Insert Support Seat Machining for Stiffer Cutting Tool Bodies
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cutting tools require multiple machining tools, increasing costs and time, reducing design flexibility, and leading to decreased stiffness due to sharp edges and unnecessary thinned portions.
Innovation Solution
The insert support seat is machined using a single end mill on a multi-axis machining center with numerical control, allowing for more flexible design and reduced thinned portion radii, eliminating sharp edges and enhancing tool body stiffness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If multiple machining tools are used to machine the insert support seat, then the machining precision and surface quality can be improved, but the manufacturing cost and time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple machining operations (rough machining, finish machining, and thinned portion formation) into a single end mill tool. The end mill is designed with specific geometric features including a cylindrical portion for rough machining, a tapered portion for finish machining, and a rounded tip for creating thinned portions, thereby eliminating the need for multiple tool changes and reducing manufacturing time
Solution Approach 2:
The end mill tool is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously - it can rough machine the insert support seat, finish machine the surfaces, and create the necessary thinned portions all in one operation. This multi-functional tool design reduces the total number of tools required and improves manufacturing efficiency
2Strength
If the thinned portion radius is reduced to improve stiffness, then the tool body strength increases, but the machining difficulty increases due to sharp edges
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a rounded tip portion on the end mill with a specific radius that allows the tool to create thinned portions with controlled radii in the insert support seat. The rounded geometry of the tool tip enables it to form smooth curved surfaces and thinned portions without leaving sharp edges, while maintaining the small radius needed for tool body stiffness
3Productivity
If a single end mill is used to machine the insert support seat, then the manufacturing cost and time decrease, but the design flexibility and machining precision may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The end mill tool is designed with different geometric features in different portions - the cylindrical portion for rough machining, the tapered portion for finish machining, and the rounded tip for thinned portions. Each portion has optimized geometry for its specific function, allowing the single tool to achieve high precision across all machining operations
Data Source
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AI summary
A cutting tool including: a tool body (2) provided with an insert support seat (5) including a major seat surface (5a) that supports a bearing surface of a cutting insert, a plurality of seat side surfaces (5b, 5c) that supports side surfaces of the cutting insert at different positions, and a thinned portion (5d) continuous with the major seat surface and the seat side surfaces; and a cutting insert attached to the insert support seat, wherein a ridge at a position where the major seat surface and the thinned portion intersect, a ridge at a position where the seat side surface and the thinned portion intersect, and a ridge at a position where the thinned portions continuous with each other intersect are each formed of a convex arc curved surface.