Centerless and center-type grinding system

A center-type grinding system comprising the combination of

• a grinding wheel mounted for rotation about a fixed axis, and means for rotationally driving the grinding wheel at a controllable speed;
• a non-deformable backup wheel mounted for free-wheeling rotation about its axis and being neither rotationally driven nor rotationally braked, said backup wheel having an axial length at least as great as that of said grinding wheel;
• workpiece support means for supporting a workpiece on a predetermined axis of rotation located between said grinding wheel and said backup wheel, said support means being bodily movable freely toward the grinding wheel to permit a workpiece supported thereby to be advanced into rubbing contact with the grinding wheel but said support means being free from any translation drive to produce bodily movement of the support means itself;
• means for rotationally driving said workpiece around said predetermined axis at a controllable speed;
• and
• means for bodily moving said backup wheel into idling rolling contact with said workpiece and toward the grinding wheel at a controllable rate so that the feeding movement of the workpiece toward the fixed-axis grinding wheel is effected solely by the controlled bodily movement of the backup wheel, whereby free-wheeling the backup wheel in rolling contact with the workpiece provides firm support for the workpiece against the grinding forces reactively applied from the wheel thereto.