The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 05, 2010
Filed:
May. 19, 2006
Seetarama S. Kotagiri, Rochester Hills, MI (US);
Timothy W. Skszek, Saline, MI (US);
Frank A. Horton, Rochester Hills, MI (US);
P. Gregory Kiselis, Oak Ridge, NC (US);
Seetarama S. Kotagiri, Rochester Hills, MI (US);
Timothy W. Skszek, Saline, MI (US);
Frank A. Horton, Rochester Hills, MI (US);
P. Gregory Kiselis, Oak Ridge, NC (US);
Magna International Inc., Aurora, Ontario, CA;
Abstract
A method of forming metal castings includes positioning a first end of a structural member in a first mold cavity and a second end of the structural member in a second mold cavity. The first and second mold cavities are fluidly coupled to a reservoir of molten metal. A main pressure is applied to the molten metal in the reservoir to force the molten metal into the first and second mold cavities. First and second auxiliary pressures are applied to the first and second mold cavities to densify the castings formed in the first and second mold cavities. Another method for casting includes maintaining a main pressure at or less than an initial, mold-filling pressure after the first and second mold cavities have been filled. Additionally, a method for detecting whether a first mold cavity is sufficiently filled with molten metal includes monitoring a moveable element.