A continuous-casting billet fire-cut face marking system and method of using same

Abstract

The present application relates to a kind of continuous casting billet fire cut section identification system and its use method, comprising: billet;Roller;Further comprising: positioning assembly;Identification component, located the lateral of the roller, comprising: industrial robot;Execution part, for the execution end of the industrial robot, the component with water spray, vision, identification function, by the industrial robot to the billet fire cut section sequentially executes phosphorus removal, identification, identification;And further comprising: control system, with the industrial robot, execution part signal communication, control the action path of the industrial robot, transmission command to the execution part, beneficial effect is: by the industrial robot to the billet fire cut section identification, propose a new multi-in-one execution part, realize in execution end, the combination of phosphorus removal, identification, identification.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of auxiliary marking equipment for continuous casting production, specifically relating to a marking system for the cut surface of continuously cast steel billets and its usage method. Background Technology

[0002] Continuous casting is a casting process in which molten steel is continuously passed through a water-cooled crystallizer, solidified into a hard shell, and then continuously pulled out from the bottom outlet of the crystallizer. After being cooled by water spray, it is completely solidified and cut into billets. Besides cast steel, continuous casting can also produce aluminum and copper products. Identification is a key aspect of quality control in continuous casting production. By uniquely marking the end face or side of the high-temperature steel billet with information including steel grade, furnace number, machine number, production batch, number of strands, number of pieces, and production date, accurate traceability and quality analysis can be achieved throughout the entire process from continuous casting to rolling to finished product. This is crucial for improving product reliability, optimizing processes, and meeting high-end application standards. Research on existing technologies reveals that most steel companies in China still use manual methods. After the steel billets are stacked and cooled, workers handwrite unique numbers on the surface of the billets using high-temperature resistant paint and marking pens. This method suffers from harsh on-site working conditions, high labor intensity, uncontrollable marking quality, high risk of mixed billets, and the tendency for manual paint marking to degrade over time.

[0003] At the same time, signage faces several unique challenges: 1) Mixed billets can lead to issues ranging from failing to meet product functional requirements to causing safety accidents, personal injury, and property damage; 2) It is necessary to record more than ten items of information, such as steel grade, furnace number, number of strands, number of pieces, production date, tapping mark, refining mark, and billet destination, which traditional methods cannot fully capture. 3) The degree of automation determines the consistency of standards, and manual input still has shortcomings in recognition and other aspects.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a marking system for the cut surface of continuously cast steel billets and its usage method. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To overcome the problems in existing technologies, the inventors, leveraging the characteristics of industrial robots, employed laser etching to achieve marking and information recording at the cut surface, thus integrating automation and information technology. The technical solution adopted in this invention is as follows: A marking system for the cut surface of continuously cast steel billets includes: Steel billet is the billet produced by continuous casting and then cut by fire cutting. Roller conveyor, a channel for axially transporting the steel billet; Also includes: A positioning component, located at the lower part of the roller conveyor, laterally stops the steel billet on the roller conveyor by means of lifting, so that the steel billet's fire-cut cross-section is arranged side by side; A marking component, located on the side of the roller conveyor, includes: An industrial robot is a six-degree-of-freedom robotic arm with an operating radius covering the cross-section of the steel billet after fire cutting. The execution unit, located at the execution end of the industrial robot, includes components with water spraying, vision, and marking functions. It uses the industrial robot to sequentially perform descaling, identification, and marking on the cross-section of the steel billet after fire cutting. And, also includes: The control system is connected to the industrial robot and the actuator via signals, controls the movement path of the industrial robot, and transmits commands to the actuator.

[0006] Furthermore, The positioning component includes: A gate wall is a plate arranged laterally on the roller conveyor transport path. Lifting Department; The gate wall extends out of the roller conveyor plane by means of the vertical reciprocating motion of the lifting part, blocking the steel billet from moving forward, and making the cross-section of the steel billet after fire cutting fit with the surface of the gate wall.

