Energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automobile hot forming components
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- SUZHOU DONGBAO HAIXING METAL MATERIAL TECH CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2026-05-29
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-14
Smart Images
Figure CN122384479A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This invention relates to the field of industrial heating furnace technology, and in particular to an energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components. Background Technology
[0002] Hot-formed automotive components are mainly used in critical load-bearing and collision energy-absorbing areas of the passenger compartment, such as A and B pillars and body anti-collision beams. Since ordinary cold stamping cannot form ultra-high-strength steel, the production of such hot-formed components requires the use of industrial heating electric furnaces for heat treatment. The specific operation of existing electric furnaces is to heat boron steel with high hardness and elongation of <10% at room temperature to 900–950°C. At this time, the microstructure transforms into austenite, and the elongation increases to >40%, which can form complex curved surfaces. The heating process is carried out in a protective atmosphere furnace to prevent decarburization of the steel surface. The heated components are quickly transferred to a mold with a continuous air-cooling environment, and finally transformed into high-strength steel with much higher strength than cold-rolled steel.
[0003] For example, Chinese patent application number CN202211557302.X discloses an energy-saving heating furnace structure for heat treatment of profiles, including at least two heating furnaces and at least one cooling water tank. The heating furnace includes a frame, a furnace body, and a lifting and material-supporting mechanism, which not only reduces the floor space of a single unit, but also reduces heat leakage to lower energy consumption. However, when using this heating furnace structure, the components are placed directly on the traditional material rack, which completely blocks the lower surface and bottom irregular structure of the components. The heat source generated by the electric heating element inside the furnace can only heat the upper surface and exposed sides of the components. The bottom area of the components cannot receive heat radiation, which directly leads to a large temperature difference between the upper and lower surfaces and the inner and outer curved surfaces of the components. This uneven heating method will cause inconsistent heating rates and constant temperatures in different parts of the irregular components. Some areas will reach the temperature standard while others will not reach the temperature standard. Ultimately, the overall austenitization degree of the components will be extremely uneven, affecting the strength consistency of subsequent quenching processes. This will lead to problems such as local strength failure, uneven stress distribution, forming warping and deformation, and excessive dimensional deviations in the finished components. The product yield is low and cannot meet the high precision and high strength production standards of automotive safety components. Summary of the Invention
[0004] In view of this, the purpose of this invention is to propose an energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components, in order to solve the technical problem that when using the prior art, only the upper surface and exposed side of the component can be heated, while the bottom area of the component is blocked and cannot receive heat radiation, which directly leads to a large temperature difference between the upper and lower surfaces and the inner and outer curved surfaces of the component. This uneven heating method will cause the heating rate and constant temperature of different parts of the irregularly shaped component to be inconsistent.
[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides an energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components, comprising a furnace body and a heating device disposed on the inner wall of the furnace body. The interior of the furnace body is provided with a preheating zone, a heating zone, and a cooling zone distributed along the component conveying direction. Each of the preheating zone, heating zone, and cooling zone is connected by an openable door structure. The preheating zone is connected to the heating zone via an atmosphere circulation pipe. An atmosphere supply system is provided at the side end of the heating zone. The composite heating furnace further includes:
[0006] A conveyor frame installed inside the furnace body and movable along the conveying direction of the component body;
[0007] Several flipping seats are arranged opposite each other on the conveyor frame;
[0008] A clamping mechanism provided on the flipping seat is used for adaptive positioning and clamping of the component body;
[0009] A drive mechanism for driving the flipping seat to perform a flipping action.
[0010] Furthermore, the heating device is an electric heating radiant tube assembly, which is evenly distributed on the inner side wall and inner bottom wall of the furnace body.
[0011] Furthermore, the clamping mechanism includes:
[0012] A high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck is detachably mounted on the flip base, and the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck engages with the inner side of the component body;
[0013] A positioning post is provided at the side end of the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck, and the component body is installed on the positioning post by bolts;
[0014] Pressure plates are provided on both sides of the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck.
[0015] Furthermore, the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck is provided with adjusting arms on both sides, and the pressure plate is adjustablely mounted on the adjusting arms by bolts.
[0016] Furthermore, an elastic top plate is detachably provided on the end face of the pressure plate by means of bolts, and the elastic top plate cooperates with the end faces of the extension sections on both sides of the component body.
