DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE

TRADITIONAL MACHINING V.S FLEXIBLE CNC MACHINING

In the lab we saw how a small lock-in slot piece could be created using 2 different methods of production. These illustrated the different ways factories can operate when trying to produce parts to order, and how these processes can be optimised to create the most economical and time efficient manufacturing process

THE LOCK-IN SLOT PIECE

The basic shape of the slot piece: Central hole with threading Slot cut in to main hole

Slot cut into main hole

The Slot piece is design to form part of a frame that could be part of a vice or used to apply compressive stresses in a frame

TRADITIONAL MACHININ G PROCESSES

This is the most common and widely spread way of manufacturing parts, raw material is put through several jobs when it comes into the factory each performed by a different person on a different machine/workstation. The first procedure (or job) is usually cutting to size, as the raw material may not come in the length suited to the product, then when say 100 of pieces of raw material are finished being cut they are carted by a labourer to the first machining workstation, where a single process is completed on each part. They are then taken by the labourer to the second workstation, meanwhile if time is managed effectively (A very important factor that is taken into account when trying to calculate the cost/time associated with part manufacture) the original workstation will have cut another 100 parts ready for the first workstation to start cutting/processing. The parts go through several workstations and then the finished product can be packaged and shipped from the factory on trucks or another mode of transportation. Parts usually go through about 10 jobs not including transportation, but sometimes (engine blocks for example) can undergo over 100 such processes until the final product is manufactured.

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The raw material was already cut to the correct length and was supplied for this product already at the correct width, so firstly the

height of the material needed to be adjusted. The machine used for this was a Horizontal cutting mill, the part was loaded into a vice and the safety screen put in place. The mill was activated. Using a flat end mill bit the top surface of the material was shaved off to the correct height. The 2 dimensional cutting vice surface was used to manoeuvre the piece under the bit.

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The Piece was then transported to the second workstation where the three holes were drilled through using a Pedestal drill using a slot drill bit. To find the location of the holes on the piece, the piece would have to be measured and scored with odd leg callipers, and then marked with a centre punch. To save time and to increase efficiency a Key was created by a skilled engineer that slipped over the top of the piece exactly (when placed in the vice), the piece was secured to the key/vice using an Allen key. The holes could now be easily by cut with more accuracy and speed than before. Only a semi skilled engineer is needed now to operate the drill.

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The central drill hole in the piece requires a threading for a screw axle this was applied using a tap. The tap is a specially designed hand cutting tool, which bores a thread into a hole at a single spacing and diameter. The same worker whose cut the three holes at the second station cuts the thread using the tap before sending the piece to the next workstation.

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The third workstation was a vertical milling machine, using a multipoint-end mill bit to bore into the material at the two different sides to create slots up to where the two outer drill holes where located. Much like the job using the Pedestal drill the location of the slot drilled would have to be marked out using callipers, but to save time and money a key was designed to direct the Mill to cut into the right section of the material. This means that a semi-skilled engineer can be used to operate the machine.

FINAL PIECE
This is the last process in this manufacturing chain. In a real life factory situation the piece may be surface finished and then packaged to be delivered to order. In our laboratory class the piece was shown and discarded.

FLEXIBLE MANUFACTURI NG SYSTEM METHOD

The other manufacturing method we were introduced to in the lab is the flexible manufacturing system. This involves a lot more of using computer programs and automated commands to make robots and Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines to manufacture the piece. The VMC 1000 e is a Flexible Machining Centre, it is a suitable for use in flexible manufacturing systems (FMS), and this is the machine we used to create the lock-in slot piece. Several of these machines can be operated by just 1 skilled engineer; they can be controlled from one central computer. The process is a lot faster than the traditional machining method. The CNC machine can move in 4 dimensions: height of drill, X and Y directions and pitch of the milling table. The VMC can select from many different drill bits that are loaded into a jig, that are held in accordance to what is required next in the program cycle. These have to be rearranged for each different type of program cycle by a skilled engineer, but bits can be used 1000 times on the same cycle without having to be checked or altered. The technician showed us the program of commands he had described to the CNC machine so it could manufacture the slot piece, These are created using a CAM program (Computer Aided Manufacturing) this takes models from a CAD software (Computer Aided Drafting/Drawing)( i.e. SolidWorks) and translates them into jobs for CNC machines. This takes around about 10minutes to complete. A skilled Engineer will then need to set up the bits in the jig to correspond with order of the different type of cuttings made in the program; this takes less than 5 minutes. The drill bits then need to be set at the right height in the jig; this takes a skilled engineer another 5 minutes. Once this is completed the cycle can be run multiple times, It just needs to be selected from a database of command cycles it has on its memory. To begin the cycle the technician loads the blank material into the clamp on the milling table to prepare for machining. The blank material is same size and shape as the one use in the traditional method. The technician closes the door and activates the program. The VMC machine selects the first drill bit required, a coolant is sprayed onto the part, the bit and cutting surface at all times. The coolant helps to stop the aluminium piece from melting during machining and deforming or sticking to the bit, it also helps to prolong the drill bits life span and carry away debris from the cutting surface and also helps to give a better surface finish. The coolant is water based with soluble oil added in a ratio of 20:1. The first operation is using a shell mill which shaves the top face off the blank so that the piece is of the correct height, the bit used is 100mm diameter, spinning at 800rpm, the Depth of cut was 0.5mm The second operation is using the slot drill to cut the two slots at either end of the piece. The slot drill had a diameter of 5mm and took 10 cuts of 1.25mm, Speed 4000rpm, feed 75mm/min. The third operation was to put a centre hole for the larger drill in the next operation, the drill bit used was a centre drill bit - speed 1000rpm, feed 150mm/min, Depth 4mm The fourth operation was to bore the centre hole in the piece, this was done with the 8.5mm HSS Drill on a pecking cycle - Speed 800rpm, feed 75mm/min, Depth 16mm, peck depth 4mm (A pecking cycle means that the tool periodically withdraws from a drilled or tapped hole to allow clearing of cuttings while also allowing coolant to access the tool and hole being drilled or tapped.) The Fifth operation was a tapping down the central hole to create the screw threading, this was done using a 10mm x 1.5mm Tap on pecking cycle, Speed 60rpm, feed 90mm/min, Depth 16mm, peck depth 4mm The final part took about 10minutes to run through the production cycle, the runtime could be potentially halved however as the system was not optimised, using different bits that reduced the amount of turns needed to make each cut would greatly improve time efficiency. Even the un-optimized cycle took less time than the traditional machining methods. Making the FMS a more attractive choice for companies, as less men are required to operate the machinery, cutting costs and human error in production.

