XY-table for desktop machine tools based on a new fluidic planar drive

摘要

This paper presents the design of a XY-table for desktop machine tools that makes use of a novel fluid dynamic drive principle combined with an active aerostatic planar guide for contactless motion in two directions. The presented approach reduces the installation space and the number of required components significantly when compared with electric linear motors or drives with a ball screw that are used in conventional desktop machine tools. When designing the XY-table the requirements of a micro milling process of small workpieces were considered. The arrangement of the system is presented and the drive principle is explained. Important design parameters are obtained by the support of computational fluid dynamics. Different fluid profiles for the drive are developed and compared. The results of the numerical investigations are used for the design of the XY-table whose performance is finally shown in a micro milling setup.