Heat treatment apparatus

Abstract

A cooling chamber is provided which cools workpieces that have been heated. Cooling units are provided in the cooling chamber, and respectively include: a conveyor which simultaneously and uniserially conveys a plurality of workpieces; a mist cooling device which is disposed so as to surround the conveyance path of the conveyor and which supplies mist-like cooling liquid; and a gas cooling device which is disposed so as to surround the conveyance path of the conveyor and which supplies cooling gas.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A heat treatment apparatus provided with a cooling chamber for cooling of workpieces that have been heated, the heat treatment apparatus comprising:
 a cooling unit provided in the cooling chamber, the cooling unit comprising:
 a conveyor used to simultaneously and uniserially convey a plurality of the workpieces; and 
 a mist cooling device disposed so as to surround a conveyance path of the conveyor, the mist cooling device being used to supply a mist-like cooling liquid, 
   wherein the mist cooling device includes:
 a plurality of tubular bodies disposed around the conveyance path, the plurality of tubular bodies configured to allow the cooling liquid to be supplied there into; and 
 nozzles provided in each of the plurality of tubular bodies in a mutually separated manner, the nozzles being configured to spray the mist-like cooling liquid toward the conveyance path. 
   
     
     
         2 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the cooling unit further comprises a gas cooling device disposed so as to surround the conveyance path of the conveyor, the gas cooling device being used to supply cooling gas.   
     
     
         3 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the cooling liquid has a boiling point with a temperature that is 30 to 50° C. higher than a supply temperature of the mist-like cooling liquid.   
     
     
         4 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 which is configured to supply inert gas into the cooling chamber before supplying the cooling liquid, so as to raise a pressure inside the cooling chamber.   
     
     
         5 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 which is configured to circulate the cooling liquid which has been supplied into the cooling chamber, through the plurality of tubular bodies via a pipe.   
     
     
         6 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a gauge used to measure temperatures of the workpieces; and   a control device used to control a supply volume of the cooling liquid based on measurement results of the gauge.   
     
     
         7 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 2 , further comprising:
 a gauge used to measure temperatures of the workpieces; and   a control device used to control a supply volume of the cooling liquid based on measurement results of the gauge.   
     
     
         8 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 3 , further comprising:
 a gauge used to measure temperatures of the workpieces; and   a control device used to control a supply volume of the cooling liquid based on measurement results of the gauge.   
     
     
         9 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 4 , further comprising:
 a gauge used to measure temperatures of the workpieces; and   a control device used to control a supply volume of the cooling liquid based on measurement results of the gauge.   
     
     
         10 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 5 , further comprising:
 a gauge used to measure temperatures of the workpieces; and   a control device used to control a supply volume of the cooling liquid based on measurement results of the gauge.   
     
     
         11 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 6 , wherein
 the gauge is configured to measure the temperatures of the workpieces at a position corresponding to each of the nozzles, and   the control device is configured to control the supply volume of the cooling liquid with respect to each of the nozzles based on the measurement results.   
     
     
         12 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 7 , wherein
 the gauge is configured to measure the temperatures of the workpieces at a position corresponding to each of the nozzles, and   the control device is configured to control the supply volume of the cooling liquid with respect to each of the nozzles based on the measurement results.   
     
     
         13 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 8 , wherein
 the gauge is configured to measure the temperatures of the workpieces at a position corresponding to each of the nozzles, and   the control device is configured to control the supply volume of the cooling liquid with respect to each of the nozzles based on the measurement results.   
     
     
         14 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein
 the gauge is configured to measure the temperatures of the workpieces at a position corresponding to each of the nozzles, and   the control device is configured to control the supply volume of the cooling liquid with respect to each of the nozzles based on the measurement results.   
     
     
         15 . The heat treatment apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein
 the gauge is configured to measure the temperatures of the workpieces at a position corresponding to each of the nozzles, and   the control device is configured to control the supply volume of the cooling liquid with respect to each of the nozzles based on the measurement results.