System and method for monitoring ingot detachment from bottom block

1. A system for monitoring a mold, comprising:

the mold defining an opening to receive molten metal and comprising a bottom block lowerable during a casting of the molten metal into an ingot;

a launder configured to deliver the molten metal to the mold;

a water source configured to provide water to the mold;

a diverter configured to divert the water away from a portion of the ingot;

a camera having a field of view including at least the portion of the ingot that the water has been diverted away from, the camera configured to capture optical data associated with the ingot; and

a controller comprising a processor configured to execute instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium in a memory, the controller causing the processor to perform processor operations including:

receiving optical data associated with the portion of the ingot or a portion of the bottom block;

determining, based on the optical data, whether separation of the portion of the ingot from the portion of the bottom block has occurred; and

generating operating instructions for casting the molten metal into the ingot if it was determined that the separation has occurred.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor operations further includes:

determining, based on whether the portion of the ingot has separated from the bottom block, a distance between the portion of the ingot and the bottom block; and

generating operating instructions based on at least the distance between the portion of the ingot and the bottom block.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the operating instructions comprise instructions for at least one of adjusting a rate of lowering of the bottom block, adjusting a flow rate of the molten metal, or adjusting a flow rate of the water.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor operations further comprise, prior to receiving the optical data, operating the diverter to divert the water away from the portion of the ingot.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the optical data includes at least one of an image or an infrared profile.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the launder comprises a flow control device configured to adjust a flow rate of the molten metal from the launder to the mold for casting the molten metal into the ingot, the water flows from the mold during the casting of the molten metal into the ingot, and the field of view of the camera further includes at least a portion of the bottom block and a portion of the ingot and configured to capture optical data associated with the portion of the ingot or the portion of the bottom block, and

wherein the processor operations further comprise:

capturing first optical data associated with the portion of the ingot;

generating a profile associated with the portion of the ingot based on at least the first optical data;

comparing the profile with a baseline profile; and

determining, based on the comparing, whether the portion of the ingot has separated from the bottom block.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the camera comprises an infrared camera and the optical data associated with the ingot comprises an infrared profile associated with the portion of the bottom block or the portion of the ingot.

8. The system of claim 6 , wherein the operating instructions comprise instructions for operating the flow control device to adjust the flow rate of the molten metal into the mold, adjusting a flow rate of the water to the mold, or adjusting movement speed of the bottom block.

9. The system of claim 6 , wherein determining whether separation of the portion of the ingot from the portion of the bottom block has occurred comprises determining a separation distance between the portion of the ingot and the portion of the bottom block.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein the separation distance is in a range between 0.1 inch and 4 inches.

11. The system of claim 6 , wherein the system further comprises a diverter coupled with the mold and configured to divert the water away from the portion of the ingot.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the diverter comprises at least one of an air jet, a sheet, or a plug.

13. The system of claim 6 , wherein the processor operations further includes:

receiving second optical data associated with the portion of the ingot;

updating the profile associated with the portion of the ingot based on at least the second optical data;

comparing the updated profile with the baseline profile; and

determining, based on the comparing, whether the portion of the ingot has separated from the bottom block.

14. The system of claim 6 , wherein comparing the profile with a baseline profile comprises comparing an infrared profile of the portion of the ingot with an infrared profile of the bottom block.

15. A method of monitoring a mold, comprising:

initiating a casting operation using a casting system including the mold comprising a bottom block and a launder, the casting operation comprising:

causing molten metal to flow into the mold;

causing water to flow into the mold;

cooling the molten metal to form an ingot; and

lowering the bottom block;

diverting water away from a portion of the ingot;

capturing, using a camera, first optical data associated with the portion of the ingot;

comparing the first optical data with a baseline profile; and

determining, based on the comparing, whether the portion of the ingot has separated from the bottom block.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:

determining a separation distance between the portion of the ingot and the bottom block; and

generating, based on the separation distance, operating instructions for the casting operation.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein adjusting the casting operation comprises changing a flow rate of the molten metal into the mold, changing a flow rate of the water into the mold, or adjusting the lowering of the bottom block.

18. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:

capturing, using the camera, second optical data associated with the portion of the ingot;

comparing the second optical data with the baseline profile; and

determining, based on the comparing, whether the portion of the ingot has separated from the bottom block.

19. The method of claim 15 , wherein capturing the first optical data comprises capturing infrared data associated with the portion of the ingot.

20. The method of claim 15 , wherein diverting water away from the portion of the ingot comprises operating an air jet.