This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Swedish Patent Application No. 0502206-6, filed on Oct. 5, 2005, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
The present invention relates generally to a replaceable milling cutter head in the form of a body, which has, on one hand, an external envelope surface, which has a rotationally symmetrical basic shape in respect of a central axis, and includes a plurality of peripherally spaced-apart cutting edges and chip flutes, and, on the other hand, two axially spaced-apart front and rear ends in which hollow spaces open, which are arranged to receive male elements included in a basic body, and spaced-apart by a partition wall in which a through hole is formed, which mouths in bottom surfaces in the hollow spaces. The present invention also relates generally to a milling cutter tool having such a milling cutter head.
Replaceable milling cutter heads of the type that include integrated cutting edges and are detachably connectable with a basic body of the tool, are frequently constructed with cutting edges that extend the entire way (or the major part of the way) between the front and rear ends of the milling cutter head. However, long cutting edges are rarely utilized even along the major part of the length thereof. On the contrary, at small (and fairly usually occurring) cutting depths, only limited portions of the cutting edges are utilized, viz. the front edge portions that cut into the workpiece and separate chips from the same. Thus, in fine milling, for instance, it occurs that only 1-10% of the entire edge length become worn, while 90-99% remain unutilized. For this reason, there is a need for indexable milling cutter heads of twice the service life.
Proposals for milling cutter tools have recently been made, the milling cutter heads of which are made in a single piece of cemented carbide, the requisite cutting edges being formed in the proper cemented carbide body (contrary to such cutting edges that are included in separate cemented-carbide inserts, which individually are detachably connected with a milling cutter head of steel). Such milling cutter heads of cemented carbide having integrated cutting edges are commonly denominated loose tops, in particular when they are included in small milling cutters, such as shank-end mills, contour mills and the like. Examples of milling cutter tools that make use of such loose tops are found in the following patent documents: WO 03/097281, WO 03101650, EP 0911101, EP 1237670, EP 1342521, DE 3230688, U.S. Pat. No. 6,241,433, U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,879, U.S. Pat. No. 6,494,648 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,540.
In one of these patent documents, viz. U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,540, the general idea has been presented of making the milling cutter head or the loose top in a contour mill, in such a way that the milling cutter head can be indexed with the purpose of doubling the service life. In FIG. 9 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,540, an approximately globular milling cutter head is shown having two diametrically opposed ends in which hollow spaces open, which are spaced-apart by a central partition wall in which a through hole is formed for a fixing screw. By the existence of two such hollow spaces, a head of the fixing screw should be possible to be housed inside the milling cutter head irrespective of which one of the two ends that is connected to the rotatable basic body of the tool. These utmost scanty teachings are, however, only of theoretical character, so far that the document lacks any teaching of how the milling cutter head in practice could be detachably connected to the basic body in a stable and reliable way. Among other things, any means to transfer torque from the basic body to the milling cutter head is lacking in the construction. The teachings of U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,540 cannot be utilized by a person skilled in the art to construct practically useful milling cutter tools having indexable milling cutter heads.
The present invention aims at obviating the above-mentioned shortcomings of the milling cutter tool of U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,540, and at providing an improved, practically useful milling cutter tool having an indexable milling cutter head. Therefore, an object of the invention, in a first aspect, is to provide a milling cutter head that, on one hand, can be fixed in a stable and exact way on the basic body of the tool, and on the other hand has an interface acting against the basic body via which interface considerable torques can be transferred from the basic body to the milling cutter head, without the same skidding or being dislodged from the desired position thereof.
Another object of the invention is to provide a milling cutter head having a geometry that allows the formation of a large number of cutting edges located close to each other as well as the appurtenant chip flutes.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a milling cutter head that is particularly suitable for fine milling at small cutting depths.
Still another object of the invention to provide a cemented carbide milling cutter head that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture by means of known manufacturing methods, e.g. compression-moulding and sintering. In this connection, the milling cutter head should also be possible to be finished in a simple way.
The invention also relates to a milling cutter tool, which in the assembled state includes a milling cutter head as well as a basic body. An object of the invention in this respect is to provide a milling cutter tool, the interface of which between the basic body and the milling cutter head is formed in such a way that the holding of the milling cutter head in the desired position becomes reliable, stable and exact in a repeatable way.
Another object of the invention is to provide a milling cutter tool, the milling cutter head of which does not run the risk of coming loose from the basic body as a consequence of failing holding functions.
