Patent ID: 9498837
Filing Date: 2016-11-22
CPC Classification: B23K

Claim Text:
1. A bond metal injection tool, comprising: a fill head having a sealed chamber for containing a molten bond metal and a gas, and a nozzle at an outlet of the chamber for directing a flow of the molten bond metal from the chamber and then out through the nozzle into cavities in a major surface of a mold; and a pressure control device operable to controllably apply pressure within the chamber to eject the bond metal from the nozzle into the cavities when the pressure is applied within the chamber, and to controllably apply a vacuum within the chamber to prevent the bond metal from being ejected from the nozzle when the vacuum is applied within the chamber, wherein the fill head is movable from a first position in which the nozzle is juxtaposed with at least one of the cavities or a plane defined by the major surface, and a second position in which the nozzle is juxtaposed with a plane defined by a parking surface of a parking space, wherein the pressure control device is operable to apply the vacuum within the chamber separately from an operation of filling the cavities with the bond metal, to prevent the bond metal from being ejected from the nozzle when the nozzle is removed from the major surface to the parking surface when bond metal remains in the fill head immediately after filling the mold cavities in the major surface, wherein the parking space has an edge surface extending in a direction transverse to the plane defined by the parking surface, at least a portion of the edge surface of the parking space being spaced apart from an adjacent edge surface of the mold to define a gap, wherein the pressure control device is operable to apply the vacuum within the chamber to prevent the bond metal from being ejected from the nozzle when the nozzle moves from the first position away from the mold cavities across the gap to the second position; and a second nozzle to direct a flow of a second gas to the gap between the mold and the parking space.