AU2017101695A4 - Improvement to multiple tool station cnc turret punch press - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract A groove cutting assembly 10 for a turret punch 300 comprises an upper (first) section 20 and a lower (second) section 30. The lower section 30 comprises a housing 32 adapted to be positioned within a load station of the lower turret 304. The housing 32 comprises an internal space 33 within which a cutting wheel 100 is disposed. The cutting wheel 100 is oriented in a generally vertical manner and is actively rotatably driven in use about its central horizontal rotation axis 37 by a motor 38, which is also disposed within the internal space 33. The cutting wheel 100 comprises a plurality of spaced cutting elements 110 disposed about its periphery. The housing 32 comprises a top cover plate 42 having an elongated opening 44 formed therein, through which the cutting periphery of the cutting wheel 100 partially protrudes. The amount that the cutting wheel 100 protrudes from the cover plate 42 will determine the depth of the cut into the workpiece 310 in use. The upper section 20 also comprises a housing 22 adapted to be positioned within a load station 301 of the upper turret 302. The housing 22 provides a rotation seat 23 for a roller 60 which is passively rotatable about its horizontal rotation axis 62, which is parallel and generally vertically aligned with the rotation axis 37 of the cutting wheel 100. The roller 60 can be adapted for omnidirectional or indexed rotation. 302 22 2 1 60 /- 20 (c) 37 304g 32 110 30 Figure 3

Description

The invention is described in the following statement:

2017101695 04 Dec 2017

Field of the Invention [1] The present invention relates to an improvement to a multiple tool station CNC turret punch press.

Background of the Invention [2] Figures 1 and 2 show an example of a computer numerical control (CNC) punch press machine 300 having rotatable upper turret 302 and lower turret 304. The upper turret 302 carries a plurality of punch tools of various sizes and shapes in its load stations 301, while the lower turret 304 carries a plurality of dies in its load stations which respectively correspond to the tools carried by the upper turret 302. Corresponding rotation of the turrets 302 and 304 under control of a CNC processor 308 brings a selected pair of tool and die into registry under the ram 303 of the punch press 300 to perform a multitude of functions including (but not limited to) punching, pinching, tapping, forming, offsetting, ribbing and shearing.

[3] The primary function of a CNC turret punch press is that of a vertical striker driven by the ram 303 imparting sharp blows to one end of a punch tool, causing the shaped opposite end of the punch tool to rapidly and forcefully impact the sheet material workpiece 310. This punches a hole or creates a shaped contour in the sheet material workpiece 310 having a desired configuration roughly corresponding to the configuration of the shaped punch end.

[4] The sheet metal workpiece 310 is held in place with hydraulic sheet clamps 320 and is moved by the CNC processor.

[5] The turret punch 300 is however limited to a punching action.

[6] The present invention seeks to overcome or substantially ameliorate at least some of the deficiencies of the prior art, or to at least provide an alternative.

[7] It is to be understood that, if any prior art information is referred to herein, such reference does not constitute an admission that the information forms part of the common general knowledge in the art, in Australia or any other country.

Summary of the Invention [8] According to a first aspect, the present invention provides a groove cutting assembly for a turret punch, the groove cutting assembly comprising:

[9] a first section for mounting to a first turret of the turret punch, the first section having a driven cutting tool for cutting grooves into a workpiece.

[10] In a preferred embodiment, the groove cutting assembly further comprises a second section for mounting to a second turret of the turret punch, the second section having a support means for engaging a side of the workpiece opposite the cutting tool in use.

2017101695 04 Dec 2017 [11] In another preferred embodiment, the first turret is a lower turret and the second turret is an upper turret.

[12] In an alternative preferred embodiment, the first turret is an upper turret and the second turret is a lower turret.

[13] In another preferred embodiment, the cutting tool comprises a cutting wheel having a horizontal rotation axis.

[14] In an alternative preferred embodiment, the cutting tool comprises a vertical rotation axis.

[15] In another preferred embodiment, the support means comprises a support roller.

[16] In another preferred embodiment, the cutting tool is driven by a motor in use.

