The Quattro B436Y2 from the Italian company Biglia is a new turn-mill centre with two Y-axis tool turrets and two opposed C-axis spindles.
Available from the manufacturer’s sole sales and service agent for the UK and Ireland — Whitehouse Machine Tools Ltd, Kenilworth (
www.wmtcnc.com) — the machine is sturdy and powerful, allowing it to undertake the machining of tough alloys.
The compact 36mm-bar capacity automatic lathe features a robust 45deg cast-iron bed, linear rails, 12-station turrets with live tools (4.6kW /22Nm/6,000rev/min) and 11kW 7,000rev/min spindle drives. Moreover, the CNC counter-spindle can move in both the Z axis and the X axis, allowing it to be offset by 170mm from the centre-line of the main spindle.
This eliminates interference between the turrets when simultaneously machining at both spindles;
it also allows an unusual arrangement where a tailstock can be moved into the space vacated by the offset counter-spindle to allow turn-milling between centres, using the main spindle and simultaneous reverse-end machining by the counter spindle and second turret.
A further possibility is to have three tools in cut simultaneously by using Biglia’s Superimposition function; the counter-spindle tracks the machining position at the main spindle where the upper and lower turrets are both performing front-end Op 1 machining operations.
The offsets are super-imposed on the reverse-end Op 2 machining program to take advantage of a third tool mounted on the back face of the lower turret.
The CNC is a RISC 64-bit Mitsubishi M700 with 10.4in colour display and alphanumeric keyboard. Proprietary software gives very high levels of surface finish by minimising ‘jerk’; it also offers nano interpolation and look-ahead path estimation for high-speed accurate control of the drives.
Also featured are: load detection on all axes; ‘part present’ check on the sub-spindle; a programmable automatic parts catcher; and a finished parts conveyor.
Options include high-pressure coolant delivery, simultaneous cutter offset measurement at both turrets, and tool-wear and breakage monitoring.