Apparatus and method for casting

摘要

The present invention relates to casting and more particularly to an improved apparatus and method of aluminum casting. The casting system 10 includes a furnace 12, a pump 14 and a mold 16. A semi-permanent mold cope 30 is mounted to the top of the mold 16 to quickly cool the adjacent portion of the casting 20. The semi-permanent mold cope 30 is movable with respect to the mold so that it can be moved between an open and closed position. The mold 16 can be brought to the semi-permanent mold cope 30 when the semi-permanent mold cope 30 is open and the semi-permanent mold cope 30 can then be closed onto the casting 20. The molten metal is then pumped into the mold 16 with the semi-permanent mold cope 30 in place. A laser 34 monitors the rate of mold fill by monitoring the fill rate of the riser 28. After the mold 16 has been filled with molten metal, the mold sprue is closed and a turntable 32 can be rotated to bring the next mold 30 into position with the furnace 12 and rotate the filled mold away from the furnace 12 to allow it to cool.