Can I Improve Accuracy and Productivity on My Manual Milling Machine?
EEC Ltd: Expertise To Breath New Life Into Manual Milling Machines
EEC: Yes, it is possible to retro fit digital read out displays (DRO) and linear encoders, or scales, to improve accuracy and efficiency of existing, manual milling machines.
Older machines will often have a degree of backlash, due to wear, when setting up datum points. Fitting a linear scale will remove this area of inaccuracy on the milling machine by bypassing the native jog wheel and vernier setup and replacing it with the scale and digital readout, which has a much finer accuracy potential.
Acu-Rite SENC 150 scale encoder
Will a DRO and Scale installed on a manual milling machine improve profitability?
EEC: Yes, Upgrading manual milling machines – including old and legacy machines, with a contemporary DRO and scale setup will improve productivity and reduce scrap and wastage and increase profitability on the milling machine.
Particularly when working with more complex work pieces, installing a DRO and scale setup onto a manual milling setup can pay for itself very quickly. For industries such as aerospace, satellite manufacture, scientific, complex engineering and mould making, the investment can be a very profitable endeavour, even in the short term.
Headstock mounted displays with tilt and rotation for the best view
How are digital readouts installed onto an existing manual milling machine?
EEC: The DRO display itself is usually mounted in an easily accessible and viewable position. EEC engineers routinely design, manufacture and install custom DRO mounting brackets and fixtures, which are often one-off sets of bracketry to suit the machine and customer requirements for a given instance.
Digital Readouts can be mounted with perfect positioning for customer requirements, often with custom made brackets and fixings
Do I need to install a linear scale/encoder with a new DRO installation?
EEC: On manual milling machines, digital readout displays integrate with length measurement encoders, or scales, to achieve high accuracy work piece setups. Typically, a scale per axis required, so a 3 axis milling machine will require 3 linear scales and a digital readout.
In circumstances where a manual milling machine has no legacy scale and DRO integration, a new DRO will require installation of a new scale per axis.
In circumstances where an old DRO is replaced with a current display, it may be possible to use the existing scales on the machine, if they are compatible and in good working order.
40 + years old LS 503 scanning head all original parts, demonstrating the resilience of HEIDENHAIN products.
Is it possible to select from a range of DRO and Scale options to suit my manual milling machine and setup?
EEC: Yes. Both HEIDENHAIN and ACU-RITE have a range of DRO Displays and Linear Encoders to suit a range of applications. For instance:
- Sealed linear scales/encoders are used in dusty environments
- ACU-RITE DRO 203/304 displays are perfect with the SENC 150 scale for standard setups
- Or with the SENC 50 Micro-scale for applications where space is limited
- The HEIDENHAIN ND 7013 Digital Readout is perfect for manually operated machines and works seamlessly with the 683C linear scale for standard setups
- Or with the LS 383C sealed incremental linear scale for slimline requirements
Digital Readout Systems
ACU-RITE’s DRO100, DRO203 and DRO300
digital readouts with easy-to-read 7-inch color
displays.
