Universal grinding machine

Details Universal grinding machine Universal grinding machine

1999-09-24

2001-02-20

Hail, III, Joseph J. (Department: 3723)

Abrading

Machine

Rotary tool

C451S048000, C451S049000, C451S221000, C451S231000, C451S246000, C451S298000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06190242

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention relates to a universal grinding machine, particularly for the machining of tools, having a machine bed, at least one workpiece holder, and a grinding station which is disposed beside the workpiece and in which a rotating grinding toot which can be advanced on to the workpiece is interchangeably disposed
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
Universal grinding machines, which can be used not only for the circular grinding and surface grinding of metal workpieces, but which can also be used for the machining of tools, generally have a fixedly disposed grinding station, next to which the workpiece which is to be machined is disposed and is held by a workpiece holder. The workpiece holder here can be a spindle head, in the rotating workpiece spindle of which the workpiece is chucked. However, the holder may also be a simple holder in which the workpiece is chucked for surface grinding.
In known universal grinding machines, the workpiece holders, such as the spindle head, the tailstock and the fixed stay for circular grinding or the clamping jaws for surface grinding, are fixed to a work table which can be moved in sliding guides on the machine bed at the grinding station. It is thereby possible to bring the workpiece into the desired position in front of the grinding wheel, or to move it along the latter so that the grinding wheel can perform the desired machining operation over the entire length of the workpiece which is chucked in the workpiece holders.
In known machines, the work table, which can be moved over its entire length, takes up considerable space, and its sliding guide on the machine bed has a considerable overall height. Even when traverse-grinding relatively thin, light workpieces, the large mass of the entire work table has to be moved. Moreover, in order to chuck workpieces of different sizes it is necessary to detach the workpiece holder from the work table each time and to re-fix it in the correct position again, so that the nonproductive time is relatively long. This is particularly disadvantageous when it is only a small number of workpieces of the same shape which are to be machined on the machine each time.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to simplify a universal grinding machine and to construct it so that the workpiece holder can be adjusted very simply and rapidly to the size of the workpiece to be machined, and can be held fixed according to its purpose and independently of a work table, or can be set to or moved past the grinding location together with the workpiece.
This object is achieved by the invention by the provision of a plurality of workpiece holders, each of which has a separate slide by which it can be moved on the machine bed in the longitudinal direction of the workpiece and can be fixed to the machine bed.
This design has the advantage that a work table is not necessary, but instead the workpiece holders are disposed directly on the machine bed and can be moved there in a longitudinal direction in relation to each other. They can thereby be set, in a simple manner, to any size of workpiece which is to be machined in each case and can be fixed directly to the machine bed. Moreover, it is possible to move the workpiece holders along the grinding tool, with the workpiece chucked between them, directly on the machine bed in the longitudinal direction thereof, without having to move the large mass of a work table.
It is particularly advantageous if all the workpiece holders can be moved by their slides on a slide guide which is common to all the slides. This results in a particularly simple and inexpensive construction. It is also possible, however, to assign separate slide guides, which are parallel to each other and on which said workpiece holders can be moved, to all the workpiece holders or to individual workpiece holders. A design such as this is advantageous for large workpieces, if two holders of the same type have to be provided side by side.
To permit the simple, rapid interchange not only of workpieces of different sizes but also of the tools used for grinding, at least one tool magazine is provided according to the invention which is equipped, just like the workpiece holders, with a separate slide device and which can be moved on one of the slide guides for all the workpiece holders or for individual workpiece holders. Just like the workpiece holders, a tool magazine such as this, which is disposed on a separate slide device, can move into a position next to the grinding station in which one of the tools which are accommodated in the magazine is opposite the tool receiver. A tool which is no longer required can thereby be removed very rapidly from the tool spindle and can be put away in the tool magazine situated beside the grinding station, after which another tool can be taken out of the tool magazine, placed in front of the tool spindle and inserted therein.
To permit rapid interchange of workpieces also, at least one workpiece store can be provided which can be moved by a separate slide device on one of the slide guides for the workpiece holders. A workpiece store such as this can be disposed behind a workpiece spindle head, for example, and can feed rod-shaped workpieces to the latter from behind.
It is particularly advantageous if all the workpiece holders or individual workpiece holders and/or all the tool magazines or individual tool magazines are joined to each other by means of a coupling element and can be moved jointly on their slide guides. This design has the advantage that a connection between a plurality of workpiece holders is made not only by the workpiece which is chucked between them but is also made directly by the coupling element. When changing workpieces, it is therefore not necessary to reset the workpiece holders in relation to each other since they retain their relative positions.
However, there can also be some workpiece holders which are not connected to the coupling element. It is possible, for example, fixedly to attach a fixed stay or steady to the machine bed to support the workpiece at the grinding location, and to guide the workpiece holders which are connected to each other by the coupling element, together with the workpiece, past the grinding disc and past the fixed steady.
A particularly simple and advantageous mode of construction is achieved if one workpiece holder has a connecting rod which extends in the direction of the slide guides and which can be coupled alternately to the other workpiece holders and optionally to the tool magazine and workpiece store by detachable clamping devices. The connecting rod here can be rigidly fixed to that workpiece holder which is constructed as a workpiece spindle head and which comprises a numerically controlled linear drive mechanism for its longitudinal movement along the slide guide.
As has already been mentioned, one of the workpiece holders can be constructed as a fixed stay for supporting the workpiece at the grinding location, whilst another workpiece holder can be constructed as a tailstock. The tailstock here can have a separate, numerically controlled linear drive mechanism, so that it can be moved in the longitudinal direction on its slide guide independently of the workpiece spindle head and can be adjusted to receive a workpiece which is driven in rotation.
Other features and advantages follow from the description given below with reference to the drawing, in which a more detailed explanation is given of an example of a preferred embodiment of the invention.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4930265 (1990-06-01), Belthle
patent: 5035086 (1991-07-01), Katsuki et al.
patent: 6039634 (2000-03-01), Bach et al.
patent: 35 23 013 (1987-02-01), None
H. Geistmann and D. Scheder,A Generation of Flexible CMC Grinding Machines, magazine article, No. 72, vol. 86.
Schaudt Options, Brochure by Schaudt Maschinenbau GmbH.
German Search Report dated Mar. 23, 1999.

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