Machine tool

Method for operating a machine tool (10), with a workpiece carrier (20) that is supported so as to be rotatable about a vertical incremental advance axis (21) that can be incrementally further rotated by the indexing drive (21) in steps by one increment angle (a) between successive angular positions, wherein the workpiece carrier (20) has several carrier sides (25) whose number corresponds to the number of angular positions, in which case a first workpiece chuck unit (26) and a second workpiece chuck unit (27) for mounting at least one workpiece (16) are arranged on each carrier side (25), with a loading station (30) for loading the first workpiece chuck unit (26) with a workpiece blank (16c), said loading station being in the current angular position of the workpiece carrier (20) in the loading station (30), with an unloading station (31) for unloading a finished, machined workpiece (16b) from the second workpiece chuck unit (27) that is located in the current angular position of the workpiece carrier (20) in the unloading station (31), with a workpiece changing device (34), and with several work stations (32) between the loading station (30) and the unloading station (31), each work station comprising at least one machining unit (40) and/or measuring unit and/or verification unit,

• wherein, during a dwell phase of the workpiece carrier (20), the following steps are performed:
• Machining and/or checking and/or measuring one or more workpieces (16) that are located in one of the work stations (32), radially from the outside and/or from the top,
• Loading of the first workpiece chuck unit (26) located in the loading station (30) with a workpiece blank (16c),
• Unloading the finished, machined workpiece (16b) from the second workpiece chuck unit (27) located in the unloading station (31),
• and wherein, during a rotating movement of the workpiece support (20) into the next angular position, the following step is performed:
• Changing the position of the partially machined workpiece (16a) out of the first position (P1) prespecified by the first workpiece chuck unit (26) into the second position (P2) prespecified by the second workpiece chuck unit (27).