MILLING TOOL AND A CASSETTE

Abstract: The invention relates to a side-milling cutter for chipforming machining and a cassette therefore. The milling cutter comprises a cutter body (11) and a plurality of cassettes (12) provided with cutting inserts. The milling cutter has recesses (13) which receive the cassettes (12). Each recess includes sections (14A,15A,15B) against whom a cassette abuts.

Description: The present invention relates to a milling tool according to the preamble of claim 1. A tool of the above described type is previously known (see CH-A-644 779), which has a cassette, which can be mounted axially in the body of the milling tool. The planar cooperating surfaces of the cassette and the recess diverge radially inwardly and a screw forces the cassette in the direction of divergence and therefore the cassette will not have a maximum resistance in all directions against tilting. Also, a milling tool with releaseably secured cassettes is shown and disclosed in CH-A-644 779 which includes recesses in which the forward wall and the rear wall thereof are mutually parallel to match with correspondingly formed contact surfaces of the cassette. This is of disadvantage because this could give as result that the cassettes are being thrown out radially outwards if the actuating screws start to become loose under influence of heavy vibrations at high rotation speeds of the milling tool. In DE-A-21 61 233 there is disclosed a disc-shaped milling tool having a number of cassettes releaseably mounted by tightening screws in corresponding recesses in the body of the milling tool. Since these cassettes are arranged in abutment with mutually parallel wall sections oriented radially in the body of said milling tool the cassette can be moved not only in the axial direction but also in the radial direction of the body if and when said tightening screws start to become loose under heavy vibration at high rotation speeds. An object of the present invention is to provide a milling tool whose cassettes are easily adjustable and exchangeable. Another object of the present invention is to provide a milling tool with tightening means which positively hold the cassettes in place. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a tool wherein the cassette can be moved in the tool body only in the axial direction of the body and thus achieve resistance in four different directions against tilting. These objects are achieved with a milling tool according to claim 1. The present invention will be more closely described hereinafter in connection with the accompanying drawings. Fig 1 shows a part of a side-milling cutter according to the invention in a side view. Figs. 2, 3 and 4 show a cassette for a side-milling cutter in a side view, a top view and a front view, respectively. Fig. 5 shows a part of the side-milling cutter according to Fig. 1 in a perspective view. Figs. 6 and 7 show alternative embodiments of the cassette. Fig. 1 - 5 show a part of a milling cutter 10 and cassettes. The cutter 10 is a side-milling cutter, which has the basic shape of a circular disc having a relative small thickness, about 10 to 50 mm. The body 11 of the cutter is provided with a plurality of recesses 13 at its periphery arranged to receive cassettes 12 provided with cutting inserts. Each recess 13 comprises a forward, in the rotational direction R , wall 14, a rear wall 15 and a bottom 16. The forward wall 14 has three planar sections, i.e. a radially outer section 14A, a mid section 14B and a radially inner section 14C. The outer section 14A and the mid section 14B form a V-shape whose apex is directed opposite to the rotational direction R . This gives the forward wall 14 a convexity directed towards the rear wall 15. The section 14C connects the mid section 14 B to the bottom 16. The bottom 16 is planar and extends from the section 14C rearwardly and radially outwardly, where it meets the rear wall 15. The rear wall comprises two planar sections, i.e. a radially outer section 15A and a radially inner section 15B. The sections 15A and 15B form a V-shape whose apex is directed in the rotational direction R . This gives the rear wall 15 a convexity directed towards the forward wall 14. All above-mentioned sections are parallel with the center axis of the milling cutter. The outer section 15A of the rear wall 15 forms an angle α with an extension line of the inner section 15B and forms an angle β with the outer section 14A of the forward wall 14. The angle α is between 60° and 120°. The angle β is also between 60° and 120°. The forward wall 14 is provided with a threaded through bore 17. The bore extends from a chip surface 18 in front of the forward wall and terminates centrally in the mid section 14B. The bore 17 is mainly perpendicular to the mid section 14B, which forms an angle γ between 25° and 65° with a normal N to the center axis of the cutter when the normal intersects the forward cutting edge of the cutting insert 20. The bore 17 is provided to receive a screw 19. The radially outer end of the screw 19 has means, for example a groove, for engagement with a key or a chisel and the radially inner end of the screw is provided to abut against a mid section 21B of the cassette. The cassette 12 carries a tangentially mounted insert 20. The cassette has a mounting portion defined by a forward side 21 and a rear side 22, with reference to the rotational direction of the tool. Furthermore the cassette has a planar lower side 23, an upper side 24 and two side surfaces. The forward side 21 and the rear side 22 are V-shaped and the apex of the formed V are directed towards each other. Thus the concavities 21 and 22 faces away from each other. They are in shape identical with the sections 14A - 15B described above. The ranges of the angles α and β are as described above. The sides 21 and 22 are preferably provided with clearances formed in the bottoms of the concavities. Furthermore the clearances are formed at the imaginary apices of the sections 21A,21B and 22A,22B, respectively, such that the sides 21 and 22 become as short as possible in the radial direction of the cutter in order to achieve three line contacts between the cassette and the cutter body. Each line contact is maximum 3 mm in width. An inner portion of the mounting portion, defined by the mid section 21B of the forward side 21 and the radially inner section 22B of the rear side 22, thus has a dove-tail profile and the width between said sections 21B and 22B increases towards the lower side 23 of the cassette. An outer portion of said mounting portion, defined by the radially outer section 21A of the forward side 21 and the radially outer section 22A of the rear side 22, has a dovetail profile and connects to said inner portion and increases in width in direction away from the lower side 23 towards the cutting insert 20 so as to form a waist at the cassette. At mounting the cassette is inserted in one of the two possible directions parallel with the center axis of the cutter into the recess 13 of the cutter. Thus the the cassette slides on the the sections 15A, 15B and 14A, i.e. the sections 22A, 22B and 21A at the cassette corresponding to the sections 15A, 15B and 14A will engage the recess 13. When the cassette has reached the desired position the screw 19 is tightened to abut against the mid section 21B at the forward side of the cassette. Thus the cassette is forced in two directions, i.e. in direction radially inwardly and in direction opposite to the rotational direction. Thus the cassette is wedged firmly in two directions; against the radially outer sections 14A and 15A of the recess 13 and against the sections 15A and 15B. The cassette becomes positively secured and resistant against tilting in its desired position. A play 25 between the lower side 23 of the cassette and the bottom of the recess 13 must always be present in order to allow radial movability of the cassette during mounting. In Figs. 6 and 7 cassettes 12A and 12B are shown wherein the cutting inserts are mounted axially and radially, respectively. Alternatively the screw 19 may be replaced by an eccenter, a conical wedge or the like. The tightening means may alternatively react from behind in the rotational direction R at the section 22B of the cassette. A resilient disc or washer 26 may be situated between the mid section 14B of the recess, around the inner end of the tightening means, and the mid section 21B of the cassette to increase friction and therefore facilitates adjustment of the cassette. The disc 26 is preferably made of Teflon®. The cassette may alternatively be used in a face-milling cutter or in a draw broach. Thus the invention relates to a milling tool and a cassette wherein the tool body receives cassettes provided with cutting inserts in a safe and tilting resistant manner. The cassettes are replaceable and are easy to adjust into a desired position.

