GB1577299A

GB1577299A - Turning lathe

Info

Publication number: GB1577299A
Application number: GB2505378A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: MOLLART ENG CO Ltd
Current assignee: MOLLART ENG CO Ltd
Priority date: 1978-05-31
Filing date: 1978-05-31
Publication date: 1980-10-22

Description

(54) TURNING LATHE (71) We, THE MOLLART ENGINEERING COMPANY LIMITED, a British Company, of Hook Rise South, Kingston-By-Pass, Surbiton, Surrey, KT6 7LX, do hereby declare the invention, for whinch we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: This invention relates to a turning lathe by which term is meant herein a machine in which a workpiece to be turned is held in a horizontal position above a horizontal slideway by means of adjustable centres and rotated by a chuck about a horizontal axis against a tool, relative movement of tool and workpiece being about at least two orthogonal axes one of which is parallel to said horizontal axis, with which tool the workpiece is cut to the requisite shape as the tool is traversed. It is to be understood that the term turning lathe as used herein embraces capstan lathes, chucking automatics and any similar machine in which the workpiece is rotatable and cut by said rotation against a stationary tool.

According to the present invention we provide a turning late as hereinbefore defined in which the chuck is able to be indexed and saird lathe including at least two tool carrying units mounted on a pivot member that is rotatable about a horizontal axis for angularly moving the tool carrying units about said axis from an operative position above the slideway to an inoperative position, or vice versa, a movable structure slidably mounted on the slideway, means for actuating said movable structure along said slideway to engage the tool carrying unit positioned in said operative position, means for interconnecting said movable structure and said tool carrying unit in said operative position, said actuating means thereafter moving said interconnected movable structure and tool carrving unit along said slidewav to detach said tool carrying unit from said pivot member and to move said unit to a working position, and drive means on said movable structure for selectively driving rotatable tools but not driving non-rotatable tools on said unit so that anyone of said rotatable tools is adapted to perform a machining operation and any one of said non-rotatable tools is adapted to perform a turning operation in said working position on said workpiece wherein said pivot member is provided with guideways each for slidably receiving a portion of a corresponding tool carrying unit, and each of said tool carrying units is slidably detachable from its guideways in the pivot member in a first direction when in its operative position for movement to said working position and in a second direction when in its inoperative position for movement to a storage position.

In a preferred arrangement the storage position is a carousel magazine.

The provision of such tool carrying units on a turning lathe enable complex machining operations to be executed on the workpiece, without removing said workpiece therefrom, thereby providing a multitask machining facility.

The invention will be more fully understood from the following description given by way of example only in relation to the figures of the accompanying drawing in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a turning lathe of the invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the turning lathe of Figure 1 in first angle orthographic projection and Figure 2A is a similar view to that of Figure 2 with the line of feed from the carousel turned through a right angle.

Figures 3 and 4 respectively are side and end elevations in first angle orthographic proiection of a component that has been machined in the turning lathe of Figures 1, 2, 2A without removal from chuck thereof.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of a part of the turning lathe showing the tool units and a storage device.

Figure 6 is a partial end view taken in the direction indicated by the arrow "A" in Figure 5.

Figure 7 is a section to a larger scale taken on the section station VIl-VIl of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a side elevation of a part of the turning lathe showing the tool units and a carousel storage device, and Figure 9 is a view oblique perspective showing a pair of tool units.

Referring now to Figures 1, 2 and 2A of the drawing a turning lathe shown generally at 10 comprises a bed 11 incorporating a horizontal slideway 12, a four jaw chuck 13 is able to be indexed and that is rotatable by an electric motor 13A and belt 13B about a horizontal axis YYi said chuck also being movable about a horizontal axis X normal to YYl of a first cross slide 135.

A second cross slide 14 carries a tool carrying head 15 for at least two tool carrying units 16A, 16B; unit 16A is shown in the operative position the lower position, and unit 16B in the inoperative position, the upper position; which units are able to be moved along a horizontal axis Z parallel to YY, toward and away from the chuck 13 on the cross slide 15 (see Figure 9) which in this example has no movement along the X axis.

