CNC 4-axis machine resharpens drills in seconds

CNC 4-axis drill sharpener with an easy-to-use touch screen panel easily reproduces the complex, high quality points found on today's premium HSS and carbide drills.

The 1st MTA company demonstrated the Darex XPS-16 CNC drill sharpener, which, said the company, carries out the advanced CNC 4-axis sharpening of a wide range of twin flute drill point types using simple, one-touch operation.

The XPS-16's advanced CNC operation enables it to easily reproduce the complex, high quality points found on today's premium HSS and carbide drills.

1st MTA told manufacturingtalk that an easy-to-learn touchscreen interface allows even novice users to produce perfectly re-sharpened drill points in seconds.

The XPS-16 is suitabel for conical, four facet, split point and radius split point bits with angles from 118-150 deg as standard.

A 90-118deg add-on option is also available.

1st MTA said that the XPS-16 will sharpen HSS, cobalt and carbide drills from 3-16mm diameter and 50-220mm long.

It has been designed specifically for heavy duty use within busy machine shop environments and is can sharpen more than 400 drills/day.

* Easy operation - a blunt drill is first inserted into the sharpener's chuck and the required drill point type selected using a simple touchscreen panel.

On initiation of the sharpening cycle, three independent electronic sensors automatically detect the drill's length and diameter; precisely locate the cutting edge and calculate the web thickness.

The unit then sharpens the drill and applies the required split point form, in one seamless operation.

The XPS-16 will also hone carbide drill edges as part of the automatic process - extending tool life and maximising drill bit machining accuracy.

* CBN and diamond wheels - the machine is equipped with CBN and Diamond wheels that are designed to sharpen 2,000 to 4,000 drills.

Metal removal is set at a minimum to extend drill life.

However, this can be overridden by up to 0.50mm if necessary, to compensate for gouges or nicked drill edges.

The XPS-16 allows user-specific drill sharpening programs to be produced easily and stored for future use.

It also has Darex's latest Grind Motion Control system, which detects excess material on the blunt drill bit.

The system enables the grinding feed rate to be adjusted automatically, to prevent abrasive 'burning' and to provide optimum sharpening performance.

* Low maintenance - the unit's long-lasting super-abrasive plated grinding wheels and lifetime-lubricated seals ensure low maintenance and a long service life.

The sharpener also incorporates a vacuum filtration system to eliminate grit and airborne contaminants such as carbide dust.

In addition, its computerised controls are backed by advanced diagnostic software that will alert operators to potential problems during the sharpening cycle.

* About 1st Machine Tool Accessories - offering a comprehensive range of top quality products at competitive prices, 1st Machine Tool Accessories is a leading supplier of workholding and machining accessories including collets; chuck jaws; Kitagawa chucking, rotary tables and vices (vises); Leave fixturing and clamping products; Chick workholding equipment; Darex tool sharpeners; OK Vises; Brighetti reduction bushes; deburring and countersink tools; IEMCA barfeeders; 3Nine oil mist filtration; Cooljet high pressure coolant systems; machine mounts and Overbeck deburring twister lathes.

1st MTA's extensive stock holding is backed by excellent warranty and service provided by a dedicated team of technical engineers; demonstrations of some products are available from external sales specialists.

Second CNC tool measuring machine added

A second CNC tool measuring machine will help unplug an inspection bottleneck at a tool maker created by increased customer demand for documented inspection reports.

Specialist tooling manufacturer and supplier, Industrial Tooling Corporation (ITC), had had installed the UK's first Walter Helicheck Plus CNC tool measuring machine.

Supplied by Koerber Schleifring UK of Honiley near Kenilworth, UK, the Helicheck Plus complements ITC's existing Walter Toolcheck tool measuring machine.

Koerber Schleifring told manufacturingtalk that ITC was currently the only UK company operating two Walter tool measuring machines.

The machineswill help 'unplug' an inspection 'bottleneck' at the company created by increased customer demand for documented inspection reports.

Technical director at ITC, Peter Graves, said that the Helicheck Plus will prove invaluable in allowing the Tamworth-based company to streamline floor-to-floor times of, for example, form tools produced and delivered with appropriate documentation for manufacturing certification and traceability, for aerospace customers such as Rolls-Royce.

Capable of measuring tools within the 0.1mm to 200mm diameter range, the Walter Helicheck Plus is equipped with four fixed cameras for non-contact, fully automatic measurement routines in accordance with VDI/VDE 2617.

The machine achieves a measuring length deviation of E1 = (1.4 + L/300mm) micron, where L equals measuring length.

The machine has a substantial granite block with excellent vibration damping.

