Milling

Milling
Milling machines of various types are widely used
for the following purposes using proper cutting
tools called milling cutters:
 Flat surface in vertical, horizontal and inclined planes
 Making slots or ribs of various sections
 Slitting or parting
 Often producing surfaces of revolution
 Making helical grooves like flutes of the drills
 Long thread milling on large lead screws, power screws,
worms etc and short thread milling for small size
fastening screws, bolts etc.
 Milling
 2-D contouring like cam profiles, clutches etc and 3-D
contouring like die or mould cavities

 Cutting teeth in piece or batch production of spur gears,

straight toothed bevel gears, worm wheels, sprockets,
clutches etc.

 Producing some salient features like grooves, flutes,

gushing and profiles in various cutting tools, e.g., drills,
taps, reamers, hobs, gear shaping cutters etc.
Up milling and down milling
 Up milling and down milling
 In down milling, though the cut starts with a full chip
thickness, the cut gradually reduces to zero. This helps in
eliminating the feed marks present in the case of up
milling and consequently better surface finish.
 Climb milling also allows greater feeds per tooth and
longer cutting life between regrinds than the
conventional milling.
 Up milling needs stronger holding of the job and down
milling needs backlash free screw-nut systems for
feeding.
 Advantages of Down Milling
1. Suited to machine thin and hard-to-hold parts since
the workpiece is forced against the table or holding
device by the cutter.
2. Work need not be clamped as tightly.
3. Consistent parallelism and size may be maintained,
particularly on thin parts.
4. It may be used where breakout at the edge of the
workpiece could not be tolerated.
5. It requires upto 20% less power to cut by this method.
6. It may be used when cutting off stock or when milling
deep, thin slots.
 Disadvantages of Down Milling
1. It cannot be used unless the machine has a backlash

eliminator and the table jibs have been tightened.

2. It cannot be used for machining castings or hot rolled

steel, since the hard outer scale will damage the cutter.
 Classification of milling machines
(a) According to nature of purposes of use:
• General purpose – most versatile commonly used mainly
for piece or small lot production
• Single purpose – e.g., thread milling machines, cam
milling machines and slitting machine which are generally
used for batch or lot production.
• Special purpose – these are used for lot or mass
production, e.g., duplicating mills, die sinkers, short
thread milling etc.
 Classification of milling machines
(b) According to configuration and motion of the
work-holding table / bed
 Knee type: typically in such small and medium duty
machines the table with the job/work travels over the bed
(guides) in horizontal (X) and transverse (Y) directions
and the bed with the table and job on it moves vertically
(Z) up and down.
 Bed type
 Planer type
 Rotary table type
 Classification of milling machines
(c) According to the orientation of the spindle(s).
 Plain horizontal knee type
 Horizontal axis (spindle) and swiveling bed type
 Vertical spindle type
 Universal head milling machine
(d) According to mechanization / automation and
production rate
 Hand mill (milling machine)
 Planer and rotary table type vertical axis milling machines
 Tracer controlled copy milling machine,
 Milling machines for short thread milling
 Computer Numerical Controlled (CNC) milling machine
Horizontal column and knee type
milling machine
Vertical column and knee type
milling machine
Column and Knee Type Milling
Machine
 Column and Knee Type Milling
Machine
Base
It is a foundation member for all the other parts, which rest upon it. It carries the
column at its one end. In some machines, the base is hollow and serves as a
reservoir for cutting fluid.
Column
The column is the main supporting member mounted vertically on the base. It is
box shaped, heavily ribbed inside and houses all the driving mechanism for the
spindle and table feed. The front vertical face of the column is accurately
machined and is provided with dovetail guideway for supporting the knee.
Knee
The knee is a rigid grey iron casting which slides up and down on the vertical ways
of the column face. An elevating screw mounted on the base is used to adjust the
height of the knee and it also supports the knee. The knee houses the feed
mechanism of the table, and different controls to operate it.
 Column and Knee Type Milling
Machine
Saddle
The saddle is placed on the top of the knee and it slides on guideways set
exactly at 90° to the column face. The top of the saddle provides guide-ways
for the table.
Table
The table rests on ways on the saddle and travels longitudinally. A lead screw
under the table engages a nut on the saddle to move the table horizontally by
hand or power. In universal machines, the table may also be swiveled
horizontally. For this purpose the table is mounted on a circular base. The top
of the table is accurately finished and T -slots are provided for clamping the
work and other fixtures on it
Overhanging arm
It is mounted on the top of the column, which extends beyond the column
face and serves as a bearing support for the other end of the arbor.
 Column and Knee Type Milling
Machine
Front brace
It is an extra support, which is fitted between the knee and the over-arm to
ensure further rigidity to the arbor and the knee.
Spindle
It is situated in the upper part of the column and receives power from the
motor through belts, gears. and clutches and transmit it to the arbor.
Arbor
It is like an extension of the machine spindle on which milling cutters are
securely mounted and rotated. The arbors are made with taper shanks for
proper alignment with the machine spindles having taper holes at their nose.
 Bed-type milling Machine
 In bed-type machines, the work table is mounted directly on
the bed, which replaces the knee and can move only
longitudinally.
 These milling machines are not as versatile as other types,
but they have great stiffness and are used for high production
work.
 The spindles may be horizontal or vertical, and of duplex or
triplex types-that is, with two or three spindles for
simultaneous machining of two or three workpiece surfaces.
Fig. Bed-type milling machine, Single vertical-spindle
cutter and two horizontal spindle cutters.
Arbors

