hydrogen and dross in the slurry with the cooperation of the degassing and purification unit.

[0048] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the slurry feeding machine 3 specifically comprises a mechanical arm, a molten slurry spoon, and a control unit; the molten slurry spoon is arranged at the end of the mechanical arm, and the mechanical arm can drive the molten slurry spoon to scoop the slurry provided by the submerged melting furnace 2 or the semi-solid slurry maker 4 under the control of the control unit, and send it to the mold closing system according to the pre-planned path to directly perform the die casting forming, or first send it to the semi-solid slurry maker 4 to process the slurry and then send it to the mold closing system for die casting forming.

[0049] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the semi-solid slurry maker 4 specifically comprises a high-strength shearing unit and a rapid cooling module; the high-strength shearing unit is used for stirring or vibrating the slurry, so that the received liquid aluminum liquid rapidly reaches the solid-liquid two-phase region under accurate temperature control, and the primary dendrites are broken under the shearing action to promote the uniform formation of spherical or near-spherical non-dendritic α-Al phase; the rapid cooling module is used for controlling the temperature of the slurry, and the high-strength shearing unit and the rapid cooling module work together to finally form a semi-solid slurry with predetermined rheological properties and microstructure.

[0050] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the heating system 6 specifically adopts a low-voltage high-current direct current power supply and electrodes arranged at both ends of the pipe beam to form a loop, and the pipe beam is heated by self-resistance when the circuit is powered on.

[0051] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the air cooling system 10 specifically includes a fan array and an air cooling control unit; the fan array is used for forced convection cooling of the pipe beam skeleton completed by die casting; and the air cooling control unit is used for adjusting the air speed, air volume and cooling time of the fan array.

[0052] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the blanking system 12 specifically consists of a conveying mechanism (conveying belt, gantry robot, six-axis robot, etc.) for automatically receiving and transporting the pipe beam and a workpiece positioning and recognition device, which can ensure continuous, efficient and unmanned operation of the production line.

[0053] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the mold temperature control system 13 specifically adopts a circulating system consisting of a heat exchanger, a heater, a pump set and a medium pipeline, which can realize heating and cooling of the mold through circulation of heat-conducting oil or water and the like, and the medium temperature, flow and pressure are all controlled by PID closed loop control, so that the surface temperature of the mold cavity can be stably maintained within the set range required by the process (usually 150-300℃), and functions such as balanced mold temperature, reduced thermal stress and stable filling process can be realized, thereby significantly improving the internal quality and surface integrity of the castings.

[0054] In a preferred embodiment of the present application, the vacuum system 14 specifically consists of a vacuum pump, a vacuum valve, a vacuum pump and an exhaust duct in communication with the mold.

[0055] Figure 4 A preferred process flow for manufacturing a mixed material pipe beam skeleton using the flexible production line system provided by the present application is shown in FIG. 6, in which the corresponding hot gas expansion, metal die casting and non-metal injection molding processes can be flexibly selected according to the design requirements of the pipe beam component. The gas expansion process can be used to manufacture a pipe beam body made of high-strength steel, and then sequentially perform die casting of light aluminum and injection molding of plastics, carbon fiber and the like, to finally obtain a mixed material pipe beam component product, which can ensure structural strength while achieving better light weight. The present application can also quickly and efficiently realize production line reorganization according to the characteristics of different products, thereby significantly reducing the cost of manpower and resources while ensuring processing precision and product quality.

