Schaeffler And DMG Mori Cooperate On Additive Manufacturing Of Rolling Bearings

DMG Mori, manufacturer of machine tools, and Schaeffler Technologies, system supplier for rolling bearings, linear guides and drive technology, signed a cooperation agreement at Jimtof in Tokyo: The companies want to jointly drive forward development work in the field of additive manufacturing of rolling bearings. Additive manufacturing is a strategic focus in Schaeffler's development roadmap.

"The cooperation in the field of additive manufacturing will expand our cooperation to another strategically very important future field," said Dr. Stefan Spindler, CEO Industry at Schaeffler AG.

Laser build-up welding for the production of rolling bearing components

The basis for the joint development work will be a Lasertec 65 3D from DMG Mori, a five-axis machining center including a laser beam welding unit that will be used at Schaeffler. The aim is to further develop the additive manufacturing technology of so-called laser beam deposition welding so that it can be used for the flexible production of rolling bearing components for prototypes and in small batch sizes. In addition to process topics, the focus is on the materials used and their upgrading for the process.

With laser deposition welding, the surface is applied by melting while simultaneously applying a material. In this case, this is done in the form of metal powder. A high-power laser serves as the heat source. In the hybrid systems developed by DMG Mori, this additive manufacturing process is combined with classic five-axis machining, so that the resulting components are then immediately finished.

Continuation of the premium partnership in the area of ​​marketing

Also at Jimtof, both companies extended their marketing partnership that started in the current year to 2017. As part of the cooperation, Schaeffler is the global marketing partner for DMG Mori in the areas of "Bearings" and "Linear Guidance". In 2016, Schaeffler had already successfully participated in numerous DMG Mori in-house trade fairs, technology symposia and training courses. This commitment is to be intensified in the coming year. In particular, users of machine tools can be shown both bearings, linear technology and direct drive technology as well as new ways in the sensorization and networking of components and their use for predictive maintenance, increasing efficiency and process optimization.

Added value through digitalization: Innovation project "Machine Tool 4.0"

At Jimtof in Tokyo, Schaeffler and DMG Mori presented the “Machine Tool 4.0” innovation project, which was developed together with other partners and which links existing technology with new digitized components from the sensor to the cloud. For this purpose, two prototypes were built on the basis of the 4th generation mill-turn universal machining center DMC 80 FD Duoblock. In the prototypes of the innovation project, additional sensors for measuring vibrations, forces, temperatures and pressures are integrated in almost all bearing points relevant to the machining process in order to obtain optimal information about the machine status. (ud)