Product category:
Control systems, DROs, etc, for machine tools
News Release from: Fanuc GE CNC UK | Subject: GE Fanuc Power Mate 'O' control
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 03 December 2001
CNC choice ensures entry level success
Harrison says that a huge untapped market exists among conventional lathe users for a basic CNC model like the Alpha T equipped with the latest GE Fanuc Power Mate 'O' control.
The ultimate in easy turning Amazing as it may seem to those of us accustomed to the use of CNC as an everyday experience, world-class lathe manufacturer Harrison says that a huge untapped market exists among conventional lathe users for a basic CNC model So sure is the Heckmondwike (England)-based, 600 Group company of this market that it has extended its range of CNC lathes down into the entry-level arena, with the introduction of its new Alpha T lathe, for which the latest GE Fanuc Power Mate 'O' control, in combination with its associated 'Quick Panel' and the industry-proven AlphaLink software, have been adopted
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 27 Jul 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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The 600 Group has worked closely with GE Fanuc for nearly forty years during which period it has seen a continuous stream of new, ground-breaking machine tools come on-stream.
Each new design represented an advance on previous technology, in terms of both machine design and control characteristics that, taken together with satisfying tight cost constraints and high quality targets, have seen the Group maintain its position as a world leader in its field.
What probably makes the new Alpha T series from Harrison so different from previous attempts to woo operators away from manually operated lathes is the way that, although it is unashamedly a CNC machine, it is amazingly simple to use.
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The uncluttered and highly user-friendly control interface is, according to 600 Group marketing director Dr Stephen Le Beau, "Designed to be at least as easy for an operator to use as the familiar photo copier".
One look at the simple GE Fanuc customised 'Quick Panel' numerical touch pad and associated display screen will reassure any doubters that it must be 'child's play' to operate the machine and to accept the company's claim that machinists can learn to cut metal with it within minutes.
The production of threads, chamfers, radii, box cycles, area clearances etc.
are all carried out at the touch of the 'Quick Panel' screen.
The result is what Stephen Le Beau describes as, "The simplest operator panel in the world, and yet it commands a versatile system capable of tackling all turning operations, with simple set-up procedures and the minimum of controls".
Dr Le Beau acknowledges the tremendous help afforded by the GE Fanuc team in Milton Keynes in reaching such an elegant solution to the problems posed.
The Power Mate 'O' control system, when introduced to machine builders last year, was targeted at those lathe manufacturers wanting to offer the benefits of a simple and reliable CNC machine without suffering a cost penalty.
By continuous close cooperation with GE Fanuc, Harrison has integrated a complete combination of control, servo motor drives and inverter interface from a single source to provide users with a level of reliability and accuracy beyond anything previously achievable at such low cost.
Small wonder that Harrison engineers can claim to have brought touchscreen technology to the point by which it provides what they call, 'bomb proof reliability' along with its ease of use.
Every one of the simple controls is mounted on one small console right where it is needed, on the saddle, so that the operator can see everything in a sweep of the eye; controls, touchscreen, tools, workpiece and cutting area.
This elegant solution is ergonomics taken to the nth' degree.
Co-ordinates, tool selection and machine operations are chosen in a simple step-by-step sequence from guidance given on the screen.
There are three models of the Alpha T with 400mm, 460mm and 554mm swing over the bed and 1250mm, 1500mm and 2000mm distance between centres respectively.
A gearless headstock and the enormously powerful spindle drives, fed via an electric clutch to give silky- smooth transmission, offer infinitely variable high/low speed ranges that are selectable from the touch screen. Request a free brochure from Fanuc GE CNC UK ...
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