Front-Accessible Collet Adjustment Mechanism for Machine Tool Spindles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current machine tools require operators to move from one side of the machine to the other to perform operations such as adjusting and changing the collet, leading to increased time and cost due to reduced accessibility.
Innovation Solution
A clamp adjustment device that allows for all manipulations to be performed from the front of the machine, enabling locking/unlocking, adjusting, and changing the gripper and clamping tube as an integral part, with a mobile prisoner and control shaft for axial movement and rotation, allowing for reduced intervention time and costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the clamp adjustment device allows all manipulations from the front of the machine, then accessibility and intervention time are improved, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional arrangement by moving the adjustment mechanism from the rear to the front of the clamp. The control shaft and prisoner mechanism are positioned at the front, allowing operators to perform all manipulations from the accessible front side rather than requiring movement to the rear, thus resolving the accessibility issue while managing structural complexity through strategic repositioning of existing components
2Ease of operation
If the prisoner is made mobile to enable front-side adjustment, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile prisoner mechanism incorporates a slot in the clamp that receives the prisoner, creating a guided feedback system. The prisoner moves within the constrained path of the slot, providing tactile and positional feedback that ensures proper engagement and locking. This feedback mechanism maintains reliability by ensuring the prisoner returns to and engages the correct locking position after front-side adjustments
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a device (301) for adjusting a collet (109) for a spindle (101) of a machine tool. The device (301) comprises: an anti-rotation means (111) for the collet (109); and a control means (113) for the anti-rotation means (111) of the collet (109). The anti-rotation means (111) is removable and arranged to be controlled from the side where the part of the workpiece is located. The present invention also relates to an assembly comprising the device, a spindle comprising the device, and a method for adjusting the collet. The present invention offers, for example, the following advantages: increased accessibility, reduced intervention time, and reduced costs.