When it comes to making things, nothing beats the reliability and efficiency of computer numerical control (CNC) machines. This technology is used to make millions of precision pieces in a variety of substrates every day. In order to produce high-quality quick prototypes and production parts, we'll examine the seven most commonly used methods. Also learn to use a spare parts list to ensure that your CNC machining services operating at peak performance.
Turning
This basic machine function, which is perhaps as old as time itself, is tightly clamping an object to an inclined plate or mandrel. A fixture mounted on a rotating slide holds the cutting tool against the workpiece while it spins. Moving the slide down the length of the workpiece or closer or further away from the center line are all options. Machining techniques like this are suitable for quickly removing huge quantities of material. In addition, a tailstock-mounted drill bit can be used to drill precise holes along the workpiece's centerline.
The outer circumference of a round object can be shaped using a lathe to create concentric patterns. Turned features such as slots, ring groove, step shoulders, threads, cylinders and shafts are all possible thanks to the lathe. They also have the ability to produce smooth and homogeneous surfaces.
Milling
Because the cutting tool is mounted on a spindle, milling is fundamentally different from turning. The workpiece is held horizontally in a machine vise, which is attached to a table that moves in the X and Y axes. Cutting tools can be held in the spindle, which moves in the X, Y and Z directions.
Despite its drilling and boring capabilities, a mill's real strength lies in the removal of stock from more complicated and asymmetrical pieces. These characteristics include square/flat faces, chamfers, channel profiles, keyways and other features that require exact angles to be cut. Mills are used to manufacture these types of features The majority of CNC machine tool operations are performed by milling and turning.
Cutting fluid is used in all metal machining operations to cool the workpiece and the cutting tool, to lubricate the tool, and to remove metal debris.
Grinding the Entire Surface of the Wheel
For many purposes, it is critical to have a perfectly flat metal surface, and the best tool for the job is a grinder. The abrasive grit on the grinder is of a specific coarseness, and it spins on a rotor. Depending on the abrasive wheel's speed, the workpiece can either be held in place as the wheel rotates or pushed back and forth across the table. Please keep in mind that this procedure can only be used on faces that do not have any protrusions protruding from their surface.
There are a variety of abrasives available based on the substance being ground. Care must be made to control tool speed and temperature as grinding heats and mechanically stresses the work piece.
Grinding cylindrically
Surface grinding and lathe turning are used in conjunction in this process. Circular or cylindrical grinding wheels are used to grind the surface of a workpiece while it is maintained stationary. An internal or external diameter can be ground with a cylindrical grinder, either in its entirety or at a partial depth.
Tolerances are exceedingly exact and accurate, and the surface texture is extremely smooth, making this process ideal for producing high-quality components.
Grinder for the Eyes
CNC machining can also be utilized to create customized optics in glass or plastic, but so far we've just been discussing metals. Precision grinding equipment, which rotates a grinding wheel against a surface while also rotating in many axes, is used to produce the ultra-fine surfaces required for optics.
As a result, all variations from the nominal value are smoothed out. As a lubricant and to generate a polished finish, grinding paste is also commonly employed.