Patents Examined by Jacky Yuen
  • Patent number: 12377457
    Abstract: A bearing block unit for supporting a continuous casting roll, including a bearing block and a roller bearing disposed inside the bearing block. The bearing provides an inner ring raceway, an outer ring raceway, and at least one row of rolling bodies disposed between the inner and outer ring raceways. The inner ring raceway is formed by a complete and continuous independent inner ring. The inner ring is fitted on a roll shaft of the continuous casting roll during installation, for the purpose of supporting the continuous casting roll. The outer ring raceway is at least partially formed by processing of an inner surface of an inner hole of the bearing block. The present invention also relates to a continuous casting roll line and a continuous casting machine using the bearing block unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2025
    Assignee: Aktiebolaget SKF
    Inventors: Jiakai Liu, Xiaofeng Xu
  • Patent number: 12365024
    Abstract: Various embodiments include constant pressure direct casting into molds to create low surface finish additive manufacturing parts with reduced surface roughness apparatus having a liquid metal print head, a high pressure gas supply line, a pneumatic valve between said liquid metal print head and said high pressure gas supply line, a build plate motion stage, and a stream of metal produced by said liquid metal print head that is directed onto said build plate motion stage to produce the low surface finish additive manufacturing parts with reduced surface roughness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2025
    Assignee: Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC
    Inventor: Eric S. Elton
  • Patent number: 12358043
    Abstract: A casting core assembly is disclosed herein. The casting core assembly comprises a casting core and a bumper assembly. The bumper assembly is disposed on an outer surface of the casting core. The bumper assembly comprises a receptacle and a metal apparatus. The metal apparatus may be a pin, a sphere, or the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2025
    Assignee: RTX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Carl R Verner, David A Krause
  • Patent number: 12358046
    Abstract: A dynamic production planning method for a continuous casting plant for casting a strand with a production system which has a predefined production plan, which method includes comparing target production parameters with actual production parameters. If the actual production parameters deviate from the target production parameters, a strand image is created on the basis of actual production parameters. With the aid of the calculated strand image, a check is carried out within the predefined production plan and, if possible, a new production plan is created. If no solution can be found from the predefined production plan, the strand image is transmitted to a production planning system. The production planning system creates a new production plan from all available orders on the basis of a predefined optimization criterion. The new production plan is subsequently transmitted to the production system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2025
    Assignees: PRIMETALS TECHNOLOGIES AUSTRIA GMBH, PRIMETALS TECHNOLOGIES GERMANY GMBH
    Inventors: Christoph Aigner, Kai Ankermann, Daniel Fuchshuber
  • Patent number: 12359668
    Abstract: A molten metal pump assembly and method to fill a mold with molten metal, such as aluminum. The assembly includes a support frame for suspending the molten metal pump above a furnace. The support frame includes a mechanism for lifting and lowering the molten metal pump into engagement and disengagement with the mold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2025
    Assignee: PYROTEK, INC.
    Inventors: Andrew Horsfall, Jon Tipton
  • Patent number: 12350735
    Abstract: Methods for forming metal articles are provided. The methods include forming foam casting molds from polylactic acid for use in lost foam and sand casting processes. The PLA-based foam casting molds advantageously reduce cycle time, reduce overall cost, increase reusability of the foam casting molds, reduce costs associated with shipping the foam casting mold, and improve yield and quality of cast metal articles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2025
    Assignee: LIFOAM INDUSTRIES, LLC
    Inventor: Saumitra Bhargava
  • Patent number: 12350734
    Abstract: Both a hydraulic (wet) separation process and a dry separation process are used in combination to recover sand, bentonite clay and organics from foundry waste created during operation of a green sand foundry. These recovered ingredients are then recycled for reuse in making additional green sand molds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2025
    Assignee: Imerys USA, Inc.
