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Advanced Crowning Systems...Technology
Tailor Made to Boost Your Productivity
by David Bishop
Business Development Manager
Wila USA
Photograph shows a state
of the art Wila New Standard II Crowning System with
localized adjustment dials, aluminum cover strip with
scale, and protective synthetic guard. |
As the old saying goes "a chain is only as strong as its weakest link." Few examples in the metal fabricating industry better illustrate the raw truth of this statement than that of the press brake. The quality of the finished parts produced by these machines depends on a large number of variables including operator skill, machine rigidity, ram repeatability, control technology, back gauge accuracy, ram and bed (upper and lower beam) parallelism, deflection compensation, tooling accuracy, and the quality of the material being used in the production of the final parts. Any compromise whatsoever in one or more of these variables will most certainly result in reduced productivity and lower quality finished parts.
Variables that are frequently overlooked
include machine deflection, tool wear, and the subsequent
amount of time lost to die shimming to compensate for them.
Die shimming is without a doubt one of the greatest contributors
to the high cost of non-value added time on today's press
brakes. It also ultimately inflicts considerable damage upon
expensive die holders and the bed (lower beam) of the press
brake. Fortunately, the recent advancements in crowning system
technology have provided a solution to the high cost associated
with die shimming.
Photograph shows the patented "Wila Wave" wedge system, which provides for exceptional finished part accuracy. |
One such advancement was the development
of the patented "Wila Wave®" concept by Wila B.V. of Holland.
In this concept, two machined bars with graduated waves are
mounted in opposition to each other. The bottom "wave" is
pulled or pushed beneath the upper "wave" via a crank handle
or a motor interfaced with the machines' CNC control, depending
on the model and features selected by the end user, causing
the unit to increase or decrease the overall amount of crown.
The total amount of crown that can be applied in the center
of the unit is .118" (3.0mm), which gradually decreases from
the center to the ends of the unit. This process requires
only a matter of seconds to complete. The cost saving advantages,
reduction in non-value added time, improved finished part
quality, and increased throughput can be tremendous when
compared to the tedious, time consuming process of shimming
dies.
Photograph shows Wila E4 Crowning System with motor, which is designed to be interfaced with the press brake's control for programmable adjustment. |
Wila crowning systems also feature localized
adjustments every 8" (200mm) via simple and easy to use adjustment dials.
This feature provides up to .017" (0.43mm) of adjustment,
enabling press brake operators to compensate for small variances
in ram and bed (upper and lower beam) parallelism caused
by machine and tooling wear in addition to the variances
in machine deflection that naturally occur due to machine
component thickness, strength, and rigidity as well as the
use of multiple material types, material lengths, and changes
in material yield strength.
Wila E3 and E4 Crowning Systems
include setscrews that are tightened against the tang of
the die(s) to properly secure them in place and yet still
include our patented "Wila Wave" technology.
This provides a lower cost method for press brake owners to take advantage
of advanced crowning system technology. The state of the art Wila New Standard
II Crowning System, which is designed to be installed on new press brakes
by the manufacturer, comes standard with clamping pins that
are located along the full length of the slot in which the
tang on the die resides. These pins are driven hydraulically
and deliver 50 bar (725 psi) of pressure for unsurpassed
clamping force.
Photograph shows low cost Wila E3 Crowning System with manual adjustment lever, localized adjustment dials, and setscrews used to clamp dies into position. |
The Wila T-10 Crowning Unit, which is extremely
popular with purchasers of new press brakes and as a retrofit
item for existing press brakes, can be purchased with both
manual and hydraulic clamping bars. Like our New Standard
II Crowning Unit, the Wila T-10 Crowning Unit with hydraulic
clamping bars applies a total of 50 bar (725 psi) of clamping
force to secure the individual die segments in place. Both
designs make it possible to locate individual die segments
anywhere along the full length of the unit and achieve
more than adequate clamping pressure to maintain die stability
during bending and when loading and unloading material.
Wila Crowning Systems are precision ground
to extremely tight tolerances, and therefore also function
as precision ground die holders. They are also designed to
function with all of the common dies styles in use around
the world. They are available with the standard tang configuration
that is common to press brakes produced for the North American
market, and with bolt down base plates that enable them to
be mounted to press brakes that are designed to accept bolt
down die holders and filler blocks. In short, there is a
Wila Crowning System made for virtually every press brake
made, with your choice of features, and the accuracy and
performance that press brake owners and manufacturers around
the world have come to expect from Wila, the press brake
productivity people.
For more information, please contact:
Wila
USA
9135 Guilford Road
Columbia, MD 21046
Tel: 888-696-9452
Fax: 301-490-3991
www.wilausa.com
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710
Remington Road 
Volume
14 Issue 1 -
July 2004