Page 24 - MetalForming January 2013

Innovation
Innovation
and Solutions
and Solutions
at EveryTurn
at EveryTurn
BY BRAD F. KUVIN, EDITOR
Covering 84,000 square meters, 1520 exhibitors from 39 countries presented High-Speed Stamping Press
and Tryout Press All Rolled into One
Placed on the world’s metalform- ing stage at EuroBlech by Bruderer was the BPG 22 planetary gearbox that, when installed on its BSTA 510 stamp- ing press, turns the production high-
a range of innovative products during EuroBlech 2012, October 23-27 in Han-
nover, Germany. More than 60,000 visitors attended the show, 40 percent of whom indicated they were there with the definite intention of buying.
When walking the overwhelming show, one finds new metalforming technol- ogy and solutions at every turn. Here’s just a sampling of what we found; we’ll pro- vide more highlights from this biennial event in future issues of MetalForming, as well as in the winter edition of Fabricating Product News.
Automated Notching Cell Produces Three Rotors and Three Stators from One Blank, in 1 min.
The Nidec Minster Corp. unveiled its FlexNotcher system in full operation at EuroBlech. The customizable, integrated system features a Minster notching press coupled with robotic automation equipment. At EuroBlech, Minster’s tech- nicians introduced our staff to a FlexNotcher sporting a 25-metric-ton notching press and articulated robot, able to produce three rotors and three stators from the same parent 870-mm blank, in 1 min. The press was operating at 1100 strokes/min.; peak speed is 1200 strokes/min.
The FlexNotcher at EuroBlech also featured a patent-pending indexing system integrated in the tooling via a laser eye. Regardless of orientation on the staging stack, blanks are picked and ori- ented by the tool- ing so that the keyway position matches the driver key of the notcher indexer. This eliminates spa- cious external indexing stations, reducing floor space and cycle time. The robot’s magnetic and pneumatic end-of-arm tooling is designed to have blank picking and stacking hardware on one end, with finished rotor/stator picking and stacking hard-
ware on the other.
A precision centerline-adjustment mechanism allows for the production of sta-
tors and rotors in the same part setup. The direct-drive servo indexer rotates the blank 360 deg. to notch the rotor, then the centerline-adjustment mechanism repo- sitions the frame to match the stator notches and, in a second cycle of 360 deg., the stator is notched and separated from the rotor. Minster: www.minster.com
speed press into a tryout machine at the flick of a switch. A planetary gear- box built into the shaft of the main motor of a fully automated stamping press enables test runs to be carried out, under manual control, at a low stroke rate and at full press capacity. The values that are produced can then be carried over exactly and used during a regular production process.
The three-level 22-kW planetary gearbox has a ratio of approximately 1:19. And, so we were told by Bruderer engineers, the real heart of the BPG 22 is the software and the ability to man- ually control ram height and stroke rate. The machine operator can jog the ram slowly forwards or backwards in fixed geometrical increments, or by regulated shifting using preset values.
Bruderer: www.bruderer-presses.com
22 MetalForming/January 2013
www.metalformingmagazine.com