Foundry molding apparatus and method

摘要

Foundry molding system, apparatus and methods are characterized by horizontally reciprocating flask shuttles located beneath and at entry and exit ends of a molding line conveyor which is operative to support horizontally aligned cope and drag flask sets for indexing along the conveyor in abutting relation through a plurality of stations for production of cope and drag molds in the cope and drag flasks, respectively. The entry and exit flash shuttles respectively operate positively to locate and transfer along the conveyor one flask of cope and drag flask sets out of and into alignment with a flask separate/set-on and flask take-off/close to permit set-on and take-off of the other flask at high production rates. The flask separate/set-on and flask take-off/close each includes cope and drag flask lift arms which are provided with respective opposed guides that cooperate with specially constructed cope and drag flasks precisely to locate the flasks in the lift arms during flask separate/set-on and take-off/close operations. The foundry molding system also is characterized by relatively short entry and exit mold transfer conveyors strategically interposed between entry and exit ends of the molding line conveyor and respective portions of a cooling conveyor, respectively.