Reciprocating Chip Removal Support for Gear Cutting Machines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for chip removal in gear machining are inefficient, leading to frequent interruptions for manual chip clearance, and existing solutions either rely on gravity or compressed air, which are not always reliable or automated.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a flat support with a reciprocal movement predominantly parallel to the discharge direction, creating accelerations that transition static friction to sliding friction, allowing chips to be efficiently collected without manual intervention, using a gear cutting machine with a chip removal device that includes a flat support with a specific range of movement frequencies and inclinations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If chips are removed manually during interruptions, then chip accumulation is prevented, but productivity decreases due to frequent process interruptions
Solution Approach 1:
The chip removal system operates autonomously during the machining process without requiring manual intervention. The flat support with reciprocal movement automatically transports chips to the collection point, enabling the system to serve itself by continuously removing chips during operation, thus maintaining reliability without sacrificing productivity
Solution Approach 2:
The flat support is designed to move reciprocally rather than remain stationary. This dynamic movement creates accelerations that transition static friction to sliding friction, enabling continuous chip transport during machining operations without process interruptions, thereby resolving the contradiction between reliable chip removal and maintained productivity
2Reliability
If the support is inclined steeply for gravity-based chip removal, then chip removal reliability improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flat support executes reciprocal movement that generates mechanical vibrations and accelerations. This vibration-based approach enables chip removal with minimal inclination, replacing the need for steep gravity-based slopes and simplifying the overall device structure while maintaining reliable chip transport
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the motion parameters of the flat support by introducing reciprocal movement with specific frequencies and amplitudes. This parameter change enables effective chip removal at lower inclinations, reducing structural complexity compared to steeply inclined gravity-based systems
3Extent of automation
If compressed air blowers are used for chip removal, then automation level increases, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flat support employs reciprocal movement with controlled frequencies and amplitudes to generate accelerations for chip transport. This dynamic mechanical approach achieves automated chip removal with lower energy consumption compared to continuous compressed air delivery, as it utilizes periodic motion rather than continuous high-energy fluid delivery
4Reliability
If screw conveyors are used for chip removal, then chip removal reliability improves, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the essential function of chip transport from complex mechanical conveyors. By using a simple flat support with reciprocal movement, it achieves reliable chip removal without the intricate mechanisms of screw conveyors, effectively taking out only the necessary functional elements while eliminating unnecessary complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The reciprocal movement of the flat support creates vibrations that facilitate chip transport along the inclined surface. This vibration-based mechanism replaces complex mechanical conveyance systems, achieving reliable chip removal through simpler means
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach significantly increases the interval between maintenance interruptions by ensuring more chips reach the collection point, reducing the need for manual chip clearance and enhancing the reliability and automation of the chip removal process.
Implementation Method 1
These accelerations cause at least a transition from static friction to sliding friction of the chips, thus reducing the likelihood of the chips remaining on the support
Implementation Method 2
subjects the chips to accelerations in conjunction with the friction and inertia of the chips
Implementation Method 3
it has been suggested, for example, to regularly interrupt the machining process and manually remove any chip accumulation during the interruption. This, of course, conflicts with a largely automated process that is intended to operate for longer periods without interruptions. Consequently, designs have been developed that incline the relevant contact surfaces of the chip removal system so steeply that the chips reach the chip collection point solely by gravity
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method of machining or producing gear teeth or other periodic structures of a metallic workpiece, in which the chips produced in the process are conveyed to a chip collection point via a chip removal system, wherein the chip removal system has a removal path extending in a removal direction with a flat support on which the removed chips rest, and wherein the support is made to perform a reciprocal movement.