In an embodiment, the invention provides a milling cutter head in the form of a body, which has an external envelope surface having a rotationally symmetrical basic shape in respect of a central axis, and includes a plurality of peripherally spaced-apart cutting edges and chip flutes. The cutter head includes two axially spaced-apart ends in which hollow spaces open, which are arranged to receive male elements included in a basic body, and are spaced-apart by a partition wall in which a through hole is formed. The through hole mouths in bottom surfaces in the hollow spaces. The cross-section area of each individual hollow space, in a plane perpendicular to the center axis, amounts to at least 25% of the total cross-section area of the body, as defined by the greatest diameter of the envelope surface.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a milling cutter tool, including a rotatable basic body and a replaceable milling cutter head. The milling cutter head has an external envelope surface having a rotationally symmetrical basic shape in respect of a central axis around which the body is rotatable, and includes a plurality of peripherally spaced-apart cutting edges and chip flutes. The cutter head includes two axially spaced-apart ends in which hollow spaces open, one of which engages a male element included in the basic body. The male element has a cross-section shape that is complementary with the cross-section shape of the hollow space. The hollow spaces are spaced-apart by a partition wall in which a through hole is formed, which mouths in bottom surfaces in the hollow spaces. The milling cutter head is fixable on the basic body by means of a tightening device. The cross-section area of each individual hollow space amounts to at least 25% of the total cross-section area of the body, as determined by the greatest outer diameter of the body.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitute part of this specification, illustrate the presently preferred embodiments of the invention, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description given below, serve to explain features of the invention.
In
The milling cutter head 2 has opposite ends 8, 9, between which a generally rotationally symmetrical envelope surface 10 extends. In the envelope surface, a plurality of peripherally spaced-apart cutting edges 11 are formed, between which there are chip flutes 12. Thus, although the envelope surface is not smooth, the same has, however, in respect of geometry, a rotationally symmetrical basic shape, which may be, for example, entirely or partly cylindrical, conical or arched. In the example shown, the milling cutter head is formed with two axially spaced-apart sets or rims of cutting edges, which are spaced-apart by a waist 13 in the form of a smooth, circumferential surface. Most suitably, the cutting edges are equidistantly spaced-apart along the circumference of the milling cutter head.
The tightening screw 3 includes a head 14, as well as a shank 15 having a male thread 16. In the cutter head, a central, through hole 17 is formed, through which the shank 15 can pass in order to be tightened in a female thread 18 in a central hole 19, which mouths in the front end of the basic body.
In practice, the milling cutter head may be composed of a body that is made in a single piece of a hard, wear-resistant material, such as cemented carbide, ceramics, cermet or the like. To that extent, the milling cutter head may be said to be composed of a hard, wear-resistant loose top, which is mountable on a basic body of a softer or more elastic material, such as steel.
In order to meet the desire about long service life, the shown milling cutter head is indexable by including two diametrically opposed, identical hollow spaces 20, which open in the ends 8, 9.
In contrast to known tools, the tool according to the invention is, however, made in such a way that it is suitable for practical use, as is seen from the following description.
Each individual hollow space 20 is delimited by a bottom surface 21 and an endless, circumferential limiting surface 22. Around the hollow space, a ring-shaped end surface 23 extends, which together with the endless surface 22 and the external envelope surface 10 delimits a ring- or rim-shaped part 24. In the preferred embodiment, the surface 22 is rotationally symmetrical, suitably cylindrical, while the bottom surface 21 is planar and extends perpendicularly to the center axis C. Also the individual end surface 23 may advantageously be planar and smooth.
In
Characteristic of the milling cutter head according to the invention is that the cross-section area of the individual hollow space 20, in a plane perpendicular to the center axis C, amounts to at least 25% of the total cross-section area of the body, as determined by the outer diameter D1. This means that the inner diameter D2 of the hollow space shall amount to at least 50% of the outer diameter D1. On the other hand, the inner diameter D2 should not exceed 85% of the outer diameter D1. In the example shown, the diameter D2 amounts to about 70% of the diameter D1. Advantageously, the ratio D2/D1 may be within the range of 0.6-0.8, or 0.65-0.75.
In this connection, it should, however, be pointed out that the hollow space 20, and the co-operating male element 5 of the basic body, not of necessity must have a rotationally symmetrical shape. Thus, the male element and the individual hollow space may also be imparted out of round cross-section shapes, e.g., polygonal or in another way irregular shapes, provided that said shapes are at least partially complementary.
In the preferred embodiment shown in
In the example, the ring-shaped part 24 that surrounds each hollow space 20 is equally thick along the entire circumference thereof, more precisely by the fact that the inner, cylindrical surface 22 is concentric with the external envelope surface 10. Between the two bottom surfaces 21, a material portion designated 25 is delimited, which forms a central frame or partition wall between the hollow spaces 20. The thickness of said partition wall (see
Now reference is made again to
In the shown, preferred embodiment, the through hole 17 through the partition wall 25 is utilized as a female-like seat for the receipt of the driver 26. For this reason, in this case the hole 17 has been given a generally triangular shape corresponding to the triangular shape of the driver 26. The endless hole-edge surface that delimits the hole 17 includes therefore three concavely arched surfaces 31 located corner-wise, as well as three side surfaces 32 extending between the same and having an convexly arched shape. The fit between, on one hand, the surfaces 28, 29, and on the other hand the surfaces 31, 32, should be fine, e.g., within the range of 0.01-0.05 mm. For the sake of completeness, it should be pointed out that imaginary generatrices, which geometrically generate said surfaces, are parallel to the center axis C.
