Milling

A milling machine is a device that fixes the workpiece on the main shaft of the machine tool and removes the material by the high-speed rotation of the tool. The milling machine can mill a flat surface, and also a curved surface, grooves, and gears with specific cutters. Milling machines were firstly invented in Europe in the 17th century. After the Industrial Revolution and the demand for a large number of military weapons after the 19th century, milling machines have also evolved into universal milling machines, gantry milling machines, etc., and developed support machining devices such as indexing discs, universal cutters, and feed table, etc. However, it still relies on manual calculation of processing parameters, and then sets the operating procedures on the milling machine.

Until the mid-20th century, milling machines could be driven by computer and digital signals, and become able to process various and complex types of parts, including holes, threads, milling teeth, and curved surface processing. The traditional vertical milling machine can only process one surface of the three-dimensional workpiece, and after completing one surface, it must be flipped to the next surface, which is easy to cause precision deviation during the turning process. Therefore, the development of milling machines is heading toward three-axis, four-axis, and simultaneous five-axis multi-face processing functions, which can reduce the positioning error of re-picking and placing workpieces while machining different surfaces, and also avoid the cumulative tolerance.