Automated Thrust Force Calculation of Machine Tool Actuators in Fastening and Turning Steels

Deviations between nominal and actual tolerances are a challenging problem during turning processes of thin-walled workpieces. One main cause of these deviations is the clamping force applied by the turning chuck to hold the workpiece. Due to the low stiffness of thin-walled workpieces, large workpiece deformations can occur even when clamping forces are low. For this reason, the clamping force needs to be precisely adjusted. A possible approach are chucks with integrated actuators. As a result of the more direct power transmission, these chucks have a potentially higher clamping force accuracy compared to conventional external actuation. However, integrated actuators are additional heart sources resulting in thermal loads and thermally induced deformations of the chuck components. Due to the resulting mechanical distortion of the chuck system, the precise adjustment of clamping forces is not possible. Thus, this paper evaluates the thermally induced clamping force deviations on a novel turning chuck with four integrated electric drives. A test bench is used to analyse both a single drive and the combination of all four drives regarding the temperature effect on the clamping force adjustability. A clamping force deviation of up to 26% is observed. Based on the measured chuck temperature, a compensation method is introduced leading to a clamping force accuracy of 96.9%.

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