[0007] Furthermore, The lower part of the gate wall is provided with one or more downward-sloping surfaces; The lifting section is provided with wheels that correspond to the number of inclined planes of the gate wall; When the gate wall is at its lowest point, each of the wheels of the lifting unit is located at the highest point of the lower slope of the gate wall; The positioning component also includes: The pushing part is a component that drives the lifting part to reciprocate in a horizontal and lateral direction; Driven by the jacking part, the gate wall is lifted by the rolling of the wheel body, realizing reciprocating motion.

[0008] Furthermore, The positioning component also includes: The positioning part is a component that is fixed to both sides of the roller conveyor and extends out of the conveyor surface of the roller conveyor; The positioning wheel is a wheel located outside the positioning part that reciprocates along the surface of the positioning part in the vertical direction. The gate wall passes through the positioning part and is fixedly connected to the positioning wheel; The gate wall is kept upright by means of the positioning part, and the horizontal force driven by the jacking part is counteracted by the positioning wheel.

[0009] Furthermore, The execution unit includes: The housing is fixedly connected to the industrial robot. A laser is a device that emits laser light to create grooves on the cross-section of a steel billet after it has been fire-cut. A vision element is a device for obtaining the position of the cross-section of the steel billet after fire cutting by means of image recognition; The laser and the vision element are located inside the housing, and a door is provided on the same side of the housing to allow the laser to emit laser light and the vision element to acquire external images; And, also includes: A spray gun is a device that sprays out a high-pressure water jet, and the spray gun is fixedly connected to the outside of the housing.

[0010] Furthermore, The execution unit also includes: The protective door is a device located inside the housing that opens and closes the door on the housing corresponding to the laser and vision element by reciprocating motion.

[0011] A method for using a marking system for the cut surface of a continuously cast steel billet includes the following steps: The steel billet is produced using a continuous casting process; The steel billet is cut to form a cross section; The steel billet is transported on the roller conveyor to the continuous casting steel billet fire-cut surface marking system; The positioning component stops the steel billet; The roller conveyor stops transporting the steel billet; The positioning component returns to its original position, so that one or more of the steel billet sections are arranged side by side. The industrial robot, carrying the actuator, moves to the vicinity of the fire-cut section of the steel billet; The actuator moves according to the taught trajectory and sprays water onto the cut section of the steel billet. The sprayed water is used to remove the scale from the cut surface of the steel billet. Under high temperature conditions, the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly; The actuator identifies each group of the steel billet's fire-cut cross-section; The control system sends identification information to the execution unit; The execution unit marks the cross-section of the steel billet after fire cutting one by one; After the marking is completed, the roller conveyor starts and carries the steel billet away; The continuous casting billet cut-off surface marking system awaits processing of the next batch of billets, repeating the above steps.

[0012] Furthermore, it also includes the following steps: The protective door remains closed until the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly in a high-temperature environment. Protect the laser and vision element; The protective door opens when the actuator identifies each group of the steel billet's fire-cut cross-section; After the actuator marks the cross-section of each steel billet after fire cutting, the protective door is closed.

[0013] The advantages of this invention over the prior art are as follows: 1) Using industrial robots to mark the cross-section of steel billets after fire cutting; 2) By utilizing the positioning components, the steel billet sections are arranged side by side in a way that involves stopping and interlocking with the roller conveyor, thus creating a good marking plane.

[0014] 3) Under the existing roller conveyor system, a new lateral lifting mode is proposed to complete the cutting-off action of the steel billet; 4) The stability of the gate wall is controlled by the positioning part and positioning wheel, ensuring the smoothness of the stopping plane and offsetting the impact on the gate wall under the stopping inertia.

[0015] 5) A new all-in-one execution unit is proposed, which combines phosphorus removal, identification, and labeling at the execution end.

[0016] 6) Protective doors are used to protect the internal components of the housing, thereby improving the stability of the equipment.

