Heat-treating methods and systems
First Claim
1. A method of heat-treating a workpiece, the method comprising:
- a) increasing a temperature of the workpiece over a first time period to an intermediate temperature, wherein increasing comprises pre-heating said workpiece at a rate of at least 250°
C. per second; and
b) heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature, said heating commencing within less time following said first time period than said first time period.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and systems for heat-treating a workpiece are disclosed. A first method involves increasing a temperature of the workpiece over a first time period to an intermediate temperature, and heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than the intermediate temperature, the heating commencing within less time following the first time period than the first time period. A second method involves pre-heating the workpiece from an initial temperature to an intermediate temperature, and heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than the intermediate temperature by an amount less than or equal to about one-fifth of a difference between the intermediate and initial temperatures. A third method involves irradiating a first side of the workpiece to pre-heat the workpiece to an intermediate temperature, and irradiating a second side of the workpiece to heat the second side to a desired temperature greater than the intermediate temperature.
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Citations
75 Claims
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1. A method of heat-treating a workpiece, the method comprising:
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a) increasing a temperature of the workpiece over a first time period to an intermediate temperature, wherein increasing comprises pre-heating said workpiece at a rate of at least 250°
C. per second; and
b) heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature, said heating commencing within less time following said first time period than said first time period. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A method of heat-treating a workpiece, the method comprising:
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a) increasing a temperature of the workpiece over a first time period to an intermediate temperature, wherein increasing comprises pre-heating the workpiece to said intermediate temperature; and
b) heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature, said heating commencing within less time following said first time period than said first time period, wherein heating comprises heating said surface to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature by an amount less than or equal to about one-fifth of a difference between said intermediate and initial temperatures. - View Dependent Claims (4)
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5. A system for heat-treating a workpiece, the system comprising:
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a) a pre-heating device operable to increase a temperature of the workpiece over a first time period, to an intermediate temperature, wherein said pre-heating device is operable to pre-heat said workpiece at a rate of at least 250°
C. per second; and
b) a heating device operable to heat a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature, and operable to commence said heating within less time following said first time period than said first time period. - View Dependent Claims (6)
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7. A method of heat-treating a workpiece, the method comprising:
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a) pre-heating the workpiece from an initial temperature to an intermediate temperature; and
b) heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature by an amount less than or equal to about one-fifth of a difference between said intermediate and initial temperatures. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A system for heat-treating a workpiece, the system comprising:
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a) a pre-heating device operable to pre-heat the workpiece from an initial temperature to an intermediate temperature; and
b) a heating device operable to heat a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature by an amount less than or equal to about one-fifth of a difference between said intermediate and initial temperatures. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50)
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51. A system for heat-treating a workpiece, the system comprising:
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a) means for pre-heating the workpiece from an initial temperature to an intermediate temperature; and
b) means for heating a surface of the workpiece to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature by an amount less than or equal to about one-fifth of a difference between said intermediate and initial temperatures. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75)
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52. A method of heat-treating a workpiece, the method comprising:
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a) irradiating a first side of the workpiece to pre-heat the workpiece to an intermediate temperature, wherein irradiating said first side comprises irradiating said first side with a radiation intensity sufficient to pre-heat said workpiece at a rate of at least 250°
C. per second; and
b) irradiating a second side of the workpiece to heat said second side to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature. - View Dependent Claims (53)
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54. A system for heat-treating a workpiece, the system comprising:
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a) a first irradiance source operable to irradiate a first side of the workpiece to pre-heat the workpiece to an intermediate temperature, wherein said first irradiance source is operable to irradiate said first side with a radiation intensity sufficient to pre-heat said workpiece at a rate of at least 250°
C. per second; and
b) a second irradiance source operable to irradiate a second side of the workpiece to heat said second side to a desired temperature greater than said intermediate temperature. - View Dependent Claims (55)
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Specification