Archive for the ‘CNC Mini Machines’ Category

Just a bit of fun.. Using B.F. Hexapod as a pen plotter. DXF files are converted to translation moves and fed to the hexapod in sequence. The idea is to replace the pen with a small routing head, and then try to cut something! Routing resolution is pretty low, but you get the idea.

I built this one as a one-off piece, but you? could modify a kit like the MSR-H01 which is also one of mine. However, the MSR-H01 hexapod would not be strong enough to take the router attachment, but the pen should be possible.

It has an on-board computer? (p.Brain) controlling body locomotion, with a remote computer sending X,Y,Z translation commands over bluetooth.

Industrial Information – High Speed Milling Machines

High speed machining is a proven stipulation characterized by low cutting forces and high metal removal. High Speed Milling is a technique used in the CNC Milling Industry that combines high spindle speeds with increased feed rates. This results in a high chip-forming rate and lower milling forces, producing an improved surface quality and closer tolerances. In high speed milling, the electronics can make all the difference. The right CNC coupled with other elements of the control system can let a slower machine mill a given form faster than a machine with a higher top feed rate.

1. High Speed Uses

High-speed CNC milling is used, for example, to machine the titanium rotors of the first high-pressure compressor stages of the EJ200 engine. High speed CNC milling allows cost-effective milling of the airfoil geometry from the solid. By subsequent finishing operations the planned surface finish is achieved. The CNC milling which caters to high speed must be structured with an axis movement system that is suitable for machining.

2. Axis Movement

The high-speed CNC milling machines required for the process must be fitted with an axis movement system suitable for machining blisks, which should be at least 5 axes simultaneously, depending on the milling task involved and an efficiently high-speed control system.

3. 3D Surfaces

High Speed CNC milling machines working on 3D surfaces in any materials produce a finer surface finish and higher accuracy in less time that the traditional milling machine. Acceleration is the most critical factor that affects the high speed machining. Since one or more axis are always increasing or decreasing velocity in a 3-D cut, ultimate feed rate is directly related to acceleration

4. What Can A High Speed Control Possibly Do?

A CNC milling machine which possesses a higher structural stiffness has a greater potential acceleration rate. Box shaped high speed CNC milling machine, like Bridge and Gantry is the mostly widely used types of High speed CNC milling tools. The overhead type Gantry exudes the highest stiffness, acceleration and accuracy among other high speed CNC milling tools. Due to its scalability, this machine type is available in sizes to match the work piece, from small to large.

In usual terms, it simply gives you the ability to finish one task faster and move along to the next sooner, making work output higher. In drilling and tapping, this can result in faster hole-to-hole times, quicker spindle reversals for tapping, and substantial cycle-time reductions. The most dramatic benefits, though, come in 3D designs machining. Few, drilling and tapping jobs require a million lines of machine codes. In molds, dies, patterns, and prototypes, complex surfaces comprising a million or more line segments are not at all uncommon. Saving just a fraction of a second per move can result in substantial cycle-time improvements.

5. Downsides – When Is Fast Too Fast?

But despite all these benefits, in high milling, the tool path segments can be so short that a machining center moving at a high feed rate can?t accelerate or decelerate fast enough to make direction changes accurately. Corners may be rounded off and the work piece surface may be gouged. Look-ahead is one answer. Look-ahead capability can let the CNC read ahead a certain number of blocks in the program, to anticipate sudden direction changes and slow the feed rate accordingly.

6. Additional Benefits:

- Improved accuracy
- Better fit
- Superior finish
- Better life
- Produce more work in less time
- Improving the accuracy and finish
- Reducing polishing and fitting time
- Tools simply last longer because their chip load is more consistent

About the Author:

For more great milling machine related articles and resources check out http://www.millinginfo.com

Originally posted 2007-11-13 10:18:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

By Eric Dykstra

Not long ago CNC (which stands for computer numerical control, by the way) machines were so expensive that only large companies could own them. But we’re in the middle of a full-fledged CNC revolution, reaching all the way down to the grassroots level. Now a dedicated average Joe whip up a precise fabricating tool with little more than some plans, basic tools, and a PC.

The internet abounds with plans like Rockcliff Machine’s router design. They claim their design can be completed for as low as $300 — though luck is a factor. You’ll have to shop sales and scrounge materials to hit that number, and settle for common materials like MDF.