[0017] Furthermore, the drive mechanism includes:
[0018] A bidirectional electric cylinder and guide rail are mounted on the conveyor frame;
[0019] Mounting blocks are respectively installed at the output ends on both sides of the bidirectional electric cylinder;
[0020] A lever hinged to the mounting block, wherein two opposing levers are hinged to one mounting block;
[0021] A slider is slidably disposed on the guide rail, and two sliders are slidably disposed on one of the guide rails;
[0022] Rotate the connecting block on the slider, the toggle lever is slidably connected to the connecting block, and the side end of the flip seat is fixedly connected to the connecting block.
[0023] Furthermore, the top of the conveyor frame is provided with a receiving cavity, the bidirectional electric cylinder is installed in the receiving cavity, and the top of the receiving cavity is sealed by a heat insulation plate.
[0024] Furthermore, the bottom of the conveyor frame is provided with a heat transfer opening, and when the two output ends of the bidirectional electric cylinder are in an extended state, the projection of the component body in the vertical direction is placed within the range of the heat transfer opening.
[0025] Furthermore, both the flipping seat and the actuating lever are located on the side of the conveyor frame, and the flipping path of the component body is located outside the conveyor frame.
[0026] Furthermore, a flow regulation component is installed on the atmosphere circulation pipe, and the cooling zone is equipped with an air-cooled cooling component and a return air pipe, the return air pipe being connected to a heat exchange device outside the furnace body.
[0027] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows: In use, since each flipping seat is equipped with an adaptive clamping mechanism, it can adaptively fit and position the curved surface and variable cross-section structure of the irregular component, so that the component body is suspended in the air throughout the process without any bottom support or obstruction, completely avoiding the heating blind spot of traditional material racks. With the help of the drive mechanism, each set of flipping seats can be driven to perform a 0-90° flipping action relative to each other, driving the irregular component body to flip synchronously, realizing that the upper and lower surfaces and the inner cavity of the extension section on both sides of the component body are heated alternately, completely eliminating the overall temperature difference of the component body, and ensuring that the austenitization of the component body is fully uniform. Attached Figure Description
[0028] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in this invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only for this invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.
[0029] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention;
[0030] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the heating zone in this invention;
[0031] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the assembly of the component body and some structures in this invention;
[0032] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the conveyor frame in this invention;
[0033] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the assembly of the flipping seat and the drive mechanism in this invention;
[0034] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the assembly of the flipping seat and the clamping mechanism in this invention.
[0035] The diagram is marked as follows:
[0036] 1. Furnace body; 2. Heating device; 3. Component body; 4. Preheating zone; 5. Heating zone; 6. Cooling zone; 7. Door structure; 8. Atmosphere circulation pipeline; 9. Atmosphere supply system; 10. Conveyor frame; 11. Tilting seat; 12. High-temperature resistant ceramic chuck; 13. Positioning column; 14. Pressure plate; 15. Adjusting arm; 16. Elastic top plate; 17. Two-way electric cylinder; 18. Guide rail; 19. Mounting block; 20. Actuating rod; 21. Sliding block; 22. Connecting block; 23. Receiving cavity; 24. Heat insulation plate; 25. Heat transfer opening; 26. Flow regulation component; 27. Air-cooled cooling component; 28. Return air pipeline. Detailed Implementation
[0037] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments.
[0038] It should be noted that, unless otherwise defined, the technical or scientific terms used in this invention should have the ordinary meaning understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains. The terms "first," "second," and similar terms used in this invention do not indicate any order, quantity, or importance, but are merely used to distinguish different components. Terms such as "comprising" or "including" mean that the element or object preceding the word encompasses the elements or objects listed following the word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects. Terms such as "connected" or "linked" are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but can include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. Terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," and "right" are used only to indicate relative positional relationships; when the absolute position of the described object changes, the relative positional relationship may also change accordingly.
[0039] In a first aspect, the present invention provides an energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components, such as... Figure 1-6As shown, the furnace includes a furnace body 1 and a heating device 2 installed on the inner wall of the furnace body 1. The interior of the furnace body 1, along the conveying direction of the component body 3, has a preheating zone 4, a heating zone 5, and a cooling zone 6. Each of the three zones has an openable door structure 7. The preheating zone 4 is connected to the heating zone 5 via an atmosphere circulation pipe 8. An atmosphere supply system 9 is located at the side end of the heating zone 5. The composite heating furnace also includes:
[0040] A conveyor frame 10 is installed inside the furnace body 1 and can move along the conveying direction of the component body 3;
[0041] Several tilting seats 11 are positioned opposite each other on the conveyor frame 10;
[0042] A clamping mechanism is provided on the flipping seat 11 for adaptive positioning and clamping of the component body 3;
[0043] A drive mechanism for driving the flipping seat 11 to perform a flipping action.
