Monitoring

Tool load monitoring tracks the spindle load during drilling and alerts the operator when the load exceeds a threshold. It catches problems before the drill breaks. In my experience, load monitoring saves more tools than any other preventive measure I have implemented in my shop. I set up the monitoring on the CNC control. The control reads the spindle drive current and compares it to the baseline measured during the first cycle with a fresh tool. I set the alarm threshold at 120% of baseline and the stop threshold at 150%. These numbers are starting points — I adjust them for each material and application. ...

Why Use Vibration Sensors Vibration sensors give you a window into the cutting process that your eyes and ears cannot match. The sensor detects changes in vibration that are too small or too subtle for a human operator to notice. Those small changes are the early warning signs of tool wear, chip packing, and process problems. I started using vibration sensors on a long-running production job that ran 500 parts per month. The operator could not be at the machine every second, and the tool would wear gradually over the run. Without monitoring, the operator would not catch the wear until the surface finish degraded or the tool broke. ...