AutoCAST is a software program for

casting Casting is a manufacturing process in which a liquid material is usually poured into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then allowed to solidify. The solidified part is also known as a ''casting'', which is ejecte ...

methods design, simulation and optimization developed by

Indian Institute of Technology Bombay The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay or IITB) is a public research university and technical institute in Powai, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is considered as one of the best engineering universities in India and is top rank ...

. It uses geometric reasoning for automating the design of casting methods elements – cores, mold cavity layout, feeders, feed aids and gating channels. Fast and intelligent simulation technology is employed to visualize mold filling and casting solidification in near-real time.

Foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...

engineers can quickly import a 3D model of cast part, create methods elements, simulate the casting, predict internal defects (like shrinkage porosity and sand inclusion), and modify the methods design to improve quality and yield. Product designers can improve the casting design for manufacturability by minor modifications, such as fillets at junctions. This enables better compatibility between part requirements and process capability, leading to zero defects.A holistic approach to zero defects
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Applications

The latest version AutoCAST-X1 incorporates many innovations, including part thickness analysis, multi-cavity mould layout, multi-neck feeder design, vector element method for solidification simulation, automatic optimisation of feeders and gating system, tooling cost estimation and methods report generation. The database includes all major metal families and casting processes; which can be customised to accommodate new alloys and mould materials.

History

The software has a 20-year history of technology development at the

, supported by several Ph.D. and Masters-level researchers. It is maintained and supported by 3D Foundry Tech, a company incubated at the Institute. The software is used in industry (especially, SME foundries) for quality and yield improvement, and in academic institutes for simulation labs. File:AX1-Thickness.jpg, Part wall thickness File:AX2-Feedpath.jpg, Solidification feed paths

References

External links

*{{official website, http://www.autocast.co.in Casting (manufacturing) Computer-aided design software