Low-maintenance cable guidance in CNC grinding machines with oil and chips

• What was needed: energy chain E6
• Requirements: Low maintenance, aggressive environmental conditions such as oil and metal chips
• Industry: Machine tool manufacturing
• Success for the customer: Chain model for planning dimensions and design, extremely smooth-running chain enables precise operation of the CNC machine, simple design reduces maintenance costs to a minimum

Cinetic Landis Ltd, a machine tool manufacturer based in New Yorkshire, England, had been working on a CNC-controlled camshaft grinding machine as part of a new project. The computer-automated system has two grinding wheels on the thrust axis. In order for each spindle to be selected by the machine, the entire disc head must be able to rotate. This not only minimises changeover times when switching between different functions of the machine, but also improves the accuracy of the product as it can be produced in just one single setup.
When designing the system, Cinetic Landis trade show was faced with the task of finding a suitable energy supply solution. However, the machine manufacturer did not want to rely on a standard solution, but was dependent on finding a solution that would function cleanly and faultlessly even when the machine was in heavy use. The main focus was therefore on eliminating maintenance work. In addition, the environmental conditions during operation of the system also had to be considered. These are particularly evident in the form of oil and abrasive elements such as metallic grit, which always come into contact with components such as the energy supply and can severely impair its function.

Cinetic Landis Ltd. finally decided in favour of e-chain®, more specifically the E6 energy chain series from igus®. However, before the machine manufacturer found the final solution for its system, it looked at the e-chain® 1640, which was found to be too heavy, stiff and prismatic in its design for the company's specific application. In the end, igus® offered the mechanical engineer a sample of the E6 chain as a counter-design for internal visualisation of the dimensions and precise functionality.
From this point, it was not far from the model to the actual implementation in the system, as the E6 was able to completely convince Cinetic Landis. The chain offers the user a number of advantages: In addition to the chain's high degree of flexibility, dispensing with a traditional prismatic design has enabled smoother movement, which also ensures more precise operation of the grinding machine. In addition, the E6 chain is not affected by the lubricating oil used during sanding. This means that there is no bolt/bore connection for connecting the chain components and wear and tear cannot occur here. Furthermore, only minimal support was required for the energy chain, which consists of just two steel rods. Even an unsupported chain section of approx. 1 metre in between, which reduces the friction of the entire installation, can be supported by the chains without any problems. Finally, the 230° rotating movement of the chain is a "simple" rotating movement, and not a movement with a reverse bend radius. This keeps the costs low, the application as clear and the maintenance as simple as possible.