INTRODUCTION TO

HINDUSTAN AERONAUTICS
LIMITED
The beginning of HAL can be traced to the year 1940 when a
far sighted industrialist, the late Seth Walchand Hirachand, set up a
company called Hindustan Aircraft Limited at Bangalore with the
object of establishing an aviation industry that can manufacture,
assemble and overhaul aircraft. Initially aircraft like Curtiss Hawk,
Vultee Bomber and Harlow Trainer was taken up for manufacture
and overhaul in collaboration with Inter Continental Aircraft
Company of the USA.

With the escalation of the Second World War, the government

of India took over the management of the company in 1942 and
handed it over to US Air force for repair and overhaul of various
aircraft. The main activity for the next few years after the war was
reconditioning and conversion of war surplus aircraft for the use of
IAF and Civil Operators.

To fulfill the fresh mandate of the post independent India and

to meet the challenges of open market economy of recent times the
mission of the company has been redefined as:

“To become a globally competitive aerospace industry while

working as instrument for achieving self reliance in design,
manufacture and maintenance of aerospace defense equipment and
diversifying to related areas, managing the business on commercial
lines in a climate of growing professional competence.”

In the six decades, HAL has spread its wings to cover various
activities in the areas of design, development, manufacture and
maintenance. Today HAL has 14 production divisions spread over at
Bangalore, Nasik, Koraput, Kanpur, Lucknow, Korwa, Hyderabad and
Barrackpore. These divisions are fully backed by 9 design centers,
which are co-located with the productive divisions. These centers
are engaged in the design and development of combat aircraft,
helicopter, aero engine, engine test beds, aircraft communication
and navigation systems and accessories of mechanical and fuel
systems and instruments.

1
 The current program include production of Dhruv an Advanced
Light Helicopter, Jaguar, LCA, Su-30, MkI and upgrades of MiGs,
Jaguar and Avro HS-748.
HAL ENGINE DIVISION, KORAPUT
An agreement was signed in August, 1962 with the Soviet
Union for manufacture of MiG-21 E7FL Air craft under license the
Aero engine Factory at Koraput (ORISSA), the Air frame Factory at
Nasik (Maharashtra), and the Avionics Factory at Hyderabad (Andhra
Pradesh) have been set up to meet this requirement on the name of
Aeronautics India Limited which was formed on April 1964 and new
company under the name of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited was
formed.

The government sanction for the first phase of construct of

the aero engine factory at Sunabeda (Koraput) was accorded March
1964 and the factory started manufacture of R11F2-Series-III
engines for fitment on MIG-21FL Aircraft from 1969 onwards. The
first engines of imported category manufactured in December 1968
and various categories of engines were produced during the
subsequent years. The first raw material engine was produced in
February 1971.

The production programs for the factory also include

manufacture of forging and casting required for MiG-Aircraft. To
meet the Air force requirement for improved fight interceptor
aircraft, an agreement was signed with USSR in August1976 for
manufacturing MiG-21BIS Aircraft. The power plant of this aircraft is
the R25 turbojet engine. The government approval for setting up
capital facilities was accorded in October 1977. The first engine of
imported category delivered to HAL Nasik Division in the year 1978-
79.The FI raw material engine was delivered during January1983.

With signing of the inter governmental agreement for

manufacture of MiG 27M Aircraft on 19th March 1982, this Division
would be involved in the manufacture of R-29B series of engine from
the year 1984-85.

In order to attain self-sufficiency and to avoid difficulties

regarding supply of Raw Material & other layout items from USSR, it
was decided to provide indigenous supply of spares manufacturing
for Overhaul/maintenance of the fleet. The Government approval for
undertaking the task received during 1977-78 and the indigenization
plan was formed to tackle,

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  ARS and first moving spares.
 Metallic material.
 Non-metallic material.
 Ready-made articles.

The activities towards these are being progressed as per

approved time frame.
The various departments present in this division are:

1. Forge
2. Foundry
3. Tool room
4. Small parts and fuel
5. Sheet metal and welding
6. Blades
7. Electroplating
8. Heat treatment
9. Compressor
10. Turbine
11. CNC
12. Assembly
13. Overhaul
14. Gear
15. Test house
16. Maintenance

3
 MIG 21 (R-25 Engine) MIG 27 (R-29
B)

NON-TRADITIONAL
MACHINING

INTRODUCTION
From some time past engineering industries have witnessed a
rapid growth in the development of harder and difficult to machine
materials such as hastalloy, nitralloy, waspalloy, nimonics, carbides,
stainless steel, heat resisting steels and many other high strength
temperature resistant(HSTR) alloys. These materials find wide
application in aerospace, nuclear engineering and other industries
owing to their high strength to weight ratio, hardness and heat
resisting qualities. For such materials the conventional edged tool
machining is highly uneconomical and the degree of accuracy and
surface finish are poor. Besides, machining of these materials in to
complex shapes is difficult, time consuming and sometimes
impossible.

