4D Quench Single-Piece Flow Vacuum Furnace | UniCase Master®

The UniCase Master® or UCM is a revolutionary, vacuum heat treatment system that provides continuous single-piece workflow for case hardening of gears and rings by low-pressure carburizing and high-pressure gas quenching. Contrary to the traditional, batch mode of heat treatment, every single part is going through the system the same way, position, timing and undergoes the same process parameters (in terms of temperature, atmosphere, cooling), which produces consistently high-quality results and ideal repeatability for entire part series.

The UCM system is dedicated for modern, high volume manufacturing of mechanical transmission components for continuous, automated, single–piece flow, in-line production that can be operated with no human intervention. With a part exiting the system at a rate as short as 30 seconds each, customers can experience throughput as high as 1 million parts per year. This process is ideal for the automotive, transmission and bearing industry and related industries. The concept is very flexible in production range and technology. It can be resized depending on part shape and size and is not limited to case hardening only. It can be adapted for thru hardening, brazing, annealing and other heat treatment processes for series, inline production.

Benefits

• Single-piece flow
• 10 times improved precision and repeatability of results
• 100% traceability, individual part monitoring and reporting
• 100% single part in-line testing after case hardening
• 4D Quenching™
• 2-4 times less distortion size
• 2-4 times less distortion variation
• 2-4 times less hard machining operation
• Elimination of some hard machining operations
• Available in 4 configurations (see Features/Options tab for more details)
• Solo 4D Quench® Module: Replaces a standalone press quench following atmosphere carburizing or austenitizing.
• Reheat +4D Quench®: Vacuum Austenitize and 4D Quench® system replaces atmosphere heating and press quenching.
• HiFlow LPC +4D Quench®: A high volume, low pressure carburizing, single piece flow system with precision 4D Quench.
• Multistage +4D Quench®: A low volume, low pressure carburizing, single piece flow system with precision 4D Quench.
• Low Pressure Carburizing / High Pressure Gas Quench
• Elimination of IGO
• Elimination of fire and explosion hazards
• Clean & environmentally friendly production

High Production Efficiency

• Lean manufacturing compatible
• Throughput up to 1 million gears per year: 30 sec/part

Outstanding Quality

• Ideal repeatability of case hardening results for every single piece
• Minimal distortion from individual quench with 4D Quenching®
• Single Piece Monitoring and Reporting in Entire Process

Other Benefits and Savings

• Minimizes final machining costs
• Eliminates batch material handling logistics
• Eliminates fixturing costs, reducing energy consumption
• Eliminates oils, chemicals, and washer systems
• Eliminates fire and explosion hazards
• Flexible production, on demand start-up and shutdown
• Fully automated, continuous operation
• Clean, environmentally friendly technology

Finished part unloading UniCase Master^® furnace

SINGLE-PIECE FLOW UNICASE MASTER® TECHNOLOGY FAMILY

4D Quench® predicts and controls distortion to save you $$$.

4D Quench technology has been created out of necessity for heat treaters who significantly need to increase production quality and economy for the gears and power transmission components they produce. SECO/VACUUM offers four options to implement 4D quench, depending on your needs.

How it Works

At the core of the 4D Quench system lies the quench chamber. It can function either as a standalone system to replace a press quench at the end of a continuous atmosphere furnace or it can be integrated with the vacuum heating chamber with options for austenitizing only and austenitizing with low pressure carburizing.

When integrating 4D Quench with a vacuum furnace, each component undergoes single piece continuous flow (all under vacuum) from the furnace to the 4D Quench chamber. Once it enters the chamber, a distinctive configuration of cooling nozzles envelops the part (3D cooling) while simultaneous rotation occurs (the 4th dimension) during quenching. This method ensures a uniform flow of cooling gas from all angles – top, bottom, and sides – allowing for rapid cooling rates equal to that of oil quenching.

The cooling nozzles can be customized to accommodate the specific size and shape of the part. A robust nitrogen cooling system delivers uniform quenching, resulting in precise repeatability and a substantial reduction in distortion. All of this is done without oil or helium quenching media.

Four Configurations of the UniCase Master® Family of Products

UniCase Master® Solo 4D Quench® Module
Replaces a standalone press quench following atmosphere carburizing or austenitizing.

UniCase Master® Reheat +4D Quench®
Vacuum Austenitize and 4D Quench® system replaces atmosphere heating and press quenching.

UniCase Master® HiFlow LPC +4D Quench®
A high volume, low pressure carburizing, single piece flow system with precision 4D Quench.

UniCase Master® Multistage +4D Quench®
A low volume, low pressure carburizing, single piece flow system with precision 4D Quench.

To learn more about our entire family of 4D Quench Vacuum Technologies, call the SECO/VISORY team at 1 814.332.8520, or send us an inquiry.