Sprocket production goes modular

Complete manufacturing solutions are in greater demand than ever. Until a few years ago, production steps were broken down into sub-processes, and production lines often comprised equipment from a variety of manufacturers.

Nowadays however, the demand is almost always for a complete solution – and one company well placed to provide technology for the entire process chain is Salach, Germany-based Emag. The main reason for this capability is the fact that Emag machines allow the construction of an entire production line from modular building blocks. The new sprocket production line is a real-life example.

Sprockets are found in every modern engine and need to be produced in large quantities whilst maintaining the highest levels of quality. This precision is important to keep the wear of parts to a minimum, since essential components such as camshafts depend on their function. High productivity and high quality are achievable, as demonstrated by Emag with its sprocket production system – built entirely from modular machines.

“We have broken the sprocket machining process down into four easily manageable sub-processes,” says Björn Svatek, sales & marketing director, modular solutions at Emag. “In ops 10 and 20, we use the VL 3 Duo dual-spindle vertical turning centre to machine both sides of the sprocket blanks and in op 30 we carry out the gear milling on our VL 4 H gear hobbing machine.

“The final deburring of the finished sprocket in op 40 is completed on our VL 2 RC chamfering and deburring machine. The fact that we can run the entire machining process on modular machines from our Modular Solutions line demonstrates the outstanding flexibility and performance of this series – which also comes at a more than fair price,” he adds.

The gear hobbing unit provides high speeds and high torque

In addition to the modular machines, Emag also uses its TrackMotion automation system, designed specifically for this machine type. “With TrackMotion we can interlink our modular machines simply and efficiently,” Mr Svatek explains. “It includes the TransLift, a workpiece gripper that runs on a rail system immediately behind the machining area, practically right through the machines, and allows for efficient and direct parts transport between the machines.

“It flips over the parts between operations and then places them on the stackers, which are pallets for stacking the finished parts,” he continues. “This enables us to fit a large number of finished parts in a very narrow space. A compact and simple design, combined with maximum productivity was our goal during the design of this production line, and the high satisfaction levels of our customers proves to us that we have achieved our ambitious objectives.”

Ease of handling was a priority for the system developers: “It all starts with the loading of the system where we have a separator that the blanks – in the form of cut-offs – are simply loaded into,” Mr Svatek reveals. “From here, the parts move to the VL 3 Duo dual-spindle vertical turning centre’s integrated parts magazine – part of the pick-up automation system, a feature of each Emag modular machine.”

The modular machines are fully automatic. The working spindle loads itself automatically from the integrated part magazine, moves to the machining area to perform the operation, and then deposits the machined workpiece back to the part magazine, where the next piece is already waiting to be processed.

From here, the TrackMotion automation system picks up the piece and deposits it on the integrated part magazine of the next machine. That way there is virtually no idle time since the transport of parts between machines runs concurrently with the machining operation and therefore has no impact on cycle times. The working spindle itself takes only a few seconds to load and unload.

In addition to achieving optimum performance in automation technology, Emag has made sure its machines are well specified in terms of productivity.

The VL3’s working spindle and 12-post tool turret

For example, the VL 3 Duo models feature powerful 18kW working spindles with a torque of 77Nm. In combination with 12 post tool turrets (choice of VDI or BMT interface), optionally equipped with driven tools and Y-axis, the results are both fast and precise machining processes—made possible by the direct drive torque motors.

The vertical gear hobbing machine and the vertical chamfering and deburring machine feature proven technology by Emag Koepfer, the gear specialist within the Emag Group. The powerful milling unit of the VL 4 H provides rapid feed rates, matching its modular sibling machines in terms of productivity. For chamfering and deburring of the sprocket, a choice is available between press deburring, or the chamfer cut procedure. Which method is used depends on the workpiece geometry and, of course, customer preference.

“With this sprocket production system, Emag demonstrates once again the flexibility and performance of its modular product range.” Mr Svatek concludes. “Via this system, we can produce sprockets cost-effectively in less than 40 seconds.”

Emag www.emag.com

Company

Emag

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