Method for monitoring quality of hot stamped components
AssigneeFord Global Technologies, LLC
InventorsRaj Sohmshetty, Constantin Chiriac, Torsten Hallfeldt, Elizabeth Bullard, James Engle
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A hot stamping system includes a controller programmed to alter a coolant flow rate, without altering cycle time, in an active cooling system of a die arrangement, configured to hot stamp metal into components, based on an amount of heat transferred from the components to the active cooling system such that a grain structure of the components transitions from an austenitic state to a martensitic state while the die arrangement is closed.
Claims16
A hot stamping system comprising:
- a controller programmed to alter a coolant flow rate, without altering cycle time, in an active cooling system of a die arrangement, configured to hot stamp metal into components, based on an amount of heat transferred from the components to the active cooling system such that a grain structure of the components transitions from an austenitic state to a martensitic state while the die arrangement is closed, wherein altering the flow rate includes adjusting the flow rate in a main inlet, side channels, or both of the active cooling system.
A hot stamping system comprising:
- a controller programmed to alter a coolant inlet temperature, without altering cycle time, in an active cooling system of a die arrangement, configured to hot stamp metal into components, based on an amount of heat transferred from the components to the active cooling system such that a grain structure of the components transitions from an austenitic state to a martensitic state while the die arrangement is closed, wherein altering the coolant inlet temperature includes increasing, decreasing, or both the temperature in response to the amount exceeding a threshold amount.
A monitoring method for hot stamped components, comprising:
- altering by a controller a coolant flow rate or coolant inlet temperature, without altering cycle time, in an active cooling system of a die arrangement, configured to hot stamp metal into hot stamped components, in response to an amount of heat transferred from the hot stamped components to the active cooling system being indicative of an austenitic to martensitic microstructure transformation while the die arrangement is closed, wherein the altering includes adjusting the flow rate in a main inlet, side channels, or both of the active cooling system.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.