[0017] 7) A new billet identification method is proposed to meet the needs of production automation and informatization. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a process layout diagram for a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 This is an axial view of an industrial robot and its actuator according to a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 This is an axial view of the execution unit according to a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram showing the position of the protective door of the execution unit in a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a front view of the positioning component in an uninterrupted state according to a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 This is a front view of the positioning component in the stopped state according to a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 7 This is a top view of the positioning component according to a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 8 A schematic diagram of manually marked steel billets; Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the marking system for marking the cut surface of continuously cast steel billets according to a specific embodiment of the present invention; The annotation is represented as follows: 100 - Steel billet; 110 - Roller conveyor; 200-Positioning component; 210-Gate wall; 220-Lifting part; 230-Pushing part; 240-Positioning part; 250-Positioning wheel; 300 - Identification component; 310 - Actuator; 311 - Housing; 312 - Protective door; 313 - Laser; 314 - Vision element; 315 - Spray gun; 320 - Industrial robot 400-Control System Detailed Implementation

[0019] The technical solutions in the embodiments are clearly and completely described. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "top," "bottom," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of the present invention.

[0020] To overcome the problems in existing technologies, the inventors utilized the characteristics of industrial robots and employed laser etching to achieve marking and information recording at the cut surface, thus integrating automation and information technology. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figures 1 to 9 The specific implementation method is as follows: First, please refer to Figure 1 A marking system for the cut surface of continuously cast steel billets, comprising: Billet 100 refers to the billet produced through continuous casting and then cut into sections by heat cutting. The billet 100 mentioned here can be round, square, or slab; its purpose is to mark it after continuous casting. As long as a cross-section remains after heat cutting, it can be used. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 8 Current technology uses refractory materials for marking, but these markings are poorly machine-readable and difficult to preserve. Furthermore, manual marking at high temperatures is dangerous. The temperature of a steel billet after fire cutting can still remain above 600 degrees Celsius, so there is an urgent need to achieve automated marking while ensuring quality traceability.

[0021] Roller conveyor 110, a channel for axially transporting the steel billet 100; Also includes: The positioning component 200 is located at the lower part of the roller conveyor 110. It lifts and laterally stops the steel billet 100 on the roller conveyor 110, so that the steel billet 100 is arranged side by side after fire cutting. Please see Figure 1In this embodiment, the function of the positioning component 200 is to achieve the purpose of stopping and generating an identifiable cross section.

[0022] The marking component 300, located laterally to the roller conveyor 110, includes: Industrial robot 320 is a six-degree-of-freedom robotic arm with an operating radius covering the cross-section of the steel billet 100 after fire cutting; The execution unit 310 is located at the execution end of the industrial robot 320 and includes water spraying, vision, and marking functions. With the help of the industrial robot 320, the steel billet 100 is sequentially descaled, identified, and marked. It is important to note that the first step is descaling, which removes the mixture of FeO, Fe2O3, and Fe3O4 oxide scale, before identification and labeling. This sequence is a creative summary by the inventors after extensive experimentation. Because positioning is performed first, the cycle time is extended in the protective actuator. Simultaneously, the path for descaling after the billet is stopped (100mm) is determined, which greatly improves the efficiency of this step, allowing for automatic execution after stopping. This avoids impacting continuous casting efficiency.

[0023] And, also includes: The control system 400 is connected to the industrial robot 320 and the actuator 310 by signal communication, controls the movement path of the industrial robot 320, and transmits commands to the actuator 310.

[0024] In this embodiment, the control system 400 can transmit commands for more than ten items of information, such as steel grade, furnace number, number of strands, number of pieces, production date, tapping mark, refining mark, and slab destination, and record them in the upper-level system.

[0025] Please see Figure 5 and Figure 6 In some embodiments, preferably, The positioning component 200 includes: The gate wall 210 is a plate arranged laterally on the transport path of the roller conveyor 110; Lifting unit 220; In this embodiment, the lifting action can be a mechanical structure or a hydraulic structure, the purpose of which is to achieve the lifting action and complete the stop.