CLASSIFFICATIONS AND SPECIFICATIONS OF MILLS AND THEIR CUTTERS VERTICAL MILLING - DRILLING

END MILL BITS

End mills are those tools which have cutting teeth at one end, as well as on the sides. They are usually made from high speed steel (HSS) or carbide, and have one or more flutes. They are the most common tool used in a vertical mill. Most end mill bits are flat bottomed, which mean they cannot drill straight into a material but have to cut away into the side of a material but variations include the: Slot drill - these have a tooth offset so that they can bore directly into a material. Ball nose cutters these have a rounded bottom, making them ideal for 3-dimensional contoured shapes in the CNC machines. A dovetail cutter is an end mill whose form leaves behind a dovetail slot.

FACE MILL

This kind of tool comes in many shapes sizes and materials, its purpose is to shave flat surfaces, A lager face mill consists of a cutter body that is designed to hold several disposable often carbide of ceramic, often golden in color. The tips are designed so that when the cutting edge diminishes, a low skilled engineer can undo the tip using an Allen key and rotate the tip. The tip is then refastened, creating a new cutting edge. This improves the life of the tip and thus their economical cutting life. Different materials can be chosen for the tips to suite different materials or finishes. The bodies are expensive but last a long time, the tips are relatively cheap and easy to replace, smaller face mills have no removable tips as the lack the space to allow for a screw fitting from the body to the tip. These are usually disposed of after use.

MMR EQUATION:
MRR = Vol.Removed = D2 fr N CT 4L Where CT is cutting time, D is drill diameter, fr is drill feed rate and N is the RPM of the cutter

HORIZONTAL MILLING BLADE CUTTING WHEELS

These are usually mounted on a horizontal mill, as they spin in a more controlled stronger cycle than when on a vertical mill. Their cross section often look similar to that of a circular saw, however they are wider and

smaller in diameter, and come in different shapes and sizes making them ideal for cutting grooves, wedges and slots from a material, they have a very good material removal rate: Blade cutting wheel cutting slots more accurate these are usually made from high speed steal Vee Cutters common for cutting standard angles like 45 60 and 90 degree slots into a material

HORIZONTAL MILLING MMR EQUATION:

MRR = Vol.Removed = L.W.t = W.t.fm CT CT where CT is cutting time, L is Length of piece to be cut out, W is width of cut, t is time and f m is Table Feed.

MILLING MACHINES HORIZONTAL/VERTICAL MILLING MACHINES

There are a multitude of different milling machines. VERTICAL MILLING MACHINE these are one of the most common types of machine, these machines usually use the end mill drill bits to machine: slots, grooves, holes, planes, cuts, and dovetail grooves. Vertical Milling machines come in two main categories: Bedmills and Turretmills, Turret mills, are usually smaller and more versatile than Bedmills. In a Turretmill the spindle remains stationary during cutting operations and the table is moved both perpendicular to and parallel to the spindle axis to accomplish cutting. In the Bedmill, however, the table moves only perpendicular to the spindle's axis, while the spindle itself moves parallel to its own axis. HORIZONTAL MILLING MACHINE A horizontal mill has a similar table to the vertical milling machine, but the cutter is mounted horizontally making it ideal for using arbormounted cutters, called side and face mills. These are used to mill grooves and slots. Plain mills are used to shape flat surfaces.

EQUATIONS WHICH CUTTING SPEED

S= 1000Vc / D F = ZSFz Vc = cutting speed, D = diameter of tool F = Feed Rate S = spindle speed, Fz=Feed per tooth, Z depth of cut