A method for the manufacture of a hard-metal pressed article comprises providing a multi-part die, involving: feeding at least one frontal mold part that is movable in a first plane; feeding at least one transverse mold part that is movable in a second plane; and locking the at least one frontal mold part and the at least one transverse mold part to define a cavity for a pressed article. Feed directions of the at least one frontal mold part and the at least one transverse mold part are inclined to one another. The at least one frontal mold part and the at least one transverse mold part define surfaces of the pressed article. The resulting cavity comprises at least one opening through which a punch is insertable. The method further comprises feeding a filling shoe above an opening of the cavity and filling the cavity with a hard-metal powder; and compressing the powder with at least one punch that is movable parallel to a main pressing direction. The feeding of the at least one transverse mold part takes place along a feed direction that is parallel to the main pressing direction.

A method for measuring an apparent density of a metal powder includes holding a metal powder in a vessel, applying an alternating magnetic flux to the metal powder using an exciting coil disposed outside the vessel, detecting the alternating magnetic flux passed through the metal powder using a-search coil disposed outside the vessel, and determining an apparent density of the metal powder from an amplitude of the detected alternating magnetic flux using a calibration curve representing a correlation between the apparent density of the metal powder and the amplitude of an alternating magnetic flux prepared in advance. The method enables to measure the apparent density of a metal powder with a high precision in an on-line and non-contact manner without stopping a process of producing a mixed powder or a process of producing a powder compact.

A uniaxial press for shaping pellets by compressing powder in a die by punches. The uniaxial press can be used in a restricted and hostile environment and includes small modules that can pass separately through narrow openings, the modules being assembled by placing over columns and by screwing, therefore by remote handling in the confined space where the press is to operate without requiring any further intervention. The actuation is generally exclusively electromechanical.

A method for measuring an apparent density of a metal powder includes holding a metal powder in a vessel, applying an alternating magnetic flux to the metal powder using an exciting coil disposed outside the vessel, detecting the alternating magnetic flux passed through the metal powder using a search coil disposed outside the vessel, and determining an apparent density of the metal powder from an amplitude of the detected alternating magnetic flux using a calibration curve representing a correlation between the apparent density of the metal powder and the amplitude of an alternating magnetic flux prepared in advance. The method enables to measure the apparent density of a metal powder with a high precision in an on-line and non-contact manner without stopping a process of producing a mixed powder or a process of producing a powder compact.

A powdery-material feeding device is configured to feed a powdery material to a compression-molding machine configured to obtain a molded product by filling a die bore with the powdery material and to compress the powdery material with punches. The powdery-material feeding device includes a detector configured to detect a biologically-originated foreign matter mixedly contained in the powdery material to be fed to the compression-molding machine, and a controller configured to control to remove the powdery material mixedly containing the biologically-originated foreign matter detected by the detector to avoid feeding of the powdery material mixedly containing the biologically-originated foreign matter to the compression-molding machine, or to control to stop the feeding of the powdery material to the compression-molding machine.

A processing system includes a powdery-material feeding device including at least one feeder configured to discharge a reserved powdery material, and an equipment including a filling device configured to be fed with the powdery material discharged from the feeder and configured to execute a post process using the powdery material filled by the filling device, in which upon a start of the equipment having stopped filling with the powdery material by the filling device and executing the post process, when the feeder supplies the filling device with the predetermined amount of the powdery material before the start of the equipment being stopped, the processing system executes tuning of measuring a relation between control input provided to a motor of the feeder and a flow rate of the powdery material discharged from the feeder.

A controller of a rotary compression-molding machine is configured to rotate a turret including a table including a die bore, and punch retaining portions vertically slidably retaining punches disposed above and below the die bore along with the punches, and to fill the die bore with a powdery material from a filling device disposed just above the table, to compress the powdery material filled in the die bore with the punches and to obtain a molded product. The controller is configured to adjust rotational speed of the turret and the punches to allow the powdery material in a feed pipe, directly connected with the filling device and configured to feed the filling device with the powdery material, to have a level of an upper surface kept within a constant target range.

A device for manufacturing a cutting insert green body by compacting a powder includes a die having an upper die part and a lower die, an upper punch and a lower punch, at least one of which is moveable along a pressing axis in relation to the die. The upper and lower die parts, when joined, define a die cavity that defines the shape of the green body to be formed by the compaction. At least one of the lower and upper die part has a pressing bore extending from the cavity for receiving the lower and upper punch. The upper die part has an upper surface that, at least in one direction, extends rectilinearly, and the upper die part has an upper opening in the upper surface, through which the upper punch is arranged to be forwarded into the cavity.

A powdery-material measurement device includes a sensor probe configured to receive reflected light from mixed-powdery materials passing adjacent thereto or transmitted light through the mixed-powdery materials to measure characteristics of the mixed-powdery materials while the powdery-material measurement device is in operation to deliver the mixed-powdery materials toward an equipment, and a standard sample having known characteristics and facing the sensor probe that is disposed to receive the reflected light from the standard sample or the transmitted light through the standard sample, when the mixed-powdery materials are not present adjacent the sensor probe while the powdery-material measurement device is in operation to deliver the mixed-powdery materials toward the equipment.

A device for manufacturing a cutting insert green body by compacting a powder includes a first punch, a second punch having a punch edge that has a curvature around the circumference of the punch edge that is at least partially non-perpendicular with a pressing axis of the device, a first die part, and a second die part. When the first and second die parts are joined together when filling the die with powder, one of the first and second die parts is on top of the other and, when the device is in a position ready for filling of powder into the die, the device presents a cavity defined by the lower die part, a punch being introduced into the lower and upper die part. An opening in an upper end surface of the upper die part enables filling of the powder into the cavity.