Considering the seriousness of the problem, Merchants in

1960’s emphasized the need for the development of newer concepts
in metal machining. Consequently, non-traditional machining
processes have emerged to overcome these difficulties. These
processes are non-conventional or non-traditional (NTM) in the
sense that they do not employ a conventional or traditional tool for
metal removal, instead they directly utilize some from of energy for
machining.

Characteristics of non-traditional machining

Non Conventional Machining Processes are characterized as follows:

 Material removal may occur with chip formation or even no

chip formation may take place. For example in AJM, chips

4
 are of microscopic size and in case of Electrochemical
machining material removal occurs due to electrochemical
dissolution at atomic level.

 In NTM, there may not be a physical tool present. For

example in laser jet machining, machining is carried out by
laser beam. However in Electrochemical Machining there is
a physical tool that is very much required for machining.

 In NTM, the tool need not be harder than the workpiece

material. For example, in EDM, copper is used as the tool
material to machine hardened steels.
 Mostly NTM processes do not necessarily use mechanical
energy to provide material removal. They use different
energy domains to provide machining. For example, in
USM, AJM, WJM mechanical energy is used to machine
material, whereas in ECM electrochemical dissolution
constitutes material removal.

Classification of non-traditional machining processes

Classification of NTM processes is carried out depending on the
nature of energy used for material removal. The broad classification
is given as follows:

• Mechanical Processes
⎯ Abrasive Jet Machining (AJM)
⎯ Ultrasonic Machining (USM)
⎯ Water Jet Machining (WJM)
⎯ Abrasive Water Jet Machining (AWJM)

• Electrochemical Processes
⎯ Electrochemical Machining (ECM)
⎯ Electro Chemical Grinding (ECG)
⎯ Electro Jet Drilling (EJD)

• Electro-Thermal Processes
⎯ Electro-discharge machining (EDM)
⎯ Laser Jet Machining (LJM)
⎯ Electron Beam Machining (EBM)
⎯ Ion Beam Machining (IBM)
⎯ Plasma Arc Machining (PAM)

• Chemical Processes

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 ⎯ Chemical Machining (CHM)
⎯ Photochemical Machining (PCM) etc

INTRODUCTION TO WIRE-CUT EDM

In all the machining processes EDM is one of the important

non-traditional machining processes. Here we are mainly
concerned about wire cut EDM. Wire cut EDM or Electrical
Discharge Machining is a technique used to slice through metal.
The technique uses thin brass wire for the purpose and can create
intricate profiles with the process. The EDM machine uses spark
discharges that are fast, repetitive, and controlled for cutting. This
process works with electrically conductive metals. The process is
specially suited for contours and cavities that are not possible
with other cutting tools.

EDM is also known as “spark machining” as it uses repetitive

electrical discharges to remove metal. The electrical discharges
are passed between the metal part and the electrode. A stream of
continuously flowing liquid is used to remove the metal remnants
produced during the process. A set of successively deeper craters
is formed till the final shape is created by the discharges.

Different types of EDM:

1. Ram EDM

In ram EDM, a graphite electrode is used along with traditional

tools. This electrode is connected to the ram with the help of a
power source and is fed into the workpiece. The whole process is
carried out in a fluid bath. The fluid helps to flush away the
material, serves as a coolant to reduce the heat, and acts as a
conductor for passing current between the workpiece and the
electrode.

2. Wire EDM

In this method, a thin wire is used as an electrode. The wire is

fed in the metal and the discharges are used to cut the material.
The process is carried out in a bath of water. When closely observed,
you can see that the wire does not touch the metal. All the cutting
work is done by the electrical discharge. Computer software controls
the whole operation including the path of the wire. The process can

6
produce all sorts of complex shapes that are very difficult with other
processes.

Principle of edm

It is the most versatile electrical machining process where

erosion is caused due to electric spark. The rate of metal removal
and the resulting surface finish can be controlled by proper variation
in energy and duration of spark discharge. It is the process of
repetitive sparking cycles.

