Cutting edge honing process

A method of honing a cutting edge of a rotary cutting tool comprising inserting the cutting tool into a liquid bath having an abrasive media therein such that at least the cutting edges are immersed, and providing a relative displacement of the cutting tool and the liquid bath such that the abrasive media flows over the cutting edges.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates generally to a tool sharpening technique and, more particularly, to an improved process for honing edges of a cutting tool.

BACKGROUND OF THE ART

Cutting edge honing is the process of slightly rounding off the cutting edges of a cutting tool or tool bit. Newly ground cutting tools often have cutting edges that are very sharp, which tend to rapidly wear and/or weaken at the tips leading to breaking of the tool. Thus, the cutting edges are “honed” or slightly rounded off by creating a rounded edge having a very small radius on the cutting edges, such that these problems are reduced and greater stability of the tool at low rotation speeds is enabled, without significantly reducing the effectiveness of the cutting tool.

Known cutting edge honing methods include: extrude honing, in which a putty loaded with granular abrasive is used; Burlytic™ systems, an electro-chemical deburring method using a power source and an electrolyte solution; and brushing and tumbling techniques. However, disadvantages exits with these known honing methods. Most of these methods are either time consuming and expensive, difficult to perform and control, or fail to ensure consistent and repeatable results resulting in cutting edges which are not evenly smooth.

Accordingly, an improved cutting edge honing process is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved cutting edge honing process.

In a first aspect, the present invention provides a method of honing cutting edges of a rotary cutting tool comprising: inserting the cutting tool into a liquid bath having an abrasive media therein such that at least the cutting edges are immersed; and providing a relative displacement of the cutting tool and the liquid bath such that the abrasive media flows over the cutting edges.

In a second aspect, the present invention provides a cutting tool honing system comprising: a liquid bath within which a cutting tool is receivable, the bath including an abrasive granular media therein; and a cutting tool holder adapted for engaging the cutting tool, the cutting tool holder being operable to rotate the cutting tool about a central axis thereof and to displace the cutting tool within the bath, wherein a flow of the abrasive granular media relative to cutting edges of the cutting tool hones said cutting edges.

In a third aspect, the present invention provides a cutting edge honing process comprising: providing a cutting tool having at least one cutting edge; inserting the cutting tool into a liquid abrasive media bath such that at least the cutting edge is immersed; rotating the cutting tool within the abrasive media bath; and providing a relative displacement of the cutting tool and the liquid abrasive media bath flow.

Further details of these and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from the detailed description and figures included below.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring toFIGS. 1aand1b, a cutting tool10of the rotary variety includes several cutting edges12which extend at least along a portion of its longitudinal length. The cutting edges12may define a helical path along the cutting tool10. The rotary cutting tool10has a longitudinal central axis14about which the tool is rotatable in a cutting direction16when in use to remove material from a workpiece. When such cutting tools are newly ground, the cutting edges12are very sharp. As described above, newly ground cutting edges tend to rapidly wear and easily break due to weakness at the tip. As such, the cutting edges12are slightly rounded off by creating a rounded cutting edge having a very small radius R, thereby significantly reducing these problems and creating greater stability at lower rotational speeds of the cutting tool10. This process is known as “honing”. Cutting edge honing increases the stability and reduces vibrations at low rotational speeds, as a result of damping enabled by increased contact of the cutting edge with the workpiece which accordingly slows down the vibrations. Precise and repeatable cutting edge honing is important for the stability and repeatability of the cutting operation in many different applications, particularly, for example, flank milling precise parts such as gas turbine compressors and turbine rotors. In such applications, inconsistent edge honing along the cutting edges of the cutting tool has been known to cause different deflections and blade thicknesses on critical parts.

