Casting apparatus and method for forming multi-textured, single crystal microstructure

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10150159-B2
Application number	US-201515113082-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 9, 2015
Priority date	Jan 28, 2014
Publication date	Dec 11, 2018
Grant date	Dec 11, 2018

Abstract

An investment casting apparatus includes a furnace having an opening, a mold support, and a multi-axis actuator connected with the mold support and configured to retract the mold support from the opening with multiple-axis motion. An investment casting method includes withdrawing, with multiple-axis motion, a mold through the opening of the furnace to solidify a molten metal- or metalloid-based material in the mold. The apparatus and method can be used to form a cast article that has a body formed of the metal- or metalloid-based material. The body has a multi-textured, single crystal microstructure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An investment casting apparatus comprising:
a furnace having an opening;
a mold support;
a multi-axis actuator configured to retract the mold support from the opening with multiple-axis motion, wherein the multi-axis actuator includes a plurality of prismatic actuators.

2. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the multi-axis actuator has six degrees of freedom with the multiple-axis motion.

3. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the multi-axis actuator has degrees of freedom for linear motion.

4. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the multi-axis actuator has degrees of freedom for rotary motion.

5. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the multi-axis actuator is configured to retract the mold support from the opening with coordinated synchronous multi-axis motion with respect to orientation of the mold support.

6. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , wherein the multiple-axis motion is non-oscillatory.

7. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , further comprising a grain selector and an investment mold mounted on the mold support and retractable from the furnace through the opening.

8. The apparatus as recited in claim 1 , further comprising a mold mounted on the mold support for casting a molten metal- or metalloid-based material, and a controller operably connected with the multi-axis actuator, the controller being configured to selectively vary orientation of a solid-liquid interface formed in the molten metal- or metalloid-based material during retraction with respect to a geometry of the mold.

9. An investment casting method comprising:
withdrawing, with multiple-axis motion, a mold through an opening of a furnace to solidify a molten metal- or metalloid-based material in the mold, wherein the withdrawing is conducted using a multi-axis actuator that includes a plurality of prismatic actuators.

10. The method as recited in claim 9 , including withdrawing with multiple-axis motion that includes at least one rotary motion.

11. The method as recited in claim 9 , including withdrawing with multiple-axis motion that includes at least two different linear motions.

12. The method as recited in claim 9 , including withdrawing with multiple-axis motion that includes at least one linear motion and at least one rotary motion.

13. The method as recited in claim 9 , including withdrawing with multiple-axis motion that is non-oscillatory.

14. The method as recited in claim 9 , including controlling orientation of a liquid-solid interface of the metal- or metalloid-based material by varying orientation of the mold during the withdrawing, to control texture of the crystal microstructure of the solidified metal- or metalloid-based material.

Assignees

• United Technologies Corp

Inventors

• Bullied Steven J
• Furrer David Ulrich
• Marcin John Joseph
• Seetharaman Venkatarama K

Classifications

• B22D27/08

  Shaking, vibrating, or turning of moulds · CPC title

• B22D27/045 Primary

  Directionally solidified castings · CPC title

• C30B11/02

  without using solvents (C30B11/06 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C30B29/06

  Silicon · CPC title

• B22C9/04

  Use of lost patterns · CPC title