[17] In another preferred embodiment, the cutting wheel comprises a plurality of spaced cutting elements disposed about its periphery.

[18] In another preferred embodiment, the first section comprises a first housing adapted to be positioned within a load station of the first turret.

[19] In another preferred embodiment, the first housing comprises an internal space within which the cutting tool and a driving motor for the cutting tool is disposed.

[20] In another preferred embodiment, the first housing comprises a top cover plate having an elongated opening through which the cutting tool partially protrudes.

[21] In another preferred embodiment, the assembly comprises means for moving the cutting tool for varying the resulting depth of cut.

[22] In another preferred embodiment, the second section comprises a second housing adapted to be positioned within a load station of the second turret.

[23] In another preferred embodiment, the second housing comprises a rotation seat for a support roller.

[24] In another preferred embodiment, the support roller is adapted for omnidirectional or indexed rotation.

[25] In another preferred embodiment, the first section is rotatably indexed about the vertical axis.

[26] In another preferred embodiment, the second section is rotatably indexed about the vertical axis.

[27] In another preferred embodiment, a CNC processor of the turret punch controls the orientation of the cutting tool and the depth of the cut groove

2017101695 04 Dec 2017 [28] Other aspects of the invention are also disclosed.

Brief Description of the Drawings [29] Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scope of the present invention, preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[30] Figure 1 is a side view of a typical turret punch;

[31] Figure 2 is a top view of the turret punch of Figure 1;

[32] Figure 3 shows (a) schematic cross-section of a groove cutting assembly for a turret punch in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, (b) shows the rotation direction of the assembly and (c) is a top view of the lower half of the assembly;

[33] Figure 4 shows (a) the groove cutting assembly of Figure 3 at an alternative 90° orientation, (b) shows the rotation direction of the assembly and (c) is a top view of the lower half of the assembly;

[34] Figure 5 (a) and (b) show two possible cutting element profile shapes of the cutting wheel for the assembly of Figure 3, with (c) and (d) showing two respective example cutting depths onto a workpiece.

Description of Embodiments [35] It should be noted in the following description that like or the same reference numerals in different embodiments denote the same or similar features.

[36] Figures 2 and 3 show a groove cutting assembly 10 for a turret punch 300 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The assembly 10 comprises an upper (first) section 20 and a lower (second) section 30.

[37] The lower section 30 comprises a housing 32 adapted to be positioned within a load station of the lower turret 304. The housing 32 comprises an internal space 33 within which a cutting wheel 100 is disposed. The cutting wheel 100 is oriented in a generally vertical manner and is actively rotatably driven in use about its central horizontal rotation axis 37 by a motor 38, which is also disposed within the internal space 33. The cutting wheel 100 comprises a plurality of spaced cutting elements 110 disposed about its periphery. Alternatively, the cutting wheel can comprise a continuous abrasive periphery edge to perform the grooving.

[38] The housing 32 comprises a top cover plate 42 having an elongated opening 44 formed therein, through which the cutting periphery of the cutting wheel 100 partially protrudes. The amount that the cutting wheel 100 protrudes from the cover plate 42 will determine the depth

2017101695 04 Dec 2017 of the cut into the workpiece 310 in use. Alternatively, control can be provided for moving the cutting wheel 100 within the internal space 33 for varying the resulting depth of cut.

[39] The upper section 20 also comprises a housing 22 adapted to be positioned within a load station 301 of the upper turret 302. The housing 22 provides a rotation seat 23 fora roller 60 which is passively rotatable about its horizontal rotation axis 62, which is parallel and generally vertically aligned with the rotation axis 37 of the cutting wheel 100. The roller 60 can be adapted for omnidirectional or indexed rotation.

[40] The present invention thus provides an active motorised grooving wheel too! 100 locatable within a lower turret 304 of a CNC turret punch press 300. The assembly 10 is one of the possible tools provided for the punch press 300. If a groove is required to be formed in a workpiece 310, the assembly 100 is selected and the workpiece 310 is moved by the CNC processor 308 as above.

