Method for the central vertical alignment of a drill rod

Abstract

Method for centrally aligning a drill rod (30), comprising: Assembling a device (10) comprising a seat element (12) and a digital angle gauge (14); Calibrating the device (10) such that a display (26) of the digital angle gauge (14) shows zero degrees; and Aligning the drill rod (30) to a central height by rotating the drill rod (30) such that the display (26) of the digital angle gauge (14) shows zero degrees when the device (10) is attached to the drill rod (30), wherein the device (10) is mounted on a flattened portion (32) of the drill rod (30), wherein the device (10) is calibrated to an X-axis path (102) of a lathe (100).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for the central height alignment of a drill rod without the use of flattening on the shaft of the drill rod.

[0002] Boring is the process of enlarging and centering a hole by removing material from its internal surface using a single-pointed cutting tool. On a lathe, boring is achieved by one of two methods: 1) Mounting the tool holder and boring bar with cutting tool to the tool post and rotating the workpiece, or 2) Mounting the workpiece in a fixed position on the carriage and rotating the boring bar and cutting tool in a chuck attached to the drive spindle. (This is a specialized process and is not used in most machine shops.)

[0003] The workpiece can be held in a clamping device or attached to a chuck for boring operations, depending on the type of machine tool. When boring operations are to be performed on the ends of a long shank that requires additional support, the workpiece is mounted in a clamping device, and a stable support is used to brace the workpiece furthest from the clamping device. Some boring operations require the use of special lathe spindles attached to a clamping device to hold workpieces that cannot be successfully mounted otherwise.

[0004] Reaming is often necessary to produce precise holes. Drilled holes are rarely straight due to imperfections in the material that cause the drill bit to be pushed out of alignment. Therefore, where accuracy is important, holes are usually first drilled undersized and then reamed or finished to the correct dimensions.

[0005] Proper setup for boring requires that the correct boring tool is selected (not too long and not too small), and that the cutting insert in the boring tool is centered on the X-axis with the workpiece material.

[0006] Conventionally, boring bars are manufactured with one or more flats along the length of the shank, which are used to align the boring bar to the X-axis or the center of the workpiece. However, adding alignment flats reduces the dynamic and static stiffness of the cutting tool. When the flats are used on tunable tools with a long overhang, the reduction in stiffness significantly impacts the tool's performance. If the flats are removed from the spindle, as is often the case with tunable boring bars, the end user has no means of easily centering the boring bar.The only possible way for the end user to center the cutting tool is by scribing a line across the front of the workpiece with a cutting tool on the reversing cross that is known to be centered, and then rotating the boring bar in the holder until the cutting edge is centered. However, this procedure can be cumbersome, and the end user may not always have the opportunity to scribe a permanent line on the front of the workpiece.

[0007] From SE 500 836 C2, a method for setting the angle of non-rotating tools is known. This method uses an adjustable spirit level arranged in a housing with a reference surface that is brought into contact with a surface of a tool arm or the tool itself. The spirit level is set to the desired angle, and then the tool and / or a tool holder in which the tool is clamped is rotated until the spirit level indicates the correct angle setting.

[0008] Furthermore, a digital angle gauge from Barry Wixey Development (www.wixey.com) is known in the form of the “Digital Angle Gauge with Backlight (WR300 Type 2)”.

[0009] The object of the invention is to provide a method that provides a central height alignment of the drill rod without having to mark a permanent line on the front of the workpiece or without using flats on the spindle of the drill rod.

[0010] The problem is solved by a method according to claim 1.

[0011] From one perspective of the invention, a method comprises mounting a device comprising a seat element and a digital angle gauge, calibrating the device such that a display of the digital angle gauge shows zero degrees, and aligning a central height of the drill rod by rotating the drill rod such that the display of the digital angle gauge shows zero degrees when the device is attached to the drill rod.

[0012] While various embodiments of the invention are illustrated, the specific embodiments shown should not be interpreted as limiting the claims. It is expected that various changes and modifications may be made without altering the scope of this invention. Fig. 1 is a front view of a device for centering the height of a drill rod; Fig. Figure 2 is a partial view of the device, which is mounted on an X-axis path of a lathe in order to calibrate the device according to a method of the invention; Fig. 3 is a partial side view of a boring bar when mounted in a tool holder of the lathe; Fig. Figure 4 is an end view of the device mounted on the boring bar when the boring bar is mounted in the tool holder of the lathe, in order to align the center height of the cutting insert mounted in the boring bar according to the method of the invention; and Fig. Figure 5 is a perspective partial side view of the central height alignment of the drill rod in relation to a workpiece, using the method of the invention.

[0013] Now on Fig. 1 Referring to, a device 10 for central height alignment of a drill bar with a workpiece comprises two basic components: 1) a seat element 12, and 2) a digital angle gauge 14.

[0014] In one embodiment, the seat element 12 is made of a metallic material, such as tool steel and the like. In the illustrated embodiment, the seat element 12 is essentially L-shaped in cross-section and comprises a lower part 16 and a back part 18. A magnet 20 is arranged in the lower part 16 of the seat element 12 to securely attach the seat element 12 to a metallic spindle 34 of a boring bar 30 ( Fig. 3) to attach as described in more detail below.

[0015] The digital angle gauge 14 is of a type well known in the art. In the illustrated embodiment, the digital angle gauge 14 is commercially available, for example, from Wixey™ as part no. WR300 type 2. The digital angle gauge 14 includes an ON / OFF button 22, a ZERO button 24, a display 26, and a magnet 27 arranged in the lower part of the digital angle gauge 14 to securely attach the digital angle gauge 14 to the seat element 12, which is made of metallic material.

