Foundry mold jacket and weight shifter

Claim 2

In the art of manipulating foundry flaskless green sand molds on a horizontal conveyor during a metal casting operation before And after the molten metal is poured, the combination comprising a step-by-step foundry mold conveyor system having adjacent conveyor runs, each run of said conveyor system comprising an elongated supporting frame having a succession of spaced apart rollers extending across the top of said frame adapted to carry a plurality of abutting rectangular pallets along said frame, including means for moving said train of pallets intermittently through the length of one pallet; a mold jacket shifter disposed adjacent said conveyor runs, said shifter comprising a rigid support means, a swinging boom pivotally mounted at the upper end of said support means including means for moving said boom back and forth through a limited angular horizontal path, the boom having on its outer end a depending lift rod with associated means for raising and lowering said lift rod, a jacket clamp attached to the lower end of said rod, including means for closing and opening said clamp, and means operatively associated with said vertical lift rod and said rigid support means for maintaining the compass orientation of said clamp at the two ends of the limited angular path of said boom; and means for synchronizing the movements of said shifter with the movement of said conveyor.

Claim 3

The combination claimed in claim 1, in which the conveyor runs move in opposite directions.

Claim 4

In the art of manipulating foundry flaskless green sand molds on a horizontal conveyor during a metal casting operation before and after the molten metal is poured, the combination comprising a step-by-step foundry mold conveyor system having adjacent conveyor runs moving in opposite directions, each run of said conveyor system comprising an elongated supporting frame having a succession of spaced apart rollers extending across the top of said frame adapted to carry a plurality of abutting rectangular pallets along said frame, including means for moving said train of pallets intermittently through the length of one pallet; a jacket shifter comprising a support post rigidly mounted between said adjacent conveyor runs, a swinging boom pivotally mounted at one end for angular horizontal movement, at the top of said support post, a lift assembly for a depending clamp means attached on the outer end of said swinging boom, a mold jacket clamp means including closing and opening means attached to the lower end of said lift assembly, whereby to shift a jacket from a mold on a cooling section of said conveyor system to a fresh mold on an adjacent section of said conveyor system leading to the metal pouring station, and means associated with said lift assembly and said support post for maintaining the compass orientation of said clamp means at the ends of the limited angular path of said swinging boom; and means for synchronizing the movements of said jacket shifter with the step-by-step movement of said conveyor system.

Claim 5

In the art of manipulating foundry flaskless green sand molds on a horizontal conveyor during a metal casting operation before and after the molten metal is poured, the combination comprising a step-by-step foundry mold conveyor system having adjacent conveyor runs moving in opposite directions, each run of said conveyor system comprising an elongated supporting frame having a succession of spaced apart rollers extending across the top of said frame adapted to carry a plurality of abutting rectangular pallets along said frame, including means for moving said train of pallets intermittently through the length of one pallet; a jacket shifter comprising a support post rigidly mounted between said adjacent conveyor runs, a swinging boom pivotally mounted at one end for angular horizontal movement, at the top of said support post, a lift assembly for a depending clamp means attached on the outer end of said swinging boom, a mold jacket clamp means including closing and opening means attached to the lower end of said lift assembly, whereby to shift a jacket from a mold on a cooling section of said conveyor system to a fresh mold on an adjacent section of said conveyor system leading to the metal pouring station, and means associated with said lift assembly and said support post for maintaining the compass orientation of said clamp means at the ends of the limited angular path of said swinging boom; and means for synchronizing the movements of said jacket shifter with the step-by-step movement of said conveyor system.

Claim 6

In the art of manipulating foundry flaskless green sand molds on a horizontal conveyor during a metal casting operation before and after the molten metal is poured, the combination comprising a step-by-step foundry mold conveyor system having adjacent conveyor runs moving in opposite directions, each run of said conveyor system comprising an elongated supporting frame having a succession of spaced apart rollers extending across the top of said frame adapted to carry a plurality of abutting rectangular pallets along said frame, including means for moving said train of pallets intermittently through the length of one pallet; a mold jacket shifter disposed adjacent said conveyor runs comprising a firmly mounted vertical post; a swinging boom pivotally mounted on the top portion of said post, said boom having a hydraulic piston and cylinder assembly operatively connected between a lever arm extending horizontally from said post and a horizontally disposed lug extending laterally from said boom, with a hydraulic lift assembly attached to said boom at its outer end includIng a depending lift bar to the lower end of which is attached a C-hook jacket clamp assembly including hydraulic closing and opening means for said C-hook adapted to engage or release a mold jacket; and means for synchronizing the sequential movements of said jacket shifter with the step-by-step movement of said conveyor system.

Claim 7

In the art of manipulating foundry flaskless green sand molds on a horizontal conveyor during a metal casting operation before and after the molten metal is poured, the combination comprising a step-by-step foundry mold conveyor system having adjacent conveyor runs moving in opposite directions, each run of said conveyor system comprising an elongated supporting frame having a succession of spaced apart rollers extending across the top of said frame adapted to carry a plurality of abutting rectangular pallets along said frame, including means for moving said train of pallets intermittently through the length of one pallet; a mold jacket shifter disposed adjacent said conveyor runs comprising a firmly mounted vertical post; a swinging boom pivotally mounted on the top portion of said post, said boom having a hydraulic piston and cylinder assembly operatively connected between a lever arm extending horizontally from said post and a horizontally disposed lug extending laterally from said boom, with a hydraulic lift assembly attached to said boom at its outer end includIng a depending lift bar to the lower end of which is attached a C-hook jacket clamp assembly including hydraulic closing and opening means for said C-hook adapted to engage or release a mold jacket; and means for synchronizing the sequential movements of said jacket shifter with the step-by-step movement of said conveyor system.