Combined 5-axis CNC glass machining
Conventional CNC ceramic and glass processing technologies are often unable to meet the growing demands placed on the optical and geometric properties of components. Grinding, lapping, and polishing processes are carried out on separate machines. Each of these technologies is very complex and demanding in itself. The manual transfer of components between machines and restrictions in machine kinematics lead to considerable losses in accuracy. In addition, the design and functionality of glass or ceramic components are often limited.
ShapeFab developed a more efficient solution to improve the production of high-precision glass and ceramic components. The previously separate production steps (grinding, lapping and polishing) are now combined on a single machine. Using high-precision 5-axis CNC machining and appropriate integration of the CAD-CAM chain, the processes of grinding, fine machining, and polishing can be fully combined. This new type of CNC glass processing offers many advantages.
Figure: 5-axis CNC glass processing of channel connections, edge chipping < 20 μm: Complete processing in a single clamping ensures higher precision.
This process generates completely new design possibilities in product development, as optically effective surfaces can be applied to any 3-dimensional structures with high precision. Since the manufacturing process can be fully automated, a high level of process reliability can be guaranteed. In addition, higher manufacturing accuracies and lower manufacturing costs are achieved by eliminating the need for manual component changes.
Publication on "High-precision CNC glass processing with innovative coordinate grinding technology".
If you would like to learn more about the most important research and application results related to our CNC glass processing, we invite you to request our paper. We will send it to you at the given e-mail address.