Controlling this marvel of modern technology involves software, but luckily the open source community has created free (as in speech) software like EMC. The EMC package offers most — if not all the features of commercial software — without the price.

More specialized gear like stepper motors and polished guide rods and bearings will make up the bulk of the cost of the machine. But sites like CNCzone.com offer links to suppliers as well as a whole community of folks willing to answer questions and give advice.

A whole world of computer controlled tools has been opened to the do-it-your-selfer. Don’t miss out; get out there and give it a look!

Originally posted 2007-10-06 11:16:28. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

        CNC as a hobby has really seen a huge growth spurt over the last 8 years.  I think I stepped into it about two years after it started cooking in the late 90s.  When I jumped in there were a few CNC Groups going already and about three different CNC Plasma Tables available at the hobby level.  I don’t know where the other machine types were at the time because I came in through the plasma path.  I would guess they were further behind as CNC Plasma Cutters was one of the first areas of CNC to take off in the Hobby arena.

        Most of the growth I would attribute to the Internet.  Groups formed, ideas were shared.  Feedback was given.  People started making “chips” and didn’t look back.  The Internet brought a very expensive technology into garages across the country.  When I built my $4000 CNC Plasma Table a hobbyist class machine was around $10,000 and a commercial machine was $100,000 to as high as you wanted to go.

Originally posted 2007-08-01 23:36:09. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

As every one knows, chips are formed during the machining of workpieces. The side of the chip in contact with the cutting tool is normally shiny, flat and smooth while the other side, which is the free workpiece surface, is jagged due to shear.

It is important to study the formation of chips during the machining process as the former affects the surface finish, cutting forces, temperature, tool life and dimensional tolerance. Understanding the chip formation during the machining process for the specific materials will allow us to determine the machining speeds, feed rates and depth of cuts for efficient machining and increased tool life in the specific actual machining operation. During the machining process, three basic types of chips are formed. They are discontinuous chips, continuous chips, and continuous chips with built-up edge.

Discontinuous chip formation normally occurs during machining of brittle work material. This type of chips also occus in machining operation with small rake angles on cutting tools, coarse machining feeds, low cutting speeds. Discontinuous chip formation results in poor workpiece surface finish.

During continuous chip formation, a continuous "ribbon" of metal flows up the chip-tool zone. This is considered to be the ideal condition for efficient cutting action.

Continuous chip with built-up edge formation is basically the same process as continuous chip formation, except that as the metal flows up the chip-tool zone, small particles of the metal begin to adhere or weld themselves to the edge of the cutting tool. As the particles continue to weld to the tool, it affects the cutting action of the tool.

This type of chip formation is common in machining of softer non-ferrous metals and low carbon steels. Common problems are the built-up edges breaking off and being embedded in the workpiece during machining, decrease in tool-life and final poor surface finish of the workpiece.

Studies on the built-up edges have shown that the chip material is welded, deformed and then deposited onto the rake face of the tool layer by layer. It is thus possible to observe the presence of built-up edges by studying the back face of the chip during the machining process. This is normally used in micro or ultra precision machining operation.

To reduce built-up edges, improve the lubrication conditions, use sharp tools and better surface finish tool and also apply ultrasonic vibration during the machining process.

About the Author

Author Ken Yap is a director of Suwa Precision Engineering Pte Ltd in Singapore and represents precision metal stamping, swiss screw machining, miniature precision balls and printed circuit boards manufacturers from Suwa, Japan.

Originally posted 2007-10-04 15:33:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

A very compact universal CNC 3-axis milling machine for general machining is being offered at an unrivalled price-performance ratio, selling for under EUR 50,000

Emco Group, based in Austria, said it is widening the ‘design-to-cost philosophy’ into ‘designed to costs and market’, with its ongoing additions to its successful E25/45/65 milling machine series. The new Emcomill E 600 – a modular and compact design – is being offered at an ‘unrivalled price-performance ratio’.

The Emcomill E 600 is the result of a successful joint operation between Emco and its Italian subsidiary, Famup.

The CNC universal miller is offered for general machining as well as tool and prototype construction.

The Emco Group, in a report to manufacturingtalk.com, said it has created a new machine generation for the standard 3-axis machined parts production.