Graphical Representation:

Fig 1: Series of Electric pulses at the inter electrode gap

Fig 2: Inter electrode gap voltage waveform during

sparking

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Fig 3: Inter electrode gap current waveform during sparking

Where,
Ton :- Pulse on period
Toff :- Pulse of period
Td :- Spark ignition period
Vp :- Open gap voltage
Vg :- Average gap voltage
Ip :- Machining peak current

A series of electrical pulse generated by the pulse generator

unit is applied between the workpiece and travelling wire electrode.
In the event of spark discharge, there is a flow of current across wire
electrode workpiece gap. The energy contained in the tiny spark
removes a fraction of workpiece material. Large number of such
time spaced tiny discharges between the workpiece and wire
electrode cause the electro erosion of the workpiece material.

Concepts of 4- axes wire cut EDM

The wire-cut electric discharge machine is comprised of a
machine tool, a power supply unit (ELPLUS), dielectric supply and
chiller unit.

1.Machine tool

The ELECTRA machine tool unit comprises of a main work table

(called X-Y table) on which the workpiece is clamped, an auxiliary
table (called U-V table) and wire drive mechanism. The workpiece is
mounted and clamped on the min work table. The main table moves
along X-Y axis in the steps of 1 micrometer, by means of servo
motors. U & V are parallel to X & Y axes respectively.

A travelling wire which is continuously fed from wire feed spool

is caused travel through the workpiece and goes finally to the waste

8
wire box. Along its travelling path the wire is supported under
tension between a pair of wire guide, which is supported by the U-V
table. The upper wire guide can be displaced transversely along the
U-V axes with respect to lower wire guide. It can also be positioned
vertically along Z axis by moving the vertical arm.

As the material removal or machining proceeds, the work table

carry the workpiece is displaced transversely along a predetermined
path which is stored in the controller. The path specification (path
programme) can be supplied to the controller by the program or
directly through the controller key board.

When X-Y table moves along the predetermined path, the U-V
table is kept stationary as stationary cut with the predetermined
pattern is formed.

In order to produce taper machining the wire electrode has to

be tilted. This is achieved by displacing the upper wire guide (along
the U-V axes) with respect to lower wire guide. The desired taper
angle is achieved by simultaneous control of the movement of X-Y
table and U-V table along their respective predetermined path stored
in the controller. The path information if the X-Y table and U-V table
is given to the controller in terms of linear & circular elements via
NC programme.

2.POWER SUPPLY

The power supply unit comprises of electric pulse generator,

motor drive unit for X-Y, U-V axes and controller.

3.Dielectric Supply
While the machining is continued, the machining zone is
continuously flushed with chilled distilled water through the nozzle
on both side of workpiece. The spark discharge across the workpiece
and the wire electrode causes ionization of the water which is used
as a dielectric medium.

It is important to note that ionization of water leads to the

increase in conductivity of water. An ion exchange resin is used in
dielectric distribution system in order to prevent the increase in
conductivity of water.

4.Part programming

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 The geometry of the profile and the motion of wire electrode
tool along the profile are fed to the part programming system using
keyboard. The profile geometry is defined in terms of various
geometrical definition of points, lines and circles as the wire tool
path elements on graphical screen by using a totally menu driven
software. The wire compensation (for wire diameter and machining
overcuts) and taper angle can be specified for total path or for each
path element separately. After the profile is fed to the computer all
the numerical information about the path is calculated automatically
and its print out is generated. The entered profile can be

10
 verified on the graphic displayed screen and modified if
necessary. After successful profile definition, the profile is recorded
by the computer on a floppy disk which can be used in the controller
for the execution.

Work preparation

1.Workpiece material

Any slight dislocation in the workpiece material may result

distorted job. It is important to use the material free from residual
stresses, arising from various processes. This may affect the
machining accuracy to a very large extent. Workpiece material
should be

 Electrically conductive (at least 0.1 micro-ohm/cm)

 Suitable for clamping
 Non-combustible
 Non-violent chemical reactions with water, oxygen and
hydrogen

2.Wire electrode
The wire electrode is required to have a sufficient tensile
strength and should be of uniform diameter and free from kinks and
twist. The electrode wire material should be
 Brass/super alloy (coated)
 Diameter variation within + 0.02 mm
 Tensile strength more than 50 kgf/mm2
 Even winding free from kinks/breaks

Wire diameter and minimum corner radius:

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 Fig 7: Rib width

The diameter of wire imposes a restriction on the minimum

achievable corner radius.
Minimum corner radius = (0.5*diameter) + overcut

Current carrying capacity of the wire:

As a thumb rule a brass wire of 0.2 mm in diameter can easily

pass current of about 0.3-0.7 amperes in air but the same wire can
pass current of about 6-9 amperes in water. While machining water
should always be surrounded by the water column to avoid wire
strength.