It is to be understood that movement about axis X may in an alternative construction (Figure 2A for example) allow for a stationary rotational chuck and movement of the tool carrier about the X and Z axes as in a conventional lathe, this is especially useful if vibration problems are to be kept to a minimum since the motor 13A and chuck 13 of Figure 2 are then stationary in respect to the bed of the lathe, rotation of the chuck being about horizontal axis YYi and the tools being brought to the workpiece along orthogonal axes X and Z.

The tool carrying head 15 is supplied along the Z axis (Figure 2) or along the X axis (Figure 2A) from a magazine shown in the form of a carousel 16 having six tool carrying units 16B, 16C, 16D, 16E, 16F, 16G spaced apart on a rotational circle at a spacing of sixty degrees of arc and capable of being indexed in the known mnnner.

Tool carrying unit 16B is in an inoperative position waiting for entry into the tool carrying head 15 and a rotation through two right angles to bring it into an operative position presently occupied by tool carrying unit 16A.

A distinction is to be drawn between the tools of tool carving units 16A. 1613. 16D, l6F" and l6F and those of units l6 l6CT.

The tools of units 16A. 1613. l6D. 169. 16F are rotatable power operated tools and each is rotatable from a drive motor whereas the tools of units 16C, 16G are non-rotatable conventional lathe tools that in a conventional lathe are normally held in the tool post of the top slide of the saddle of the cross slide but in this invention they are held in the tool carrying unit but they are not in engagement with the drive to the drive motor which is disconnected.

It will be noted that the operator of the turning lathe of the present invention will stand at the usual position, but the chuck 13 will rotate, in contra-distinction to the conventional lathe, in the direction of arrow 13C which is clockwise when viewed from the tailstock shown diagrammatically at 17.

Clearly the feed-in line Y2, Y3 from off the carousel 16 is above (see Figure 1) the horizontal axis YYl of rotation of any workpiece in the chuck 13. In Figure 2 the feedin line Y2, Y3. is parallel to the horizontal rotational axis YYl but in Figure 2A it is nor- mal thereto mutatis mutandis.

The chuck 13 is provided with accurate indexing means (not shown) similar in effect to that of the well known dividing head of a milling machine, hence when the chuck is decoupled from its continuous rotational drive it may be used to rotate the workpiece to be machined through a given aliquot part of a complete turn about its rotational axis YY1 and when so fixed it may have the workpiece in its jaws subiected to a cutting action from the tools of tool units 16A, 16B, 16D, 16E, 16F which tools, in contra-distinction to the non-rotatable tool of units 16C, 16G are rotational tools operated from a drive motor 217 (Figures 5 and 8) as is described fully in our United Kingdom Patent Specification No. 1,327,253.

The arrangement of tools on the carousel 16 with the tool head 15 allows for example the turning from bar or from a rough casting of a component as shown in Figures 3 and 4. The component shown generally at 100 is held in chuck 13 and turned to its rotational configuration on surfaces 108, 109, 111, 113, 115, 116 chamfered at 110, 112 and undercut at 114 by the stationary lathe tools in tool units 16C, 16G. The component is then fixed by decoupling the chuck from its continuous rotational drive and indexing it as required to allow cut flat face ]01, hole 102, slot 103, facial holes 104. 105l, 1052, 1052, 1054, slot 106 and hole 107 to be made by the appropriate power rotated tools in tool units 16A, 16B, 16D, 16E, 16F.

Clearly the chuck 13, the tools and the tool units may conveniently be under the accurate sequential rotary and transverse control of a numerically controlled automatic means understood by those skilled in the art.

In Figure 5 the cross slide 14 is shown in greater detail with its two tool carrving heads or units 212 and 213 (similar to 16A, 16B of Figure 2) which are mounted on oppo site sides of a common pivot member 214 rotatably mounted in frame support member 215. The pivot member 214 is rotatable about a horizontal axis 223 for angularly moving said tool carrying units 212, 213 about said axis from an inoperative position (the upper position in Figure 5) to an operative position (the lower position in Figure 5) which is above the slideway 14 or viceversa A movable structure 216 along the Z axis is slidably mounted on the slideway 14 and is movable along the slideway 14 to engage the tool carrying unit 213 in the operative position. The movable structure 216 is interconnected with the tool carrying unit in the operative position (as shown in Figure 5) and the interconnected movable structure 216 and tool carrying unit 213 are thereafter moved along the slideway 14 to detach the tool carrying unit 213 from the pivot member 214 and to move the unit to a working position where the tools may contact the workpiece in chuck 13. The movable structure 216 includes a motor 217 for driving the rotatable power tools such as tools 218 on the interconnected unit in the working position for performing a machining operation.

