Neutron production device and neutron production method

Abstract

To easily subdivide a temperature-controlled portion of a metal mold for core molding.SOLUTION: A core manufacturing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment comprises a plurality of heaters that is arranged on a plurality of portions of a metal mold 10 for core molding, a plurality of controllers 15 that is provided correspondingly, one to one, to the plurality of heaters and control the plurality of heaters, a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the metal mold 10, and a determining section that determines whether or not to add a set of a new heater and a new controller to control the new heater depending upon a temperature measured by the temperature sensor.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a core manufacturing apparatus and a core manufacturing method. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a hot runner system that transports a thermoplastic melt from the injection unit of an injection molding machine to a mold. This hot runner system is equipped with multiple heaters and maintains the thermoplastic melt at a predetermined temperature as it is transported to the mold.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a method of dividing a mold and hot runner system into multiple regions, determining the mass of each region, and heating the regions with larger masses before the regions with smaller masses, thereby reducing wear on related components and minimizing material degradation. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-526979 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In Patent Document 1, a dedicated control system is incorporated that monitors the temperatures of multiple heater regions and controls all of the heaters. When a control system constructed with multiple single-loop control modules is used, the multiple modules communicate with each other via a communication interface, thereby realizing the desired startup sequence for each heater.

[0006] As described above, Patent Document 1 incorporates a dedicated control system that aggregates temperature control, which means that the number of heater systems cannot be easily changed, and there is a problem in that it is not possible to subdivide the temperature control areas of the mold and achieve detailed temperature control for each area.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of these problems, and its object is to provide a core manufacturing apparatus and a core manufacturing method that make it possible to easily subdivide the temperature control sections of a core molding die. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A core manufacturing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a plurality of heaters arranged at a plurality of locations on a mold for core molding, a plurality of controllers each corresponding to one of the heaters and controlling each of the heaters, a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the mold, and a judgment unit for determining whether or not to add a new heater and a new pair of controllers for controlling the new heater based on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor.

[0009] In the core manufacturing apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, the temperature sensor is placed in correspondence with a candidate area that is a candidate for adding the heater.

[0010] In a core manufacturing apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention, the measurement value of the temperature sensor is transmitted to the new controller, and the new controller determines whether or not to add the new heater depending on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor, and if the new heater is to be added, the new heater and the new controller that controls it are added as a pair.

[0011] A core manufacturing apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention arranges multiple heaters at multiple locations on a mold for core molding, provides multiple controllers in one-to-one correspondence with the multiple heaters to control each of the multiple heaters, measures the temperature of the mold, and determines, based on the measured temperature, whether to add a new heater and a new pair of controllers to control the new heaters. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a core manufacturing apparatus and a core manufacturing method that can easily subdivide the temperature control portions of a core molding die. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a part of the configuration of a core manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a heater is added to the core manufacturing apparatus of FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a heater is added to the core manufacturing apparatus of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a flow chart illustrating a core manufacturing method according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. For clarity of explanation, the following description and drawings have been omitted and simplified as appropriate. In addition, the same elements in each drawing are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations are omitted as necessary.

[0015] The present embodiment relates to a technique for molding a core using a core-molding mold. The mixed sand, which is the raw material for the core, is, for example, refractory mineral sand or synthetic sand coated with water glass or mixed with water glass. The mineral sand or synthetic sand is, for example, alumina sand, silica sand, zircon sand, etc.

[0016] The core making device is equipped with a pressing device (not shown). The pressing device is a device that presses mixed sand into a mold. As a pressing device, for example, one equipped with an injection cylinder and an injection piston is used. Mixed sand is poured into the injection cylinder. The mixed sand in the injection cylinder is pushed into the mold by the injection piston, filling the cavity of the mold with mixed sand.

[0017] The mixed sand is pressed into a heated mold and baked in the mold maintained at a predetermined temperature. The temperature of the mold is set appropriately depending on the type of mixed sand, etc.

[0018] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing part of the configuration of a core manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment. To simplify the drawing, Fig. 1 shows only a mold 10 and controllers 15A to 15F (collectively referred to as controller 15). For ease of explanation, Fig. 1 also shows the surfaces of fixed mold 11 and movable mold 12 on which recesses are formed as the front.

[0019] The mold 10 is a mold for molding a core. As shown in FIG. 1, the mold 10 includes, for example, a fixed mold 11 and a movable mold 12. The fixed mold 11 and the movable mold 12 each have a recess of a predetermined shape formed therein. A cavity is formed inside the mold 10 by clamping the mold with the recess formed in the fixed mold 11 and the recess formed in the movable mold 12 facing each other. The cavity has a shape corresponding to the core to be molded.

[0020] By maintaining the mold 10 at a predetermined temperature for a predetermined time, the mixed sand filled in the cavity is baked and hardened. A core is molded to the shape of the cavity. The fixed mold 11 and the movable mold 12 are then moved away from each other, and the molded core is removed. The core is used as part of a mold for casting a casting product.

[0021] In the embodiment, heaters (not shown) are arranged in multiple locations on the mold 10. In the example shown in FIG. 1, different heaters are arranged in six locations indicated by ellipses. The locations where the heaters are arranged are called heater regions 13A to 13F, respectively. Specifically, the fixed mold 11 is provided with four heater regions 13A to 13D, and the movable mold 12 is provided with two heater regions 13E and 13F. The heaters heat the mold 10 and are arranged, for example, outside the mold 10.

