ADJUSTABLE FLUID MACHINING FIXTURE

Abstract

An adjustable fluid machining fixture according to the present disclosure includes a base, having a clamping fixing seat which is used to clamp a workpiece to be machined; at least two guide blocks, disposed above the base and enveloping the workpiece to be machined once assembled to each other, each of the guide blocks provided with a fluid groove on one surface facing the workpiece to be machined, the respective fluid grooves of the guide blocks forming a fluid machining space once the guide blocks are assembled to each other; and at least two limiting units, disposed above the base, the limiting units used to fix the guide blocks and adjust fixed positions of the guide blocks on the base.

Claims

1. An adjustable fluid machining fixture, comprising: a base, provided with a clamping fixing seat which is used to clamp a workpiece to be machined; at least two guide blocks, disposed above the base and enveloping the workpiece to be machined once assembled to each other, each of the guide blocks provided with a fluid groove on one surface facing the workpiece to be machined, wherein the respective fluid grooves are combined into a fluid machining space once the guide blocks are assembled to each other; and at least two limiting units, disposed above the base, used to fix the guide blocks and adjust fixed positions of the guide blocks on the base.

2. The adjustable fluid machining fixture according to claim 1, wherein each of the limiting units is a combination of a chute and a fixed key.

3. The adjustable fluid machining fixture according to claim 1, wherein a surface of the base is provided with an adjustment scale to accordingly adjust the fixed positions of the guide blocks.

4. The adjustable fluid machining fixture according to claim 1, wherein the base is provided with a fluid inlet in communication with the fluid machining space.

5. The adjustable fluid machining fixture according to claim 1, further comprising: an upper cover, disposed on the base and covering the guide blocks and the workpiece to be machined, the upper cover provided with a fluid outlet in communication with the fluid machining space.

6. The adjustable fluid machining fixture according to claim 5, wherein the fluid machining space is formed in between once the upper cover, the guide blocks and the clamping fixing seat are assembled.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an adjustable fluid machining fixture according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an upper cover according to embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] Implementation details of the present disclosure are described by way of specific embodiments for a person skilled in the art to easily and fully understand other advantages and effects of the present disclosure on the basis of the disclosure of the present application.

[0019] The adjustable fluid machining fixture of the present disclosure is suitable for a surface process for a finished product processed by additive manufacturing, for example, sanding, polishing and shaping. Due to processing characteristics of additive manufacturing, a surface of workpiece formed by means of sintering is rough, and needs to undergo a surface machining process. In common mechanical processes, the roughness of workpieces is reduced (reduced to Ra of 2.0 μm to 1.6 μm) by manual sandblasting and electrolytic polishing when dealing with workpieces with large roughness differences. However, it is difficult for the above processing to ensure a precise appearance of a workpiece with a curved surface for an integral formed by additive manufacturing. In order to resolve the large difference between initial and target surface roughnesses of a workpiece and maintaining a precise appearance size of a curved surface, the industry tends to use abrasive flow machining (AFM) to machine a surface of a workpiece. The technique uses abrasive particles to contact a surface of a workpiece with an elastic and viscous soft medium, and, by replacing machining fixtures of different sizes and abrasives of different particle sizes, gradually machines the surface roughness of the workpiece from coarse to fine to reach a demanded standard. However, as described previously, the individual rounds of machining need fluid machining fixtures of coarse and fining process in different sizes and standards, and numerous fixtures are required for machining one workpiece in order to achieve a demanded surface roughness of a finished product of the workpiece, resulting in complex and tedious processes and a lengthy operation time. In addition, fixtures are gradually worn over an extended period of use and replacements of new parts are needed, leading to high replacement costs of multiple fixtures.