[0026] The gate wall 210 extends out of the transport plane of the roller conveyor 110 by means of the vertical reciprocating motion of the lifting part 220, blocking the steel billet 100 from advancing, and making the cross section of the steel billet 100 after fire cutting fit with the surface of the gate wall 210.

[0027] Please see Figure 5 and Figure 6Because the positioning component 200 inevitably faces impact during the stopping process, traditional hydraulic and rack and pinion drives cannot achieve stability, therefore, the preferred method is... The lower part of the gate wall 210 is provided with one or more downward-sloping surfaces; The lifting section 220 is provided with wheels that correspond to the number of inclined planes of the gate wall 210; When the gate wall 210 is at its lowest point, each of the wheels of the lifting part 220 is located at the highest point of the lower slope of the gate wall 210; The positioning component 200 further includes: The pushing part 230 is a component that drives the lifting part 220 to reciprocate in a horizontal and lateral direction; Driven by the pusher 230, the gate wall 210 is lifted by the rolling motion of the wheel body, thus achieving reciprocating motion.

[0028] In this embodiment, lifting is achieved by sliding, which is the preferred solution under the current adverse conditions such as high temperature and impact.

[0029] Furthermore, The positioning component 200 further includes: The positioning part 240 is a component that is fixed to both sides of the roller conveyor 110 and extends out of the conveying surface of the roller conveyor 110; The positioning wheel 250 is a wheel located outside the positioning part 240 and reciprocates along the surface of the positioning part 240 in the vertical direction. The gate wall 210 passes through the positioning part 240 and is fixedly connected to the positioning wheel 250; The gate wall 210 is kept upright by means of the positioning part 240, and the positioning wheel 250 counteracts the horizontal force driven by the pushing part 230.

[0030] Please see Figures 2 to 4 In this embodiment, The execution unit 310 includes: The housing 311 is fixedly connected to the industrial robot 320. The function of the housing 311 is to protect the equipment, as it identifies and marks the vulnerability of the equipment. In the process of phosphorus removal, a large amount of steam containing impurities will be generated, which will pose a great challenge to its operational stability.

[0031] Laser 313 is a device that emits laser light to form a groove on the cross-section of the steel billet 100 after heat cutting. Of course, laser 313 includes laser emitter, water cooler, galvanometer, etc. These are common technologies in the traditional etching field, and will not be described in detail in this embodiment.

[0032] The vision element 314 is a device for obtaining the position of the cross-section of the steel billet 100 after heat cutting by means of image recognition; The laser 313 and the vision element 314 are located inside the housing 311, and a door is provided on the same side of the housing 311 to allow the laser 313 to emit laser light and the vision element 314 to acquire external images. And, also includes: The spray gun 315 is a device for spraying high-pressure water jets, and the spray gun 315 is fixedly connected to the outside of the housing 311.

[0033] Descaling is a crucial step in ensuring labeling effectiveness and subsequent recognition rates. High-pressure water is used to wash away the surface scabbard. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 9 This is the effect after the system is marked.

[0034] Please see Figure 3 and Figure 4 In some embodiments, preferred The execution unit 310 further includes: The protective door 312 is a device located inside the housing 311 that opens and closes the door on the housing 311 corresponding to the laser 313 and the vision element 314 by reciprocating motion.

[0035] The document also includes an embodiment of the method of use: a method of using the continuously cast steel billet cut-off surface marking system, comprising the following steps: The steel billet 100 is produced using a continuous casting process; The steel billet 100 is heat-cut to form a cross-section; The steel billet 100 is transported on the roller conveyor 110 to the continuous casting steel billet fire-cut surface marking system; The positioning component 200 stops the steel billet 100; The roller conveyor 110 stops transporting the steel billet 100; The positioning component 200 returns to its original position, so that one or more of the steel billet 100 sections are arranged side by side. The industrial robot 320, carrying the actuator 310, moves to the vicinity of the fire-cut section of the steel billet 100; The actuator 310 moves according to the taught trajectory and sprays water onto the cut section of the steel billet 100. The sprayed water is used to remove the scale from the cross-section of the steel billet after heat cutting at 100°C. Under high temperature conditions, the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly; The execution unit 310 identifies the cross-section of each group of steel billets 100 after fire cutting; The control system 400 sends identification information to the execution unit 310; The execution unit 310 marks the cross-section of the steel billet 100 after fire cutting one by one; After the marking is completed, the roller conveyor 110 starts and carries the steel billet 100 away; The continuous casting billet cut surface marking system awaits processing of the next batch of billets 100, repeating the above steps.

