HIGH-PERFORMANCE CONTOUR MACHINING FOR DIE/MOLD AND MEDICAL MARKETS
F-Series vertical machining centers from Makino provides chatter-free cutting and agility for high-speed/hard-milling and accuracies for tight tolerance blends.
Posted: October 29, 2010
Makino‘s (Mason, OH) F-Series vertical machining center is designed to provide stiffness and rigidity for chatter-free cutting, agility for high-speed/hard-milling and accuracies for tight tolerance blends and matches typical of complex 3D contoured geometry associated with die/mold and medical production.
“The F-Series has been built from the ground up for speed and precision,” states William Howard, Makino’s vertical machining product manager. “The machine design begins with a unique axis configuration, featuring no overhangs, and incorporates large castings that provide a robust cutting platform. It then integrates 8 mm fine-pitch ball screws and 0.05 micron scale feedback as standard equipment and the F-Series machines provide superior precision. Even the servo systems are tuned for peak performance. Together these features reduce variability for hours of continuous, tight tolerance machining.”
The F-Series consists of two models: the F3 and the F5. The smaller F3 features X-, Y- and Z-axis travels of 25.6 in, 19.7 in, 17.7 in respectively, a 33.5 in x 19.7 in table and a maximum workpiece size of 33.5 in long x 19.7 in wide x 17.7 in tall. By contrast, the larger F5 features X-, Y- and Z-axis travels of 35.4 in, 19.7 in, 17.7 in respectively, a 39.4 in x 19.7 in table and a maximum workpiece size of 39.4 in long x 19.7 in wide x 17.7 in tall. Both the machines have a table load capacity of 1,432 lb and a 30-tool magazine provides capacity for a wide array of tooling.
Included in the standard configuration of the F-Series machine is a highly productive 20,000 rpm, HSK-63A spindle, which incorporates Makino’s patented core-cooling, under-race and jacket spindle temperature control system. The two-range spindle supplies unique, wide-range capability with the stiffness and rigidity at lower ranges for roughing operations, and vibration-, chatter-free production of small details and fine features utilizing small tools at high rpm.
The F-Series utilizes the Makino Professional 5 Control, which affords the perfect blend of a Windows CE graphical user interface (GUI), touch-screen selection offering instant access to information literally at your fingertip, user-friendly, efficient PC-like capability for data management and editing and the networking and storage capability of a data center.
Also featured in the F-series is Makino’s proprietary, next generation Super Geometric Intelligence (SGI.4) software developed specifically for high-feedrate, tight tolerance machining of complex 3D contoured shapes involving continuous tiny blocks of NC data insures production rates faster than standard CNC systems while maintaining high accuracy. SGI.4 helps provide the lowest cycle times and costs achievable by reducing machining cycle times on dies, complex cavities and cores and medical parts by as much as 40 percent when compared to most other control technologies.
“The F-Series machines will quickly pay for themselves.” said Howard. “The machines deliver positioning accuracies and repeatability in the microns, the spindle assures capability to address a wide variety of tooling and machining applications and SGI.4 provides unsurpassed accuracy and speed in tough, challenging, complex geometries. This platform is an ideal choice for shops looking to get top shelf machining performance and superior machining results at a reasonable investment – a real value proposition.”
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