Pulling-up-type continuous casting apparatus and pulling-up-type continuous casting method

A pulling-up continuous casting method comprising:

• disposing a shape defining member above a molten-metal surface of molten metal held in a holding furnace, the shape defining member being configured to define a cross-sectional shape of a cast-metal article to be cast;
• pulling up the molten metal while making the molten metal pass through an opening formed in the shape defining member;
• taking an image of the molten metal that has passed through the shape defining member;
• and
• detecting a fluctuation on the molten metal from the image and determining a solidification interface based on presence/absence of the fluctuation, wherein
• the opening is formed in such a manner that a size of the opening on a top surface of the shape defining member is larger than that on a bottom surface of the shape defining member, and
• a shape of the opening is modified based on a position of the solidification interface determined based on the presence/absence of the fluctuation and a pulling-up angle of the molten metal.

A pulling-up continuous casting method comprising:

• disposing a shape defining member above a molten-metal surface of molten metal held in a holding furnace, the shape defining member being configured to define a cross-sectional shape of a cast-metal article to be cast;
• pulling up the molten metal while making the molten metal pass through the shape defining member;
• taking an image of the molten metal that has passed through the shape defining member;
• and
• detecting a fluctuation on the molten metal from the image and determining a solidification interface based on presence/absence of the fluctuation, wherein
• when the molten metal is pulled up in an oblique direction, a degree of submergence of the shape defining member under the molten-metal surface is increased compared to when the molten metal is pulled up in a vertical direction, and
• the degree of submergence is determined based on a position of the determined solidification interface and a pulling-up angle of the molten metal.