UNIT FOR MACHINING GROOVES AND SEPARATING CUTS, HAVING A CHIP-GUIDING FUNCTION

Abstract

A unit for machining a workpiece, in particular for machining grooves and separating cuts therein, said workpiece preferably consisting at least partially of wood, wood-based materials, metal materials or plastic, has a main body (1), a machining tool (2) which is mounted, in particular rotatably mounted, on the main body (1), wherein the machining tool (2) has a first portion (3) which is configured such that, during machining of the workpiece (10), it is able to penetrate into the workpiece (10), and a guiding device (4) which is arranged in the region preferably next to the machining tool (2) and is configured such that a medium is able to flow along, preferably through, the guiding device (4), wherein the guiding device (4) has at least one opening (5) at a lower end portion thereof. The guiding device (4) is configured such that the medium is able to flow out of the opening (5) substantially towards the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2), and/or the guiding device (4) has an extraction device.

Claims

1. Unit for machining, in particular for machining grooves and separating cuts of a workpiece that preferably consists at least partially of wood, wood-based materials, metal materials or plastic, comprising a main body (1), a machining tool (2) that is mounted, in particular rotatably mounted, on the main body (1), wherein the machining tool (2) has a first portion (3) which is configured such that, during the machining of the workpiece (10), it is able to penetrate into the workpiece (10), a guiding device (4) which is arranged in the region preferably next to the machining tool (2) and is configured such that a medium is able to flow along, preferably through, the guiding device (4), wherein the guiding device (4) has at least one opening (5) at a lower end portion thereof, wherein the guiding device (4) is configured such that the medium is able to flow out of the opening (5) substantially towards the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2), and/or wherein the guiding device (4) has an extraction device.

2. Unit according to claim 1, wherein the guiding device (4) has at least one channel, wherein the channel has the opening (5) at the lower end portion of the guiding device (4).

3. Unit according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the lower end portion of the guiding device (4) has at least one nozzle.

4. Unit according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising a guide element (6) which is arranged in the region preferably next to the machining tool (2) and is configured such that particles, in particular chips, which can be separated from the workpiece (10) with the machining tool (2) during machining of said workpiece (10), can be guided along a deflection direction after separation from the workpiece (10), wherein the deflection direction is substantially oblique to a reference direction (b), wherein the reference direction (b) is defined as a direction from the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2) to a second portion of the machining tool (2) which is opposite the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2).

5. Unit according to claim 4, wherein the guide element (6) is configured such that a lower end (7) thereof, in a first position of the guide element (6), is arranged at a position which is located along the reference direction (b) within a region in which the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2) is located along the reference direction (b).

6. Unit according to claim 5, wherein, in the first position of the guide element (6), a distance (d) along the reference direction (b) between the lower end (7) of the guide element (6) and an end of the machining tool (2), which forms part of the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2) and is furthest away, along the reference direction (b), from a mounting portion of the machining tool (2) at which the machining tool (2) is mounted on the main body (1), is less than 5 mm, preferably less than 3 mm, especially preferably less than 1 mm.

7. Unit according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the guide element (6) can be controlled and/or adjusted from the first position into at least one second position, wherein the lower end (7) of the guide element (6) is arranged in the at least one second position at a position which is along the reference direction (b) outside the region in which the first portion (3) of the machining tool (2) is located along the reference direction (b).

8. Unit according to claim 7, wherein a control and/or adjustment of the guide element (6) from the first position into the at least one second position takes place manually and/or automatically, wherein the control and/or adjustment of the guide element (6) takes place preferably pneumatically and/or electrically.

9. Unit according to one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the guiding device (4) is arranged next to the guide element (6), wherein the at least one opening (5) is preferably arranged next to the lower end (7) of the guide element (6), preferably wherein the guiding device (4) is integrated in the guide element (6), wherein the at least one opening (5) is arranged preferably in the lower end (7) of the guide element (6) and/or in a lateral surface portion of the guide element (6) which preferably faces the machining tool (2) and is preferably located in the vicinity of the lower end (7) of the guide element (6).

10. Unit according to one of claims 4 to 9, wherein the guide element (6) is configured as a riving knife.

11. Unit according to one of claims 4 to 10, further comprising a cover device (8) which is arranged in the region of the guide element (6), preferably wherein the cover device (8) partially encloses the machining tool (2), wherein the cover device (8) is configured such that the particles can be guided along the deflection direction after separation from the workpiece (10).

12. Unit according to one of the preceding claims, wherein a medium flow of the medium comprises in particular a particle flow, air flow, fluid flow and/or a flow of a mixture thereof.

13. Unit according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the machining tool (2) has a circular saw blade.

14. Unit according to one of claims 4 to 13, further comprising at least one, preferably at least two supports (9) to a C-axis or to a spindle housing and/or a hollow shank taper, wherein the medium is fed via the at least one, preferably via the at least two supports (9) to a C-axis or to a spindle housing and/or via the hollow shank taper.