[0044] In this embodiment, when in use, in the standby state of the equipment, the conveyor frame 10 moves to the loading station of the furnace body 1. The operator places the irregularly shaped component body 3 to be processed on the clamping mechanism on the flipping seat 11 to complete the suspended and unobstructed clamping and fixing of the component. After clamping, the conveyor frame 10 carries multiple sets of component bodies 3 into the furnace body 1 at a uniform speed. The bottom of the conveyor frame 10 is equipped with a servo linear conveying module, which can move back and forth at a uniform speed along the conveying direction of the component body 3 to realize automated station switching.
[0045] Specifically, the component body 3 first enters the preheating zone 4. The preheating zone 4 introduces the high-temperature residual heat atmosphere of the heating zone 5 through the atmosphere circulation pipe 8, and works with the heating device 2 to complete the low-temperature gradient preheating, eliminate the internal stress of the component body 3 during the temperature rise, and initially reduce the temperature difference between the thick and thin areas of the irregular component. After the preheating is completed, the component body 3 is transported into the heating zone 5, and the door structure 7 is closed to achieve cavity sealing.
[0046] At this time, the atmosphere supply system 9 continuously supplies a protective atmosphere. The atmosphere supply system 9 can continuously deliver high-purity nitrogen and other protective atmospheres into the heating zone 5. In conjunction with the component body 3 in a continuously rotating state, it can eliminate atmosphere dead corners and avoid high-temperature oxidation and decarburization at thin walls, curved surfaces, and corners of the irregularly shaped component body 3, ensuring uniform component material. The electric heating radiation tube group arranged throughout the furnace body 1 provides all-round radiation heating to the suspended component body 3. During the heating process, the drive mechanism drives the rotating seat 11 to rotate the component body 3, realizing alternating heating of the upper and lower surfaces and bottom irregularly shaped areas, smoothing out the temperature difference between the upper and lower parts of the component body 3, and ensuring uniform temperature of the component body 3 and sufficient and consistent austenitization reaction.
[0047] After the high-temperature isothermal austenitization is completed, the component body 3 is conveyed into the cooling zone 6, where the component body 3 is uniformly cooled by air cooling throughout the entire area, providing a precise temperature basis for subsequent quenching and forming. After cooling is completed, the conveyor frame 10 drives the component back to the unloading station, completing a single processing cycle, and waiting for unloading and the next loading operation.
[0048] In this embodiment, as Figure 2 As shown, the heating device 2 is an electric heating radiant tube assembly. The electric heating radiant tube assembly is evenly distributed on the inner side wall and inner bottom wall of the furnace body 1, forming a three-dimensional radiant heating environment without dead corners inside the furnace body 1, which is different from the structural defects of traditional equipment with single top heating and local heating.
[0049] In this embodiment, as Figure 6 As shown, the clamping mechanism includes:
[0050] The high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12, which is detachable and mounted on the flip base 11, is easy to disassemble and install, and is convenient for later wear, replacement and maintenance. The high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12 fits with the inner side of the component body 3, and only fits the narrow assembly reference position on the inner side of the component, maximizing the exposure of the core heating areas such as the upper and lower surfaces and curved side walls of the component, without large-area obstruction.
[0051] The positioning post 13 is located on the side of the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12. The component body 3 is installed on the positioning post 13 by bolts. The positioning post 13 has a reserved bolt assembly hole in the center. After the component body 3 is fitted and positioned with the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12, the component body 3 is fixed on the positioning post 13 by locking bolts to achieve the suspended foundation positioning and fixing of the component.
[0052] The pressure plates 14 located on both sides of the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12 provide lateral pressure and limitation from the extension sections on both sides of the component body 3. Together with the inner high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12 and the bottom positioning post 13, they form a multi-dimensional limiting structure, which makes the irregular component body 3 as a whole stably suspended in the air.
[0053] In this embodiment, as Figure 6 As shown, the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck 12 is provided with adjusting arms 15 on both sides. The pressure plate 14 is adjustable on the adjusting arms 15 by bolts. In actual production, the operator can loosen the fastening bolts and slide the pressure plate 14 left and right along the slide groove according to the width and side curvature of different irregular components. The clamping distance between the two pressure plates 14 can be flexibly adjusted to adapt to the clamping and fixing requirements of different specifications of automotive thermoformed component bodies 3. After the distance is finely adjusted, the bolts are tightened to fix the position of the pressure plate 14, ensuring the clamping stability of the component body 3 during high-temperature flipping, conveying and heating, while always maintaining a very small contact area and not obstructing the heating surface of the component body 3.