Claims: A milling tool comprising a cutter body (11) and at least one cassette (12), provided with a cutting insert (20), which has a forward side (21) and a rear side (22), said cassette being releaseably mounted to and adjustable in a recess (13) in the body (11) of the milling tool, said milling tool having a center axis and a direction of rotation (R) said cassette (12) being releaesable and adjustable essentially only parallel with the center axis of the milling tool, wherein tightening means (19) is provided in the milling tool body for abutment against a portion of a side (21B) of the cassette and wherein the cassette (12) and the recess (13) include complementary concave and convex cooperating surfaces; characterized in that the rear wall (15) of said recess (13) includes a radially outer planar wall section (15A) and a radially inner planar rear wall section (15B), said wall sections (15A, 15B) forming a first angle therebetween and converging in a forward direction corresponding to a direction of rotation (R) of said cutter body (11), that the forward wall of said recess (13) includes a planar forward wall section (14A) spaced from said outer rear wall section (15A), said forward wall section (14A) and said outer rear wall section (15A) diverging in a radially outer direction to form a second angle therebetween, said rear side (22) of the cassette comprising radially outer and inner planar rear side sections (22A, 22B) forming a third angle therebetween, said third angle corresponding to said first angle, said forward side (21) including a planar forward side section (21A), said forward side section (21A) and radially outer rear side section (22A) forming a fourth angle therebetween corresponding to said second angle, whereby said tightening means (19) is arranged to act against a radially inner reaction surface (21B) of the cassette for applying to said cassette a force having a radially inwardly directed component for forcing said forward side section (21A) and said radially outer rear side section (22A) of said cassette into contact with said forward wall section (14A) and said outer rear wall section (15A) and said radially inner rear side section (22B) into contact with said radially inner rear wall section (15B) of said recess (13). Milling tool according to anyone of the preceding claims, characterized in that the forward and rear walls (14, 15) of the recess (13) and the forward and rear sides (21, 22) of the cassette (12) extend parallel with the center axis of the tool. Milling tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the recess (13) has a planar bottom (16) which extends between the forward and the rear walls (14, 15) of the recess and in that the cassette (12) has a planar lower side (23) which extends between the forward and rear sides (21, 22) of the cassette and in that the bottom (16) and the lower side (23) form a play (25) thembetween in order to avoid contact thembetween. Milling tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the radially outer sections (14A, 15A) of the recess (13) just as the radially outer sections (21A, 22A) of the cassette (12) form a first angle (β) between 60° and 120° and in that the radially outer section (15A) of the rear wall (15) forms a second angle (α) between 60° and 120° with an extension line of the radially inner section (15B) of the wall (15), said second angle being identical with the sections (22A, 22B) of the rear side (22) at the cassette. Milling tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the tightening means consists of a screw (19) which threadedly engages a bore (18) in the body (11) of the milling tool, said bore (17) extending from a chip surface (18) provided in front of the cassette (12; 12A, 12B) to a planar mid section (14B) of the recess (13), said mid section being perpendicular to the bore (17) and forming a third angle (γ) between 25° and 65° with a normal (N) to the center axis of the tool and in that the radially outer end of the screw (19) comprises means for engagement with a key and its radially inner end abuts against a mid section (21B) of the cassette and in that a resilient disc (26) is applied between the mid section of the cassette and a mid section (14B) of the recess and in that the cassette (12; 12A; 12B) carries a cutting insert (20) which is tangentially, axially or radially mounted on the cassette. Milling tool according to claim 1, characterized in that the tightening means consists of an eccenter or a wedge and in that the milling tool is a side-milling cutter (10).

Inventors: QVART, INGEMAR TAGE
Applicants: SANDVIK AKTIEBOLAG
Application year: 1988
Main classification: B23C5
IPC codes: B23C5