15. Exchangeable, preferably automatically exchangeable unit, in particular saw unit, comprising the unit according to claim 14, wherein the unit is exchangeable into a 2-axis machining head (5-axis head) via the at least one, preferably via the at least two supports (9) and/or via the hollow shank taper, and the guide element (6) is automatically adjustable to a contour of the workpiece (10) according to a position of a C-axis and/or at least one additional axis, which is parallel or identical to a rotational axis of the machining tool (2), and a position of an A-axis of the 2-axis machining head (5-axis head).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0089] Further preferred features and advantages of the invention emerge from the following description of the figures.

[0090] FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration, from the side, of a preferred unit for machining a workpiece.

[0091] FIG. 2a shows a front view of a guide element of the unit from FIG. 1.

[0092] FIG. 2b shows a cross-sectional view of the guide element from FIG. 2a along the line A-A.

[0093] FIG. 2c shows a perspective view of the guide element of the unit from FIG. 1, in which a guiding device that is integrated in the guide element is marked.

[0094] FIG. 2d shows a perspective view of the guide element of the unit from FIG. 1 from below.

[0095] FIG. 3 shows a configuration of the unit from FIG. 1, in which the guide element is located in a second position.

[0096] FIG. 4 shows a configuration of the unit from FIG. 1, in which the unit additionally comprises a cover device.

[0097] FIG. 5 shows a schematic perspective view of a preferred unit for machining a workpiece, in which the unit is attached to a 2-axis machining head (5-axis head).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0098] Preferred embodiments of the invention are explained in detail below based on the associated figures in order to describe the invention with the help of illustrative examples. Further modifications of certain individual features described in connection with this may be combined with other features of the embodiments described to form further embodiments of the invention.

[0099] FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration, from the side, of a preferred unit for machining a workpiece. The unit comprises a main body 1 which is substantially cuboid in shape. The cuboid main body 1 has a lower end portion and an upper end portion, the lower end portion being located closer to a workpiece 10 than the upper end portion. On the upper end portion of the main body 1, the main body 1 has an interface and a plurality of C-axis bolts 9 via which the unit can be used in a machine environment, for example in a CNC machining centre. A machining tool 2, in the case of FIG. 1 a circular saw blade 2, is rotatably mounted on the lower end portion of the main body 1.

[0100] FIG. 1 shows a situation in which the unit is used for machining a groove of a workpiece in climb mode. In this case, the circular saw blade 2 rotates clockwise and the workpiece 10 is moved to the left or the unit is moved to the right (for example in a CNC machining centre). The circular saw blade 2 comprises a first portion 3 which, as shown in FIG. 1, penetrates into the workpiece 10 during machining of the workpiece 10. In FIG. 1, the segment of a circle of the circular saw blade 2 which is delimited by the dotted line corresponds to the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the largest extension of the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2 along a direction b corresponds exactly to the groove depth.

[0101] The unit further comprises a guide element 6 which is arranged next to the circular saw blade 2. The guide element 6 comprises an upper end portion, which has an upper end, and a lower end portion, which has a lower end 7. In addition, the unit comprises a holding apparatus, one end of which is connected to the upper end portion of the guide element 6 and the other end of which is connected to the lower end portion of the main body 1. The guide element 6 is thereby held in its position.

[0102] In FIG. 1, the guide element 6 is located in a first position in which the guide element 6 also penetrates into the groove next to the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2. Referring to FIG. 1, the reference direction is parallel to the direction b from the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2 to a second portion of the circular saw blade 2 which is opposite the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2. The lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is located in the first position of the guide element 6 along the reference direction (along the direction b) in a position which is located within a region that corresponds to the extension of the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2 along the reference direction (along the direction b). Here, according to the invention, a distance d between the lower end 7 of the guide element and the base of the groove is less than 5 mm, preferably less than 3 mm, especially preferably less than 1 mm. The guide element 6 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2a-2d.

[0103] A guiding device 4 which extends from the upper end of the guide element 6 to the lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is integrated in said guide element 6. The guiding device 4 has an inlet opening at an upper end portion thereof and an opening 5 at a lower end portion thereof which is arranged in the lower end 7 of the guide element 6. A medium is guided into the guiding device 4 through the inlet opening of the guiding device 4. In this case the medium is fed through corresponding lines, for example via a C-axis bolt 9 of the unit. In the case of FIG. 1, the medium is fed in via the left-hand C-axis bolt 9. Inside the guiding device 4, the medium flows from the inlet opening in the upper end portion of the guiding device 4 to the opening 5 in the lower end portion of the guiding device 4 where it exits from the guiding device 4.

[0104] As can be seen in FIG. 1, the guiding device 4 runs substantially parallel to a tangential direction of a tangent to the circular saw blade in the region of the guide element 6. Due to this configuration of the guiding device 4, the flow of the medium is routed and/or influenced in such a manner that the medium flows out of the opening 5, i.e. after leaving the opening 5, substantially towards the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2. In other words, the movement of individual particles of the medium moving with the medium is expressed by a speed vector which has a component that points towards the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2. Thus the medium in the base of the groove flows against a stream of chips, consisting of chips which are separated from the workpiece 10 during machining of the workpiece 10 and are catapulted along the groove, i.e. in FIG. 1 towards the left along the direction a, at high speed. In this regard, the medium hits individual chips or collides with them, thus directing the chips upwards out of the groove where they can be captured and extracted by an optional extraction hood. This results in substantially less dust and chip contamination in the area around the machine.