[0020] FIG. 1 shows a structural schematic diagram of an adjustable fluid machining fixture of the present disclosure, and shows a top view and a side section view of the adjustable fluid machining fixture. The adjustable fluid machining fixture includes a base 11, provided with a clamping fixing seat 11A which is used to clamp a workpiece 12 to be machined; two guide blocks 13A and 13B, which are disposed above the base 11 and envelope the workpiece 12 to be machined once assembled to each other. The guide blocks 13A and 13B are respectively provided with grooves (flow grooves) 15 and 16 on one surface facing the workpiece 12 to be machined. Once the guide blocks 13A and 13B are assembled, the respective flow grooves 15 and 16 are combined into a fluid machining space 17. Thus, when an abrasive passes through the flow grooves 15 and 16, abrasive particles of the abrasive come into contact and rub against a surface of the workpiece 12 to be machined. The workpiece 12 to be machined is located in the fluid machining space 17. The fluid machining space 17 has an opening 171 on a top (from the perspective of the drawing) for the abrasive (containing abrasive particles) to flow in. Meanwhile, the base 11 is further provided with one or more fluid inlets 11B in communication with the fluid machining space 17, allowing the abrasive to enter the fluid machining space 17 from upper or lower two ends, hence achieving an effect of machining the workpiece 12 to be machined. Two limiting units 14, disposed above the base 11, is used for fixing the guide blocks 13A and 13B, and adjust fixed positions of the guide blocks 13A and 13B on the base 11, so as to further adjust the size of the fluid machining space 17 (that is, a required width of a fluid passage for a specific abrasive) once the guide blocks 13A and 13B are assembled.

[0021] The adjustable fluid machining fixture of the present disclosure is used for reciprocal fluid machining. In a conventional approach, a workpiece to be machined is placed in a sealed machining cavity (including a fixture therein to fix the workpiece) having fluid inlets on only two ends to allow an abrasive to repeatedly enter and exit through the two ends. In order to enhance the machining effect, the size and shape of the machining cavity and the distance to the workpiece need to be designed to match the shape of the workpiece, and the type and the granularity of the abrasive. When an initial roughness of a workpiece to be machined differs greatly from a roughness of a utilization requirement, if only one round of the machining process is performed by using a machining fixture in one standard and an abrasive having one granularity, it would be difficult for the roughness of a surface of the workpiece to achieve a target surface roughness, and so replacement of fixtures corresponding to different machining cavities is needed. However, the adjustable fluid machining fixture of the present disclosure, by using the assembled guide blocks 13A and 13B to form a machining cavity (that is, the fluid machining space 17), is capable of adapting to machining requirements of different appearances by merely replacing the guide blocks 13A and 13B of different forms. In addition, the limiting units 14 are added to adjust the positions of the guide blocks 13A and 13B to further change the size of the fluid machining space 17, so as to adapt to fluid width requirements for abrasives of different granularities needed for different rounds of machining including coarse and fine processing.

[0022] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the adjustable fluid machining fixture may further include an upper cover 21 disposed on the base 11. As shown in FIG. 2, the upper cover 21 completely covers the guide blocks 13A and 13B and the workpiece 12 to be machined on the base 11, achieving fixing and protection effects. An opening 21A (fluid outlet) is provided on a top of the upper cover 21 and is in communication with the fluid machining space 17 formed by the guide blocks 13A and 13B, so as to allow the abrasive to pass through the opening 21A and enter the fluid machining space 17 to perform a machining process.

[0023] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the fluid machining space 17 is formed once the upper cover 21, the guide blocks 13A and 13B and the clamping fixing seat 11A are assembled. Regarding the fluid machining space 17 formed in between, there is a concern that in an actual application of the present disclosure, the enclosed fluid machining space 17 may not be formed merely by the guide blocks 13A and 13B when the fixing positions (the width of fluid passage) of the guide blocks 13A and 13B are adjusted. Thus, the upper cover 21 can be used as a sealing element to cover the guide blocks 13A and 13B, such that the fluid machining space 17 (with openings allowing the abrasive to enter on the top and the bottom) is formed in between once the upper cover 21, the guide blocks 13A and 13B and the clamping fixing seat 11A are assembled. A user may also add a simple stop block outside the guide blocks 13A and 13B in substitution to the effects provided by the upper cover 21 that encloses the workpiece 12 to be machined, so as to keep the fluid machining space 17 in between in a sealed state for the adjusted guide blocks 13A and 13B.

[0024] It should be noted that, the fluid inlet 11B of the base 11 and the fluid outlet 21A of the cover 21 are not meant to limit inbound and outbound flow directions of the abrasive, and a reciprocal machining process in fact involves repeated entering and exiting through two ends. Thus, the inlet and the outlet of the present disclosure are merely terms of elements and are not to be construed as limitations to the direction of the abrasive or machining process.