[0054] In this embodiment, as Figure 6As shown, an elastic top plate 16 is detachably provided on the end face of the pressure plate 14 by bolts. The elastic top plate 16 cooperates with the end faces of the extension sections on both sides of the component body 3. The elastic top plate 16 is made of high temperature resistant beryllium copper elastic alloy material, which has the characteristics of high temperature resistance, high elasticity, fatigue deformation resistance and wear resistance. When the irregular component body 3 is clamped and fixed in place, the elastic top plate 16 adapts to the slight irregular deviation and processing tolerance of the component end face by its own elasticity, realizes flexible clamping limit, completely eliminates the small gaps in rigid clamping, and prevents micro displacement and shaking during component heating and flipping.
[0055] In this embodiment, as Figure 5 As shown, the drive mechanism includes:
[0056] A bidirectional electric cylinder 17 and a guide rail 18 are mounted on the conveyor frame 10;
[0057] Mounting blocks 19 are respectively installed at the output ends on both sides of the bidirectional electric cylinder 17;
[0058] A lever 20 is hinged to a mounting block 19, and two opposing levers 20 are hinged to one mounting block 19;
[0059] Sliding sliders 21 are slidably mounted on guide rails 18; two sliders 21 are slidably mounted on one guide rail 18.
[0060] Rotate the connecting block 22 on the slider 21, the toggle lever 20 is slidably connected to the connecting block 22, and the side end of the flip seat 11 is fixedly connected to the connecting block 22;
[0061] Specifically, the output ends of the two sides of the bidirectional electric cylinder 17 extend outward or retract inward simultaneously, driving the mounting blocks 19 on both sides to move horizontally in opposite directions, pushing the hinged lever 20 to swing open or close. During the swinging process of the lever 20, the connecting block 22 and the slider 21 are driven to slide horizontally along the guide rail 18. At the same time, the lever 20 and the connecting block 22 slide relative to each other to adaptively offset the transmission displacement deviation, and finally drive the connecting block 22, the flipping seat 11 and the irregular component body 3 to complete a precise 90° flipping action.
[0062] In this embodiment, as Figure 3 , Figure 4 As shown, the top of the conveyor frame 10 is provided with a receiving cavity 23, and the bidirectional electric cylinder 17 is installed in the receiving cavity 23. The top of the receiving cavity 23 is sealed by a heat insulation plate 24, which can effectively isolate the high-temperature heat radiation and heat convection inside the furnace body 1, completely block the conduction of high-temperature heat to the receiving cavity 23, and make the bidirectional electric cylinder 17 work in a normal temperature constant temperature protection environment.
[0063] In this embodiment, as Figure 4As shown, the bottom of the conveyor frame 10 is provided with a heat transfer opening 25. When the output ends of the two sides of the bidirectional electric cylinder 17 are extended, the projection of the component body 3 in the vertical direction is placed within the range of the heat transfer opening 25. The high-temperature heat radiation generated by the heating device 2 arranged on the bottom wall of the furnace body 1 can be directly radiated to the bottom irregular curved surface, groove and thick wall area of the component body 3 without obstruction, blockage and loss through the heat transfer opening 25. With the help of the furnace body side wall heating structure, the bottom, side and top of the component are heated synchronously in all directions. With the help of the flipping mechanism, the temperature difference between the upper and lower surfaces is completely eliminated, ensuring that the temperature of the thick and thin areas, curved areas and concave and convex areas of the component body 3 is completely consistent, so that the austenitization reaction can proceed synchronously, fully and uniformly.
[0064] In this embodiment, as Figure 3 As shown, the flipping seat 11 and the toggle lever 20 are both placed on the side of the conveyor frame 10. The flipping path of the component body 3 is placed on the outside of the conveyor frame 10. During the entire flipping process, there is no positional overlap, no motion interference, and no rigid collision with the conveyor frame 10.
[0065] In this embodiment, as Figure 1 As shown, a flow regulation component 26 is installed on the atmosphere circulation pipe 8. The flow regulation component 26 can precisely control the flow rate, velocity and pressure of the circulating high-temperature atmosphere between the preheating zone 4 and the heating zone 5, thereby precisely adjusting the preheating temperature of the preheating zone 4 as needed. For the characteristics of complex irregular components with uneven thickness and different heating difficulty, the gradient preheating process is finely matched to avoid the temperature difference and internal stress caused by rapid high-temperature heating. The cooling zone 6 is equipped with an air-cooled cooling component 27 and a return air pipe 28. The return air pipe 28 is connected to the heat exchange equipment outside the furnace body 1. The high-temperature hot air generated in the cooling zone 6 can be transported to the external heat exchange equipment through the return air pipe 28 to realize waste heat recovery and heat exchange. The recovered waste heat can be returned to the preheating zone 4 for auxiliary preheating, furnace body insulation and other processes, maximizing the utilization of waste heat.