[0105] FIG. 2a shows a front view of the guide element 6 of the unit from FIG. 1. The lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is located at the bottom in FIG. 2a. The upper end portion of the guide element 6 has holding elements on both sides thereof, which may be connected to the one end of the holding apparatus of the unit.

[0106] FIG. 2b shows a cross-sectional view of the guide element 6 from FIG. 2a along the line A-A. The lower end 7 of the guide element 6 has a flat surface which, in the first position of the guide element 6, is substantially parallel to the surface of the workpiece 10 which forms the base of the groove.

[0107] The side facing the circular saw blade 2 (right side in FIG. 2b) has a curved shape or a curved surface. The slope of the curved surface, from the lower end 7 towards the upper end of the guide element 6, increases with respect to the plane in which the lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is located. Due to this configuration, chips which are separated from the workpiece 10 during machining of the workpiece 10 and are catapulted along the groove (substantially along the direction a in FIG. 1) at high speed hit the curved surface at a relatively shallow angle (measured with respect to the curved surface). As a result, the chips are not guided and/or directed back into the groove by crashing into the curved surface of the guide element 6 but are guided and/or directed along the curved surface of the guide element 6 out of the groove along the deflection direction. The chips can then be captured and extracted by an optionally arranged extraction hood which leads to less dust and chip contamination in the area around the machine.

[0108] As can further be seen in FIG. 2b, the guiding device 4 is integrated inside the guide element 6. The opening 5 of the guiding device 4 is located in the lower end 7 of the guide element 6. The inlet opening, through which the medium flows into the guiding device 4, is located in the upper end portion of the guiding device 4 and the upper end portion of the guide element 6. The shape of the guiding device 4 substantially follows the shape of the guide element 6.

[0109] Compared to the upper end portion of the guiding device 4, the lower end portion of the guiding device 4 has a gentler slope with respect to the plane in which the lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is located. As a result, the medium flowing through the guiding device 4 is guided even more effectively towards the first portion 3 of the circular saw blade 2 and thus against the chips catapulted along the groove.

[0110] FIGS. 2c and 2d show perspective views of the guide element 6 of the unit from FIG. 1, in which the guiding device 4 that is integrated in the guide element 6 is marked in FIG. 2c. Although the guiding device 4 is shown in the figures with only one channel in each case, the guiding device 4 may have a plurality of channels, one of which can be configured, for example, as an extraction device to extract dust arising during machining of the workpiece 10.

[0111] FIG. 3 shows a configuration of the unit from FIG. 1, in which the guide element 6 is located in a second position. The situation shown in FIG. 3 shows conventional machining of a groove. In this case, the circular saw blade 2 rotates clockwise and the workpiece 10 is moved to the right or the unit is moved to the left (for example in a CNC machining centre). The configuration of the unit shown in FIG. 1 would be unsuitable for such machining, as the guide element 6 would bump against the workpiece 10. As can be seen in FIG. 3, the control and/or adjustment of the guide element 6 between the first and the second position of the guide element 6 takes place rotatably about the mounting portion of the circular saw blade 2. More precisely, the holding apparatus of the guide element 6 pivots clockwise about the mounting portion of the circular saw blade 2, whereby the guide element 6 is moved as well. In the second position of the guide element 6, the lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is not located inside the groove of the workpiece 10. In this way, the unit can also be used to produce non-continuous grooves.

[0112] FIG. 4 shows a configuration of the unit from FIG. 1, in which the unit additionally has a cover device 8. The cover device 8 is configured such that it partially encloses both the circular saw blade 2 and the guide element 6. In addition, a lower end of the cover device is located just above the workpiece 10 to capture as many chips as possible that fly past the guide element 6, for example. As shown in FIG. 4, a rear surface 11 of the cover device 8 which the chips strike has substantially the same slope with respect to the plane in which the lower end 7 of the guide element 6 is located as the upper end portion of the guide element 6.

[0113] The cover device 8 may be attached to the same holding apparatus as the guide element 6 or to a separate holding apparatus. The latter may make it possible for the cover device to also be used during conventional machining and when machining non-continuous grooves, the guide element 6 being located in the second position (cf. FIG. 3). As a result of the chips colliding with the rear surface 11 of the cover device, the chips can be directed along the deflection direction and captured and extracted by an optionally arranged extraction hood, which leads to even more effective reduction of the dust and chip contamination in the area around the machine.

[0114] FIG. 5 shows a schematic perspective view of a preferred unit for machining a workpiece, in which the unit is attached to a 2-axis machining head (5-axis head). In this embodiment, the main body 1 has a different shape than in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4. Furthermore, compared to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, the circular saw blade 2 and the guide element 6 are arranged in a different position with respect to the main body 1. However, the position of the guide element 6 with respect to the circular saw blade 2 is the same as in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4.