[41] The cutting wheel 100 is actively rotatably driven by the motor 38. The cutting elements 110 groove and remove material from the workpiece 310, without fully penetrating the workpiece 310. The corresponding roller 60 located in the upper turret 302 simultaneously engages the workpiece 310 at its opposite (non-work) face to provide resistance to the sheet material when the motorised grooving wheel tool 100 is cutting material from the workpiece 310. The roller 60 ensures the depth of the formed groove is accurate and consistent.

[42] The housing 32 within the load station of the lower turret 304 is rotatably indexed about the vertical axis along the entire 360 degrees (as indicated by arrows 80). This allows the horizontal rotation axis 37 of the cutting wheel 100 to be oriented at any required angle around the vertical axis (and retained at that orientation), to cut a groove in the workpiece 310 in any required direction, in the example shown, the cutting wheel 100 is at 90° orientation in Figure 4 relative to the orientation shown in Figure 3. The roller 60 in the upper turret 302 is also correspondingly oriented around the vertical axis. A CNC processor is used to control both the orientation of the motorised groove cutting wheel 100 and also to accurately control the depth of the cut groove.

[43] Figure 5 shows examples of a rounded (radius) cutting profile 140 and an edged (squared) cutting profile 150 for the cutting elements 110 of the cutting wheel 100. Also shown therein are examples of deep depth (141, 151) and shallow depth (142, 152) of groove cut into the workpiece 310. The depth and shape of the groove will determine the bending properties of the workpiece 310 at the groove locations. The workpiece 310 in the example is a composite panel comprising an outer skin 101, an inner skin 121 and an intermediate core 131. The cutting wheel 100 allows grooves to be cut into the inner skin 121 and core 131, but not the outer skin 101.

2017101695 04 Dec 2017 [44] The CNC processor 308 incrementally controls the height of the groove wheel tool 100 in use, which determines the depth of the formed groove folding lines and bending radius of the folds. The groove wheel tool 100 can also be provided with various shaped teeth for grooving of different sheet materials.

[45] As the groove folding lines are formed from the underside of the composite sheet material 310, all swarf material is collected below the workpiece and the surface is kept clear and clean.

[46] The preferred embodiment thus allows large panels, in the example being composite panels, to be processed on one machine for both punching and grooving operations. This eliminates relocating the very large workpiece (up to 2m x 2.1m sheet size) to a separate grooving machine from a punch machine.

[47] Whilst preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, it will be apparent to skilled persons that modifications can be made to the embodiments described. For example, the cutting wheel can be embodied in other forms, such as a cutting tool rotatable about a vertical axis, for example a router bit. The upper and side edges of such a cutting tool can then form the grooves in the workpiece.

[48] It is also possible to reverse the positions of the upper and lower sections, to have the cutting wheel on top and the support roller on the bottom relative to the workpiece.

[49] It is also possible to omit the support roller, for example in cases where the workpiece has a thick cross-section and is heavy. The support roller can also be replaced by a different support means, such as a solid stationary item with a slide surface thereon which engages the workpiece.

[50] The motor for driving the cutting wheel can be electric, pneumatic, hydraulic or any suitable driving means.

[51] The preferred embodiment thus provides a CNC turret punch press machine and method for secondary machining of accurate groove folding lines in large composite sheet panel material.

[52] The preferred embodiment also provides a CNC turret punch press machine and method that accurately grooves from the underside of the composite sheet material without having to reposition or relocate the workpiece to a separate machining facility.

[53] The preferred embodiment also provides an assembly for a motorised grooving wheel tool disposed within a lower turret of a CNC turret punch press with a corresponding upper roller simultaneously engaged to provide resistance to the composite sheet material. In the

2017101695 04 Dec 2017 embodiment, the motorised grooving wheel tool is automatically power activated via a command from the CNC processor.

[54] The preferred embodiment provides an integrated CNC turret punch press capable of providing complete machining functions to process composite sheet materials without requiring relocation to separate or additional machining facilities.

[55] The preferred embodiment provides a motorised grooving wheel tool located in a lower tool station of a CNC turret punch press for grooving lines in a composite sheet material, for folding the sheet material, whereas otherwise the sheet material would require to be relocated to another machine.

