Here we are again. IMTS 2014 is just days away (or hours away or already taking place, depending on when you receive this issue). I get excited about the show and the technologies on display, so I’m fortunate I work only about an hour away from Chicago’s McCormick Place and get to attend every other year. Did you know, though, that from 1955 to 1970 the show was only held every 5 years in Chicago and has only been held at McCormick Place since 1972?
Looking back on manufacturing technology throughout the years, the first automated machine tool I worked with and programmed was an NC turret lathe. It only allowed incremental programming and used paper tape, which was upgraded to Mylar tape because the paper was easily damaged. All it took was a tear or a crease in the paper to cause a problem.
I used a 300-baud dial-up modem to connect to the service provider, which had a mainframe computer. The first service bills for our tape punch machine were in excess of $2,000 per month. That was considered state-of-the-art in the late 1970s and early 1980s, around the time CAD/CAM was appearing on PCs. Our first venture into PC-based CAD/CAM, including the computer and software, cost $24,000, which was easy to justify just in service-provider cost savings alone.
The first CNC machining center I used was a monster. Purchased at IMTS 1982, it was a 3-axis machining center that could circular interpolate, helical mill, tap and more. We needed an external A/C unit to keep the control cool on warm days or it would overheat and shut down.
Remember the octahedral hexapod machining center that was supposed to revolutionize machining? I saw it at IMTS in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It promised superior accuracy, stiffness and speed, as well as a lower price, shorter delivery time, simpler assembly and greater accessibility than the competition.
Of course, it didn’t replace the competition and now machining centers have rapid feed rates in excess of 2,000 ipm and programmable feed rates approaching that. Most machine tool builders have 5-axis machines that can do 3D contouring and provide spindle speeds unheard of back then. Multitask machines, a pipe dream in the past, are common today. Likewise, turning centers with live tools are almost standard. This was virtually unheard of 30 years ago.
Companies send me emails that tease, “Wait until you see what’s new in our booth!” and I can’t wait to see the new machine tool features. I’ve already seen new controls that act like a computerized Kanban system and handle scores of pallets feeding several horizontal machining centers.
We used to joke that if someone could add material to a part, he would make a fortune. To a degree, we used to do that with plasma and HVOF (high-velocity oxygen fuel) spray coatings, building up material in 0.0005 " to 0.001 " increments over an existing substrate. Additive manufacturing was considered new not long ago, but it’s definitely here to stay. You can make virtually anything “from scratch” and I wonder how many new startups AM will help create.
I am also curious about what types of new tooling will be at IMTS. It seems that when new tooling is available, machine tool builders step up their game, and when the machine tool builders increase their feed rates and spindle speeds, the toolmakers develop new grades and coatings.
I’ll be at IMTS to look for new technologies to make the company I work for more competitive. I hope to see you there. CTE
About the Author: Mike Deren is a manufacturing engineer/project manager and a regular CTE contributor. He can be emailed at mderen1@wi.rr.com.Related Glossary Terms
- centers
centers
Cone-shaped pins that support a workpiece by one or two ends during machining. The centers fit into holes drilled in the workpiece ends. Centers that turn with the workpiece are called “live” centers; those that do not are called “dead” centers.
- computer numerical control ( CNC)
computer numerical control ( CNC)
Microprocessor-based controller dedicated to a machine tool that permits the creation or modification of parts. Programmed numerical control activates the machine’s servos and spindle drives and controls the various machining operations. See DNC, direct numerical control; NC, numerical control.
- feed
feed
Rate of change of position of the tool as a whole, relative to the workpiece while cutting.
- inches per minute ( ipm)
inches per minute ( ipm)
Value that refers to how far the workpiece or cutter advances linearly in 1 minute, defined as: ipm = ipt 5 number of effective teeth 5 rpm. Also known as the table feed or machine feed.
