How an FMB rear loader functions

Find out more here about the concept of a rear loader and the benefits of the FMB MT series

Material bars are made ready for processing on several shelves of a lateral material storage facility (sloping surface), or by means of an optional integrated bundle loader. These are generally bars with round, hexagonal or quadratic outer contours, which may be made from a wide variety of materials. The bar diameters are in a range between approx. 5 and 51 mm.

In the case of rear loaders for multi-spindle lathes, the length of the bars generally varies between approx. 3,000 and 4,000 mm.

How an FMB rear loader functions
Left: MT51 MA with multi-level storage facility
Right: MT51 BF with bundle loader

The aforementioned multi-level material storage or bundle loader not only holds the bars ready for processing, but also feeds a specified number of bars, in order to ensure the automated production of the required parts with as long an interval as possible between manual interventions by the operator.

In contrast to a single-spindle lathe, a multi-spindle lathe has 4, 6 or 8 spindle units arranged in a drum, to increase productivity by machining several workpieces simultaneously or in sequence.

Each of these spindle units is fed with a material bar by the rear loader in sequence. When using a rear loader, the whole length of the material bar is guided into the drum of the lathe. From this reserve in the magazine, the individual bars are separated out and transferred by a lift system in an open. From there the material bar is pushed by a pusher in the loading magazine, through the hole in the lathe spindle, where it is fixed in place on the spindle end next to the tool by a clamping device, usually a collet or a chuck.

Once the bar is delivered, the turning process begins, during which the end of the bar is usually clamped in place for machining. The whole of the bar rotates during the turning process, as is the usual practice. The rotation speeds reached depend on the diameter of the material bar and the specifications of the lathe. On completion of the turning process, the collet or the chuck is released, and then, depending on the design of the lathe, the material bar is pushed forward by the required length of the part by a pusher integrated into the spindle. After the bar is reclamped in place, the next processing cycle begins. The remnant piece at the end of the processing cycle is pushed forward into the working space of the lathe.

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