 |
2005-11-11 News Headlines >
tooling
Hardinge Announces a
Major Breakthrough in
Hard Turning Technology
New technology from Hardinge enables significant efficiencies for shape
compliant chuck in the hard turning of critically hardened workpieces.
New technology from Hardinge enables significant efficiencies for shape
compliant chuck in the hard turning of critically hardened workpieces.
Hardinge Inc., long recognized as the world-wide authority on hard turning,
has introduced revolutionary new technology which reduces costly manufacturing
operations and enables a wider variety of industrial segments to consider
the advantages of hard turning in their manufacturing process. The new
Shape Compliant Chuck (SCC) combines the company’s rigid machine tools
with its expertise in process applications and workholding solutions to
raise the bar to a new level in hard turning capability.
“The patent pending Hardinge Shape Compliant Chuck, combined with Hardinge’s
expertise in hard turning and its Quest lathes, offers direct and measurable
benefits to companies that turn, bore and grind thin wall hardened or
out-of-round parts,” said J. Patrick Ervin, Hardinge Chairman of the Board/President/CEO.
“The combination can help manufacturers to lower operating costs, reduce
capital investment and shorten manufacturing times. In short, they enable
lean
manufacturing .”
One of the problems associated with boring hardened parts is that the
heat treatment process often distorts a part’s Inside Diameter (ID) and/or
Outside Diameter (OD). Conventional workholding techniques tend to overpower
the workpiece and cause it to become round while gripping. When released,
the workpiece elastically springs back to an out of round condition. Previously,
the only way to achieve desired roundness of the finished part was to
perform additional grinding on the OD/ID, which increased cost and waste,
and introduced the opportunity for error.
The new shape compliant workholding technology from Hardinge grips the
part “as is” and enables machining of the ID without the part moving again
when released from the workholding device. When combined with proven Hardinge
hard turning machine and part process technology, the result is a hard
boring and/or turning process that yields greatly improved part roundness
– as much as 11 times better than previous methods, while eliminating
the rough and finish grinding processes normally required in the manufacture
of hardened parts.
This new technology works extremely well on parts such as bearing races
and other delicate workpieces. On testing recently completed on a hardened
bearing race, the initial roundness of the bore was .000913”. After hard
boring using the shape compliant workholding mounted on a Hardinge Quest
SP51 HydroGlide turning machine, a roundness of .0000835” was achieved.
Average Roundness before Machining Average Roundness after Machining
Standard Deviation after Machining Average Roundness Improvement Ratio
Conventional Step Chuck .000855" .000634" .0003" 1.35
Shape Compliant Chuck .000913" .0000835" .000037" 10.9
Shape Compliant Chuck Standard Deviation Improvement Ratio: 8.1This chart
compares the performance of a Shape Compliant Chuck to a Conventional
Step Chuck in the machining of a bearing race.
The Hardinge Shape Compliant Chuck was developed during a project sponsored
by National
Institute of Standards and Technology’s
(NIST) Advanced Technology Program (ATP) to study Lean Manufacturing of
Critically Hardened Steel Applications. ATP projects are used to stimulate
the development of innovative technologies that promise significant commercial
payoffs and widespread benefits for the nation.
Hardinge
Inc., is an international leader in providing the latest industrial technology
to companies requiring material-cutting solutions. The Company designs
and manufactures computer-numerically controlled metal-cutting lathes,
machining centers, grinding machines, collets, chucks, indexing fixtures,
and other industrial products.
Dan Soroka, Director of Engineering – Workholding Operations, explains
that the Hardinge Shape Compliant Chuck is available in configurations
that support a range of sizes and versions for both ID and OD gripping.
“The SCC centralizes the workpiece, provides adjustable gripping forces,
and allows the operator to apply the gripping forces at multiple gripping
locations that contact the workpiece,” he said. “There are up to eight
independent gripping locations at the radial position of the out-of-round
part, with equal pressure on each leaf. Since this chucking system maintains
the part shape as close as possible to the original state, the finished
un-gripped part roundness is improved an average of 9 to 11 times the
pre-machined values,” said Soroka. The SCC also provides high levels of
dampening.
According to Doug Rich, Vice President – US Machine Operations, “the development
of the SCC was an accomplishment that is based on partnership – both within
Hardinge, between the Workholding division and US Machine Operations,
and with the other ATP team members. This combined effort helped us bring
a truly differentiated hard turning solution to the market.” The Hardinge
Shape Compliant Chuck will be offered only on Hardinge Quest Lathes. “The
combination of these technologies provides a hard turning solution that
no other provider in the world can deliver,” said Rich.
“We owe much thanks to the efforts of the team and to NIST for their support
in addressing the challenges faced by the industry in the hard turning
of hardened, thin wall and out of round parts,“ concluded Ervin. “Clearly,
the momentum and knowledge gained during this program will continue to
serve as a springboard for the future commercialization of new Hardinge
products.”
Click
here to view more news headlines.
E-mail this page to a friend 
|
|
Changing
Jobs? View Homes for Sale
Nationwide
Post
Tooling Jobs
 
News / Resources
- Tooling Chuck Powerful
and Versatile
- Financial
Accounting for non financial managers
- Thinking
about going back to school?
- Hellerson
Metal Fabrication Equipment
- All this Months News
Copyright - Unless
otherwise stated all
contents of this web site are © 1998/2005– JOBWERX.COM.
– All Rights Reserved. For permission to reproduce any contents of this
web site, please advise our Syndication department: Log onto HELP
Easy as
1, 2, 3
Create
on-line tests,
quizzes, assessments and exams in minutes!
|
