A machining center equipped with a device for mounting on a clamp parts to be worked or which have been worked, such as profiles, which has a supporting frame for supporting a turntable with two or more stepped positions or placements or workstations, an loading basket and an unloading basket. The machining center comprises a robot configured to remove or to associate, with each one of said two or more stepped positions or placements or workstations, the parts or the profiles to be worked and which have been worked at a plurality of fixed RPS or reference points and mobile mechanical components, according to a single positioning that is adapted to allow access by machining devices to any zone in the space of the profiles to be worked by modifying only the condition that the two or more stepped positions or placements or workstations are in.

A rail processing device (1) comprising at least a first (3A) and a second work station (3B) provided on a common frame (30), and configured to alternately lock a rail (2) when the latter is being processed, each work station (3A, 3B) comprising at least a first magnetic anchorage plane (4) configured to cooperate with a web (2A) of the rail (2) when the latter is being processed in the respective station, and a transport system (50A, 50B) to move the rail (2) from the first work station (3A) to the second work station (3B) and vice versa.

A method for cutting machining of turbine blades (1) on a multi-axis machine tool, the turbine blade (1) is held by a rotatable blade-root clamping device and a rotatable blade-tip clamping device (2) and is machined by means of a tool which is chucked in a tool spindle. A first profile section (4) which is adjacent to the blade tip is first of all machined by the tool and the tool is then removed. The tool spindle then grabs an already horizontal additional clamping device (5) which has clamping jaws (6.1, 6.2) adapted to the first profile section (4). The additional clamping device (5) is positioned on the blade-tip clamping device (2) in such a way that the clamping jaws (6.1, 6.2) rest in the first profile section (4). The tool spindle then grabs a tool and machines the remaining profile section with it.

In a steady rest (1) for centring a rotationally symmetrical workpiece (2) in the space, consisting of: two housing halves (4, 5) arranged at a distance from one another and firmly connected together, a middle steady rest arm (6) arranged between the two housing shells (4, 5) that is mounted in the housing shells (4, 5) by means of an actuation piston (7) so as to be moved in an axial direction (3) towards the workpiece (2), and two outer steady rest arms (11, 12) that are in a driving connection with the middle steady rest arm (6) by means of a guide slide (13) which has a control track (14) on two opposite outside sides, on which a roller (16) attached to the free ends (15) of both outer steady rests (11, 12) is arranged which roll along the control track (14), workpieces (2) with different diameters should be held in the space. This is achieved in that the particular control track (14) of the guide slide (13) has at least two control sections (21, 22, 25) and that at least two rollers (16) spaced apart from one another are provided on the particular outer steady rest arm (11, 12), which are in an active contact with one each of the control sections (21, 22, 25) depending on the position of the guide slide (13) in the housing shells (4, 5).

A chuck mechanism enables downsizing of the device with a simple structure, has a wide open/close width of clamps, and hardly causes a dent or scar on pipes. The chuck mechanism includes a horizontally arranged shaft, a frame, a pair of dog leg shaped link members, parallel link members, a pair of clamp members, and a swing drive mechanism.

In a steady rest (1) for centering a rotationally symmetrical workpiece (2) in the space, consisting of: two housing halves (4, 5) arranged at a distance from one another and firmly connected together, a middle steady rest arm (6) arranged between the two housing shells (4, 5) that is mounted in the housing shells (4, 5) by means of an actuation piston (7) so as to be moved in an axial direction (3) towards the workpiece (2), and two outer steady rest arms (11, 12) that are in a driving connection with the middle steady rest arm (6) workpieces (2) with the largest possible diameters should be held centerd in the space by the steady rest (one), while retaining the greatest possible movement of travel of the actuation piston (7). This is achieved in that the actuation piston (7) is formed from at least one first advance piston (31) and one second advance piston (32) that are mounted in an axially moving relationship with one another, that a pressure space (33) or (34) is assigned to each advance piston (31, 32) of the actuation piston (7) and that a line (35) emerges in each pressure space (33, 34) through which a pressurized medium can be pressed into the particular pressure space (33 or 34) or drawn out of it.

An automatic method for changing the machining reference frame on a machine for machining parts from bars, notably extruded or molded profile sections, the part to be machined being held during its machining by at least two distinct and independent clamping means each having a longitudinal movement and a rotation on an axis parallel to the long axis of the part to be machined allowing for a relative angular and longitudinal displacement of one relative to the other, a method whereby, in order to proceed with a change of reference frame, one of the clamping means releases the part to be machined and disengages therefrom to turn freely about the long axis of the part independently of the other clamping means, then aligns itself angularly on new clamping references of the part before retaking the latter and allowing for a change of grip by the other clamping means.

A machining center for performing a plurality of machining operations, such as drilling, milling, cutting, using rotating tools, on metal profiles having a longitudinal extent greater than their cross-section dimension, particularly but not exclusively made of aluminum. The machining center comprises a base defining a work surface extending longitudinally with first and second ends, upon which the profile is manually laid by an operator or by a specially-designed automatic feeder. The base has a plurality of members thereon for supporting and locking the profile, as well as a pair of vertical columns for supporting motorized spindles, each column being located next to said base and being configured to being displaced in either direction, parallel to the longitudinal extent of the base along respective slide guides located next to said base. Each vertical column is equipped with a first carriage configured to vertically sliding in either direction along its respective column and with a second carriage mounted to the first carriage, and configured to sliding in either direction perpendicular to its respective column. The center also comprises a portal structure whose upper beam above said base is equipped with a motorized spindle for rotating tools, mounted to a support body configured to angular displacements around a pivot for rotating about a first axis parallel to the longitudinal extent of the base.

Lumber retrieval systems and methods feed a centrally located saw with a predetermined assortment of boards picked from certain stations distributed at either side of the saw. In some examples, an overhead trolley system carries individual boards in a certain sequence from chosen stations to a board-receiving apparatus. The board-receiving apparatus, in turn, feeds the boards to the saw. The saw then cuts the boards into board segments, which can be used for making prefabricated trusses and wall panels. In some examples, the trolley system has a laser-scanning feature for determining the location of the next-to-pick board while simultaneously transporting the board currently heading to the board-receiving apparatus. In some examples, the trolley system includes two board carriers each of which are dedicated or assigned to certain stations. In some examples, one carrier serves as backup for the other one when one of the carriers is broken or otherwise inactive.

A computer numerical control (CNC) machining apparatus and method are disclosed which comprise: a first base; a second base vertically perpendicular to the first base; a tool head support assembly having a tool head, connected to and move a tool head in an omni-directional; and a plurality of rotatable clamps configured to independently hold, release, and move a workpiece along the first base and independently rotate a workpiece 360 around itself.