- lathe
lathe
Turning machine capable of sawing, milling, grinding, gear-cutting, drilling, reaming, boring, threading, facing, chamfering, grooving, knurling, spinning, parting, necking, taper-cutting, and cam- and eccentric-cutting, as well as step- and straight-turning. Comes in a variety of forms, ranging from manual to semiautomatic to fully automatic, with major types being engine lathes, turning and contouring lathes, turret lathes and numerical-control lathes. The engine lathe consists of a headstock and spindle, tailstock, bed, carriage (complete with apron) and cross slides. Features include gear- (speed) and feed-selector levers, toolpost, compound rest, lead screw and reversing lead screw, threading dial and rapid-traverse lever. Special lathe types include through-the-spindle, camshaft and crankshaft, brake drum and rotor, spinning and gun-barrel machines. Toolroom and bench lathes are used for precision work; the former for tool-and-die work and similar tasks, the latter for small workpieces (instruments, watches), normally without a power feed. Models are typically designated according to their “swing,” or the largest-diameter workpiece that can be rotated; bed length, or the distance between centers; and horsepower generated. See turning machine.
- machining center
machining center
CNC machine tool capable of drilling, reaming, tapping, milling and boring. Normally comes with an automatic toolchanger. See automatic toolchanger.
- milling machine ( mill)
milling machine ( mill)
Runs endmills and arbor-mounted milling cutters. Features include a head with a spindle that drives the cutters; a column, knee and table that provide motion in the three Cartesian axes; and a base that supports the components and houses the cutting-fluid pump and reservoir. The work is mounted on the table and fed into the rotating cutter or endmill to accomplish the milling steps; vertical milling machines also feed endmills into the work by means of a spindle-mounted quill. Models range from small manual machines to big bed-type and duplex mills. All take one of three basic forms: vertical, horizontal or convertible horizontal/vertical. Vertical machines may be knee-type (the table is mounted on a knee that can be elevated) or bed-type (the table is securely supported and only moves horizontally). In general, horizontal machines are bigger and more powerful, while vertical machines are lighter but more versatile and easier to set up and operate.
- numerical control ( NC)
numerical control ( NC)
Any controlled equipment that allows an operator to program its movement by entering a series of coded numbers and symbols. See CNC, computer numerical control; DNC, direct numerical control.
- sawing machine ( saw)
sawing machine ( saw)
Machine designed to use a serrated-tooth blade to cut metal or other material. Comes in a wide variety of styles but takes one of four basic forms: hacksaw (a simple, rugged machine that uses a reciprocating motion to part metal or other material); cold or circular saw (powers a circular blade that cuts structural materials); bandsaw (runs an endless band; the two basic types are cutoff and contour band machines, which cut intricate contours and shapes); and abrasive cutoff saw (similar in appearance to the cold saw, but uses an abrasive disc that rotates at high speeds rather than a blade with serrated teeth).
- stiffness
stiffness
1. Ability of a material or part to resist elastic deflection. 2. The rate of stress with respect to strain; the greater the stress required to produce a given strain, the stiffer the material is said to be. See dynamic stiffness; static stiffness.
- tap
tap
Cylindrical tool that cuts internal threads and has flutes to remove chips and carry tapping fluid to the point of cut. Normally used on a drill press or tapping machine but also may be operated manually. See tapping.
- turning
turning
Workpiece is held in a chuck, mounted on a face plate or secured between centers and rotated while a cutting tool, normally a single-point tool, is fed into it along its periphery or across its end or face. Takes the form of straight turning (cutting along the periphery of the workpiece); taper turning (creating a taper); step turning (turning different-size diameters on the same work); chamfering (beveling an edge or shoulder); facing (cutting on an end); turning threads (usually external but can be internal); roughing (high-volume metal removal); and finishing (final light cuts). Performed on lathes, turning centers, chucking machines, automatic screw machines and similar machines.
- turret lathe
turret lathe
Differs from engine lathe in that the normal compound rest is replaced by pivoting, multitool turrets mounted on the cross slide and tailstock. See lathe.
Author
Michael Deren is a manufacturing engineer/project manager and a regular CTE contributor. He can be reached via e-mail at mderen1@wi.rr.com.
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