[56] The preferred embodiment provides a motorized tool (routing/grooving) being located within a tool station of a turret punch press.

[57] The preferred embodiment provides a tool for use with a rotatable CNC turret punch press provided with a plurality of upper and lower tool holders, said tool is an electric motor to drive a grooving wheel tool which is mounted within a lower turret tool holder, and an opposing roller tool located within the upper turret tool holder which is simultaneously engaged to provide resistance to the composite sheet material [58] In the preferred embodiment, the grooving wheel tool is an active tool, driven via an electric motor which is activated automatically upon the tool being presented to the punching station.

[59] In the preferred embodiment, the grooving wheel tool is indexed with the ability to rotate 360 degrees to groove lines in any required direction.

[60] In the preferred embodiment, the tool is indexed using existing hardware and software.

[61] In the preferred embodiment, the existing CNC processor presents the groove wheel tool at predetermined height increments to control groove line depths.

[62] In the preferred embodiment, the CNC processor is activated when the turret is rotated to a predetermined tool holder position.

[63] In the preferred embodiment, the tool can be easily and economically retrofitted to existing CNC turret punch machines that utilise an indexing station.

[64] In the preferred embodiment, the grooving wheel tool is a circular saw biade with varying teeth profiles for grooving lines into materials of different properties.

[65] In the preferred embodiment, the grooving wheel tool grooves folding lines from the underside of the composite sheet material, with all swarf material being collected below the workpiece ensuring the surface is kept clear and clean.

2017101695 04 Dec 2017 [66] The preferred embodiment upgrades the CNC turret punch press into a complete composite sheet material processing centre.

2017101695 04 Dec 2017

Claims (20)

1. Claims

   The claims defining the invention are as follows:

   1. A groove cutting assembly for a turret punch, the groove cutting assembly comprising:

   a first section for mounting to a first turret of the turret punch, the first section having a driven cutting tool for cutting grooves into a workpiece.
2. 2. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 further comprising a second section for mounting to a second turret of the turret punch, the second section having a support means for engaging a side of the workpiece opposite the cutting tool in use.
3. 3. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the first turret is a lower turret and the second turret is an upper turret.
4. 4. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the first turret is an upper turret and the second turret is a lower turret.
5. 5. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the cutting tool comprises a cutting wheel having a horizontal rotation axis.
6. 6. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the cutting tool comprises a vertical rotation axis.
7. 7. The groove cutting assembly of claim 2 wherein the support means comprises a support roller.
8. 8. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the cutting tool is driven by a motor in use.
9. 9. The groove cutting assembly of claim 5 wherein the cutting wheel comprises a plurality of spaced cutting elements disposed about its periphery.
10. 10. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the first section comprises a first housing adapted to be positioned within a load station of the first turret.
11. 11. The groove cutting assembly of claim 10 wherein the first housing comprises an internal space within which the cutting tool and a driving motor for the cutting tool is disposed.
12. 12. The groove cutting assembly of claim 11 wherein the first housing comprises a top cover plate having an elongated opening through which the cutting tool partially protrudes.
13. 13. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the assembly comprises means for moving the cutting tool for varying the resulting depth of cut.

    2017101695 04 Dec 2017
14. 14. The groove cutting assembly of claim 2 wherein the second section comprises a second housing adapted to be positioned within a load station of the second turret.
15. 15. The groove cutting assembly of claim 14 wherein the second housing comprises a rotation seat for a support roller.
16. 16. The groove cutting assembly of claim 15 wherein the support roller is adapted for omnidirectional or indexed rotation.
17. 17. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein the first section is rotatably indexed about the vertical axis.
18. 18. The groove cutting assembly of claim 2 wherein the second section is rotatably indexed about the vertical axis.
19. 19. The groove cutting assembly of claim 1 wherein a CNC processor of the turret punch controls the orientation of the cutting tool and the depth of the cut groove.
20. 20. The groove cutting assembly of claim 5 wherein the grooving wheel tool grooves folding lines from the underside of the composite sheet material, with all swarf material being collected below the workpiece

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