The cutting tool honing system and process of the present invention is depicted generally inFIGS. 2aand3, in which the cutting tool10is immersed in a bath18. The bath18comprises tub walls20which retain a liquid abrasive media mixture22therein. Although the bath18is depicted as a circular tub, it is to be understood that other shaped baths may be employed. The circular tub walls20define a central axis24of the bath. Preferably, the liquid abrasive media22is pumped through the bath such that it is circulated in a direction26, the cutting tool10being inserted into the bath such that at least the cutting edges12thereof are completely immersed and disposed within the flow path26of the abrasive media22. Preferably, the cutting tool is also rotated, while immersed in the abrasive media, in place about its own longitudinal central axis14in a direction28, which is opposite to its cutting direction16. Therefore, a relative displacement between the cutting tool and the liquid abrasive media mixture is provided such that the abrasive media flows over the cutting edges12and thereby honing them. Although the abrasive media is preferably circulated through the bath, the cutting tool may also, or alternately, be displaced within the bath, whether the abrasive media flow is being independently circulated in the bath or not, in a predetermined manner such as along a circular path about the central axis24of the bath. The cutting tool10may be displaced either in the same direction as the media flow26or opposite thereto, and the media flow velocity can be adjusted accordingly.

The abrasive media22preferably comprises very small abrasive granules within a liquid mixture including water and soap. However, other abrasive media mixtures can be employed provided the abrasive granules are small, such that a relative fine honing of the cutting edges12is enabled, and thus creating a very small and smooth radius along the full length of the cutting edges12.

As seen inFIG. 3, the cutting tool10is preferably inserted into the abrasive media22, which is flowing generally in direction26, at an angle A relative to a vertical axis32. Particularly, the cutting tool10is inclined relative to this vertical axis32such that an upper portion13of the cutting tool is located upstream relative to a lower tip portion11thereof. The angle A is preferably acute and is selected based on the characteristics of the particular cutting edges12, namely considering angle, pitch, spacing, etc. This vertical inclination of the cutting tool10relative to the abrasive media flow26, together with the rotation of the cutting tool in direction28about its longitudinal central axis14in a direction opposite to its cutting direction, allows for very smooth and repeatable honing along the full length of the cutting edges12.

As seen inFIGS. 3 and 4, the cutting edge honing system of the present invention also includes a cutting tool holder36which is adapted for engaging the cutting tool10and is operable to rotate the cutting tool in the direction28about its central axis14, and to vertically displace such that the cutting tool is inserted and removed from the abrasive media bath18when desired. The cutting tool holder36may also be operable to displace the cutting tool within the bath. The cutting tool holder36is preferably engaged to a rotatable spindle38of a machine tool40which can be operated either manually, or numerically controlled by a CNC-type machine which is programmable to automate a predetermined displacement rotation, and/or immersion time of the cutting tool within the bath. The flow of abrasive media22is preferably produced by a flow producing means (not shown), such as a pump selected for use with a liquid having abrasive granules suspended therein.

The cutting edge honing process of the present invention is both time and cost effective, and requires significantly less operator skill and setup time than known honing processes. Further, the present cutting edge honing process provides reliable and repeatable edge honing which is easily controllable by adjusting easily varied parameters such as cutting tool rotation speed, and abrasive media flow speed and direction. The cutting edge honing process of the present application is also easily applicable to cutting tools of different types, such as end mills, inserts and helical milling cutters for example.

Referring toFIG. 2b, as a result of rotating the tool10in a direction28opposite to the cutting direction and placing it in media flow26which is circulated circumferentially within the bath18, the small abrasive particles of the abrasive media flow impinge against the cutting tool10with a higher medial tangential speed (VM1) on the clearance faces17thereof and a lower medial tangential speed (VM2) on the rake faces19thereof. The tangential speed of the cutter as a result of its rotation is indicated inFIG. 2bby VC1and VC2. The overall resultant tangential speed (VR2) at the rake faces19is therefore less than the resultant tangential speed (VR1) at the clearance faces17. As a result, very smooth and repeatable honing along the full length of the cutting edges12is achieved by this embodiment.

The above description is meant to be exemplary only, and one skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made to the embodiments described without department from the scope of the invention disclosed. For example, the abrasive media mixture may be composed of different sizes and varieties of abrasive particles, within a liquid with may be water or any other suitable liquid which can be readily circulated in the bath as necessary. Further, shapes and configurations of abrasive media baths other than that described and depicted can be used. Various relative flow circulation and cutting tool displacement patterns may also be employed to hone the cutting edges of the cutting tool immersed in the abrasive media bath. One skilled in the art will also understand that the length of time required in the abrasive media bath, along with the specific flow velocity, cutting tool rotational speed and other operational characteristics of the system, will depend on the cutting tool material and type, and the amount of cutting edge honing required for the particular tool application. Still other modifications which fall within the scope of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, in light of a review of this disclosure, and such modifications are intended to fall within the appended claims.