Apr 29, 2010
Rochester, New York, April 29, 2010—Gleason has introduced the POWER GRIND process that delivers up to 50% productivity improvement for finish grinding of cylindrical gears as large as 1500 mm in diameter, and up to module 14.
POWER GRIND is available on Gleason’s new series of Titan® Grinding Machines, which offer users a single platform solution for both pure profile grinding for the greatest flexibility when producing single parts, and threaded wheel grinding and profile grinding working together for much faster large-scale production.
Typically, a single dressable grinding wheel is used that is designed with compromises in order to allow one wheel to perform both roughing and finishing. But the POWER GRIND process instead uses the highly productive threaded wheel grinding process to first rough grind the gear at much higher speeds, and with fewer passes and less dressing than required with profile grinding. A profile grinding wheel then is used for fine finishing to achieve improved gear quality, surface finish and complex tooth flank modifications. Total grinding times are reduced by up to 50% with this ability to achieve better gear quality.
Between operations, a multi-station tool changer automates the exchange of threaded wheel for profile grinding wheel, greatly reducing non-productive time normally required for manual tool change.
The overall productivity of the POWER GRIND process is further enhanced through use of a patent pending universal dresser. This enables the user to dress both the threaded grinding wheels and profile grinding wheels right on the machine using a single dressing tool, thus eliminating the changeover time and expense of multiple dressing tools.
In addition to employing the POWER GRIND process, the new TITAN machines also greatly reduce the time required for the production of individual parts through pure profile grinding. A unique, patented dual-flank twist-free grinding option is available, for example, that can create highly desirable asymmetrical tooth trace modifications in half the time normally required when conventional single flank grinding is used.
The new TITAN machines can be equipped with an external set-up table to allow the workpiece and workholding package to be set-up up in parallel with primary production, rather than sequentially. Workpieces then can be loaded automatically through use of an optional workpiece changer.
TITAN machines come equipped with the latest Siemens 840D CNC and Gleason Windows® based Intelligent Dialogue software to greatly simplify setup and operation. For example, a grinding technology database recommends and optimizes the production methodology for the POWER GRIND process before machining starts, enabling even less experienced operators to produce high quality parts more productively.
Gleason Corporation’s mission is to be The Total Gear Solutions Provider™ to its global customer base. Gleason is a world leader in the development, manufacture and sale of gear production machinery and related equipment. The Company’s products are used by customers in automotive, truck, aircraft, agriculture, mining, wind power, construction, power tool and marine industries and by a diverse set of customers serving various industrial equipment markets. Gleason has manufacturing operations in Rochester, New York; Rockford, Illinois; Dayton, Ohio; Plymouth, England; Munich and Ludwigsburg, Germany; Studen, Switzerland; Bangalore; India, and Suzhou, China and has sales and service offices throughout North and South America, Europe and in the Asia-Pacific region.
More information about Gleason Corporation is available on the World Wide Web at http://www.gleason.com.