Optimizing the Performance of an Automatic Clamping System for Gear-Shaping Machines

Abstract

Gear shaping machine is used to manufacture both external and internal gears. It is a semi-automatic controlled machine in which all machining operations are carried out by automatically indexing, where loading and unloading of a work piece are performed manually. Also, the operator needs to wait for unloading, until the entire machining operation to be completed. Hence manufacturing cost is increased due to labor charges and overall machining time. Our proposed technique is to minimize the total cost of manufacturing, it is planned to eliminate the manual operation in loading and unloading of each component. Full automation of shaping machine requires storing device, a transfer device, automatic clamp device, and sequence controlling system. Full automation of shaping machine requires storing device, a transfer device, automatic clamp device, and sequence controlling system. The objective of this paperwork is to design a pneumatic clamping device needed for an automatic loading system, to hold the work piece the revolving table using Pro-E Wildfire software. Then calculate the clamping force theoretically for various pressure ranges and find the suitable working pressure. Also, static analysis of all designed components is performed to validate their strength using Ansys software. Based on the dimension, all parts are manufactured and assembled to test their performance.