CUTTING TOOL WITH DETACHABLY CONNECTED INSERTS

Abstract

The invention relates to a cutting tool, for example, a saw blade (1) with a base body (2) that has at least one bit seat in which an insert (7) is held. It is provided according to the invention that the base body (2) has at least one elastically deformable clamping element (3) that can be placed against the insert (7) with the aid of a control element (5) positioned in a recess of the base body (2) in order to hold the insert in the bit seat.

Description

The invention relates to a cutting tool with a base body that has at least one bit seat in which an insert is held.

With cutting tools of this type, it should be possible on the one hand to fix inserts in the bit seat as firmly as possible in order to avoid a detachment of inserts during use. On the other hand, particularly with cutting tools that have a plurality of bit seats and accordingly are equipped with many inserts, a detachable fixing of the inserts is desirable so that individual inserts can be replaced as soon as they are worn.

Inserts can be attached to the base body of a cutting tool in various ways as a rule, as shown below for saw blades by way of example.

For example, in the case of saw blades that are embodied with bit seats distributed on the circumference of a base body, in which bit seats inserts are held, which cause a chip removal on the processed workpiece upon rotation of the saw blade, the individual inserts are attached to the base body by soldering. However, this has the disadvantage that only a single cutting geometry can be used. Namely as soon as the inserts are connected by soldering to the base body, a cutting geometry can no longer be changed. Furthermore, the disadvantage is also associated with soldering that a resharpening must always be carried out on-site. A detachment of individual inserts and an individual, professional resharpening by the insert manufacturer are not possible. The entire saw blade must also be replaced when only a part of the inserts has become unusable.

Another method is to attach the individual inserts to the base body by screws. Apart from the fact that a fastening hole has to be provided for this purpose in each insert, which impairs a stability of the insert in the bit seat, this method can be used only for inserts that have a certain minimum size. In the case of small inserts, such as are used for small cutting widths, a screw fastening is not possible.

Another method is to clamp the individual inserts into yielding, V-shaped bit seats of the base body (so-called self-grip systems). In this case a particularly precise manufacture of the bit seats is necessary with extremely low tolerances. This entails a high labor expenditure in the production of the base body. In addition, a further disadvantage is given in that an undesirable detachment of the inserts or cutting teeth may occur with extreme loads.

A similar method to that described above is to place inserts into a V-shaped bit seat of a base body and to fix them there with wedge-shaped pins. However, a particularly exact production of the bit seats is also necessary in this case. Furthermore, the inserts must be provided with recesses for the pins, which weakens the inserts.

Starting from this prior art, the object of the invention is to disclose a cutting tool of the type mentioned at the outset to which one or more inserts can be detachably fixed in a simple manner and with high force.

This object is attained with a cutting tool of the type mentioned at the outset in that the base body has at least one elastically deformable clamping element that can be placed against the insert with the aid of a control element positioned in a recess of the base body in order to hold the insert in the bit seat.

The advantages achieved with a cutting tool according to the invention are to be seen in particular in that the inserts provided can be detachably fixed to the base body in a simple manner with extremely high force. It is therefore now also possible, for example, to detachably mount inserts in the case of saw blades with a diameter of more than 2.5 meters without having to fear a detachment of individual inserts from the bit seats during cutting or sawing. At the same time it renders possible the combination provided according to the invention of clamping elements with control elements that are respectively shaped or positioned in the base body to realize even very small cutting widths. For example, saw blades of any desired thinness can be used since the elements provided for the attachment of an insert can be provided regardless of a thickness of the saw blade.

Another important advantage of a cutting tool according to the invention lies in that, compared to other known solutions, in particular self-grip systems, the bit seats can be produced with relatively large tolerances. Namely, while with self-grip systems the bit seats must be produced exactly to a hundredth of a millimeter so that an insert can be fixed by clamping, substantially greater tolerances can be provided with a cutting tool according to the invention, like a saw blade, because inaccuracies of production can be easily surmounted with the application of the clamping elements. A much lower preparation or production expenditure for the base body is therefore given.

The attachment system provided according to the invention has proven valuable in particular when several bit seats are provided in which respectively one insert is held by means of respectively one clamping element and a control element interacting therewith. Individual inserts can then easily be replaced in the case of cutting tools with a plurality of inserts.

The at least one clamping element is preferably embodied as an integral part of the base body or represents an elastically deformable area thereof.

With respect to a simple production as well as a high stability of the cutting tool in use, it is preferred that the base body is embodied as a whole in one part. Expediently the base body is thereby made of steel, in particular a steel with high toughness.

The elastically deformable clamping element(s) provided can be shaped in the base body in different ways, for example, through water-jet cutting or wire spark eroding. It has proven valuable to cut the clamping elements into the base body by means of a laser. The bit seats can also be cut into the base body thereby at the same time.

