Lathes

About the term lathes

Lathes, also known as automatic lathes for series production, are used for the machining and production of turned parts in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Turning centers/turning cells describe turning machines that are CNC-controlled and therefore produce precision and series parts. Modern lathes are five-axis machining centers whose workpiece machining is carried out with micron precision. The machining centers are used in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as large companies across all industrial sectors. Modern mill/turn machining centers enable simultaneous turning and milling or other machining technologies.

Structure of lathes

The basic structure of a lathe consists of a motor that drives the work spindle via a gearbox. The workpiece is clamped in the lathe chuck. During turning, the workpiece rotates and not the tool, which is usually an indexable insert, as in many other machining processes. The tool is mounted on the tool slide and is moved by the feed spindle and guided by the lead screw. This part is located in the machine bed. The tailstock is located directly opposite the work spindle, into which a drill can be clamped, for example, in order to drill out the center of the turned part, or which is used to support longer turned parts. The steady rest also has a support function.

Vertical lathes and horizontal lathes

A distinction is made between vertical lathes and horizontal lathes, or between vertical machining centers and horizontal machining centers, depending on whether the work spindle moves vertically or horizontally. High-speed turning tables (C-axis up to 1000 rpm) as well as swivel turning tables for five-axis machining now enable all known turning technologies on just one machine in addition to drilling, milling and threading. A higher number of tool stations increases flexibility when machining complex workpieces, reduces set-up time and creates capacity for replacement tools. There are also machines whose driven tools operate at speeds of up to 5,000 rpm.

Control system - the heart of lathes

The control unit is the heart of the lathe. Intuitive operation enables the control system to program the lathe easily. This serves to ensure continuous utilization of the machine capacity and thus to further increase productivity. With the help of the control system, users in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can program the virtual lathe completely independently of the actual machining center, process orders, select and test tools, simulate axis work processes and detect workpiece collisions in advance. In reality, the basic structure has been expanded considerably to include tool magazines, double spindles, coolant supply etc

Areas of application for lathes

Lathes are used in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for everything from one-off production and small series production to large series production. They are suitable for the manufacture of different products without complicated retooling. An automatic lathe can therefore produce a wide range of different components. They can be manufactured with extreme precision in the range of 1/1000 mm. The lathe is used in all machining production operations such as milling and drilling.

Turned parts

This is the name given to all rotationally symmetrical parts that are produced by turning. Whether it is metal, plastic or composite materials hardly matters. Most materials can be turned, resulting in a wide range of products. Typical turned parts are shafts, pistons, screw elements, connecting elements and many more.

Types of lathes

A lathe can be controlled manually. This is still the case in some small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). For industrial production, however, turning machines are usually computer-controlled. This control leads to CNC machines. In addition, lathes are often not used as stand-alone machines but in combination with milling cutters and drills and are combined to form so-called machining centers. Depending on the machining requirements, lathes are available in all sizes for miniature components from a few millimetres up to large components of a few meters.

High Speed Cutting

In recent years, it has become possible to produce turned parts using the high-speed cutting process. With conventional inserts, if the speed is too high, the tool burns into the workpiece, is damaged or no longer turns precisely. Thanks to harder materials (ceramic, diamond), lathes in machining centers can run at much higher feed rates, which shortens the machining time and increases the production rate.

Lathes and SCOPE

The industry magazine SCOPE and its internet portal SCOPE-ONLINE regularly report on various aspects of turning machines and their use in machining production.