Slotting machines

A machine for machining a plurality of parallel longitudinally extending slots in a bore of a component, comprising an indexable workholding spindle housing a workholding device for gripping said component, a cutting tool mounted on a cutting spindle, said cutting spindle being pivotally supported for angular reciprocation in a spindle carrier, the rotational axis of said cutting spindle being substantially perpendicular to and mutually offset from the rotational axis of said workholding spindle, characterised in that said spindle carrier is in turn pivotally supported on a rotational axis for angular oscillation within a cutting capsule, said rotational axis of said cutting spindle being parallel to and offset relative to the rotational axis of said spindle carrier, connecting means connecting a rotatable shaft member and said cutting spindle to effect angular reciprocation of said cutting spindle upon rotation of said shaft member, desmodromic cam means controlling angular oscillation of said spindle carrier upon rotation of said shaft member, wherein said axis of said cutting spindle is movable towards said axis of said workholding spindle during each cutting stroke and away from said axis of said workholding spindle during each return stroke such that the path of travel of a cutting edge of the cutting tool is different during cutting and return strokes thereby effecting cutting tool relieving, first cutting capsule traversing means independent of said desmodromic cam means for traversing said cutting capsule towards said axis of said workholding spindle to effect cutting tool infeed to some predetermined depth within the bore of the component and thereafter traversing said cutting capsule away from said axis of said workholding spindle after the machining of each slot;

• wherein said cutting spindle has limited angular reciprocation;
• the spindle carrier has limited angular oscillation;
• and further wherein the shaft member is mounted in the cutting capsule such that the rotational axis of the shaft member is parallel to and offset relative to the rotational axis of the spindle carrier;
• the desmodromic cam means is mounted on said shaft member and comprises two tracks each engaging a follower, each follower having a rotational axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the spindle carrier, each follower being mounted in an extension protruding laterally from the spindle carrier, the tracks of the cam means and the followers co-acting to angularly oscillate the spindle carrier through a predetermined angle upon rotation of the shaft member.