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US 7,434,439 B2Granted
Cryofluid assisted forming method
AssigneeAir Products and Chemicals, Inc.
InventorZbigniew Zurecki
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Method of forming a workpiece comprising (a) providing a tool and a workpiece, wherein the workpiece has an initial shape; (b) placing the workpiece and the tool in contact, applying force to the tool and/or the workpiece, and moving the tool and/or the workpiece to effect a change in the initial shape of the workpiece by forming; and (c) providing a jet of cryogenic fluid and impinging essentially all of the jet of cryogenic fluid on a surface of the tool.
Claims15
A method of forming a workpiece comprising
- (a) providing a tool for metal forming and a workpiece, wherein the workpiece comprises metal and has an initial shape;
- (b) placing the workpiece and the tool in contact, applying force to the tool and/or the workpiece, and moving the tool and/or the workpiece to effect a change in the initial shape of the workpiece by forming wherein the workpiece softens under said force;
- and
- (c) providing a jet of cryogenic fluid and impinging essentially all of the jet of cryogenic fluid on an external surface of the tool, wherein essentially no cooling of the workpiece is effected by impingement of said jet of cryogenic fluid, and the geometric average temperature of the tool is less than the geometric average temperature of the workpiece;
- and the tool is cooled such that it retains hardness and strength;
- and further wherein said method of forming is selected from the group consisting of contour and profile roll forming, power spinning, roll forging, orbital forging, shoe-type pinch rolling, alligator shearing, guillotine shearing, punch parting, rotary shearing, line shearing, slitting, wire and rod drawing, tube drawing, moving mandrel drawing, punch drawing, moving insert straightening, die and punch press bending, hammer forming, and die forging.
3 more elements
A method of forming a workpiece comprising
- (a) providing a tool for metal forming and a workpiece comprising metal, wherein the workpiece has an initial shape;
- (b) placing the workpiece and the tool in contact, applying force to the tool and/or the workpiece, and moving the tool and/or the workpiece to effect a change in the initial shape of the workpiece by forming wherein the workpiece softens under said force;
- and
- (c) providing a jet of cryogenic fluid and impinging at least a portion of the jet of cryogenic fluid on an external surface of the tool while impinging essentially none of the jet of cryogenic fluid on the workpiece;
- wherein essentially no cooling of the workpiece is effected by impingement of said jet of cryogenic fluid, and the geometric average temperature of the tool is less than the geometric average temperature of the workpiece;
- and the tool is cooled such that it retains hardness and strength;
- and further wherein said method of forming is selected from the group consisting of contour and profile roll forming, power spinning, roll forging, orbital forging, shoe-type pinch rolling, alligator shearing, guillotine shearing, punch parting, rotary shearing, line shearing, slitting, wire and rod drawing, tube drawing, moving mandrel drawing, punch drawing, moving insert straightening, die and punch press bending, hammer forming, and die forging.
4 more elements
A shaped article made by a method comprising
- (a) providing a tool for metal forming and a workpiece comprising metal, wherein the workpiece has an initial shape;
- (b) placing the workpiece and the tool in contact, applying force to the tool and/or the workpiece, and moving the tool and/or the workpiece to effect a change in the initial shape of the workpiece by forming wherein the workpiece softens under said force;
- (c) providing a jet of cryogenic fluid and impinging essentially all of the jet of cryogenic fluid on an external surface of the tool wherein said tool retains its hardness and strength, and wherein essentially no cooling of the workpiece is effected by impingement of said jet of cryogenic fluid, and the geometric average temperature of the tool is less than the geometric average temperature of the workpiece;
- and
- (d) forming the workpiece into a final shape to provide the shaped article, wherein said method of forming is selected from the group consisting of contour and profile roll forming, power spinning, roll forging, orbital forging, shoe-type pinch rolling, alligator shearing, guillotine shearing, punch parting, rotary shearing, line shearing, slitting, wire and rod drawing, tube drawing, moving mandrel drawing, punch drawing, moving insert straightening, die and punch press bending, hammer forming, and die forging.
2 more elements
A shaped article made by a method comprising
- (a) providing a tool for metal forming and a workpiece comprising metal, wherein the workpiece has an initial shape;
- (b) placing the workpiece and the tool in contact, applying force to the tool and/or the workpiece, and moving the tool and/or the workpiece to effect a change in the initial shape of the workpiece by forming wherein the workpiece softens under said force;
- (c) providing a jet of cryogenic fluid and impinging at least a portion of the jet of a jet of cryogenic fluid on an external surface of the tool while impinging essentially none of the jet of cryogenic fluid on the workpiece, wherein said tool retains its hardness and strength, and the geometric average temperature of the tool is less than the geometric average temperature of the workpiece;
- and
- (d) forming the workpiece into a final shape to provide the shaped article, wherein said method of forming is selected from the group consisting of contour and profile roll forming, power spinning, roll forging, orbital forging, shoe-type pinch rolling, alligator shearing, guillotine shearing, punch parting, rotary shearing, line shearing, slitting, wire and rod drawing, tube drawing, moving mandrel drawing, punch drawing, moving insert straightening, die and punch press bending, hammer forming, and die forging.
2 more elements
An apparatus for processing a workpiece comprising
- (a) a tool for metal forming and a workpiece comprising metal, wherein the workpiece comprises metal and has an initial shape;
- (b) means for placing the workpiece and the tool in contact to form an interface, means for applying force to the tool and/or the workpiece, and means for moving the tool and/or the workpiece to effect a change in the initial shape of the workpiece wherein the work material softens under said force;
- and
- (c) a cryogenic fluid application system adapted for providing a jet of cryogenic fluid and impinging essentially all of the jet of cryogenic fluid on an external surface of the tool, wherein essentially no cooling of the workpiece is effected by impingement of said jet of cryogenic fluid, and the geometric average temperature of the tool is less than the geometric average temperature of the workpiece;
- and the tool is cooled such that it retains hardness and strength;
- said apparatus selected from the group consisting of contour and profile roll forming systems, power spinning systems, roll forging systems, orbital forging systems, shoe-type pinch rolling systems, alligator shearing systems, guillotine shearing systems, punch parting systems, rotary shearing systems, line shearing systems, slitting systems, wire and rod drawing systems, tube drawing systems, moving mandrel drawing systems, punch drawing systems, moving insert straightening systems, die and punch press bending systems, hammer forming systems, and die forging systems.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.