GrindSmart 628WX

December 12, 2011

In today's machining industries, complex, precision tools are required to achieve top-level performance for daily operations. These drilling and milling tools, with diameters down to 0.1mm, must be manufactured using innovative grinding machines. Rollomatic has extended its product portfolio to include a 6-axis grinding machine that, thanks to an integrated grinding wheel changer, is not only ultra-precise, but also works quickly, efficiently and autonomously.

Grinding high-performance tools requires a high-performance machine capable of translating carefully constructed CAD data into highly precise and effective cutting geometry on the finished tool. For many years, Rollomatic has been a leading manufacturer of proven grinding machines which are highly regarded in the industry for this very reason.

Jean-Charles Marty, Product Manager at Rollomatic SA: "Our new GrindSmart 628XW was received with great interest during its premiere at the EMO 2011. It is based on the GrindSmart 628XS, a 6-axis grinding machine for cutting tools of 0.1 to 16mm. But we have added another special function: The new design now includes a SmartChanger change unit for up to six grinding wheel sets, which offers even more flexibility in the design of complex special geometries."

When changing the grinding wheel arbor, the machine also changes the associated coolant nozzles, ensuring optimal cooling at the grinding point during all operations. In an effort to achieve maximum autonomy in production, the wheel changer in the GrindSmart 628XW can accommodate two identical wheel packs. This allows large production runs to be ground reliably without the operator having to intervene for wheel wear. While the wheel pack is being unloaded, the workpiece loader changes the finished tools.

"This minimizes the changeover time, increasing the productivity of the machine even further--just like a seamless pit stop in Formula 1!" says Jean-Charles Marty by way of comparison. The GrindSmart 628XW has been equipped with a new highly efficient synchronous spindle motor that offers 14 kW of power and up to 23 Nm of torque. "We have also redesigned the wheel flange, which is fully compatible with HSK50 hollow shaft cones. A special indexing system ensures that the grinding wheel pack is always mounted in exactly the same position. With this combination, the user achieves concentricity of less than 0.002mm every time the grinding wheel is changed", adds Jean-Charles Marty. To offer optimum compatibility with common clamping systems, Rollomatic has fitted the new grinding machine with a universal workhead, which allows clamping systems from Nann and Schaublin to be used as well. In addition to the increased motor output, the grinding range has also been expanded to 20mm in diameter.

Jean-Charles Marty: "Despite all the innovations our engineers have packed into it, the GrindSmart 628XW retains its compact structure and requires no additional floor space!"

Related Glossary Terms

  • arbor

    arbor

    Shaft used for rotary support in machining applications. In grinding, the spindle for mounting the wheel; in milling and other cutting operations, the shaft for mounting the cutter.

  • computer-aided design ( CAD)

    computer-aided design ( CAD)

    Product-design functions performed with the help of computers and special software.

  • coolant

    coolant

    Fluid that reduces temperature buildup at the tool/workpiece interface during machining. Normally takes the form of a liquid such as soluble or chemical mixtures (semisynthetic, synthetic) but can be pressurized air or other gas. Because of water’s ability to absorb great quantities of heat, it is widely used as a coolant and vehicle for various cutting compounds, with the water-to-compound ratio varying with the machining task. See cutting fluid; semisynthetic cutting fluid; soluble-oil cutting fluid; synthetic cutting fluid.

  • gang cutting ( milling)

    gang cutting ( milling)

    Machining with several cutters mounted on a single arbor, generally for simultaneous cutting.

  • grinding

    grinding

    Machining operation in which material is removed from the workpiece by a powered abrasive wheel, stone, belt, paste, sheet, compound, slurry, etc. Takes various forms: surface grinding (creates flat and/or squared surfaces); cylindrical grinding (for external cylindrical and tapered shapes, fillets, undercuts, etc.); centerless grinding; chamfering; thread and form grinding; tool and cutter grinding; offhand grinding; lapping and polishing (grinding with extremely fine grits to create ultrasmooth surfaces); honing; and disc grinding.

  • grinding machine

    grinding machine

    Powers a grinding wheel or other abrasive tool for the purpose of removing metal and finishing workpieces to close tolerances. Provides smooth, square, parallel and accurate workpiece surfaces. When ultrasmooth surfaces and finishes on the order of microns are required, lapping and honing machines (precision grinders that run abrasives with extremely fine, uniform grits) are used. In its “finishing” role, the grinder is perhaps the most widely used machine tool. Various styles are available: bench and pedestal grinders for sharpening lathe bits and drills; surface grinders for producing square, parallel, smooth and accurate parts; cylindrical and centerless grinders; center-hole grinders; form grinders; facemill and endmill grinders; gear-cutting grinders; jig grinders; abrasive belt (backstand, swing-frame, belt-roll) grinders; tool and cutter grinders for sharpening and resharpening cutting tools; carbide grinders; hand-held die grinders; and abrasive cutoff saws.

  • grinding wheel

    grinding wheel

    Wheel formed from abrasive material mixed in a suitable matrix. Takes a variety of shapes but falls into two basic categories: one that cuts on its periphery, as in reciprocating grinding, and one that cuts on its side or face, as in tool and cutter grinding.

  • milling

    milling

    Machining operation in which metal or other material is removed by applying power to a rotating cutter. In vertical milling, the cutting tool is mounted vertically on the spindle. In horizontal milling, the cutting tool is mounted horizontally, either directly on the spindle or on an arbor. Horizontal milling is further broken down into conventional milling, where the cutter rotates opposite the direction of feed, or “up” into the workpiece; and climb milling, where the cutter rotates in the direction of feed, or “down” into the workpiece. Milling operations include plane or surface milling, endmilling, facemilling, angle milling, form milling and profiling.

  • wheel flange

    wheel flange

    Metal plate inside the grinding-wheel hole that allows the wheel to be mounted on a spindle.