초록 ▼

A furnace is provided for continuous high-temperature heat processing in which a work product is conveyed through a furnace muffle by rectilinear beam motion. An inner and an outer beam are equipped with interleaved rods which are used to alternately lift the work product and advance it through the

A furnace is provided for continuous high-temperature heat processing in which a work product is conveyed through a furnace muffle by rectilinear beam motion. An inner and an outer beam are equipped with interleaved rods which are used to alternately lift the work product and advance it through the muffle. A continuous cycle of sequentially raising and advancing the rods attached to one beam, while lowering and retracting the rods of the other beam causes stepwise movement of the work product through the furnace. At no point in the cycle does the work product, rods, or beams make contact with the muffle, nor do the interleaved rods touch each other. The result is frictionless conveyance of the work product through the muffle which virtually eliminates particle generation.

대표청구항 ▼

A walking hearth furnace comprising: a furnace muffle defining a chamber for containing heat generated by a heat source, said furnace muffle including an entrance aperture and an exit aperture; a first and a second support surface that transverse but do not contact interior surfaces of said furnace

A walking hearth furnace comprising: a furnace muffle defining a chamber for containing heat generated by a heat source, said furnace muffle including an entrance aperture and an exit aperture; a first and a second support surface that transverse but do not contact interior surfaces of said furnace muffle for supporting a work product to be heated therein extending through said chamber, each said support surface having a first end portion protruding from said entrance aperture and a second end portion protruding from said exit aperture; a first movable support structure engaging only said first and said second end portion of said first support surface; a second movable support structure engaging only said first and said second end portion of said second support surface; and a movement mechanism engaging said first and said second movable support structure to reciprocally move said first movable support structure with respect to said second movable support structure.