In the case of non-rotatable tools the motor 217 is de-energised and no coupling made.

The tool carrying units 212 and 213 are each provided with a trip plate 219 which is mounted externally on the unit. An electric motor 220 is enerrised to advance the movable structure 216 of the operative unit along the slideway 14. The trip plate 219 controls the operative ranee of movement or stroke of the operative unit 213 by operation of a limit switch box 219A which is arranged to de-enereise motor 220 and energise motor 217 when necessary.

The tool carrving units 212 and 213 are slidablv mounted on the pivot member 214 in such a manner that they can be discon necked from the pivot members by a hori zonal sliding movement in either direction incorporating spring urged catch devices.

As shown more clearly in Figure 6 the pivot member in cross-sectional shape in cornorates a pair of parallel euldeways 221 and 222 located one on each side of the pivot axis 223. the guideway 221 and 222 slidablv receiving a T-shaped section 224 projecting from the corresponding face of the tool carrying units 212 and 213. The external parts of the pivot member 214 comprise inwardly directed portions 225 which engage the narrow part 228 of the Tshaped section 224 of the tool carrying units 212 and 213. As shown in Figure 7 the inwardlv directed portions 225 of the pivot member 214 incorporate shaped apertures 29ei for receiving plungers 227 ureed outwardly by springs 229 and carried by the tool carrving units in slots 230 in the narrow portions 228 of the T-shaped extensions 224. The nose portions of the plungers 227 are formed with two angular surfaces 227a, 227b which are located at different angles to the longitudinal axis of the plunger 227. The corresponding surfaces 226a, 226b of the apertures 226 in the portions 225 are similarly formed and the angles of the surfaces are selected so that different retaining forces are provided by the plungers depending on the direction of movement of the tool carrying units relative to the pivot member 214.

The angles are chosen so that greater retaining force is obtained when the tool carrying units 212 and 213 are moved in a forward direction, i.e. in a direction towards the working position of the machine tool as shown by the arrow B in Figure 7. The angle oe of the surfaces 226b, 227b providing this greater retaining force is approximately 30 to 40O to the longitudinal axis of the plunger. The angle J3 of the other retaining surfaces 226b, 227b may be in the range of 50 to 60C so as to provide a lesser retaining force when the tool carrying units are moved rearwardly relative to the pivot member as shown by the arrow C in Figure 7.

The tool carrying unit 212 in the inoperative position is adapted to slide rearwardly as shown by the arrow D in Figure 5 and to this end the guideway 221 in the pivot member 214 is located adjacent and in line with a similar guideway 231 mounted on a fixed frame 232 of the machine. As the tool carrying unit 212 moves to the inoperative position a slot 233 in the body of the unit 212 is adapted to engage over an upwardly extending tongue 234 forming part of a conveyor device. In the preferred arrangement the conveyor device may comprise a lead screw driven by a motor 236 and provided with a travelling nut 237 on which the upstanding tongue 234 is mounted. The arrangement is such that operation of the conveyor device moves the tongue 234 and thereby the corresponding tool unit 212 rearwardly in the direction of arrow D when the motor 236 is energised, the force exerted overcoming the retaining force of the plunger 227 engaging the apertures 226 in the guideway 225 of the pivot member 214.

The conveying device moves the inoperative tool carrying unit 212 along the guideway 231 rearwardly of the machine to a position shown in Figure 5 by unit 212A and in which the unit may be removed to a storage device or into a suitable magazine.

As shown in Figure 8 the inoperative tool carrying units are positioned in a carousel magazine shown generally by the reference 16 (see also Figure 2). The carousel magazine 16 has a number of radial arms each provided with a guideway 231A and which can be selectively locked in line with fixed guideway 231 by rotation of the magazine. The magazine is then indexed and the next unit in the magazine can then be moved into position G for lowering into engagement with the tongue which may then be operated by the lead screw or other conveying device to move the unit forwardly into the upper inoperative position in engagement with the guideway of the pivot member 223.

It is to be understood that non-rotatable lathe tools such as 16C, 16G when inserted into the tool carrying head are such that no rotational connection is made to the rotational drive motor 217 and it is de-energised.