[0036] In some embodiments, preferably, the method further includes the following steps: Under high temperature conditions, the protective door 312 remains closed until the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly. Protect the laser 313 and the vision element 314; When the execution unit 310 identifies each group of the steel billet 100 after fire cutting, the protective door 312 opens; After the execution unit 310 marks the cross-section of each steel billet 100 after fire cutting, the protective door 312 is closed.

[0037] In specific operation: the roller conveyor 110 transports the steel billet 100, which has a cut or cross-section after fire cutting, to the continuous casting steel billet fire-cut surface marking system. When it reaches the position, the positioning component 200 or the gate wall 210, driven by the pusher 230, rises. In some embodiments, please refer to... Figure 6 Because the lower part of the gate wall 210 has an inclined surface, when the wheel rolls, it lifts the gate wall 210, achieving a lifting effect. When the wheel returns to its original position, it can linearly fall back. At this time, the steel billet 100 stops moving with the help of the gate wall 210, and its cross-section is exactly in contact with the outer surface of the gate wall 210, forming a flush arrangement. The roller conveyor 110 receives a signal and interlocks to stop moving. The gate wall 210 falls back, and the industrial robot 320 carries the actuator 310 to the position facing the cross-section. At this time, there is a large amount of scaly material on the cross-section. The actuator 310, with the help of the spray gun 315, sprays water along a fixed trajectory to remove the scaly material. The trajectory here is the path after teaching. Because the position of the gate wall 210 is fixed, the position of the cross-section is also fixed. At the same time, regardless of whether it is a slab or other billet shape, it is only necessary to spray water uniformly along the path direction. While spraying water, the steel billet 100 is also cooled, forming a certain hardened surface, which is convenient for etching. In a high-temperature environment, the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly. At this time, the protective door 312 opens, and the vision element 314, with the aid of images, identifies the specifications and models of the steel billets 100. Then, based on the information provided by the upper-level system, it analyzes and compares them one by one. After the comparison is successful, the laser 313, driven by the industrial robot 320, marks each billet individually to achieve the purpose of the continuous casting steel billet cut-off surface marking system. The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any equivalent substitutions or modifications made by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention, based on the technical solution and inventive concept of the present invention, should be covered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A marking system for the cut surface of a continuously cast steel billet, comprising: The steel billet (100) is the billet produced by continuous casting and then cut by fire cutting. Roller conveyor (110), a channel for axially transporting the steel billet (100); Its characteristic is that it further includes: The positioning component (200), located at the lower part of the roller conveyor (110), lifts and laterally stops the steel billet (100) on the roller conveyor (110), so that the cross sections of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting are arranged side by side; The marking component (300), located on the side of the roller conveyor (110), includes: The industrial robot (320) is a six-degree-of-freedom robotic arm with an operating radius covering the cross-section of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting; The execution unit (310) is a component located at the execution end of the industrial robot (320) and includes water spraying, vision, and marking functions. With the help of the industrial robot (320), the steel billet (100) is sequentially descaled, identified, and marked. And, also includes: The control system (400) is connected to the industrial robot (320) and the actuator (310) by signal communication, controls the movement path of the industrial robot (320), and transmits commands to the actuator (310).