Wire tension (WT):

Wire tension determines how much the wire has to be

stretched between upper and lower guides. More thickness of the
job more is the tension required. Improper setting of tension may
result inaccuracy in the job as well as wire breakage. Following chart
gives nominal value of the wire tension for different settings.
Minimum tension (for zero setting of WT) is approximately 200 gms
which can be adjusted by clutch adjustment provided on feed spool
mounting rod. This should be adjusted for different weight of spool.

WT TENSION (GMS) NOMINAL VALUES

1 300
2 420
3 540
4 660
5 780
6 900

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 7 1020
8 1140
9 1260
10 1380

Wire feed (WF):

Due to spark erosion the travelling wire electrode becomes thin

and brittle. Wire feed is the rate at which the wire electrode travels
along wire guide path. It is always desirable to set the wire feed to
the maximum. This will result in less wire breakage, better
machining, stability and little more cutting speed. With more feed
set as 8 m/min on an average of a 0.25 mm diameter brass wire
spool of 5 kg will last for 24 sparking hours. Setting WF at 15 will
correspond to 15 m/min (approx.).

Overcut:

It is lateral distance between the wire and workpiece during

the sparking. Overcut is larger if

 Machining gap voltage is higher

 Discharge energy is higher
 Wire tension is lower
 Guide span is higher
 Job thickness is higher
 Dielectric conductivity is higher
 Machining is unstable

Wire compensation (offset):

Wire compensation = (0.5*wire diameter) +

overcut
Wire compensation can be to the left (G41) or right (G42) of
profile depending upon the direction of motion and wire being inside
or outside of the profile as shown:

13
Fig 8: wire compensation

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Water dielectric

1.Characterization & suitability of wire cut

medium

 The use of water as dielectric permits widening of spark gap to

minimize short circuit, resulting in high cutting speed.
 Water has good wire electrode cooing effect (than kerosene as
example).
 It is non flammable and its vapours are non-toxic.

2.Dielectric strength

Since the insulation characterization of dielectric fluid decides

the overcut so it is important to keep the conductivity of dielectric
water constant. Conductivity of water changes due to generation of
metallic ions and dissolution of ambient gases. The conductivity can
be decreased by passing the water through de-ionize resin. This is
done automatically by the machine.

3.Flushing

Flushing is important to achieve stable condition. It plays very

important role as far as cutting speed concerned. Both the nozzles
upper and lower should be just about 0.22 mm away from the
workpiece, otherwise cutting performance drops considerably. Also
both the nozzles should also be checked periodically for damages,
scratches or slight damage on the contact edge affect cutting speed.
Purity of the water should be machined by firm displacements of
filters.

Setting up and operations

1.Job mounting:

Mount the job and damp by maximum possible clamp, dial the
top surface of the job by dial gauge. The dial gauge can be marked
on the upper flushing assembly. Provision for the same is provided.
Make the wire vertical with the help of vertical block provided with
the machine.

15
2.Job reference point:
It is always desirable to have a reference point on the
workpiece for setting the work co-ordinate system (WCS). The
reference point can be defined by the ground edge of the
workpiece or the centre of the bored hole on the workpiece.

a) Edge finding (EF):

This function should be used to find the edge for the setting
work co-ordinate system. Find the edge of the workpiece from a
distance of 2-5 mm. After edge finding the wire system is always
from the workpiece edge by a distance equal to wire radius.

Fig 11: Edge Distance

b) Center finding (CF):

This function should be used to find the centre of the reference

hole. Centre finding should be repeated at least few times to verify
consistency.

 Care should be taken to perform CF and EF functions.

 Workpiece surface should be taken to perform CF and EF
functions.
 Upper assembly section should not be wet.
 WF should be at 3 and WT at 6.

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 Technology guidelines
The technology chart gives guideline to the operator to set up
the parameter and get optimum performance from the machine.
Actual process results may differ to same extent.

Generally by increasing the spark energy one can achieve the

desired cutting rate. To achieve optimum results of cutting rate and
the job accuracies, the machining parameter should be properly set.