[0056] It should be understood that the sequence numbers of the steps in the embodiments of the present application do not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of the processes should be determined according to their functions and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0057] While embodiments of the application have been shown and described, it is to be understood that the embodiments described are merely exemplary of the principles and application of the present application. Numerous modifications and adaptions can be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application, which is not limited to the exact construction and arrangement described. It is intended, therefore, to cover all modifications and adaptions that fall within the scope of the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A flexible production line system for the integrated forming of hot gas expansion and die-casting injection of a multi-material pipe beam, characterized by: The multi-process mixed forming main body device located at the center of the production line and the surrounding immersion melting furnace, soup machine, semi-solid pulper, spraying system, heating system, quenching system, gas inflation system, feeding system, air cooling system, handle slag removal package system, discharging system, mold temperature control system, vacuum system and electrical control system are composed of; The multi-process mixed forming main body device includes four modules of mold closing system, rack, metal pressure injection system and non-metal injection system; the rack is used for supporting and fixing each component unit of the production line; the mold closing system is used for opening and closing the mold, cooperating with the metal pressure injection system to perform die casting forming to obtain a metal component pipe beam skeleton, and cooperating with the non-metal injection system to perform injection molding to obtain a mixed material pipe beam coated with a non-metal component; the mold closing system is also used for performing a hot gas inflation forming process; The immersion melting furnace is used for heating the metal raw material for die casting to melt the metal raw material into a molten soup slurry; the soup machine is used for supplying the molten soup slurry to the mold closing system for die casting or to the semi-solid pulper for processing; The semi-solid pulper is used for forming a semi-solid slurry with predetermined rheological properties and microstructure, and then the semi-solid pulper is supplied to the mold closing system by the soup machine; The spraying system includes a robot and an atomizing nozzle, which is used for directing the atomized release agent to the mold cavity surface according to a preset program, and synchronously realizing multiple functions including release agent coating, mold temperature control and cavity cleaning; The heating system is used for heating the pipe beam when performing the hot gas inflation process; The quenching system is in communication with the mold interior through a cooling medium flow channel and constitutes a cooling circulation system, which is used for absorbing the heat of the pipe beam by the cooling medium after completing each forming process, so as to realize efficient cooling and quenching; The inflation system includes a pipe beam sealing device and a high-pressure inflation medium supply system, the pipe beam sealing device is used for sealing the end of the pipe beam to be inflated in the mold cavity, and the high-pressure inflation medium supply system is used for injecting inflation fluid medium into the pipe beam cavity, which together makes the pipe beam plastic deformation and fits the mold inner wall to obtain a pipe beam body with a predetermined structure; The feeding system includes a feeding jig and a robot; the feeding jig is used for placing the pipe beam blank; the robot is used for automatically identifying and grabbing the pipe beam blank from the jig, accurately positioning the position of the blank to be placed in the mold, and feeding the pipe beam blank into the mold according to the predetermined trajectory; The air cooling system is used for cooling the pipe beam skeleton after die casting; The handle slag removal package system is used for taking out the pipe beam skeleton from the mold and performing the post-processing of removing the handle and slag package; The discharging system is used for automatically receiving the pipe beam skeleton processed by the handle slag removal package system, and conveying the pipe beam skeleton to an inspection table or a discharging station for quality inspection or other subsequent processing steps; The mold temperature control system is used for heating or cooling the mold to provide a temperature environment required by the die casting process; The vacuum system is used for assisting in discharging the gas in the mold cavity and reducing the back pressure of the cavity during the die casting process; The electrical control system is used for providing power to other modules in the flexible production line system and controlling the work of each module.

2. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas expansion and integrated die-cast injection-molding flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The immersion smelting furnace specifically comprises a furnace body, an immersion heater, an intelligent temperature control system and a degassing and purification unit; the furnace body is used for storing metal melt slurry; the immersion heater is arranged at the bottom of the furnace body and is used for heating the metal in the furnace body under the control of the intelligent temperature control system, so as to make the slurry generate strong convection while keeping the temperature of the slurry stable, and remove hydrogen and dross in the slurry in cooperation with the degassing and purification unit.

3. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The soup feeding machine specifically comprises a mechanical arm, a melt soup spoon and a control unit; the melt soup spoon is arranged at the end of the mechanical arm, and the mechanical arm can drive the melt soup spoon to scoop the slurry provided by the immersion smelting furnace or the semi-solid slurry maker under the control of the control unit, and send the slurry to the mold closing system for direct die casting forming according to a pre-planned path, or send the slurry to the semi-solid slurry maker for processing and then to the mold closing system for die casting forming.

4. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The semi-solid slurry maker specifically comprises a high-strength shearing unit and a rapid cooling module; the high-strength shearing unit is used for stirring or vibrating the slurry; and the rapid cooling module is used for controlling the temperature of the slurry, and together with the high-strength shearing unit, finally forms semi-solid slurry with predetermined rheological properties and microstructure.

5. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The heating system specifically adopts a low-voltage high-current direct current power supply and electrodes arranged at both ends of the pipe beam to form a loop, and the pipe beam realizes self-resistance heating after being electrified.

6. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The air cooling system specifically comprises a fan array and an air cooling control unit; the fan array is used for forced convection cooling of the pipe beam skeleton after die casting; and the air cooling control unit is used for adjusting the air speed, air volume and cooling time of the fan array.

7. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The unloading system specifically comprises a conveying mechanism for automatically receiving and transferring the pipe beam and a workpiece positioning and identifying device.

8. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The mold temperature control system specifically adopts a circulating system composed of a heat exchanger, a heater, a pump set and a medium pipeline, and can realize heating and cooling of the mold through medium circulation of heat conducting oil or water; the medium temperature, flow and pressure are all controlled by PID closed loop control.

9. The multi-material tubular beam hot-gas-pressure-and- transfer-molding integrated forming flexible production line system of claim 1, wherein: The vacuum system specifically comprises a vacuum pump, a vacuum valve, a vacuum pump and an exhaust passage communicated with the mold.

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