[0022] The controller 15 controls the temperature of the mold 10. The controllers 15A to 15F are provided in one-to-one correspondence with the heaters provided in the heater regions 13A to 13F of the mold 10. For ease of explanation, in FIG. 1, the controllers 15A to 15F are connected to the corresponding heater regions 13A to 13F by lines. The controllers 15A to 15F individually control the heaters in the heater regions 13A to 13F, respectively, and raise, lower, or maintain the temperature of each heater region 13A to 13F of the mold 10.

[0023] In addition, temperature sensors (not shown) are placed near the heaters. In the example shown in Fig. 1, different temperature sensors are placed at six locations indicated by circles. The locations where the temperature sensors are placed are called measurement areas 14A to 14F, respectively. The temperature sensors are placed, for example, on the outside of the mold 10, in positions that do not interfere with the heaters.

[0024] The temperature sensors measure the temperatures of measurement areas 14A to 14F near the heater areas 13A to 13F of the mold 10. The temperature sensors output, for example, temperature values at each location on the mold 10 at regular intervals. The temperature sensors are, for example, thermocouple sensors. Note that the temperature sensors may also be non-contact temperature sensors.

[0025] The temperature sensors provided in the measurement areas 14A to 14F are connected to the controllers 15A to 15F, respectively. For ease of explanation, the controllers 15A to 15F are connected to the corresponding measurement areas 14A to 14F by lines in Fig. 1. The measured values of the measurement areas 14A to 14F measured by the temperature sensors are transmitted to the controllers 15A to 15F, respectively.

[0026] The controller 15 also functions as a determination unit that determines whether to add a pair of a new heater and a new controller that controls the new heater, depending on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor. The controller 15 is an arithmetic processing device, and may be, for example, a general-purpose computer equipped with various hardware components including a central processing unit (CPU), a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), etc. The functions executed by the arithmetic processing device can be realized in various ways, such as by hardware alone, software alone, or a combination thereof, and are not limited to any one of these.

[0027] Figures 2 and 3 are diagrams illustrating an example of adding a heater to the core manufacturing apparatus 1 of Figure 1. Figures 2 and 3 show an example of adding a new heater to candidate area 16, indicated by a dashed line on fixed mold 11 as a candidate for heater placement, and adding a general-purpose controller 15G dedicated to controlling the heater. Candidate area 16 is assumed to be, for example, an area with a low temperature where core firing defects may occur. Note that the wiring connecting the heater and controller is omitted here. Figure 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a core manufacturing method according to an embodiment.

[0028] 2, heaters and temperature sensors are pre-installed in heater regions 13A to 13D, respectively. The pre-installed heaters may be embedded in mold 10. Controllers 15A to 15D are connected to the heaters in heater regions 13A to 13D, respectively.

[0029] First, a temperature sensor is placed in the candidate area 16 to measure the temperature of the candidate area 16 of the mold 10 (step S11). This measurement value is sent to a new controller 15G that is separate from the controllers 15A to 15D already provided. The controller 15G determines whether or not to add a heater to the candidate area 16, depending on the temperature measured by the temperature sensor. Here, it is determined whether the measured temperature is lower than a preset value (step S12).

[0030] If the measured temperature is equal to or higher than the set value (step S12 NO), a pair of a heater and a controller that controls the heater is not added, and the process returns to step S11. If the measured temperature is lower than the set value (step S12 YES), a new heater is placed in candidate area 16, and candidate area 16 becomes a new heater area 13G, as shown in Fig. 3. That is, in this case, a pair of a new heater and a new controller that controls the heater is added (step S13).

[0031] As described above, according to this embodiment, the number of heaters connected to one general-purpose controller can be increased or decreased depending on the mold temperature. The temperature of each heater zone 13A-13G is measured by a separate temperature sensor. Each heater zone 13A-13G is controlled by a separate controller 15A-15G.

[0032] This allows the temperature control parts of the mold 10 to be subdivided, enabling detailed temperature control for each part. In addition, since a general-purpose, inexpensive controller can be used as the controller 15, it is possible to easily add control parts.

[0033] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 1 Core manufacturing equipment 10. Mold 11 Fixed type 12 Movable type 13A~13G heater area 14A~14F measurement area 15A~15G controller 16 Candidate area

Claims

1. a heater disposed at a predetermined position of the mold for core molding; a controller provided in one-to-one correspondence with each of the heaters and configured to control the heaters; a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of a portion of the mold near the heater; A plurality of combinations of When adding a new combination including a new heater, a new controller and a new temperature sensor, when the new heater is arranged in the candidate area, the new controller acquires a temperature of a portion in the vicinity of the candidate area from the new temperature sensor arranged in the vicinity of the candidate area, and determines whether to add the new combination based on the acquired temperature. Core manufacturing equipment.

2. The new controller determines whether to add the new combination when the acquired temperature is lower than a preset value. The core manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1.

3. a heater disposed at a predetermined position of the mold for core molding; a controller provided in one-to-one correspondence with each of the heaters and configured to control the heaters; a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of a portion of the mold near the heater; There are multiple combinations of When adding a new combination including a new heater, a new controller and a new temperature sensor, When the new heater is placed in the candidate area, the new controller acquires a temperature of a portion in the vicinity of the candidate area from the new temperature sensor placed in the vicinity of the candidate area, and determines whether to add a new combination based on the acquired temperature. Core manufacturing method.

4. The new controller determines whether to add the new combination when the acquired temperature is lower than a preset value. The method for manufacturing a core according to claim 3.

Images