2. The continuous casting billet cut-off surface marking system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The positioning component (200) includes: The gate wall (210) is a plate arranged laterally on the conveying path of the roller conveyor (110); Lifting section (220); The gate wall (210) extends out of the conveyor plane of the roller conveyor (110) by means of the vertical reciprocating motion of the lifting part (220), blocking the steel billet (100) from advancing, and making the cross section of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting fit with the surface of the gate wall (210).

3. The continuous casting billet cut-off surface marking system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The lower part of the gate wall (210) is provided with one or more downward-sloping surfaces; The lifting section (220) is provided with wheels corresponding to the number of inclined planes of the gate wall (210); When the gate wall (210) is at its lowest point, each of the wheels of the lifting part (220) is located at the highest point of the lower slope of the gate wall (210); The positioning component (200) further includes: The pusher (230) is a component that drives the lifting part (220) to reciprocate horizontally. Driven by the pusher (230), the gate wall (210) is lifted by the rolling of the wheel body to achieve reciprocating motion.

4. The continuous casting billet cut-off surface marking system according to claim 3, characterized in that, The positioning component (200) further includes: The positioning part (240) is a component that is fixed to both sides of the roller conveyor (110) and extends out of the conveying surface of the roller conveyor (110); The positioning wheel (250) is a wheel located outside the positioning part (240) and reciprocates along the surface of the positioning part (240) in the vertical direction; The gate wall (210) passes through the positioning part (240) and is fixedly connected to the positioning wheel (250); The gate wall (210) is kept upright by means of the positioning part (240), and the horizontal force driven by the jacking part (230) is counteracted by means of the positioning wheel (250).

5. The continuous casting billet cut-off surface marking system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The execution unit (310) includes: The housing (311) is fixedly connected to the industrial robot (320); A laser (313) is a device that emits laser light to form a groove on the cross section of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting; The visual element (314) is a device for obtaining the position of the cross-section of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting by means of image recognition; The laser (313) and the vision element (314) are located inside the housing (311), and a gate is provided on the same side of the housing (311) to allow the laser (313) to emit laser light and the vision element (314) to acquire external images; And, also includes: The spray gun (315) is a device for spraying high-pressure water jets, and the spray gun (315) is fixedly connected to the outside of the housing (311).

6. The continuous casting billet cut-off surface marking system according to claim 5, characterized in that, The execution unit (310) further includes: The protective door (312) is a device located inside the housing (311) that opens and closes the laser (313) and the vision element (314) corresponding to the door on the housing (311) by reciprocating motion.

7. The method of using the marking system for the cut surface of continuously cast steel billets according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: The steel billet (100) is produced by continuous casting process. The steel billet (100) is heat-cut to form a cross section; The billet (100) is transported on the roller conveyor (110) to the continuous casting billet fire-cut surface marking system; The positioning component (200) stops the billet (100); The roller conveyor (110) stops transporting the steel billet (100); The positioning component (200) returns to its original position, so that one or more of the steel billet (100) sections are arranged side by side; The industrial robot (320) carries the actuator (310) to move toward the vicinity of the fire-cut section of the steel billet (100); The execution unit (310) moves according to the taught trajectory and sprays water onto the cut section of the steel billet (100); The sprayed water is used to remove the scale from the cut surface of the steel billet (100); Under high temperature conditions, the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly; The actuator (310) identifies the fire-cut cross-section of each group of steel billets (100); The control system (400) sends identification information to the execution unit (310); The execution unit (310) marks the cross-section of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting one by one; After the marking is completed, the roller conveyor (110) starts and carries the steel billet (100) away; The continuous casting billet cut surface marking system awaits processing of the next batch of billets (100), repeating the above steps.

8. The method of using the continuous casting billet cut surface marking system according to claim 7, characterized in that, It also includes the following steps: In high-temperature environments, the protective door (312) remains closed until the mist formed by the water spray evaporates rapidly; Protect the laser (313) and the vision element (314). When the execution unit (310) identifies each group of the steel billet (100) after fire cutting, the protective door (312) opens; after the execution unit (310) marks each steel billet (100) after fire cutting, the protective door (312) closes.

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