Improving Production Grinding Operations

Every parts manufacturing envelope (stock vs. time) has many paths from first contact to size. Depending on the path, removal rates, forces, power, finish and the wheel's form-holding ability will be different. What to do? Measuring slide motion and power on your system will provide the best cycle for finish and form-holding. The sparkout process and average chip thickness are described by simple equations. Since most systems will develop chatter, the tendency to chatter is explained by another simple equation. These three equations show which parameters to change to improve the production process. Author: Richard P. Lindsay, Lindsay Consulting, Marlboro, MA.