    Inventor: Robert C. Steele
  • Patent number: 12330196
    Abstract: In the case of a production plant which comprises in series a thin-slab continuous casting plant (1), which is arranged upstream of a roller hearth furnace (2), the roller hearth furnace (2) and a rolling mill (3), which is arranged downstream of the roller hearth furnace (2) and has an assigned reeling plant (21), wherein the continuous casting plant (1) and the rolling mill (3) can be operated in a continuous operating mode, the intention is to provide a solution that allows a slab buffer capacity to be provided for a continuously operated thin slab continuous casting plant when there is a fault causing a standstill in the transport of the slab or strip. This is achieved by the production plant having four slab or strip cutting devices (10, 14, 17, 24), which are arranged upstream and downstream of the roller hearth furnace (2), in a section along the length of the roller hearth furnace (2) and on the outlet side of a first separate roll line (12) of the rolling mill (3).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2025
    Assignee: SMS Group GmbH
    Inventor: Christoph Klein
  • Patent number: 12325064
    Abstract: A piston head for making a piston of a press for a die-casting machine comprises a head body wherein at least one ring seat suitable to receive a respective sealing ring, is obtained. A lubrication circuit is obtained in the head body and comprises at least one lubrication end duct leading into a surface channel which runs through the bottom wall of the ring seat in order to convey the lubricant towards gaps between sealing ring and head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 10, 2025
    Assignee: COPROMEC DIE CASTING S.R.L. A SOCIO UNICO
    Inventor: Carlo Schivalocchi
  • Patent number: 12318837
    Abstract: An investment casting process for a hollow component such as a gas turbine blade utilizing a ceramic core (10) that is cast in a flexible mold (24) using a low pressure, vibration assisted casting process. The flexible mold is cast from a master tool (14) machined from soft metal using a relatively low precision machining process, with relatively higher precision surfaces being defined by a precision formed insert (22) incorporated into the master tool. A plurality of identical flexible molds may be formed from a single master tool in order to permit the production of ceramic cores at a desired rate with a desired degree of part-to-part precision.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2025
    Assignees: SIEMENS ENERGY, INC., RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Gary Merrill, Andrew Burns, Michael Appleby, Iain Fraser, John Paulus
  • Patent number: 12311435
    Abstract: The application discloses a preparation method for an aluminum alloy cavity casting filled with special-shaped foamed aluminum. The preparation method includes: preparing special-shaped foamed aluminum in a first mold by adopting a powder metallurgy foaming method; fixing the special-shaped foamed aluminum coated with the soldering flux in a second mold after the special-shaped foamed aluminum is coated with soldering flux; and casting by using molten aluminum alloy. According to the preparation method for the aluminum alloy cavity casting filled with the special-shaped foamed aluminum, the overall strength of the casting can be improved while the wall thickness of the casting is reduced to meet the requirement that the overall quality of the casting is not increased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2025
    Assignee: CITIC Dicastal Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Xing Han, Haifeng Liu, Yu Sun, Xinlei Li
  • Patent number: 12296377
    Abstract: A system is provided with a controller configured to receive a computer model of a mold configured to cast a part. The computer model has a variable wall thickness of the mold thermally tailored to a geometry of the part. The controller is configured to control a manufacturing system to produce the mold based on the computer model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2025
    Assignee: GE Infrastructure Technology LLC
    Inventors: Jared Micheal Iverson, Shenyan Huang, Christopher Raymond Hanslits, Canan Uslu Hardwicke
  • Patent number: 12296381
    Abstract: The present application relates to the technical field of amorphous alloy molding apparatuses, and more particularly to a die molding apparatus. The die molding apparatus includes: a forming structure, a material loading structure, and a vacuum pumping structure. The forming structure includes a forming furnace body having a heating cavity, a material waiting housing having a transition cavity, a feeding pipe having two ends respectively connected with the heating cavity and the transition cavity, and a vacuum control valve arranged on the feeding pipe. The material loading structure includes a material loading arm and a material loading driving mechanism, one end of the material loading arm is located in the transition cavity, and the other end of the material loading arm is penetrated through a material loading hole sealingly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2025
    Assignee: SHENZHEN UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Jiang Ma, Jian Yang
  • Patent number: 12251753
    Abstract: A method is provided for producing a die-cast part by means of a die-casting die, wherein air contained in the die-casting die is sucked out. A moisture contained in the air that is sucked out is measured. In the method, the moisture is measured while the air is sucked out. A device for producing a die-cast part, which device has a diecasting die, a suction apparatus for sucking out air present in the die-casting die, at least one sensor for detecting the moisture in the air that is sucked out, and a control apparatus for controlling the device, is designed to perform the method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2025
