Kiln comprising a control unit associated with the thermal inertia properties of constitutive elements
AssigneeDrever International S.A.
InventorsAlexandre Lhoest, Daniel Martins
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A furnace for the heat treatment of a metal product includes constitutive elements, each having a thermal inertia property determined from physical parameters. The constitutive elements include walls delimiting at least partially the furnace, a heating unit for heating the metal product, and a rapid heating element for heating the metal product. The furnace also includes a control circuit for controlling the heating unit and/or the rapid heating element, based on one or more thermal inertia properties of one or more constitutive elements of the furnace, and at least based on a ground of a constitutive element of said furnace.
Claims16
A furnace for the thermal treatment of a metal product, comprising:
- constitutive elements comprising:
- walls delimiting at least partially the furnace;
- rolls configured for allowing a movement of the metal product along a determined path;
- a heating unit configured for heating the metal product when the metal product is at least partially in the furnace;
- and
- a rapid heating element configured for heating the metal product when the metal product is at least partially in the furnace, the rapid heating element being distinct from the heating unit;
- one or more temperature sensors arranged to measure a temperature of at least one of the constitutive elements;
- and
- a control circuit coupled to the heating unit and the rapid heating element,
- wherein, based on a temperature and a mass of one or more of said constitutive elements of the furnace, the control circuit is configured to:
- send instructions to at least one of the heating unit or the rapid heating element for controlling heat output thereof;
- and
- control a rate of the movement of the metal product along said determined path.
A method for controlling a temperature of a metal product in a furnace for the thermal treatment of the metal product, the furnace comprising a control circuit and a plurality of constitutive elements each having a thermal inertia characterized by one or more thermal inertia properties, the plurality of constitutive elements comprising walls delimiting at least partially the furnace, rolls configured for allowing a movement of the metal product along a determined path, at least one heating unit for heating the metal product when the metal product is at least partially in the furnace, and a rapid heating element for heating a metal product when the metal product is at least partially in the furnace, the rapid heating element being distinct from the heating unit, the method comprising:
- obtaining, by the control circuit, a temperature of one or more of the plurality of constitutive elements of the furnace;
- using said obtained temperature and a mass of one or more of the plurality of constitutive elements of the furnace to generate, by the control circuit, instructions for controlling heat output of at least one of the heating unit or the rapid heating element and for controlling a rate of the movement of the metal product along said determined path.
A furnace for the thermal treatment of a metal product, comprising:
- a plurality of constitutive elements comprising:
- a plurality of walls delimiting at least partially the furnace;
- a plurality of rolls configured for allowing a movement of the metal product along a determined path;
- a heating unit configured for heating the metal product when the metal product is at least partially in the furnace;
- and
- a rapid heating element configured for heating the metal product when the metal product is at least partially in the furnace, the rapid heating element being distinct from the heating unit;
- one or more temperature sensors arranged to measure a temperature of at least one of the constitutive elements, wherein the one or more temperature sensors includes a virtual sensor;
- and
- a control circuit coupled to the heating unit and the rapid heating element,
- wherein, based on a temperature and a mass of one or more of said constitutive elements of the furnace the control circuit is configured to:
- send instructions to at least one of the heating unit or the rapid heating element for controlling heat output thereof;
- and
- control a rate of the movement of the metal product along said determined path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.