SEOUL, South Korea, March 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Affolter Technologies SA (http://www.affoltergroup.ch/), the technology and world market leader in micro gear hobbing centers for the watchmaking and micromechanical industries, is introducing an innovative new technology: worm high-speed manufacturing. "This technology was developed by our engineering experts in an intensive R&D process. It will increase the productivity and efficiency of manufacturers in the automotive and aircraft industries considerably," states Managing Director Vincent Affolter. "With this shaving technology, we can finish a high-precision worm in only 6 seconds. If done by worm hobbing, every piece will take 25 seconds." In other words, the worm high-speed manufacturing technology makes producers 4 times more efficient.
Many producers in the automotive and aircraft industries need to manufacture large quantities of high-precision worms. The new Affolter technology focuses on small worms with a module of 0.3-to-1. "Such worms are used in car seats or trunks, for instance. We see a big demand in the automotive industry and in other sectors," explains Mr. Affolter.
Extremely fast process
The idea behind the new technology: Unlike in worm hobbing, where the hob turns much faster than the workpiece, the Affolter experts inverted the process. "The workpiece turns extremely fast, with up to 12,000rpm, while the cutter turns much slower. Only highest quality machines like the Affolter AF100 and AF110 can reach this speed and at the same time provide the necessary stiffness," explains the Managing Director.
The engineers successfully remodeled the workpiece spindles of the Affolter Gear Line to reach the high speeds needed for this process. Currently, Affolter's R&D team is focusing on an optimized machine base and surrounding. Mr. Affolter: "The new process produces a high level of chips, and the Gear Line was not designed for such a big volume of chips. We are adjusting this to get an ideal coolant and chip disposal solution. The kinematics of the machine will stay the same." More test runs are planned in May and June before the new machine will be ready for international markets in autumn 2016.
Affolter at SIMTOS
From April 13-17, Affolter will showcase its innovative technologies at the SIMTOS trade fair in Seoul, Korea (booth 04C780). The company's distributing partner for Korea is LB Tech Inc. (http://www.affelec.ch/10/480/481/507/1035/1908.asp).