The shaped clamping element(s) can be embodied such that they have a nose that can be placed against an insert, to which nose an arm connects at an angle and is preferably embodied tapering towards the center of the base body.

The clamping elements can thereby be placed against the inserts with relatively low force by activation of the control elements. It is preferred thereby that the at least one clamping element is connected to the control element at the transition from the nose to the arm. Upon activation or fixing of an insert, the control element then presses on a nose, through which the clamping element is deformed at its weakest point, namely at the end of the arm opposite the transition. A force necessary for fixing the insert is minimized due to the tapered embodiment of the opposite end and a lever effect.

The control element(s) provided in recesses of the base body can be realized in various ways. For this any elements can be used that permit a clamping element to be pressed onto an insert upon activation. In a very simple embodiment a control element of this type can comprise only a screw. With respect to a particularly effective attachment, however, it is preferred for the control element to comprise a partially approximately circular, rotatable body that bears in two edge areas of the recess and against the clamping element. A 3-point contact or a 3-point seat is thus created for the rotatable body, due to which the body is held in the recess safe from tipping regardless of its position. At the same time a contact surface between the body and other parts of the cutting tool is small, which is why the body can be rotated with low force if required. For example, it is possible that the rotatable body comprises a cam bearing against the clamping element so that the at least one clamping element can be brought from an open position into a position fixing the insert and vice versa by rotating the body. This embodiment has the advantages with respect to saw blades that, on the one hand, each control element to be activated is easily accessible at the side of the saw blade and that, on the other hand, the control element is virtually wedged through the cam provided between the clamping element and areas of the recess of the base body in which it sits, which leads to a particularly firm locking when the insert is fixed. Alternatively, it is also possible for the rotatable body to comprise an indentation bearing against the clamping element, which indentation bears against a protrusion of the clamping element so that the at least one clamping element can be brought from an open position into a position fixing the insert and vice versa by rotating the body.

With respect to the firmest possible fixing of the insert, it can furthermore be provided that a bit seat or an insert is arranged approximately perpendicular to a rotational direction of the cutting tool and the at least one clamping element can be placed against the insert in the opposite direction to the rotational direction. High forces occurring during cutting can thus be effectively counteracted.

For highest cutting capacities and cutting tools with large dimensions, for example, saw blades with a diameter of up to four meters, it can be advisable for bit seats to be embodied with projections preferably running in the radial direction of the base body and for the inserts to have corresponding indentations in their base areas. Axial forces occurring during cutting can thus be counteracted.

A suitable insert can be provided for a cutting tool according to the invention such as a saw blade if the insert on its top surface has an active cutting area with the cutting edge at one end and an attachment area at an opposite end, a rib being provided between the active cutting area and the attachment, which rib is raised with respect to the adjacent areas of the active cutting area and the attachment area. Through the provided embodiment with a raised rib between the active cutting area and the attachment area, on the one hand, a separation of the cited areas is achieved so that the attachment area is protected during cutting from hot chips being discharged. On the other hand, a clamping element of the base body can come to rest on the rib, whereby a retention of the insert in a bit seat is improved.

The insert is preferably embodied such that a chip trough adjoins the cutting edge and merges into the rib. If this measure is provided, chips removed can be guided away in an advantageous manner.

In order to achieve a good fixing of the insert in a bit seat by means of a clamping element, it is recommended that the attachment area has a first zone adjoining the rib and rising in cross section and a second zone adjoining the first zone and sloping downward in cross section. This prevents an insert from moving in the radial direction during cutting or with acting cutting forces.

In order that a good positive closure can be achieved with a clamping element, it can furthermore be provided that troughs are formed in the first and/or second zone. The troughs thereby preferably run symmetrically to a longitudinal axis of the insert.

An insert used according to the invention can furthermore be embodied in plan view in an elongated manner and with an active cutting area that is widened compared to the attachment area.

The rib provided preferably runs perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the insert so that a separation from the attachment area and active cutting area is given over the entire width of the insert.

It can furthermore be provided that the insert has one or more indentations in the region of its base area, which indentations preferably run over an entire length and/or width of the base area. This makes it possible to achieve a positive closure in the region of the base area of the insert in interaction with a bit seat having corresponding projections, when the insert is attached to the saw blade.

Further features, advantages and effects of the invention are shown by the context of the specification and the following exemplary embodiments, based on which the invention is shown in still more detail. The drawings show:

FIG. 1 A partial area of a saw blade according to the invention with a clamping element in opened position;

FIG. 2 A section along the line II-II in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 A section along the line III-III in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 A partial area of a saw blade according to the invention with a clamping element in fixing position;

FIG. 5 A section along the line V-V in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 A section along the line VI-VI in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 A side view of an insert;

FIG. 8 A rear view of an insert;

FIG. 9 A front view of an insert;

FIG. 10 An insert in plan view;

FIG. 11 A partial area of a saw blade according to the invention with a clamping element in opened position;

FIG. 12 A partial area of a saw blade according to the invention with a clamping element in fixing position.