[0025] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the limiting units 14 are used to fix the positions of the guide blocks 13A and 13B on the base 11. By adjusting the limiting units 14, the object of changing the width of flow passage of fluid machining (the size of the fluid machining space 17) can be achieved to adapt to requirements of abrasives of different types and granularities. The limiting unit 14 of the present disclosure may use a slide key (a combination of a chute 141 and a fixed key 142) with coordination of a predetermined adjustment scale 111 on a surface of the base 11, so as to adjust the fixed positions of the guide blocks 13A and 13B with respect to abrasives of different types and granularities. Thus, multiple rounds of machining including coarse machining and fine machining can be satisfied by merely using one set of adjustable fluid machining fixture of the present disclosure. Other types of adjustable fixing devices can also be used in the present disclosure, for example, difference devices such as screw holes, sliding tracks and step motors. Provided that the spirit of the width of machining flow passage is changed by adjusting the guide blocks 13A and 13B of the present disclosure, such modifications are to be encompassed within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0026] The elements including the guide blocks 13A and 13B, the limiting units 14, the clamping fixing seat 11A and the upper cover 21 of the present disclosure are in assembled designs, and a user may make substitutions to the above by elements of different types and materials to adapt to different machining purposes. Regarding to wear of parts of the adjustable fluid machining fixture of the disclosure over an extend period of use or after machining mass amounts of workpieces, only the worn parts need to be replaced instead of having replace the entire fixture, hence providing better economical advantages.

[0027] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, taking two rounds of machining including coarse machining and fine machining for example, machining steps implemented can be divided into a coarse processing step and a fine processing step, with details of the implemented steps as below.

[0028] 1. Coarse processing: an abrasive for the coarse processing (an abrasive having a larger abrasive granularity selected from various types of abrasives) is filled into a machine tank of a fluid machining device, the workpiece 12 to be machined is installed onto the clamping fixing seat 11A of the fixture, the left and right guide blocks 13A and 13B are adjusted to align with the adjustment scale 111 (width of flow passage) shown in the base 11 in coordination with the abrasive for the coarse processing (an abrasive having a larger abrasive granularity selected from various types of abrasives), and once the width of flow passage between the guide blocks 13A and 13B and the workpiece 12 to be machined is determined, the workpiece 12 to be machined and the fixture are moved to a machining position and fixed to start machining.

[0029] 2. Fine processing: once the coarse processing is complete, the workpiece 12 to be machined having undergone the coarse processing and the fixture are taken out and cleaned, the abrasive for coarse processing is replaced by an abrasive for fine processing, the workpiece 12 to be machined having undergone the coarse processing is installed onto the clamping fixing seat 11A of the fixture, the width of flow passage is adjusted in coordination with the abrasive for the fine processing, and the workpiece 12 to be machined having undergone the coarse processing and the fixture are moved to a machining position and fixed to start machining. When the machining step of fine processing is complete, the workpiece 12 to be machined having undergone the fine processing and the fixture are taken out and cleaned, thus obtaining a finished product of the workpiece.

[0030] Accordingly, the present invention provides an adjustable fluid machining fixture, and reduces the overall costs of machining processes for a workpiece without having to manufacture multiple fixtures. The adjustable assembled fluid machining fixture of the invention implements a fluid machining method including coarse processing and fine processing with the coordination of abrasives of different abrasive granularities, wherein the coarse processing quickly reduces the surface roughness of a workpiece and provides effects of shortening the machining time and reducing loss of abrasive particles of the abrasive, and the fine processing achieves a target roughness for a surface of the workpiece. With the adjustable assembled fluid machining fixture of the invention, for damage of the fixture after numerous machining processes performed by the fixture, only a damage part needs to be replaced instead of having to again manufacture the entire fixture, hence reducing subsequent fixture maintenance costs.

[0031] It should be noted that, the embodiments described above are merely examples for illustrating the features and effects of the present invention, and are not to be construed as limitations to the substantial technical contents of the present invention. Without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, modifications and variations may be made to the embodiments above by a person skilled in the art. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be accorded with the broadest interpretation of the appended claims.