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Lathe automation specialist Hydrafeed has now launched its new Autofeed long magazine range of barfeeds for feeding round, square and hexagonal bar stock into CNC turning centres. These exiting new bar feeds have been developed to accommodate the individual needs of the customer catering for bar lengths 3.8, 3.2 or 2.5 metres.

Working closely with customers in the turned parts industry, Hydrafeed is confident that the design of this new model will improve the productivity, cost reduction potential and automation needs of the evolving marketplace with a number of innovative new features. The Autofeed 3-26 is one of a series of new barfeeds from Hydrafeed with the 3-26 capable of holding bar from 3 to 26mm diameter whilst other new models include the Autofeed 3-38 and 5-51 for holding respective diameters of 3 to 38mm and 5 to 51mm.

New innovations on the barfeed include a double pusher system, which drastically reduces the overall length of the barfeed by up to 1.2m, ideal for machine shops working with long bars and limited space for a barfeed system. The double pusher incorporates a short pusher that pre-feeds the bar and then retracts. At this point a second full length pusher lowers into position to continue the feeding process. The bar pusher is equipped with a standard rotating tip that ensures smooth running at high RPM.

To maximise the RPM potential, the Autofeed 3-26 and 3-38 both have a dual anti-vibration device that stabilises the bar stock at two different points. The adjustable roller design provides superior support and improves the set-up of bars of all diameters without the cost of multiple bearing blocks. The first roller steady is located inside the front of the barfeed to support the bar as it enters the telescopic nose. The second roller is mounted at the rear of the sliding headstock to follow the material as it moves along the Z-axis. This significantly enhances the feeding process, improves stability and rigidity and thus surface finishes whilst operating at higher speeds to competitor offerings.

For highly automated environments, all the new Autofeed models incorporate a remnant retracting gripper. The gripper holds and inserts the new bar into the collet and then extracts the post-production remnant. The gripper is self-centring, so requires no adjustment for different bar diameters. It withdraws the remnant to the back end of the magazine and deposits it in a well hidden remnant basket, leaving the machine to efficiently continue production without operator intervention.

To further guarantee continuous production and ensure no loss of connection between the bar stock and collet pusher, the new Autofeed series incorporates a synchronisation device for sliding head lathes. This system employs an electro-magnetic coupling that mechanically links the Z-axis travel of the lathe to the barfeed pusher to ensure synchronous movement and no loss of connection between the barfeed and the lathe. This improves the feed rate of the bar and improves productivity levels, as the barfeed acts as an extension of the turning centre.

The new Autofeed has a user friendly touch screen control system that has a memory capacity for 36 different jobs to simplify changeovers. The control system supports all trouble shooting and diagnostic features. It is linked to an innovative remote pendant that allows manual and automatic operation with bar pusher movement; emergency stop and manual load/unload functions. Both control systems operate the robust and reliable Mitsubishi controller and servo drive that improve the functionality and movement of the Autofeed.

Additional features on the new Autofeed include stock alignment guides for reducing set-up times plus quick change guide channels with a ‘U’ shaped bottom guide channel to enable the sections to efficiently slide out of their base. This cuts noise and vibration to improve operability for the end user. All these innovative features are built upon a rigid and robust construction that makes this a truly unique barfeed system. For customers specifically looking for a short barfeed solution, Hydrafeed will soon be launching a new servo short magazine barfeed system. Like the new Autofeed, the new short barfeed from the specialist in barfeeding, is destined to offer benefits far beyond that of competitor products.

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