The Ecomill E 600 is available for EUR 49,990.- euros.

Managing director of the Emco group, Gerhard Glanz, said: ‘Presently, only cheap products from Taiwan and similar countries can be found on the market at these prices’.

Rapid traverse speed is 24m/min and number of tools (standard) is 20.

In Emco’s ‘design-to-cost’ approach, all components that contribute to performance, precision and long duration of a machine are optimised, focussing at the same time on main functions for the user.

* Mechanical engineering without compromises – the Emcomill E 600 is designed as a very compact universal 3-axis machine for general machining.

The machine base, the support and all three slides are of massive cast design and form the basis for the robust machine structure.

The excellent damping properties of the cast material result in high surface qualities with ample cutting values, said Emco.

The roller guides with their parts that provide high support and stiffness values make the slides traverse precisely and without jerking.

The tool turret is designed as a very quick two-arm turret as a standard.

Tool changing times of 1.6s facilitate more than quick change to other tools and thus ensure production that saves time and costs.

* Modular structure – the highly proven modular concept allows machine customisation.

The main modules are as follows.

Spindle variants are available as, following.

* Basic version – 10,000 rev/min with direct drive (Siemens CNC) or 8,000 rev/min with direct drive (Fanuc CNC).

* 12,000 rev/min with direct drive as a variant for internal coolant supply.

* 15,000 rpm as motor spindle version.

* Tool magazine.

In the basic version the tool magazine (drum magazine) contains 20 tools.

Upon request the drum magazine can be expanded to 30 tools.

* Control options – the customer may choose between a Siemens 810D and the Fanuc 0i.

* chip removal – the standard design consists of a chip tray with simple lateral chip removal.

For automatic chip removal a chip conveyor can be integrated as a module into the machine structure.

* coolant supply – the coolant supply is carried out via lateral nozzles at the spindle nose.

As an option, an internal high-pressure coolant supply through the spindle and tool may be chosen.

* Round table/4th axis – for 4-axis applications a robust round table with a diameter of 200mm, resolution up to 0.001 deg and NC interpolation is available.

* Options – Emco offers to the customer a standard selection of accessories for the new Emcomill E 600, as follows.

Measuring sensor for tool or workpiece measurement.

Hand wheel.

Band filter.

Cleaning nozzle.

Alarm lamp.

Blow-out device.

Chip flushing.

Automatic door system.

• HK Technologies: contact details and other news

Originally posted 2007-11-11 17:07:51. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

3-axis Gantry Desktop CNC
Posted by Blog Happenings: [404 Check: was link to http:/ / cnccncmachine. com/ compact -cnc -machines -come -ready -to -use. html, anchor: Compact CNC Machine] arrives ready to use. These are desk top 3-axis gantry-type
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CNC Plasma Cutting
Posted by Wilbur Corncob: Torchmate offers various CNC cutting systems and a 23 page catalog online. They sell the Torchmate II CNC shape cutting machine in kit form for under $6,000. It allow s you to create shapes on your screen and cut them automatically. It has a rapid traverse speed of 300 Inch Per Minute and a cutting speed of 80 IPM. CNC plasma cutter operations
Tags: plasma cutting, torch cutting. Comments: 0.

