2004 Ad

Automotive Design & Production, Sept, 2004

Mori Seiki (Irving, TX; www.moriseiki.com) has a new line of CNC lathes, the NL series, which consists of four sizes of machines (chuck sizes: 6, 8, 10, 12 in.) and 30 models. The maximum turning length available is 49.6 in. Not only do these machines perform turning, but there is a milling motor inside the turret directly coupled to a milling spindle. Two advantages: the milling tool gets up to speed much faster and vibration and noise are cut in half.

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A bridge-type coordinate measuring machine (CMM), ACCURA is being launched by Carl Zeiss IMT (Minneapolis, MN; www.zeiss.de/us/imt/home.nsf). There are models that provide measuring ranges from 700 X 900 X 500 mm to 1,600 X 4,200 X 1,400 mm. The CMM can be equipped with an array of probes--scanning, single point, optical--and features a probe-change magazine for efficient swaps. It features a fully enclosed X-axis, which is said to minimize maintenance requirements.

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As more companies are interested in machining at accelerated speeds, The Precise Corp. (Racine, WI; www.precise-corp.com) is featuring a new 100-mm diameter spindle, the Type SC 55104, which provides a maximum speed of 40,000 rpm. The spindle has an HSK 32 taper. Designed for applications like milling molds, it provides high stiffness: 150 N/micron.

Finish boring can get even more accurate with the new EWN series 112 and 310 heads from BIG Kaiser Precision Tooling (Elk Grove Village, IL; www.bigkaiser.com). That's because these heads are fitted with a high-precision Vernier scale. As a result, there is the ability to easy and accurately make adjustments to the tool for improved operation. For example, the 112 series head has an adjustment precision to 0.0002 in.; with the Vernier scale, the adjustment precision is 0.00005 in.

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Those looking for 20 sheet cutting (from typical body thickness steels to up to 1-in. mild steel) should examine the HyperGear 20 from Mazak Laser Corp. (Schaumburg, IL; www.mazaklaser.com), as it is making its world premier at IMTS. The cutting system is available with either a 4,000-W or 2,500-W torch (there is an automatic torch and nozzle changer to keep uptime high and manual intervention low). The machine is quick, with a rapid of 4,724 ipm. The Nanosecond PREview 640 PC control is said to assure that there is tight dimensional accuracy.

A CMM for measuring auto bodies is being launched by Mitutoyo America (Aurora, IL; www.mitutoyo.com). This system can be setup with one or two horizontal probe arms that are pylon-mounted alongside a bay that is capable of containing car or light-truck bodies. The measurements are made via either Metris LC high-speed, non-contact digitizing probes, vision probes, or touch-probes. The system software compensates for both temperature and surface variations. The measurement resolution of the unit is 0.1 [micro]m.

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Bridgeport Machines (Shelton, CT; www.bpt.com) has developed an array of both horizontal and vertical machining centers, the HMC 700 series and the VMC XP3 series, respectively. The HMC 700, for example, has a work envelope of 28 X 24 X 24 in. and comes in different models. There's the HMC 700e with a belt-driven 10,000-rpm, 25-hp spindle; the HMC 700HP with a belt-driven 10,000-rpm, 40-hp spindle; and the HMC 700HPD with a directly coupled 15,000-rpm, 40-hp spindle.

Machine tool service and maintenance are facilitated by an offering from Siemens Energy & Automation (Elk Grove Village, IL; www.siemensCNC.com), ePS Network Services. This is an Internet-based service that permits secure access to machine information, such as faults and other machine operating information. Service personnel can be emailed should a fault occur. Data can be analyzed so that repair operations can be effected quickly. ePS also facilitates preventative maintenance routines, thereby minimizing unexpected downtime.

Although more and more deburring is being performed robotically or in another automated Fashion, apparently one problem is in cases when the workpiece has a surface that is something other than straight. There can be problems with both cavities and protrusions. There can be problems when the part is out of tolerance. This issue is said to be addressed with a radially compliant deburring tool From ATI Industrial Automation (Apex, NC; www.ati-ia.com), the Flexdeburr. The air turbine motor/spindle setup employs a pivot bearing that permits radial movement of the deburring tool to accommodate handling varied surfaces.