Lightweight CoroMill® 390 produced using additive manufacturing reduces vibration in long-overhang milling

By Niraj M Wanikar, Chief Editor, CNCTimes.com, 2019-04-25 17:33:00

Lower cutter weight increases stability and productivity

In a move designed to offer customers a host of in-process benefits, cutting tool and tooling system specialist Sandvik Coromant is introducing its lightweight CoroMill 390, which features a cutter body produced using additive manufacturing. The lighter overall weight of the tool helps to minimize vibration and improve security during machining with long overhang. In turn, productivity is also increased.

Additive manufacturing offers a superior way of producing complex structures with high precision and without joints. Use of the process can make components lighter, stronger and more flexible than ever before. With regard to tool bodies, additive manufacturing allows for the generation of shapes and features not possible with metal cutting. In addition, virtually any material can be printed, as in this case, a titanium alloy.

”When designing our new lightweight CoroMill 390, material has been tactically removed to create the optimal cutter design for minimizing mass,” explains Magnus Engdahl, Product Application Manager, Sandvik Coromant. “This is called topological optimization and it makes the cutter more compact and significantly lighter than a conventional version, thus helping machine shops to boost the productivity of their long-overhang milling operations. Moreover, a shorter distance between the damper in the adaptor and the cutting edge improves performance and process security.”

Process security is paramount in a number of metal-cutting applications, not least when milling with long overhangs, which is a common requirement in components used by the aerospace and oil and gas sectors. Here, the generation of features such as deep cavities can be compromised by vibration, leading to slower production, shorter tool life and poor surface finish. The new lightweight CoroMill 390 provides the solution. Combined with Silent Tools™ milling adaptors, this optimized tooling combination subdues vibration to help maximize productivity and process security in demanding applications involving long overhangs. In addition, the inherent CoroMill 390 concept delivers light cutting action for a smooth cutting performance.

Lightweight CoroMill 390 can perform long-reach face milling, deep shoulder and side milling, cavity milling, and slot milling. The tool is available in 40 mm (arbor 16 coupling) and 50 mm (arbor 22 coupling) diameter variants. Three or four inserts (size 11) can be specified to suit the application. Differential pitch and internal coolant are provided on all cutters.

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