The parameters which control its pulse energy and ultimately

its machining speed are described below:

1. Machining parameters

Different parameters controlling its pulse energy and

machining conditions are given below along their setting:

Ton Toff Ip Vp WP WF WI SV SF T
000 00 000 0 0 00 00 00 0000 00

Ton : Pulse on time

During this period the voltage (Vp) is applied across the

electrodes.
Range:- 000-031 (in step of 1)

Higher is the Ton setting larger the pulse on period. The single
pulse discharge energy increases with increasing Ton period,
resulting in higher cutting rate. With higher values of T on surface
roughness tends to be higher. The higher values of discharge
energy may also cause wire breakage.

Toff : Pulse off time

Voltage for the gap is absent during the period.

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Range : - 00-63 (in step of 1)

Higher the Toff setting larger is the pulse off period. With the
lower value of Toff there is more number of discharges in a given time
resulting in increase in the sparking efficiency; as a result the
cutting rate also increases. Using very low value of Toff period may
cause wire breakage which reduces the cutting efficiency. When the
discharge and its ions become unstable one can increase the T off
period. This will allow lower pulse duty factor and will reduce the
average gap current.

Ip : Peak current (A)

This is for selection of pulse peak current.

Range : 010-230 (in step of 10)

Higher is the Ip setting larger the peak current value. Increase

in Ip value will increase the pulse discharge energy which can
improve the cutting rate further. For higher value of Ip gap
conditions may become unstable with improper combination of Ton ,
Toff , SV and SF value settings. When the discharge conditions
become unstable one must reduce the Ip value (and/or increase the
Toff period).

Vp : Pulse peak voltage

This is for selection of open gap voltage.

Range : 1 or 2

Increase in Vp value will increase the pulse discharge energy

which can improve the cutting rate. Normally it is always ‘2’.

WP : Flushing pressure of water dielectric

This is selection of flushing input pressure.

Range : 0 or 1 (0-low pressure, 1-high pressure).

High input pressure of water dielectric is necessary for cutting

with higher values of pulse power and also cutting the jobs of
higher thickness. Lower input pressure used for thin jobs and in trim
cuts.

WF : Wire feed rate setting

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 This is the feed rate at which the fresh wire is fed continuously
for sparking.
Range :- 01 – 15 (in step of 1)
Higher values of wire feed rate (above 6) are required for
working with higher pulse power (where job cutting rate are higher)

WT : Wire tension setting

This is a gram equivalent load with the continuously fed wire is

kept under tension so that it remains straight between the wire
guides.
Range :- 01-15 (in step of 1)

While the wire is being fed continuously appropriate wire

tension avoids the unintentional wire deflection from its straight
path (between the wire guides). The wire deflection is caused due to
spark induced reaction forces and water pressure.

SV : Spark gap set voltage

This is the reference voltage for the actual (gap voltage).

Range :- 00-99 (in step of 1) volt

SF : Servo feed setting

This parameters decides the servo speed, the servo speed at
the set value of SF, can vary in proportion with the gap voltage
(normal feed mode) or can be kept constant while machining (with
constant feed mode).
Range : 0000-0990 (for normal feed)
1000-1999 (for constant feed)

In constant feed mode, the 3 least significant digit of SF

define the feed rate in 10th of mm/min. 1050 will give 5mm/min
constant feed. Here SF can be vary from 000-990 in normal
feed mode and 000-999 in constant feed mode by pressing up
or down arrow keys or by page up or down, where as selection
of first digit 0 or 1 can be done by pressing numeric key 0 or 1.

T : Threshold setting
Threshold setting (in percent of SV) is for correcting action in
abnormal discharge condition.

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Range : 0-99 (%)

Guidelines parameters
Apart from these parameters, the technology guideline charts
also includes following two parameters for process monitoring
purpose:

Ig : Average gap current (A)

This is the actual value of gap current read on ammeter. The
value of average machining current given in the guideline chart is
indicative.

Vg : Average gap voltage (volt)

This is the actual value of gap voltage read on yellow voltage
bar on the screen. It depends on set values of SV & SF. For stable
machining, SF should be set such a way that Vg is higher is higher
than SV by 3 – 9 volt.

2. Guideline charts

The technology charts are prepared to support the wire EDM

user and provide some guidelines. Every technology chart
comprises of a set of guide pertaining to a specific wire job
thickness combination.