[0016] The method of the invention comprises three basic steps: 1) assembly of the device 10; 2) calibration of the device 10 and 3) alignment of the central height of the drill rod 30. Assembly of the device

[0017] First, the user should clean the mounting surfaces of the digital angle gauge 14 and / or the corresponding surfaces of the seat element 12 to ensure that any dirt, shavings, fragments, and the like are removed. Then, the device 10 is mounted by attaching the digital angle gauge 14 to the seat element 12 in such a way that the magnet 27 of the digital angle gauge 14 is securely attached to the lower part 16 of the seat element 12. It should be noted that the back of the digital angle gauge 14 should be flush with the backrest 18 of the seat element 12 when the digital angle gauge 14 is properly attached to the seat element 12. Calibration of the device

[0018] Next, the device 10 is positioned relative to a reference surface of a tool holder 106 (see Fig. 4) calibrated. In the illustrated embodiment, the reference surface is an X-axis travel 102 of a lathe 100. It is noted that the user should clean an area on the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100 and the lower part 16 of the seat element 12 to remove any contamination, chips, fragments, and the like. Then, the device 10 is mounted on the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100 such that the device 10 is substantially parallel to an X-axis 28 of the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100. It is noted that it may be helpful to push the end of the device 10 against the angle cross housing 104 to help keep the device 10 parallel to the X-axis 28, as shown in Fig. Figure 2 shows that since the X-axis travel 102 is made of metallic material, the magnet 20, located in the lower part 16 of the seat element 12, securely attaches the device 10 to the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100. Next, the digital angle gauge 14 is switched on by pressing the ON / OFF button 22. Then, the digital angle gauge 14 is zeroed (i.e., calibrated to zero degrees) by pressing the ZERO button 24. At this point, the digital angle gauge 14 is calibrated to the X-axis travel 102 (i.e., reference surface) of the lathe 100 and measures relative angles corresponding to the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100. Alignment of the center height of the drill rod

[0019] Now on Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 Referring to this, the first step is to remove any contamination, chips, fragments, etc. from the small flattened area 32 on the sleeve 31 of the boring bar 30, while the boring bar 30 is already placed in the tool holder 106 and adjusted to the correct overhang. It should be noted that there are two small flattened areas 32 on the sleeve 31, spaced 180° apart. The second small flattened area 32 is thus in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 not visible. The second small flattened section 32 (not shown) allows the boring bar 30 to be positioned in reverse for some applications. Next, the mounted fixture 10 is attached to the boring bar 30 by aligning the magnet 20 on the lower part 16 of the fixture 10 with the small flattened section 32 on the sleeve 31 of the boring bar 30. Since the boring bar 30 is made of metallic material, the magnet 20, located in the lower part 16 of the seat element 12, securely fastens the fixture 10 to the small flattened section 32 on the sleeve 31 of the boring bar 30. It should be noted that the user should ensure that the fixture 10 is aligned perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 36 of the boring bar 30 and that the fixture 10 is oriented in the same direction as when it was calibrated to the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100.This means that the device 10 is attached to the boring bar 30 in such a way that the device 10 is aligned parallel to an X-axis 28 of the X-axis travel 102 of the lathe 100.

[0020] The boring bar 30 is then rotated until the digital angle gauge 14 displays zero degrees on the screen 26. Next, the boring bar 30 is clamped in the tool holder 106 to lock its position. It should be noted that the user should verify that the digital angle gauge 14 continues to display zero degrees on the screen 26 after the boring bar 30 has been clamped in the tool holder 106. At this point, the cutting edge 42 of the boring bar 30 is centered. That is, a tip 44 of a cutting edge 42 of a cutting insert 40, which is mounted in the boring bar 30, is aligned with the plane 202 that passes through the center of the workpiece 200, as shown in Fig. 5 shown.

[0021] The patents and publications mentioned herein are hereby incorporated by reference.

[0022] While currently preferred embodiments are described, the invention can be implemented in other ways within the scope of the attached patent claims.

Claims

[1] Method for centrally aligning a drill rod (30), comprising: Assembling a device (10) comprising a seat element (12) and a digital angle gauge (14); Calibrating the device (10) such that a display (26) of the digital angle gauge (14) shows zero degrees; and Aligning the drill rod (30) to a central height by rotating the drill rod (30) such that the display (26) of the digital angle gauge (14) shows zero degrees when the device (10) is attached to the drill rod (30), wherein the device (10) is mounted on a flattened portion (32) of the drill rod (30), wherein the device (10) is calibrated to an X-axis path (102) of a lathe (100). [2] Method according to claim 1, wherein the device (10) is mounted on the drill rod (30) such that the device (10) is aligned parallel to an X-axis (28) of the X-axis travel (102) of the lathe (100). [3] Method according to claim 1, wherein the flattening (32) is located on a sleeve (31) of the drill rod (30). [4] Method according to claim 1, wherein the device (10) is mounted by attaching the digital angle gauge (14) to the seat element (12). [5] Method according to claim 1, further comprising clamping the boring bar (30) into a tool holder (106) of the lathe (100) after the alignment step. [6] Method according to claim 5, further comprising verifying that the digital angle gauge (14) displays zero degrees on the display (26) after the boring bar (30) has been clamped into the tool holder (106). [7] Method according to claim 1, wherein the device (10) is attached to the drill rod (30) such that the device (10) is aligned perpendicular to a longitudinal axis (36) of the drill rod (30).

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