High speed, high efficiency, composite, high precision, high reliability, and environmental protection are the development trends of advanced cutting technology, and are also requirements for CNC tool holders. The development of CNC tool holder manufacturing technology mainly focuses on the following aspects: tool material manufacturing technology, tool coating manufacturing technology, tool structure design and manufacturing technology, tool system manufacturing technology connecting CNC tool holders and CNC machine tools, and cutting database and other related software technologies.
(1) "Suit the medicine to the case" for CNC tool handle materials, attach importance to the development of superhard and ultra-fine materials
Cutting tool materials are the basis for determining tool cutting performance, especially tool cutting efficiency and reliability. "Suiting the remedy to the case" and developing matching specific tool materials based on the characteristics of the workpiece (material performance, machining allowance, batch size, requirements, etc.) is a development trend today. Cobalt high-speed steel, powder metallurgy high-speed steel, cemented carbide (including ultrafine particle cemented carbide), ceramics, cermets, and other materials have been rapidly promoted and widely used in CNC tool holders. In particular, the grades of cemented carbide used for CNC tool shanks and indexable non regrinding blades have developed rapidly in recent years, accounting for a major share. Submicron grade ultrafine particle cemented carbide materials significantly improve the cutting mechanical properties (strength, hardness) of the tool. For complex shaped CNC gear cutters, cobalt high-speed steel and powder high-speed steel have a strong trend to replace traditional high-speed steel. With the increasing demand for cutting and processing of nonferrous metal materials, organic composite materials, and even wood, especially the development of automotive (cylinder block, cylinder head, piston, etc.), aerospace, military, and furniture manufacturing industries, the processing of silicon aluminum alloys, aluminum magnesium alloys, composite honeycomb material parts, and hardened workpieces has promoted the progress in the manufacturing technology of superhard tool materials such as polycrystalline diamond (PCD) and cubic boron nitride (CBN). With the promotion of environmental protection requirements, dry cutting technology, micro cooling liquid technology, and low-temperature gas cooling technology have emerged, posing new requirements for the high-temperature resistance of cutting tool materials (and coatings) - excellent high-temperature red hardness, high-temperature adhesive resistance, high-temperature friction performance, etc. are crucial for the use performance of dry cutting CNC tool holders.
(2) CNC tool handle coating develops rapidly, and new coatings emerge endlessly
Tool coating is another key technology that determines the cutting performance of a tool, especially its cutting efficiency and reliability. It meets the requirements of conservation-oriented development: significantly improving cutting efficiency, significantly improving tool performance, and doubling the service life, both saving resources and reducing costs. In recent years, tool coating technology has developed unprecedentedly rapidly, with new coating equipment and materials emerging in an endless stream. On the basis of traditional TiN, TiC, TiCN, and Al2O3 coatings, new coatings such as TiAlN, TiBN, TiAlBN, CrN, CrC, and SN2 with better high-temperature red hardness have been developed, as well as soft coatings MoS2 that can improve self-lubrication performance. Diamond coatings, diamond like coatings DCL, and CBN coatings have also developed rapidly. Nano coating structures can significantly improve the performance of coatings under the same coating conditions, and have received considerable attention.