An important feature of the described milling cutter head is that the driver 26 and the co-operating seat, i.e., the hole 17, has a considerable radial extension. In
Before the invention is further described, it should be pointed out that the means for the transfer of torque to the milling cutter head also may be made in other ways than in the form of an out of round driver of the basic body and an out of round seat in the milling cutter head, and that it is neither necessary to utilize the hole 17 as a seat. On the contrary, an object of the hole 17 is to allow the shank 15 of the screw 3 serving as a tightening device to pass through the milling cutter head and be drawn into the basic body 1 during clamping of the milling cutter head. Against this background, it is feasible to give the hole 17 a conventional, cylindrical shape, at the same time as the transfer of torque is provided in another way. For instance, one or more projections (not shown) retreated radially from the center axis may be inserted into a corresponding number of seats, which open in the bottom surface 21. Conversely, it is feasible to form such projections on the milling cutter head at the same time as co-operating seats are formed in the basic body.
It is important for the stability of the milling cutter head 2 on the basic body 1 that the male element 5 protrudes a distance into the hollow space 20 in question in the milling cutter head 2, wherein the envelope surface 6 of the male element should have a fine fit (0.01 to 0.05 mm) against the inner limiting surface 22 of the hollow space. This means that the shown driver 26 could be spared, if the transfer of torque is provided in another way. In this connection, it should be pointed out that the surfaces contacting each other in the composed state of the tool, viz. the surface pairs 7, 21 and 6, 22, both have a radial extension or range that is considerable in relation to the outer diameter of the milling cutter head. This ensures that the fixation of the milling cutter head on the basic body becomes stable and reliable, also in case the tool is subjected to most varying combinations of axial and radial cutting forces.
Two other factors, which both relates to the tightening screw 3, also contribute significantly to the stable fixation of the milling cutter head. In the embodiment shown in
The second factor is illustrated in
Reference is now made to
By having been formed with radially ample, hollow spaces for the receipt of a thick, robust male element of the basic body, the milling cutter head according to the invention offers a number of advantages above previously known milling cutter heads. Thus, a very stable and exact fixation of the cutter head on the rotatable basic body is guaranteed, since, on one hand, the planar contact surfaces have a large radial extension, and on the other hand the rotationally symmetrical or endless contact surfaces are situated at a large radial distance from the center axis. Furthermore, by the fact that the hollow spaces have a large radial extension, the possibility of constructing the tool with driver members is offered, which in turn are radially far retreated from the center axis, something which in turn ensures that large torques can be transferred from the basic body to the milling cutter head by means of moderate forces in the interfaces between the contact surfaces. Furthermore, the flat, pulley-like basic shape of the first described cutter head allows the formation of a large number of cutting edges located close to each other, which are not unnecessary long and thereby not unnecessary expensive. This is particularly attractive in connection with milling at small or moderate cutting depths, such as in fine milling or the like.
While the invention has been disclosed with reference to certain preferred embodiments, numerous modifications, alterations, and changes to the described embodiments are possible without departing from the sphere and scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims and their equivalents thereof. For example, as has been indicated above, it is feasible to form one or more projections on the bottom surface in the hollow spaces of the milling cutter head, and let said projections co-operate with holes or seats in the planar end surface of the basic body. Important for the stability of the milling cutter head is that the front portion of the basic body projects a distance into the radially ample, hollow spaces of the milling cutter head, and not whether the means for the transfer of torque are one or more male-like members placed on the basic body and co-operating with seats in the milling cutter head. Furthermore, in this context, it should be pointed out that the transfer of torque also may be provided by the fact that the circumferential contact surface 6 on the male element of the basic body, which co-operates with the inner, endless contact surface 22, is made with an out of round, e.g., polygonal shape, at the same time as the surface 22 is given a complementary shape. Furthermore, for the fixation of the milling cutter head on the basic body, it is feasible to use other tightening devices than a screw having a male thread. Thus, a drawbar without a thread may be used, which is drawn into the basic body by other suitable means, e.g., an eccentric mechanism or the like. Also such a drawbar may advantageously be constructed with a resilient head of the type included in the shown tightening screw. In conclusion, it should be pointed out that the cutting edges and the chip flutes, respectively, of the milling cutter head not necessarily have to be formed in two axially spaced-apart, rim-shaped sets such as has been exemplified in the drawings. Thus, the cutting edges and the chip flutes may extend continuously all the way between the opposite ends of the milling cutter head. Accordingly, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the described embodiments, but that it have the full scope defined by the language of the following claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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0502206-6 | Oct 2005 | SE | national |