Tongtai horizontal machining center: machine fit for loading
Tongtai horizontal machining center loading and unloading: door, pallet or fixture, travel, spindle and control signals, then the cell is configured.
Tongtai horizontal machining center loading and unloading: machine fit points
Around the pallet and the pallet changer, multi-face clamping of housing parts and the chip evacuation space, the cell links feeding, pick and place, face turning, operation transfer and inspection into an unattended cycle.
Tongtai · horizontal machining center
Public information on horizontal machining centers and the starting points for automation fit. Whether a specific model can be converted has to be confirmed against the table or chuck, the guard structure and the shop layout during a site survey.
Tongtai normally refers to Tongtai Machine & Tool. This page covers horizontal machining centers, and the typical industries are housings and precision structural parts.
Machine fit points for this brand
Tongtai: Horizontal machining centers and mill-turn machines. The table or chuck, the guard door and top opening and the fixture type are the first boundary of the scheme.
Part size, weight, incoming condition and cycle time decide the gripper, the handling path and whether storage buffering is needed.
The number of machines decides single machine, one-to-two or a multi-machine line; the shop layout decides gantry or robot.
Machine data the fit check is made against
Assessment: The eight dimensions a fit check measures — machine structure, door type, chuck structure, turret position, loading window, part size, machine spacing and production cycle — are set out on Machine Compatibility.
Note: The brand and model information on this page comes from the company's own material and is used to explain the differences in automation fit between machine families, series and models. A brand name does not mean agency, authorization, certification or partnership, and does not mean that a project has been completed on a machine of that brand. Whether a specific model can be loaded and unloaded automatically has to be confirmed on site against the table or chuck, the guard structure, the fixture type and the layout.
What horizontal machining center loading and unloading has to solve
When the machining cycle is stable, the part range is fairly uniform and the machines run long continuous hours, the repeated motions below can be handed to an automation cell.
In horizontal machining center work, manual loading and unloading usually consists of:
Business line: The complete motion sequence, the cycle-time calculation and the selection method are on the CNC Machining Center Automation.
Which automation configurations Tongtai can take
The same machine can be run with different cell forms; which one is chosen depends on the part, the cycle time, the number of machines and the shop layout.
Gantry robot loading and unloading
A gantry robot normally runs on a fixed path. It suits: machines arranged in a row, pallet exchange positions facing the same way, a clear loading path, a fairly stable part range and a defined cycle time.
View detailsSix-axis robot loading and unloading
A six-axis robot has a larger working envelope. It suits: parts that have to be flipped or pre-clamped outside the machine, sharing between several machines and an inspection station, a wide part range and several pallet sizes, and connecting a washing operation.
View detailsAutomated part storage and feeding
An automated storage magazine can take on: blank storage, pallet buffering, an off-machine pre-clamping station and part location.
View detailsOne robot, two machines
This forms a multi-machine automation cell. A one-to-two configuration has to be calculated on: the cycle time of both machines, the robot pick-and-place time, the door or pallet exchange time of both machines, and the part weight.
Three machines and multi-machine lines
On a multi-machine line the focus shifts from loading and unloading to: production task scheduling, part buffering, robot path and machine status management. The system has to decide: which machine has finished, which machine is waiting for a load, which part goes into which machine, and whether the storage magazine holds the matching part.
Parts suited to horizontal machining center loading and unloading
Whether a part suits automatic loading is decided by the part first. Across the typical work of a horizontal machining center, the common candidates include:
Housing parts
Disc and sleeve parts
Frames and bases
Machinery parts
Whether a specific part suits automatic loading has to be confirmed on size, weight, shape, material, cycle time, clamping method, locating datum and the pose it arrives in. A name such as "shaft" or "disc" on its own is not a conclusion.
How clamping is solved and how the finished part is judged
Clamping
In automatic loading and unloading the machine fixture is a critical link. On a horizontal machining center the clamping form is the pallet with a dedicated fixture, and the system has to consider: pallet size and repeat positioning accuracy, fixture type, locating datum, clamp confirmation, part-present detection, and interference with the table rotation and the column.
Inspection after machining
Where the project needs an in-process quality decision, an inspection unit can be added after the horizontal machining center. It is configured to the project, from: present/absent, dimensions, appearance, hole position and thread.
What to measure or photograph before selection
Collect these groups first, so the configuration can be calculated and not guessed.
Part
- Part name
- Part photo
- Length
- Diameter
- Height
- Weight
- Material
- Incoming condition
Machining
- Cycle time
- Machining program
- Machining time per part
- Daily output
- Monthly output
- Number of operations
Machine
- Model
- Number of machines
- Pallet size and quantity
- Table size and load capacity
- Pallet exchange position direction and height
- Machine door width and usable space inside
- Machine layout
Automation
- Gantry or robot
- Automated part storage
- Flipping
- Vision
- Inspection
- Multi-machine line
- MES
Site
- Plant size
- Machine positions
- Safety area
- Loading and unloading space
- Walkways
Implementation: The seven implementation points (Part location, Fixture, Machine interface, Cycle time, Exception handling, Safety, Manual takeover) and the calculation behind each stage are on the CNC Machining Center Automation.
Tongtai loading and unloading: common questions
Can Tongtai horizontal machining centers be loaded and unloaded automatically?
Yes. On a horizontal machine the pallet exchange route is normally assessed first so that clamping happens off the machine; the pallet size, the direction of the exchange position, the part weight and the layout have to be confirmed.
Why is a pallet preferred over in-machine handling on a horizontal machine?
The table has to rotate and the space inside is taken by the column and the spindle, so in-machine handling costs time and interferes easily; pre-clamping outside and exchanging the whole pallet gives the shortest machine downtime.
Tongtai horizontal machines: how is a one-to-two cell designed?
It has to be calculated on the pallet exchange cycle of both machines, the robot travel, the number of pallets and the buffer positions, and the exchange positions of the two machines have to face the same way.
How many pallet sets are needed?
They are configured to the cycle time and the buffering requirement. At least one set should be machining in the machine and one set clamped or waiting outside; where there are many part types the configuration grows by part family.
Can Tongtai horizontal machines run unattended?
Where the pallet store has enough capacity, the fixture condition is stable, tool life is controllable and there are fault alarms and a safety interlock, a continuously running automatic cell can be designed.
What do you need for Tongtai horizontal machine loading and unloading?
The machine model, the pallet size and quantity, the direction of the exchange position, part drawings with size and weight, the cycle time, fixture information and the shop layout.
Project case status for Tongtai
We do not generate a case to make a page look complete. The list below is what a project has to be completed with before it goes live; this brand shows project-level cases only when the closing documents and the customer's disclosure authorization are both in place.
What a case has to record
Admission rules
Only documented projects
Customer names, project numbers and machine models follow the closing documents; where there are none, they are not written.
No unmeasured numbers
Cycle time, capacity, accuracy, labor saved and return on investment are not written without measured data.
Customer information needs permission
Cases that show a customer name or site photos go live only after the customer has authorized disclosure.
Parameters belong to the conditions
Change the part on the same line and the conclusion can change, so a case always carries its part and its conditions.
Other horizontal machining center brands
Within one machine family the automation differences sit in the table or chuck, the guard structure, the fixture type and the shop layout.
Send the machine brand/model, part drawing or photo, blank and finished-part handling, single or multi-machine layout, target cycle and acceptance requirements.
Request an assessment Call +86 150 5020 2625