FIG. 1 shows in more detail a partial area of a cutting tool according to the invention in the form of a saw blade 1. The approximately circular saw blade 1 comprises a base body 2 that is formed from an essentially planar circular flat material. A very tough steel is preferably used as the flat material, in which a bit seat with two areas 61, 62 as well as a gap 64 is cut by means of laser. The gap 64 is provided so that the areas 61, 62 can be reworked by grinding.

Furthermore, the base body 2 has a shaped clamping element 3, which like the bit seat is cut into the base body 2 by means of a laser. The clamping element 3, seen from the center of the base body 2, has an arm 32, first embodied in a tapering manner and then widening approximately in the radial direction, on which arm a nose 31 is shaped at an angle of approx. 80° to 135°. In the area of its end directed to the center of the base body 2, the arm 32 is surrounded by two free spaces 33, 34, which together with the tapered embodiment at the one end ensure a good elastic deformability of the arm 32 in this area. Another free space 35 is provided beneath the arm 32 in order to make it possible to place the clamping element 3 against an insert 7, which bears against the areas 61, 62 in a bit seat and the projecting cutting edge 73 of which describes an outer orbit of the saw blade 1. In order to render possible this placement of the clamping element 3 in a simple manner, a control element 5 embodied in part in an approximately circular manner in plan view with a cam 51 is held in a rotatable manner in a recess of the base body 2 likewise cut by means of a laser. On the one hand, the control element 5 in the approximately circular area bears against a non-deformable zone of the base body 2 at two points and, on the other hand, as can be seen from FIG. 1 and the detailed view provided in this figure, against the clamping element 3 in the region of a transition from the nose 31 to the arm 32.

With the situation shown in FIG. 1, the cam 51 of the control element 5 is in a position in which the clamping element 3 is not depressed, but is opened and the insert 7 can be removed from the bit seat or inserted therein. This can be necessary, for example, when an individual insert 7 of a saw blade 1 must be replaced, for example, because it needs to be ground or is worn and must be replaced. In this situation a ground end area 36 of the nose 31 is spaced approx. 1 to 2 millimeters apart from the surface or top area 73 of the insert 7. If the eccentric or the control means 5 is now turned counter-clockwise, a pressure is exerted through the cam 51 onto the clamping element 3 so that due to its flexibility it moves towards the insert 7 and fixes the insert ultimately with its force acting against a rotational direction R of the saw blade 1 (FIG. 4). The control element 5 with the cam 51 is thereby transferred into a locking position that causes a firm fixing of the insert 7. The control means 5 can expediently be equipped with seats for a torque wrench so that a locking or fixing of the insert 7, as shown in FIG. 4, can take place with particularly low expenditure of force. In order to achieve the desired locking with the lowest possible expenditure of force and to render possible a continuously variable adjustment of a bearing pressure, in addition, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, an area of the clamping element 3 in contact with the cam 51 can be embodied in a concave manner.

As can be seen based on the sectional views, not to scale, of FIGS. 2, 3, 5 and 6, a bit seat with a projection 63 is provided, which extends in the radial direction of the base body 2 over the entire length of the bit seat. The insert 7 has a corresponding indentation 711 so that not only a non-positive engagement but also a positive engagement is achieved in the region of a base area 71 of the insert 7. Similarly, the clamping element 3 has ground projections in an end area 36 of the nose 31, which projections correspond in their geometry to corresponding troughs in the top surface 72 of the insert 7, into which troughs they engage. Overall a highly effective non-positive engagement and positive engagement can be achieved thereby, so that high radial forces as well as axial forces can be controlled during cutting.

An insert 7 used according to the invention is shown in more detail in FIGS. 7 through 10. As can be seen from FIG. 7, the insert 7 has a base surface 71 and a top surface area 72 lying opposite, which are connected to one another via side surfaces 74. In the area of the top surface 72, the inset 7 at one end has a cutting edge 73 that provides a chip removal during use. The cutting edge 73 is adjoined by a chip trough 78 embodied in a deepened manner, on which removed chips glide off. This chip trough 78 merges directly into a rib 77 that is dimensioned in its shape and height such that it can form a virtually continuous surface with a back 311 of a nose 31 of a clamping element 3, which provides the advantage that chips removed can flow off in an optimal manner. This can be important in particular when a formation of long chips is given due to the cutting conditions and/or the materials processed.