The operation of the tool carrying units 212, 213 for rotatable tools are as described in our United Kingdom Patent Specification 1,327,253 to which reference should be made for a detailed description of their construction and operation. Briefly, their construction and operation is shown in Figure 9 in which the two tool carrying units 212, 213 are shown in the action of interchange being turned in the direction of arrow I about pivot member 214 through two right angles.

It is to be noted (Figure 9) that tool unit 213 (see also 16A Figure 2) has rotatable tools operable on two faces displaced by a right angle, these are shown in Figure 9 at 218 and 218A.

The modus operandi of the turning lathe shown generally in Figures 1, 2 and 2A are as follows: A workpiece in chuck 13 is turned by a stationary lathe tool such as 16C (16G) in the operative position about the tool head 15. Rotation of the workpiece is in the direction of arrow 13C, the tool is brought into the requisite cutting position by movement of the chuck 13 about the X axis and the tool is then traversed along the Z axis as required to effect the cut. Other stationary tools may be interchanged from the carousel 16 via the tool head as required. Once the workpiece is turned other machining operations may be effected by disengaging the chuck from continuous rotation and indexing it with the workpiece to receive cutting action on the periphery of the workpiece by a powered rotary tool such as 16A1 (Figure 2) movement about orthogonal axes X and Y being combined to give the requisite accurate positioning of the tool in relation to the workpiece. Power tools such as 16A2 may be used to cut into the face of the workpiece by feeding them into the workpiece along a line parallel to the Z axis, once they have been accurately positioned of the face by relative movement of workpiece and tool about the X axis. It will be clear that the distances above and below the centre line of the workpiece synonomous with the horizontal centre line YY, are controlled by the setting of the tool in the tool unit.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:- 1. A turning lathe as hereinbefore defined in which the chuck is able to be indexed and said lathe including at least two tool carrying units mounted on a pivot member that is rotatable about a horizontal axis for angularly moving the tool carrying units about said axis from an operative position above the slideway to an inoperative position, or vice versa, a movable structure silidably mounted on the slideway, means for actuating said movable structure along said slideway to engage the tool carrying unit positioned in said operative position, means for interconnecting said movable structure and said tool carrying unit in said operative position, said actuating means thereafter moving said interconnected movable structure and tool carrying unit along said slideway to detach said tool carrying unit from said pivot member and to move said unit to a working position, and drive means on said structure for selectively driving rotatable tools but not driving non-rotatable tools on said unit so that anyone of said rotatable tools is adapted to perform a machining operation and any one of said non-rotatable tools is adapted to perform a turning operation in said working position on said workpiece wherein said pivot member is provided with guideways each for slidably receiving a portion of a corresponding tool carrying unit, and each of said tool carrying units is slidably detachable from its guideways in the pivot member in a first direction when in its operative position for movement to said working position and in a second direction when in its inoperative position for movement to a storage position.

2. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 1, wherein each tool carrying unit is mainin operative engagement with the pivot member by spring urged catch devices.

3. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 2. wherein the catch devices each comprise spring urged plungers having angular nose portions engaging corresponding apertures in the guideway of the pivot member.

4. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 3, wherein the nose portions of the plungers are each formed with a pair of angular surfaces extending at different angles to the longitudinal axis of the plungers so as to obtain different retaining forces in the different directions of movement of the tool carrying units relative to the supporting pivot member.

5. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 4 wherein the angular surfaces are located so that a greater retaining force is obtained in the direction of movement of a tool carrying unit from its operative position into a working position.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. with fixed guideway 231 by rotation of the magazine. The magazine is then indexed and the next unit in the magazine can then be moved into position G for lowering into engagement with the tongue which may then be operated by the lead screw or other conveying device to move the unit forwardly into the upper inoperative position in engagement with the guideway of the pivot member 223. It is to be understood that non-rotatable lathe tools such as 16C, 16G when inserted into the tool carrying head are such that no rotational connection is made to the rotational drive motor 217 and it is de-energised. The operation of the tool carrying units 212, 213 for rotatable tools are as described in our United Kingdom Patent Specification 1,327,253 to which reference should be made for a detailed description of their construction and operation. Briefly, their construction and operation is shown in Figure 9 in which the two tool carrying units 212, 213 are shown in the action of interchange being turned in the direction of arrow I about pivot member 214 through two right angles. It is to be noted (Figure 9) that tool unit 213 (see also 16A Figure 2) has rotatable tools operable on two faces displaced by a right angle, these are shown in Figure 9 at 218 and 218A. The modus operandi of the turning lathe shown generally in Figures 1, 2 and 2A are as follows: A workpiece in chuck 13 is turned by a stationary lathe tool such as 16C (16G) in the operative position about the tool head 15. Rotation of the workpiece is in the direction of arrow 13C, the tool is brought into the requisite cutting position by movement of the chuck 13 about the X axis and the tool is then traversed along the Z axis as required to effect the cut. Other stationary tools may be interchanged from the carousel 16 via the tool head as required. Once the workpiece is turned other machining operations may be effected by disengaging the chuck from continuous rotation and indexing it with the workpiece to receive cutting action on the periphery of the workpiece by a powered rotary tool such as 16A1 (Figure 2) movement about orthogonal axes X and Y being combined to give the requisite accurate positioning of the tool in relation to the workpiece. Power tools such as 16A2 may be used to cut into the face of the workpiece by feeding them into the workpiece along a line parallel to the Z axis, once they have been accurately positioned of the face by relative movement of workpiece and tool about the X axis. It will be clear that the distances above and below the centre line of the workpiece synonomous with the horizontal centre line YY, are controlled by the setting of the tool in the tool unit. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:-

1. A turning lathe as hereinbefore defined in which the chuck is able to be indexed and said lathe including at least two tool carrying units mounted on a pivot member that is rotatable about a horizontal axis for angularly moving the tool carrying units about said axis from an operative position above the slideway to an inoperative position, or vice versa, a movable structure silidably mounted on the slideway, means for actuating said movable structure along said slideway to engage the tool carrying unit positioned in said operative position, means for interconnecting said movable structure and said tool carrying unit in said operative position, said actuating means thereafter moving said interconnected movable structure and tool carrying unit along said slideway to detach said tool carrying unit from said pivot member and to move said unit to a working position, and drive means on said structure for selectively driving rotatable tools but not driving non-rotatable tools on said unit so that anyone of said rotatable tools is adapted to perform a machining operation and any one of said non-rotatable tools is adapted to perform a turning operation in said working position on said workpiece wherein said pivot member is provided with guideways each for slidably receiving a portion of a corresponding tool carrying unit, and each of said tool carrying units is slidably detachable from its guideways in the pivot member in a first direction when in its operative position for movement to said working position and in a second direction when in its inoperative position for movement to a storage position.

6. The turning lathe as claimed in claim

4 or claim 5 wherein the plungers are each formed with an angular surface extending at an angle of 30 to 40 to the longitudinal axis of the plunger so as to provide the greater retaining force to the direction of movement of a tool carrying unit to a working position.

7. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 4, 5 or 6, wherein the plungers are each formed with an angular surface extending at an angle of 50 to 600 to the longitudinal axis of the plunger so as to provide a lesser retaining force when a tool carrying unit is slidably moved from an inoperative position to the storage position.

8. The turning lathe as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein a frame is provided having a guideway located in line with the guideway of the pivot member supporting a tool carrying unit in its inoperative position, said guideway leading to the storage position.

9. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 8, having a conveying unit for engaging a tool carrying unit in the inoperative position and for moving the unit from said pivot member along said frame guideway in said second direction to the storage position.

10. The turning lathe as claimed in claim 9, wherein the conveying unit is in the form of a motor driven lead screw bearing a travelling nut having an upstanding drive tongue engaging a corresponding slot in the tool carrying unit.

11. The turning lathe as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each tool carrying unit is provided with a trip plate for controlling the operation of the drive means on said movable structure as the unit is moved to its working position.

12. The turning lathe of any preceding claim wherein the storage position is a carousel magazine feeding-in tool carrying units along a direction parallel or normal to the horizontal rotational axis of the chuck.

13. A turning lathe substantially as described and as shown in the Figures 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, and 9 of the accompanying drawings.

14. A turning lathe substantially as described and as shown in the Figures 1, 2A, 5, 6, 7 and 9 of the accompanying drawings.

15. A turning lathe according to claim 13 or 14 as modified by Figure 8.

16. A machined component whenever made by the turning lathe of any preceding claim.