Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. (MHI) has developed a new gear grinding wheel or other abrasive tool for the purpose of removing metal and finishing workpieces to close tolerances. Provides smooth, square, parallel and accurate workpi…" title="Powers a grinding wheel or other abrasive tool for the purpose of removing metal and finishing workpieces to close tolerances. Provides smooth, square, parallel and accurate workpi…" aria-label="Glossary: grinding machine">grinding machine, the ZE15B suitable for volume production of gears up to 150 millimeters in diameter. The machine's high-speed and high-accuracy machining capability will enable further enhancement of productivity, coupled with shorter time not used in machining operation, such as time required for workpiece changes. While primarily focusing on the automobile industry, MHI aims for expanded business by offering the ZE15B to a broad industrial market.

The ZE15B offers even greater volume production capability than the company's ZE15A gear grinding machine, which has earned a favorable reputation in the market since its introduction in 2004. In response to user demand for further space saving, installation space has been reduced by 10 percent compared to the ZE15A, to 3,980mm in width and 4,000mm in depth.

The ZE15B is equipped with a newly developed workpiece changer that shortens the time required for changeover; the twin tailstock model reduces non-operational time to just five seconds. Shorter high-efficiency grinding has been realized by increasing machine rigidity and adopting a 30 percent faster grinding wheel speed: 6,000 revolutions per minute (rpm) at maximum.

For the dresser unit, which functions to maintain the shape and sharpness of the grinding wheel, a new high-speed, high-rigidity device was developed. With these improvements, the new ZE15B is now able to accommodate multiple thread dressers and tooth root grinding while simultaneously reducing dressing time. By automating tooth meshing work required after grinding wheel and dresser changes, operability of the machine has also been enhanced.

To accommodate complex tooth face shapes, the ZE15B is equipped with functions to correct tooth profiles and modify biased flank shapes, i.e. tooth surface torsion.