Honing Machine with Rotating Turntable for Orthogonal Bore Processing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing honing machines face challenges in efficiently and precisely machining bores aligned orthogonally in a workpiece, such as cylinder crankcases, which require high precision and tight tolerances to minimize wear, friction, and emissions in internal combustion engines.
Innovation Solution
A honing machine with a machine-internal transport system featuring a rotating turntable and multiple workpiece holders, allowing for circular path transportation between workstations, combined with vertical and horizontal honing stations, and an actuator unit for precise movement of the workpiece, decoupling vibrations and enabling flexible alignment and simultaneous processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a conventional honing machine processes orthogonally aligned bores, then machining precision can be achieved, but overall machining time becomes excessively long due to sequential processing
Solution Approach 1:
The honing machine is divided into multiple independent workstations (first vertical honing station, first horizontal honing station, second vertical honing station, second horizontal honing station) that can process different bores simultaneously. Each workstation is equipped with dedicated honing units that operate independently, allowing parallel processing of multiple orthogonally aligned bores without interfering with each other, thus reducing overall machining time while maintaining precision
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces a vertical dimension to the traditional horizontal honing machine layout by arranging workstations at different vertical levels. The transport system moves workpieces between these vertical levels, enabling simultaneous horizontal and vertical honing operations on different bores of the same workpiece at different stations, effectively utilizing three-dimensional space to increase productivity
2Device complexity
If a single loading station is used for workpiece loading and unloading, then device complexity is reduced, but transport time between workstations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The transport system is designed to continuously move workpieces between workstations without stopping at intermediate points. The workpiece is transported directly from the single loading station through all four workstations in sequence and back to the loading station, eliminating idle transport time and ensuring continuous productive operation throughout the machining cycle
3Area of stationary object
If multiple workstations are arranged in a compact layout, then machine footprint is reduced, but vibration transmission between stations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The honing operations are extracted from a single centralized workstation and distributed across four separate workstations arranged in a circular path. Each workstation is independently positioned and equipped with its own honing units, physically separating the vibration sources from each other and from the central control and transport mechanisms, thereby reducing vibration transmission while maintaining a compact overall machine footprint
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a honing machine and to a method for carrying out honing operations on orthogonally aligned bores in a workpiece, in particular for honing cylinder bores and a bearing race bore in a cylinder crankcase.