Jan 18, 2018 | By Tess
Kasto, a German company specializing in sawing technologies, is aiming to streamline the industrial 3D printing process even more with its new KASTOwin amc bandsaw machine. The machine is designed to quickly and efficiently separate 3D printed parts from their build platforms using a bandsaw.
The company says its new machine will help to increase productivity in the additive manufacturing sector by reducing the time needed to remove finished parts from the build plate. It also adds that it can provide gains in “efficiency, reliability, precision and safety.”
If you’re wondering how a bandsaw could be adapted specifically for additive manufacturing applications, the answer is simple but clever.
Basically, users are meant to bolt a build platform with 3D printed parts still attached to the KASTOwin amc’s fixture (the company adds that this can be done using a handling system, crane or, alternately, a clamping system). Once the build platform is secured to the saw’s fixture, a 180-degree turning device is activated, which flips the build plate upside down inside the machine.
KASTO says the flipping feature offers a number of benefits. Firstly, when the parts are cut from the build platform they simply fall into a padded container below for easy removal, and secondly, the upside down sawing is reportedly better for the saw blade. This, KASTO explains, is because any debris or particles from the sawing fall away from the blade and the cutting channel rather than back onto the sawing surface.
Now, back to the process. Once the 3D printing build plate has been flipped 180 degrees, the user then enters the thickness of the build platform into the Kasto SmartControl CNC system display mounted on the machine. Once the thickness is confirmed, the toothed blade (which measures 5,090 x 27 x 0.9 mm) moves to the exact height of the build platform (accuracy is ensured by a ballscrew drive) and proceeds to cut the 3D printed part or parts from the build platform.
Users can also choose different tolerances for the bandsaw, depending on what parts are being cut.
Other features of the KASTOwin amc machine include a minimum-quantity lubrication system for cooling; a “welded, ribbed, torsionally rigid” structure which allows for quiet operation; a window for visualizing the cutting process; and an intuitive button that lets users pause or stop the sawing process to remove individual parts and resume it.
The KASTOwin amc is a large-scale machine (with a footprint of 2,455 x 2,325 x 2,075 mm), so it is intended for industrial work spaces and factories. The fully-enclosed machine has a cutting range of 400 x 400 mm, though Kasto says that machines with different cutting sizes can be made to order.
The machine has a variable cutting speed of between 12 and 150 meters per minute and an “infinitely adjustable” electromechanical infeed. The KASTOwin amc is also “prepared for the addition of a customer-supplied suction unit so that components can be sawn in automatic mode with minimum dust generation.”
Finally, Kasto says its service center can remotely monitor its KASTOwin amc machines through a secure internet connection, allowing for easy troubleshooting, diagnostics, and other maintenance and optimization support. The connection also gives Kasto’s team the ability to upload programs and adjust sawing parameters, which can help clients get the machine set up quickly.
Check out a video of Kasto’s new machine in action below:
Posted in 3D Printer Accessories
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