CNC Software for the Cabinet and Door Industry Interview
Posted by ‘Interviewer’: Name of your website Software for the Cabinet and Door Industry Your name Frank D. Jimenez Your Location (city, etc) Medford, Oregon U.S.A. Please give us a short summary of your website CNC Software that provides cutlists, material summaries, labels, floor plan views, wall elevations, 3D Renderings, 3D dimensioned shop drawings,
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Tools, articles and jobs
Posted by Blog Happenings: Fastest CNC punch press offers simple automation As well as laying claim to be one of the world’s fastest punching machines, CNC punch press system features "twin-cart". [404 Check: was link to http:/ / www. cnc -machine -tool -probe. com/ index. php/ machien -tool/ machine -tool -line -e88/ , anchor: Machine Tool Line: E88] Probing
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Wood and Metal Works
Posted by Website Introductions: At CNC, all your wood and metal working needs is available. Minifactory CNC woodworking milling machines Vacuum press Automatic Vacuum press With 2 work tables CNC laser-engraving machines CNC laser-engraving machines Metalworking CNC plasma cutting machines PVC film for vacuum press Woodworking and metalworking CNC
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CNC Drill Press
Posted by Wilbur Corncob: We have seen various types of lathes with go with numerical control but that are not the only machines which utilize CNC add-on. There are numerous other machines such as the drill machine which use CNC including drilling machines. Well you might think what sort of arrangement would be it because as we a drilling machine is simply used to make a
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Choosing the right drafting table at Office1000 – Part 2 of drafting series
Posted by Office1000: In an earlier post we went over some of the drafting products we carry at Office1000.com. In this post, we will discuss some of the different types of drafting tables available on our website. In the next post, we will do an informative bit about drafting stools. On our website, we offer several types of drafting tables . Please be aware when
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HAAS CNC Machines History
Posted by Wilbur Corncob: There are several companies in the world which manufacture CNC machines and in this blog we will learn something about one such company. The name of the company is HAAS machines. It has a wide range of vertical as well as horizontal CNC machining centres under its belt and caters to the needs of a wide target of consumers who have such
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CNC Router and Programming
Posted by Bill: Cnc Router : "A few years ago my fiance, Len Rulason and myself built a CNC Router so we could learn a bit about CNC programming and to make parts for our full scale and model aviation hobbies." Check out the blog for some great photos of a home built hobby cnc system and
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Beyond the CNC Control
Posted by Wilbur Corncob: CNC is not only about hardware as the name might suggest i.e. computerized numerical control. As is evident from the explanation of the acronym itself, whenever computerized control is involved in the process it also requires some sort of software to run the unintelligent hardware to perform some activity which is mostly a manufacturing related
Tags: flashcut cnc, cnc software. Comments: 0.

UK – At EMO 2007, the Japanese machine tool manufacturer, Okuma, introduced a new way of turning tapered bores and outside diameters using its horizontal machining centers, which are available in the UK through NCMT.

Called turn-cutting, the patented technique is in contrast to the established process of revolving a component on the rotary table of a 4- or 5-axis machining center and feeding in a static turning tool mounted in the spindle to machine the OD. The bore would be impossible to turn to any reasonable accuracy, as a long right-angle head would be needed.

Instead, the turn-cut function in the Okuma OSP-P200M control allows a single-point turning tool in the spindle of one of the manufacturer’s horizontal machining centers to turn a static component, even on a 3-axis machine. It is achieved by taking advantage of linear feed rates up to 60 m/min to circular-interpolate the X and Y axes rapidly while feeding forward in Z.

The clever part, which forms the core of the patent, is the ability of the control to continuously orientate the tool in the spindle by rotating it at precisely the same speed as, and in synchrony with, the circular X/Y path. The tool therefore cuts at the correct rake angle at every point throughout the 360-degrees to ensure efficient and precise metal removal.

Cylindrical bores and ODs are easily achieved by keeping the X/Y travels constant, while tapers and other profiles can be turned by varying the amplitude of circular interpolation.

The benefit of turning on a machining center is that components can be finished in a single clamping, avoiding a subsequent set-up on a lathe and the consequent handling costs, increased floor-to-floor time and tolerance build-up. If parts are heavy and / or have eccentric bores or ODs, rotating them for conventional turning becomes difficult, requires expensive lathes and can lead to further inaccuracies.

At EMO, the machining center demonstrating the turn-cutting technique was an Okuma MA-600HB, which can machine workpieces weighing up to 1.2 tonnes within a nominal one metre cube. Turn-cutting accuracy is to within microns and it is this degree of precision that is crucial; some machine manufacturers might be able to approximate the procedure, but only for open-tolerance work.

As with all the latest Okuma machine tools, the MA-600HB features the manufacturer’s Thermo Friendly Concept. Symmetrical design and electronic compensation from sensors around the machine structure and spindle hold dimensional drift to below 10 microns, even if the ambient temperature changes by up to 8 degrees Centigrade. Repeatability is ± 1.5 microns.

While turn-cutting is applicable to any component, the company singles out large, multi-port valves as particularly suitable for being machined in this way. Not only can the bores and flange ODs be conveniently turned, but it is also possible to single-point cut an accurate scroll pattern on the flange faces for improved sealability.

SOURCE: Okuma