Tooling technologies for machining centers

Machine-specific live tools

Platinum Tooling, the exclusive North American importer for Heimatec live tools and angle heads, offers immediate availability of live tooling for popular turning center models including DMG MORI, DN Solutions, Haas, Mazak, Miyano, and Nakamura.

“We’re now carrying a substantial inventory of live tools for our customers’ machines,” says Platinum Tooling Technologies President Preben Hansen. “It represents a significant financial and warehouse space commitment that we’ve made to support the North American machine tool market.”

The company’s Chicago area facility provides sales and customer service support, application, and engineering advice as well as repair services for the company’s line of live tools.

Platinum Tooling Technologies Inc.

High-speed spindles for Swiss-style lathes

Made for compact spaces, specifically for Swiss CNC lathes, the Nakanishi iSpeed3 is appropriate for high volume, small diameter milling and drilling applications. The shorter spindle length is suitable for compact, automatic CNC lathes. The electric spindle featuring sensorless motors is equipped with super-precision hybrid ceramic bearings for longer spindle life.

NSK America Corp.

Ultra high-speed spindles

CoolSpeed mini is a revolutionary, patented spindle technology for almost any machine. CoolSpeed mini achieves an 87% reduction in machining time featuring an adjustable number of jets to regulate the coolant flow rate.

CoolSpeed ultra high-speed spindles for micro- machining applications provide:

• Up to 80,000rpm
• Driven by coolant, cutting oil, or air mist
• Bearings are easily replaced with each cutting tool change
• Dynamic run-out of 4µm or better

WTO Tools USA

Updated machining spindle

PHOTOS COURTESY OF RESPECTIVE COMPANIES

The BEX 15 machining unit offers a 25% increase of spindle speed for improved production. Standard variations are equipped with electric motors of 0.55kW, 0.75kW, and 1.5kW. An adapter flange allows for installation of multiple spindle heads and angle heads.

A new style timing belt drive multiplies the motor speed up to 13,050rpm spindle speed. An AC inverter drive increases the spindle speed up to 23,000rpm at 87Hz. Standard motor mounting is in the rear and front motor mounting is available upon request. Optional features include frequency converter and direct-drive servomotor.

The BEX 15 can be applied in axial and radial orientation, directly mounted to a linear slide assembly Type UA15-PH or UA15-CNC. This combination eases operations such as milling or drilling cycles including jump or peck feed.

Four optional toolholder systems (collet ER25, ISO30, HSK50, and Weldon), standard air purge connections for spindle and belt housing including a number of additional options – coolant through the spindle or automated tool change features – make this unit adaptable for demanding inline machining requirements. BEX 15 with HSK spindle includes an integrated 4-point clamping system form C, for manual tool clamping.

Suhner Industrial Products Corp.

Lightweight coolant-driven angle heads

PHOTOS COURTESY OF RESPECTIVE COMPANIES

Lightweight coolant-driven angle heads weighing as little as 3 lb are now available.

“Tool weight has often been a roadblock when it comes to using right angle heads on machines with BT30 taper spindles,” says Applications/Product Engineer Kirk Batten. “We wanted to provide a product for those with Brother Speedio and Fanuc Robodrill machines that is well under the 6 lb maximum these compact machines can hold in their carousel. By using a hybrid of alloy steel and aircraft grade aluminum, rigidity can be maintained in the areas requiring it. We feel this is a vast improvement over an all-aluminum construction seen in lightweight mechanical angle heads.”

Titespot angle heads are indexable, allowing multi-position machining with one angle head and setup, and their compact profile allows machining in bores and cavities not accessible to mechanical heads. The angle heads can machine in bores down to 5/8" diameter and develop up to 2.5hp – enough to drill 1/2" holes through 4140 steel.

Eltool Corp

Collet chuck

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T-Tool USA’s HSK 63F collet chuck features an internally mounted Zeta collet nut which gives the toolholder a more efficient design allowing for high clamping power. You still use the standard ER or OZ type collets with the system, the only additional item is a special tool to operate the nut. The benefits are clear in design for high-speed and improved collet clamping power. These are available in ER16, ER32, and SYOZ25 for the most popular HSK 63F CNC router toolholders.

T-Tool USA