Compact contender

The number in the name is a big part of the story about the Micro5 machining center.

Sold by Germany-headquartered Chiron Group, the refrigerator-size Micro5 is designed to machine small and delicate parts for industries like medical, jewelry, watchmaking and electronics. The five-axis machine can handle workpiece sizes up to 50 mm × 50 mm × 50 mm.

More machine statistics featuring the number five include 500 W energy consumption, which is much lower than that of conventional machines, Chiron reports. There’s also 0.5 µm repeatability, along with 2 µm target accuracy, and a noise level under 50 db, making the Micro5 quieter than a dishwasher, the company notes.

But according to Chiron, the main descriptors with the number deal with the weight of the machine — five times less than conventional machines — and the 5-1 ratio of key machine dimensions to those of workpieces. This unique ratio has numerous benefits for the machining process, said Simon Knecht, vice president of sales and marketing at Chiron America Inc. in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Operated with an intuitive human-machine interface panel, the refrigerator-size Micro5 is said to be easy to set up almost anywhere for machining small parts. Image courtesy of Chiron

He explained that dimensions covered by the 5-1 ratio include those in the area that encompasses the moving components of the machine.

“For little parts,” Knecht said, “that small work envelope enables very high accuracy in a fast, dynamic machine process.”

Accuracy is improved by the stiffness and thermal stability of the machine, both of which he attributes to the dimensions of its kinematic region and the design of components in that area. Thermal growth of the metal components is limited by their small size, he noted, while stiffness is enhanced by relatively small travel distances and the lack of problematic overhangs.