An attachment area with two zones 761, 762 is provided at the end of the insert 7 opposite the cutting edge 73, wherein a first zone 761 directly adjoins or merges into the rib 77. As can be seen in particular from FIG. 7 and FIG. 10, which shows an insert 7 pursuant to FIG. 7 seen in direction X, the zones 761, 762 are embodied with troughs that run symmetrically to a longitudinal axis Y of the insert 7. Corresponding projections of a clamping element 3 can engage in these troughs so that the insert 7 is secured against an axial displacement or slipping. In order to prevent a displacement of the insert 7 in the radial direction at the same time, it is provided that in cross section the first zone 761 is embodied in a rising manner and the second zone 762 in a downwardly sloping manner. Furthermore, an indentation 711 can be provided in the area of the base surface 71 running along the longitudinal axis Y so that in a similar manner a positive closure can be achieved in the area of the base surface 71.

Due to the provided embodiment of the insert 7, the insert 7 can be fixed to a saw blade 1 according to the invention in a non-positive and positive manner. As can be seen from FIG. 10, this makes it possible to embody the active cutting area 75 in a wider manner than the attachment area 76, which provides the advantage that the saw blade 1 is always free-running during cutting.

In FIGS. 11 and 12 partial areas of another variant of a saw blade 1 are shown in side view, wherein the partial areas comprise a single insert 7. The insert 7 sits loosely in the bit seat in the situation shown in FIG. 11. The control element 5, which is embodied as a rotatable body, has an indentation 52, as can be seen in particular from the detail view in FIG. 11. This indentation 52 interacts with a protrusion 37 of the clamping element 3 and is adapted in its shape approximately thereto. The rotatable body or the control element 5 is therefore in contact with the clamping element 3 in the area of the indentation 52. Furthermore, the control element 5 bears only in two separate areas against the end of the recess in which it is located. A 3-point contact or a 3-point seat is thus created for the rotatable body. This 3-point seat, in which the centers of the individual contact areas, as in the embodiment variant previously shown, are arranged approximately at an angle of respectively 120°, leads to a high stability of the rotatable body when the insert 7 is fixed, which is shown in FIG. 12. The 3-point seat also has advantages during the fixing itself or during detachment, since on the one hand a resistance during activation of the clamping element 3 or rotation of the body is low, and on the other hand the rotatable body does not tend to jam, which could definitely be given with a full-area seat and strong torsion of a saw blade during cutting.

Compared to the variant shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, additional advantages are evident in this embodiment with respect to the stability of the position of the rotatable body and the fixing of an insert 7 during cutting so that this variant is used in particular for applications with particularly demanding load profiles.

Claims

1. Cutting tool with a base body (2) that has at least one bit seat in which an insert (7) is held, characterized in that the base body (2) has at least one elastically deformable clamping element (3) that can be placed against the insert (7) with the aid of a control element (5) positioned in a recess of the base body (2) in order to hold the insert in the bit seat.

2. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that several bit seats are provided in which respectively one insert (7) is held by means of respectively one clamping element (3) and a control element (5) interacting therewith.

3. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one clamping element (3) is embodied as an integral part of the base body (2).

4. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the base body (2) is embodied as a whole in one piece.

5. Cutting tool according to claim 4, characterized in that the base body (2) is made of a steel.

6. Cutting tool according to claim 5, characterized in that the at least one clamping element (3) is cut into the base body (2) by means of a laser.

7. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one clamping element (3) has a nose (31) that can be placed against the insert (7), to which an arm (32) adjoins preferably at an angle.

8. Cutting tool according to claim 7, characterized in that the arm (32) is embodied tapering towards the interior or center of the base body (2).

9. Cutting tool according to claim 8, characterized in that the at least one clamping element (3) is connected to the control element (5) at the transition from the nose (31) to the arm (32).

10. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the control element (5) comprises a partially approximately circular, rotatable body that bears in two edge areas of the recess and against the clamping element (3).

11. Cutting tool according to claim 10, characterized in that the rotatable body comprises a cam (51) bearing against the clamping element (3), so that the at least one clamping element (3) can be brought from an open position into a position fixing the insert (7) and vice versa by rotating the body.

12. Cutting tool according to claim 10, characterized in that the rotatable body comprises an indentation (52) that bears against a protrusion (37) of the clamping element (3) so that the at least one clamping element (3) can be brought from an open position into a position fixing the insert (7) and vice versa by rotating the body.

13. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the bit seat or the insert (7) is arranged approximately perpendicular to a rotational direction (R) of the cutting tool and the at least once clamping element (3) can be placed against the insert (7) in the opposite direction to the rotational direction (R).

14. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one bit seat is embodied with projections (63) running preferably in the radial direction of the base body (2) and the insert (7) has corresponding indentations (711) in its base surface (71).

15. Cutting tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the cutting tool is a saw blade (1).