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Have you ever seen a beautiful piece of metalwork and wondered “how did they do it?” There are no seams, no signs of welding, and it appears as though it’s one piece. The surfaces are too complex to have been wrought manually, so what’s the secret? A 5-axisCNC machine。这se machines have transformed the manufacturing world and led to advances in the automotive, aerospace, agriculture, and other industries.

CNC machine with door open and screen for programming

What is 5-Axis CNC Machining?

这re are 2 typical kinds of manufacturing machine processes: milling and turning. Milling removes material laterally in the +/-X, +/-Y, and +/-Z planes, and can remove material in all three planes with the right setup.

旋转零件旋转时,转动材料,通常围绕X,Y或Z轴(也称为a,b和c)。它仅清除零件旋转的轴周围的材料,因此对于复杂的零件,可能需要几种不同的设置。

这两个手动流程之间,最多8degrees of freedom can be achieved. On the other hand, 5-Axis CNC machines can remove material with 10 degrees of action in a single setup. This reduces setup time, run time, and scrap material and results in a cheaper, yet better quality product.

Additionally, the same tool on a CNC machine may be able to create different features around the 5 axes. If more than one tool is required, many machines have automated exchangers that work in concert with CAM software to switch tools in seconds. CNC machines not only efficiently utilize tooling to extend tool lifespans and save on tooling costs, but the machines can also tell you the remaining life of your bits. It’s good to know when you’ll have to replace a tool so you don’t lose any production time, right?

CNC machine tools lined up against a white background
CNC machine tools used to create different geometries.

5轴CNC加工的优点

通过5轴CNC的功能,通beplay客户端下载过删除多个复杂的设置,发动机变得更容易制造。由于5轴机器可以执行令人难以置信的复杂运动,因此可以铣削这些现代发动机以创建更有效的腔室并产生更好的流体流动。这汽车industryis, arguably, where these 5-axis CNC machines shine the most. They can pump out hundreds or thousands of the same component with inhuman accuracy, consistency, and speed. This ensures high quality replacement parts such as: wheel bearing housings, lug nuts, and internal engine components to name a few. Before, it was a gamble whether such replacement parts would fit correctly, simply due to human error in the production process.

在里面aerospaceindustry turbines are among the most common components produced with CNC machines. Before the 5-axis, some turbines were modular and required assembly, which added costs and failure points. With their extraordinarily complex geometries and textures, what was once a heavily modular component, is now a single piece of artistic engineering.

5 axis CNC milling machine making a turbine
5轴CNC机器可以创建复杂的几何形状,例如涡轮机和上面显示的3D表面。

Agricultural equipment, from the tractors themselves to the machinery they tow, have improved in functionality and cost with the advent of 5-axis machines. As with aerospace, parts are less modular, so modern tilling and cultivating equipment now has fewer parts (and points of failure) thanks to 5-axis milling. Plus, even intricate hose and pipe fittings can be run in large batches to bring down costs. And instead of waiting weeks for parts to arrive, a single replacement part can be shipped in a couple of days, which cuts down on repair and maintenance time. These improvements have helped farmers to be more productive and grow more crops in a smaller time frame.

Drawbacks of 5-Axis CNC Machining

尽管这些机器对制造过程产生了积极的影响,但该技术并非没有缺点 - 从CNC机器价格标签开始,从$ 60K到半百万美元不等,具体取决于您的需求和配置选项。不同的配置包括但不限于:机器的整体尺寸和重量,工具存储,所需的能量使用以及所需的校准频率。结果,这些系统并不是针对每个工厂地板的。尽管5轴CNC可以增加产量,但对于该业务来说,这可能是一个不良的长期决定。

Most CNC machines require maintenance contracts with the vendor at an additional cost, and due to their inherent complexity, not just anyone can properly service and maintain a 5-axis machine. Mechanical and electrical maintenance and machine programming is best left to a trained professional. Otherwise, DIY maintenance can turn the savior of your production line into the world’s most expensive paperweight.

Calibrating the machine is crucial to the success of any production, and tool height, work hold position, and home setting the axes are just a few of the calibrations needed. For example, if your work hold and home position are correct, but the tool height is not, you’ll bore too deep and send the tool head crashing right through your fixture! Correct calibration is the only method that yields the precision and tolerance these machines are known for.

Another critical characteristic to keep in mind before acquiring a 5-axis machine is floor space. If you must replace three standard mills or lathes to make room for one universal 5-axis, the tradeoff may not be worth it. Does your business need the precision, part repeatability, and complex geometry production that comes with these innovative milling machines? Are you simply replacing a dual setup operation with a single setup operation? Does your customer demand require faster turnaround times?

factory floor and 5 CNC machines
CNC machines take up a lot of space on the factory floor.

通过运行5轴CNC所需的价格,维护和地板空间,进行成本效益分析非常重要,以确定附加的生产率和能力是否弥补了机器的获取和操作的成本。beplay客户端下载

结论

5轴CNC机器have changed our lives. OEM components are now of greater quality while becoming less expensive. Engines run longer, faster, and more efficiently. We can process jobs with quicker setup times, increased accuracy and tolerance, faster cycle times, and less wasted material — all for the price of a new luxury car.

这benefits of CNC machining are legion, but you don’t need to buy your own machine when you work with Fictiv. OurCNC machining capabilitiesdeliver tight tolerances with a variety of finishes and you can upload designs and receive parts in as little as two days.

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