The Helicheck Plus features front, back and top light camera magnification of up to 400x for micro tools, and back light up to 50x for standard larger tools.

The machine has a Diffusor 'soft light' illumination that avoids excessive reflection of the face/feature being measured, to aid inspection clarity.

ITC operates eight Walter Helitronic 5-axis CNC tool grinders and other tool production/grinding equipment and designs, manufactures and regrinds high-precision drills and reamers among a wide range of HSS and carbide tooling.

Customers include the motor sport (Formula One) and die and mouldmaking sectors in the UK and overseas, as well as the aerospace sector.

It is also UK stockist of Hanita (Israel) and Metal Removal (USA) products.

Discount on Darex XPS-16 CNC drill sharpener

1st Machine Tool Accessories has cut 20 per cent from the price of its Darex XPS-16 CNC drill sharpener for the rest of the year.

There will also be a 90 deg upgrade package worth GBP998.00 with every XPS-16 ordered.

Having the XPS-16 available in-house offers users a rapid payback.

Whether replacing tools or sending them out to be resharpened, the costs of purchasing, issuing payment and stocktaking are eliminated.

In many machine shops, it is the most experienced (and expensive) employees who are asked to resharpen 'emergency' drills by hand.

The unit will therefore pay for itself many times over in a short period of time.

Representing the ultimate in precision, simplicity and productivity, the XPS-16 offers sophisticated CNC four-axis sharpening of a wide range of twin-flute drill-point types - enabling it to quickly reproduce the complex, high quality profiles found on premium HSS, cobalt and carbide drills.

Its easy-to-learn touchscreen interface allows inexperienced users to produce perfectly resharpened drills in seconds.

To underline the system's capabilities and ease of operation, 1st MTA will also arrange free demonstrations of the XPS-16 at customers' premises on request.

Suitable for conical, four facet, split point and radius split-point bits with angles from 118-150 deg as standard, the XPS-16 will sharpen drills from 3-16mm diameter and 50-220mm long.

It has been designed specifically for heavy-duty use within busy machine shop environments and is capable of sharpening more than 400 drills a day.

This drill sharpener's automatic cycle hones and deburrs the cutting edge of carbide drills in less than one minute, extending tool life and maximising drill-bit machining accuracy.

In operation, the XPS-16 allows up to 25 user-specific drill-point geometries to be easily programmed and stored for future use.

It also incorporates Darex's latest Grind Motion Control system, which monitors the load on the grinding wheel and automatically adjusts feed and speed while keeping the drills cool.

Electroplated super-abrasive wheels are included - CBN for sharpening HSS drills and Diamond for carbide drills - to ensure a smooth finish.

Metal removal is set at a minimum to extend drill life; this can be overridden by up to 0.50mm if necessary to compensate for gouges or damaged edges.

Lifetime-lubricated seals ensure low maintenance and a long service life.

The vacuum filtration system eliminates grit and airborne contaminants such as carbide dust, keeping the machine clean while acting as a coolant.

In addition, advanced diagnostic software alerts operators to potential problems during the sharpening cycle.

CNC machine grinds super-hard materials

The Ewag Compact Line CNC grinding machine is designed for the flexible and precise manufacturing or sharpening of indexable inserts in all materials.

Whether the material is carbide, cermet, ceramic or super-hard CBN/PCD, the CNC grinding machine meets all of the requirements for precision and speed - especially with the realisation of complex workpiece geometries.

The machine is fitted with the CBN/PCD module for grinding super-hard materials and now also for machining diamond cutting materials.

The Compact Line has a compact construction, features ergonomic operation and an integrated robot system.

Inside the machine, everything is positioned close to the working B-axis; the travel ranges for axes and robots are therefore kept to a minimum, cycle and downtimes are shortened, and productivity is increased.

The machine interior and control elements are accessible from one position.

A rapid change system allows the operator to exchange the grinding wheels easily at the push of a button.

The HSKE 50 clamping system for grinding wheels ensures quick and accurate change-over of grinding-wheel sets.

The workpieces are fixed to the clamping device with a tension pin.

All clamping systems are mechanically installed on the B-axis and are identified by a 'plug-and-play' system.

The result is flexibility and short change-over times.

The 'three-in-one' sharpening unit - dressing, regenerating, and crushing - provides good grinding wheel concentricity and high repeat accuracy of processes.

3D measurement of workpieces in one clamping ensures the required tolerances are met from the start.

Loading is carried out with the integrated six-axis Fanuc robot, which increases the level of machine automation and permits autonomous multi-shift operation.

The Compact Line incorporates five-axis CNC kinematics, direct drive of the grinding spindle and linear technology.