    Assignee: Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Josef Maier, Sascha Mueller, Guenther Kahl, Michael Dechene, Manfred Tremmel
  • Patent number: 12247269
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for producing solid alloy components from its liquid state are provided. The molten alloy is rapidly cooled using a chill to temperatures below the thermosolutal transition temperature of the alloy. Finite-amplitude acoustic vibration is applied on the chill to shake off dendrites that form on the chill surface, to stir the slurry containing the fragments of dendrites, and to shake off slurry material that sticks on the surface of the chill as the chill is separating from the slurry. The slurry is then immediately poured into a chamber of a forming machine or a mold cavity shaped into solid components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2025
    Inventor: Qingyou Han
  • Patent number: 12246365
    Abstract: A combined casting and rolling installation and to a method for operating the combined casting and rolling installation. The combined casting and rolling installation comprises a rough-rolling mill train, a discharging device, a first transporting device, a quenching device, and at least one severing device. The rough-rolling mill train is configured to roll a continuously cast hot billet to form a rough-rolled strip. The discharging device is downstream of the rough-rolling mill train with respect to a conveying direction of the rough-rolled strip. The severing device is between the rough-rolling mill train and the discharging device and cuts up a first sub-portion of the rough-rolled strip into a rough-rolled strip piece. The discharging device discharges the rough-rolled strip piece. The first transporting device connects the severing device to the quenching device and transports the rough-rolled strip piece to the quenching device, which is configured to quench the rough-rolled strip piece.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2025
    Assignee: Primetals Technologies Austria GmbH
    Inventors: Axel Rimnac, Roman Winkler
  • Patent number: 12240035
    Abstract: A die casting mold includes a mold frame with at least two mold inserts and with at least one slider, the mold frame comprising a frame pocket for arranging the at least two mold inserts and the at least one slider, the at least two mold inserts delimiting a cavity with an undercut corresponding to the at least one slider, the mold frame comprising a first and a second mold frame halves disposed on opposite sides of a parting plane. At least one of the first and the second mold frame halves is formed by a plurality of mold frame parts connected to one another in a form-fitting manner, one of the plurality of mold frame parts having a locking surface, which, as viewed along a locking axis, is effective as a slider lock against a displacement of the at least one slider directed outwardly as viewed from the cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2025
    Assignee: SCHAUFLER TOOLING GMBH & CO. KG
    Inventor: Siegfried Heinrich
  • Patent number: 12214419
    Abstract: A method for operating a system of the iron and steel industry for producing a metal product with participation of a severing or forming device. The actual value of an indicator be calculated over a length section of the metal product for the metal product to be produced. The indicator represents the resistance of the metal product to severing or forming processes. The calculated actual value pIst for the indicator p is then compared to a predefined threshold value. The severing or forming also only actually takes place when the actual value of the indicator of the metal product is less than the threshold value. If a comparison should show that the actual value of the indicator is greater than the threshold value, before the severing or forming of the metal product, a local processing of the metal product is performed in the corresponding length section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2025
    Assignee: SMS GROUP GMBH
    Inventors: Christoph Hassel, Karl Hoen, Cosimo Andreas Cecere
  • Patent number: 12214417
    Abstract: The invention relates to a casting mould for producing helical cast bodies (1), in particular coils, springs or spirals, having a mould (10) in the form of a permanent mould which determines the outer contour of the helical body and consists of a ceramic material or is coated by a ceramic material; a supporting tool (8), which supports the mould (10) from outside; and a mould core (12), which defines the continuous opening within the helical body (1) and consists of a ceramic material or is coated by a ceramic material, the mould core being formed in particular as a core puller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2025
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
    Inventors: Matthias Busse, Franz-Josef Wöstmann
  • Patent number: 12202035
    Abstract: A method of removing a crack in a metallic material during a metal making process. The method including: determining the presence of a crack and its crack depth during the metal making process by a crack detecting unit utilizing inductive measurement, sending a crack detection signal and crack depth to a crack removal unit arranged on known distance from the crack detecting unit, the crack removal unit including an ejector configured to eject a carving means, and to vary the intensity of the ejected carving means, removing the detected crack by activating the ejector based on the crack detection signal with an intensity of the ejected carving means based at least on the crack depth.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2025
    Assignee: ABB Schweiz AG
    Inventor: Sten Linder