Wax casting process for producing a casting of a body part

{
  "publication_number": "US5213746A",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "A",
  "title": "Wax casting process for producing a casting of a body part",
  "abstract": "A process for obtaining precision castings of body parts wherein the body part is first immersed in a ice and water slush, immediately removed therefrom and immersed in a melted paraffin wax-water container, immediately removed therefrom and the body part extracted from the resulting wax mold. At least the interior surface of the hollow wax mold is coated with a casting material and permitted to cure at room temperature. The cured casting is heated by immersion in the wax-water container or in a separate heated water container for a period of at least ten minutes to remove the wax mold and recover a casting of the body part. The removed wax molding material may be recycled and employed in subsequent castings and recover a casting of the body part.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A process for making an exact casting of a body part comprising the steps of: (a) providing a first container having a quantity of ice water therein; (b) providing a second container having a quantity of water and a quantity of wax therein; (c) heating and maintaining the second container at a temperature adequate to melt and maintain the wax in a liquid state; (d) coating the body part to be cast with a release agent selected from the group of release agents consisting of glycerin and light oils; (e) immersing the coated body part into the ice water of the first container; (f) immediately removing the body part from the ice water of the first container and immersing the body part into the melted wax and water in the second container; (g) immediately removing the wax coated body part from the melted wax and water in the second container and extracting the body part from the wax layer formed thereon to recover a unitary hollow wax mold of the body part; (h) permitting the hollow wax mold to cool at room temperature; (i) coating at least the interior surface of the recovered hollow wax mold with a curable casting material; (j) permitting the coated casting material to cure; and, (k) heating the cured, cast coated, wax mold to a temperature adequate to separate the hollow wax mold from the casting to recover an exact casting of the body part.",
    "2. The process of claim 1 wherein the ice water contained in the first container is in the form of a ice-water slush and including the steps of providing insulation for the first and second containers and positioning the containers in adjacent relationship within a housing.",
    "3. The process of claim 2 wherein the step of heating and maintaining the second container at a temperature adequate to melt and maintain the wax in the liquid state includes the step of providing a thermostatically controlled electric heating coil within the housing for the first and second containers.",
    "4. The process of claim 3 wherein the wax employed in the second container is a paraffin wax and the second housing is heated and maintained at a temperature sufficient to provide a temperature range of 100°-120° F. for the water and wax contained therein.",
    "5. The process of claim 1 wherein the steps of immersing the body part in the first and second containers are repeated at least once to provide multiple layers of wax on the hollow wax mold.",
    "6. The process of claim 1 wherein the curable casting material is selected from the group of casting materials consisting of plaster of paris, gypsum based casting materials and casting resins.",
    "7. The process of claim 1 wherein the hollow wax mold is filled with the casting material to recover a solid casting of the body part."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "This invention relates broadly to a casting process and relates specifically to apparatus and process for utilizing a wax molding for casting replicas of body parts and the like.\n\nCast replicas of body parts such as the hands, face, feet are frequently employed by artists and actors and may be also required in medical and legal applications. Cast face, and other body part moldings, are presently made by making a negative plaster cast of the body part, generally in multiple stages, which leaves seams that must be worked or refined after the mold is cast. This is a multi-step, time consuming, expensive and wasteful procedure since essentially none of the materials employed are suitable for re-use or recycling. In addition, professional or highly skilled labor is required to obtain the desired accurate castings by this prior art process. There is a definite need in the art for a simple, inexpensive, casting procedure that may be employed for making castings of body parts in a fraction of the time required by the prior art methods and wherein the materials utilized in the process are recoverable and recyclable.\n\nAccordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel process of making castings of body parts, and the like, that is simple and inexpensive to perform.\n\nAn additional object of the present invention is a process for making castings of body parts, and the like, that may be performed in a fraction of the time required by prior art methods.\n\nAnother object of the present invention is a process of making castings of body parts that may be performed accurately with the use of semi-skilled labor.",
  "cpc": [
    "B44C 3/042",
    "A61F 2/583",
    "A61F 2002/5053",
    "B28B 7/342",
    "B29C 2033/3871",
    "B29C 33/3857",
    "B29C 33/52",
    "B29L 2031/702",
    "B29L 2031/753"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "B28B 7/34",
    "B29C 33/38",
    "B29C 33/52",
    "B44C 3/04"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Ross Tarwater"
  ],
  "filing_date": "1991-06-17",
  "publication_date": "1993-05-25",
  "grant_date": "1993-05-25",
  "priority_date": "1991-06-17",
  "application_number": "US-71627291-A",
  "family_id": "24877397",
  "cited_by_count": 11,
  "citations": [
    "US47121A",
    "US803004A",
    "US996783A",
    "US1020679A",
    "US2178873A",
    "US2281227A",
    "US2473723A",
    "US3612147A",
    "US3894136A",
    "US4274823A",
    "US4735754A",
    "US4842243A"
  ]
}