Development of an ultra-high speed grinding motorised spindle

This paper describes the development of an ultra-high speed grinding motorised spindle specially designed for a project aiming to implement research on mechanism and process of the ultra-high speed grinding of hard-to-cut materials at a maximum wheel speed of 450 m/s. At such high speeds, the loss power caused by air resistance should be primarily focused on as it could even exceed the real cutting power. In this study, a theoretical analysis of loss power was firstly carried out to optimise and determine the spindle rotational speed and wheel diameter. Furthermore, based on the designed motorised spindle, further work was concentrated on estimating the dynamic performance of motorised spindle such as its natural properties and balancing characteristics with finite element method. As well, theses physical properties were experimentally measured for the developed spindle. The results showed that work on the development of the motorised spindle was valid and reliable.