Patent ID: 7163046

Claim:
An injection molding apparatus for a light metal alloy, comprising: a chamber; a extrusion screw located substantially vertically and provided rotationally inside said chamber, wherein the extrusion screw is mounted for movement in the axial direction thereof, to extrude the molten metal or the semi-solidified slurry; a connection member having a first internal channel substantially in a vertical direction and a second internal channel extending horizontally from the lower end of the first channel, said connection member being connected to a discharge port of said chamber; a nozzle connected at the discharge end of said second internal channel; nozzle discharge port opening/closing means for opening or closing a discharge port of said nozzle; a clamping device for injection molding the molten metal or the semi-solidified slurry discharged from said nozzle, wherein said clamping device is adapted to open or close a movable plate relative to a stationary plate in a horizontal direction; a hopper connected to the upper end of the chamber; a level sensor for detecting the surface height of a molten metal in said hopper; and control means for controlling the supply of the molten metal to said hopper based on a signal from said level sensor so that the surface height of the molten metal is lower than a shaft seal of the extrusion screw.