In the existing machine tool field, the focus was on the displacement of the feed system from the viewpoint of the motion of the machine tool. The displacement of the tool or spindle of a machine tool is useful for developing various functions. In this study, using the acceleration data of the spindle, we proposed an algorithm that tracked the displacement of the spindle with respect to the pseudo-step waveform motion. In order to solve the bandwidth problem of the pseudo-step waveform, the displacement data measured by the motor encoder of the feed system was used. In addition, in order to solve the drift problem due to double integration, a new drift removal filter was proposed and a displacement estimation algorithm was implemented. In order to examine the performance and possibility of the proposed spindle displacement estimation algorithm, it was applied to a gantry-type engraver and its excellent performance was confirmed compared to other algorithms.

This paper presents the effects of bearing locations on the mechanical characteristics of a multi-stepped spindle system related to bearing fatigue life, natural frequency, and static stiffness. The multi-stepped spindle is supported by a pair of tapered roller bearings (TRBs) and subjected to radial loading. To solve the equilibrium equation of the spindle system which is inherently statically-indeterminate, this study adopts an integrated shaft-bearing model, where the spindle is modelled by the finite shaft elements and the supporting TRBs are modelled by the five degrees-of-freedom TRB model developed by the authors. An iterative computational method is used to estimate the spindle deflection coupled with bearing deflections, and afterwards the bearing stiffness and internal contact loads of rolling elements are computed. The bearing fatigue life based on the ISO standard and the first natural frequency of the spindle system are evaluated with the spindle-bearing model. The influences of bearing locations on the static stiffness and natural frequency of the spindle, and the fatigue life of TRBs are rigorously investigated. The numerical results show the noticeable effects of bearing locations on the spindle system characteristics. The presented results provide a comprehensive assessment to aid for design optimization of spindle-TRB system.

Bearings having a small clearance during normal operation are selected. In some cases, bearings having a negative clearance when mounted are selected, to generate internal stress which enables achieving various effects. This so-called preload can be applied only to rolling bearings and not sliding ones. The performance of bearings is greatly affected by the applied preload. Application of a heavy preload to enhance the stiffness at the spindle undermines the high-speed rotation performance. In contrast, when a light preload is applied for high speed rotation, the stiffness is undermined. Therefore, a variable preload method is required. This study aims to develop a variable preload device using a linear actuator of the ball screw type, and to perform the performance evaluation of the developed device. Our studies verified that the proposed device worked satisfactorily.