Leifeld Metal Spinning develops spinning and flow-forming machines for chipless metal forming in the automotive, aerospace, machinery, chemistry, pharmaceuticals, and food industries as well as for lighting, energy, ventilation, and air-conditioning applications. To improve process stability, eliminate operator errors, minimize tooling costs, and reduce setup times, the company developed Leifeld Smart Control: a smart solution that supports the operator in autopilot mode to deliver top-quality results.
On the hardware side, Leifeld Smart Control consists of a spinning roller with a fork roller bracket, a force sensor, and a tool clamping unit. Through the feedback of the axial and radial forces, the sensor improves the control of the spinning roller. Shear forming with a constant force is possible – that is wall thickness profiles can be defined.
One of the software modules of Leifeld Smart Control is the Contour Recording Autopilot. An operator controlling the contour recording manually has to make sure the spinning roller and the spinning chuck are in contact. With the autopilot, the spinning chuck contour is automatically probed with a minimal, controlled force by means of a force sensor. Collision monitoring in the background prevents damage from occurring in the process.
