Lathe and method of detecting cut-off tool breakage
AssigneeStar Micronics Co., Ltd.
InventorKoichiro Shigama
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A lathe includes a spindle, an opposite spindle, a tool post, a controller, and a contact-type breakage detector. The controller determines whether the cut-off tool is broken according to a control parameter for controlling at least one of the spindle and the opposite spindle at a first detection timing immediately after the cut-off tool cuts off the bar material while the opposite spindle holds the bar material held by the spindle. The controller determines whether the cut-off tool is broken according to a detection result by the contact-type breakage detector at a second detection timing different from the first detection timing.
Claims9
A lathe comprising:
- a spindle capable of releasably holding a bar material;
- an opposite spindle capable of releasably holding an end of the bar material protruded from the spindle;
- a tool post on which a cut-off tool is removably attached to cut off the bar material held by the spindle so as to separate the end of the bar material from the bar material;
- a controller adapted to control operations of the spindle, the opposite spindle, and the tool post;
- and
- a contact-type breakage detector provided with a sensor retractably advancing to an advancing position where the sensor could hit the end of the bar material if it remains after the cut-off tool cuts off the bar material, the contact-type breakage detector being capable of detecting breakage of the cut-off tool if the sensor hits the end of the bar material in the advancing position,
- wherein the controller performs a non-mechanical-type breakage detection to determine whether the cut-off tool is broken according to a control parameter for controlling at least one of the spindle and the opposite spindle to make the spindle and the opposite spindle move away from each other at a first detection timing immediately after the cut-off tool cuts off the bar material while the opposite spindle holds the bar material held by the spindle, and performs a mechanical-type breakage detection to determine whether the cut-off tool is broken according to a detection result by the contact-type breakage detector at a second detection timing different from the first detection timing.
A method of detecting cut-off tool breakage in a lathe comprising:
- a spindle capable of releasably holding a bar material;
- an opposite spindle capable of releasably holding an end of the bar material protruded from the spindle;
- a tool post on which a cut-off tool is removably attached to cut off the bar material held by the spindle so as to separate the end of the bar material from the bar material;
- and
- a contact-type breakage detector provided with a sensor retractably advancing to an advancing position where the sensor could hit the end of the bar material if it remains after the cut-off tool cuts off the bar material, the contact-type breakage detector being capable of detecting breakage of the cut-off tool if the sensor hits the end of the bar material in the advancing position,
- the method comprising:
- performing a non-mechanical-type breakage detection to determine whether the cut-off tool is broken according to a control parameter for controlling at least one of the spindle and the opposite spindle to make the spindle and the opposite spindle move away from each other at a first detection timing immediately after the cut-off tool cuts off the bar material while the opposite spindle holds the bar materiral held by the spindle, and
- performing a mechanical-type breakage detection to determine whether the cut-off tool is broken according to a detection result by the contact-type breakage detector at a second detection timing different from the first detection timing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.