Fig : Mounting a milling cutter on an arbor for use on a horizontal milling machine.
Additional Milling Machines
Fig : A computer numerical control, vertical-spindle milling
machine. This machine is one of the most versatile
machine tools.

Fig : Schematic illustration of a five-axis profile milling

machine. Note that there are three principal linear and
two angular movements of machine components.
 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HORIZONTAL &
VERTICAL MILLING MACHINES
Sr.No. HORIZONTAL MILLING MACHINE VERTICAL MILLING MACHINE

1 Spindle is horizontal & parallel to Spindle is vertical & perpendicular to

the worktable. the worktable.

2 Cutter cannot be moved up & Cutter can be moved up & down.

down.

3 Cutter is mounted on the arbor. Cutter is directly mounted on the

spindle.

4 Spindle cannot be tilted. Spindle can be tilted for angular

cutting.

5 Operations such as plain milling, Operations such as slot milling, T-slot

gear cutting, form milling, straddle milling, angular milling, flat milling
milling, gang milling etc., can be etc., can be performed and also
performed. drilling, boring and reaming can be
 Classifications of milling cutters
(a) Profile sharpened cutters – where the geometry of
the machined surfaces are not related with the tool
shape, viz;
i. Slab or plain milling cutter: – straight or helical
fluted
ii. Side milling cutters – single side or both sided type
iii. Slotting cutter
iv. Slitting or parting tools
v. End milling cutters – with straight or taper shank
vi. Face milling cutters.
 Classifications of milling cutters
(b) Form relieved cutters – where the job profile
becomes the replica of the
Tool-form, e.g., viz.;
i. Form cutters
ii. Gear (teeth) milling cutters
iii. Spline shaft cutters
iv. Tool form cutters
v. T-slot cutters
vi. Thread milling cutter
 Slab or Plain milling cutters
Plain milling or slab milling
. It is a method of producing a plain, flat, horizontal surface parallel to the axis of
rotation of the cutter.
 Side and slot milling cutters
It is the operation of production of a
flat vertical surface on the side of a work-piece by using a side milling cutter.
 Slitting saw or parting tool
It is a method of producing deep slots and
cutting materials into the required length by slitting saws.
End milling cutters or End mills
It is a method of milling slots, flat surfaces,
and profiles by end mills.
 Face milling cutters
It is a method of producing a flat
surface at right angles to the axis of the cutter.
Use of form relieved cutters (milling)
It is, a method of producing a surface having an
irregular outline.
Tool form cutters
T- slot cutter
Gear teeth milling cutters
Spline shaft cutters
Straddle milling
 Gang milling
It is a method of milling by means of two or more cutters
simultaneously having same or different diameters mounted on
the arbor of the milling machine.
Turning by rotary tools (milling cutters)
Indexing
 Simple or Plain Indexing
 Plain indexing is the name given to the indexing method
carried out using any of the indexing plates in
conjunction with the worm.
 Example
Indexing 28 divisions
 Example
Indexing 62 divisions
 Milling Velocity
 The cutting speed in milling is the surface speed of the
milling cutter.
DN
V
1000
 Milling Time
 Time for one pass =
L  2  A minutes
fZN
2 2
D  D 
 Approach distance, A       d   d D  d 
2 2 
 MRR in Milling
Considering the parameters defined in the discussion of
speeds and feeds, etc, the MRR is given below,
Where,

MRR = wd  F
where, w = width of cut, d = depth of cut
 Some Formulae for Milling
2f d
Maximum uncut chip thickness (t max ) 
NZ D
f d
Average uncut chip thickness (t a vg ) 
NZ D
f2
Peak to valley surface roughness (h max ) 
4 DN 2 Z 2