[0066] Those skilled in the art should understand that the discussion of any of the above embodiments is merely exemplary and is not intended to imply that the scope of the invention includes the claims being limited to these examples; within the framework of the invention, the technical features of the above embodiments or different embodiments can also be combined, the steps can be implemented in any order, and there are many other variations of the different aspects of the invention as described above, which are not provided in detail for the sake of brevity.
[0067] This invention is intended to cover all such substitutions, modifications, and variations that fall within the broad scope of the appended claims. Therefore, any omissions, modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this invention should be included within the scope of protection of this invention.
Claims
1. An energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components, comprising a furnace body (1) and a heating device (2) disposed on the inner wall of the furnace body (1), characterized in that, The interior of the furnace body (1) is provided with a preheating zone (4), a heating zone (5), and a cooling zone (6) distributed along the conveying direction of the component body (3). Each of the three zones has an openable door structure (7). The preheating zone (4) is connected to the heating zone (5) via an atmosphere circulation pipe (8). An atmosphere supply system (9) is provided at the side end of the heating zone (5). The composite heating furnace also includes: A conveyor frame (10) installed inside the furnace body (1) and movable along the conveying direction of the component body (3); Several flip seats (11) are disposed opposite to each other on the conveyor frame (10); A clamping mechanism provided on the flipping seat (11) is used for adaptive positioning and clamping of the component body (3); A drive mechanism for driving the flipping seat (11) to perform a flipping action.
2. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 1, characterized in that, The heating device (2) is an electric heating radiant tube assembly, which is evenly distributed on the inner side wall and inner bottom wall of the furnace body (1).
3. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 1, characterized in that, The clamping mechanism includes: A high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck (12) is detachably mounted on the flip seat (11), and the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck (12) is engaged with the inner side of the component body (3); A positioning post (13) is provided on the side end of the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck (12), and the component body (3) is installed on the positioning post (13) by bolts; Pressure plates (14) are provided on both sides of the high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck (12).
4. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 3, characterized in that, The high-temperature resistant ceramic chuck (12) is provided with adjusting arms (15) on both sides, and the pressure plate (14) is adjustablely mounted on the adjusting arms (15) by bolts.
5. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 3, characterized in that, The end face of the pressure plate (14) is provided with an elastic top plate (16) which is detachably provided by bolts. The elastic top plate (16) is matched with the end faces of the extension sections on both sides of the component body (3).
6. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 1, characterized in that, The drive mechanism includes: A bidirectional electric cylinder (17) and a guide rail (18) are mounted on the conveyor frame (10). Mounting blocks (19) are respectively installed at the output ends on both sides of the bidirectional electric cylinder (17); A lever (20) is hinged to the mounting block (19), and two opposing levers (20) are hinged to one mounting block (19). Sliding sliders (21) are slidably disposed on the guide rail (18), and two sliders (21) are slidably disposed on one guide rail (18). Rotate the connecting block (22) on the slider (21), the toggle rod (20) is slidably connected to the connecting block (22), and the side end of the flip seat (11) is fixedly connected to the connecting block (22).
7. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 6, characterized in that, The top of the conveyor frame (10) is provided with a receiving cavity (23), and the bidirectional electric cylinder (17) is installed in the receiving cavity (23). The top of the receiving cavity (23) is closed by a heat insulation plate (24).
8. The energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 6, characterized in that, The bottom of the conveyor frame (10) is provided with a heat transfer opening (25). When the output ends on both sides of the bidirectional electric cylinder (17) are in an extended state, the projection of the component body (3) in the vertical direction is placed within the range of the heat transfer opening (25).
9. An energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 6, characterized in that, The flipping seat (11) and the toggle lever (20) are both located on the side of the conveyor frame (10), and the flipping path of the component body (3) is located outside the conveyor frame (10).
10. An energy-saving composite heating furnace for processing automotive thermoformed components according to claim 1, characterized in that, The atmosphere circulation pipe (8) is equipped with a flow regulating component (26), and the cooling zone (6) is provided with an air-cooled cooling component (27) and a return air pipe (28). The return air pipe (28) is connected to the heat exchange equipment outside the furnace body (1).