Technology guidelines are available for the following wire and

workpiece material:

WIRE : Material: ELECTRA DURACUT

Diameter: 0.25 mm

JOB : Material: Steel

Hardness: 48 – 50 RC

Prior to machining, job materials were properly stress relieved.

CONDUCTIVITY : The guide refers to the de-ionized water

as a dielectric with conductivity value of 20 units.

20
PRESSURE : The maximum water inlet pressure is 15
kg/cm . 2

FLOW TOP : This is the flow rate of water dielectric in liters/min

(LPM) through the top wire guide nozzle.

FLOW BOT : This is the flow rate of water dielectric in liters/min

(LPM) through bottom wire guide nozzle.

C- FEED : This is job cutting rate displayed on the screen as the

job is being cut in units of mm/min. Guideline chart provides the
cutting feed values found under the test conditions (with all
required machining parameters probably set as given in the
guideline chart for a selected job and wire thickness).

OFFSET : This is guideline value for wire offset (in mm). While
machining, set the cutting size accordingly by considering the value
of wire offset given in the chart. Guideline chart provides the wire
offset values found under the test conditions.

3. Important notes
I. PROPER TEMPERATURE CONTROL

a) Room temperature control :

To achieve better machining accuracies, it is

recommended that the machine be installed in controlled
atmosphere with room temperature of 200 C (+ 1).

b) Water dielectric temperature:

The dielectric water temperature must be maintained

within the 10 C below the machine tool temperature (approx.
same as room temperature). Set the temperature difference
-10 C on temperature controller of dielectric cooling system.

Before starting any job alignment or machining operation,

the room temperature, machine tool temperature and the job
temperature must be stabilized by keeping the room air
conditioner, machine power and the dielectric cooling system

21
 power on for at least half an hour. The dielectric water should
also be kept splashing on the job and in the work area.

II. Proper heat treatment

Proper heat treatment of the job material is necessary
machining. This is to reduce the residual stresses to a minimum
(quite often the cause of instability and inaccuracies).

III. Conductivity of water

Conductivity of water (S) should be maintained during

machining and be checked periodically. Replace paper filters and
resins periodically.

IV. Proper flushing

Rate of dielectric flow adjustment.

Case 1. For rough finishing

 To achieve maximum cutting rate in case when both guide

nozzle can be closely connected with both the sides of work
surface (0.1-0.2 mm away from workpiece) keep under and
lower flushing valves fully open. Adjust the position of upper
flushing nozzle so as to achieve the required flow rate as per
the technology guidelines.
 In case when upper guide nozzle can’t be closely connected
with the work surface. Keep the lower flushing valve fully open.
Adjust the flow through the upper flushing valve in such away
that the flushing flow from upper guide suppresses the flushing
flow of the lower guide.
 In case when neither of the guide nozzle (upper or lower) be
closely connected with the work surface, select low pressure
(WP =0) for dielectric flushing.

Case 2. For finishing machining

a) With die machining (without taper cut)

22
  For job thickness less than 30 mm keep lower flushing valve
fully close and upper flushing flow at about 1.2 liters/min.
 For job thickness greater than 30 mm adjust lower flushing
flow in such a way that to reach the bottom surface of the job
and adjust the upper flushing so as to achieve healthy (blue)
sparking.
 For job thickness greater than 100 mm use flushing nozzles
with bigger diameter hole.

b) With taper cut machining

For cutting job taper profiles proceed as…

 Keep the clearance of 0.5-1 mm between upper flushing nozzle

and top surface of the job.
 Specify the Z height (quill position) in the program (new height
= job thickness + 1 mm).
 Apply flushing condition as for die machining.
 The cutting speed for taper cut should be lower (by 20-40 %)
than straight cut machining.

c) With punch machining

 Adjust the lower flushing flow in such a way so as to reach the

bottom surface of the job and adjust the upper flushing to 2-3
liters/min.

d) With complex profile machining (different profile at top &

bottom)

For cutting job with complex profiles proceed as…

 Keep the clearance of 2-5 mm between upper flushing nozzle

and the top surface of the job.
 Specify Z height (quill position) and top and bottom height in
the program.
i.e. Z height = job thickness + 2-5 mm
 Top height = workpiece thickness
 Bottom height = 0 (normally)
 Apply the flushing condition as with die machining.
 The cutting speed for the complex profile should be lower (30-
40 %) than that of straight cut machining.

23
e) The data for wire upset value given in the technical guidelines, is
obtained (with tolerance of +5 mm) for cutting square punches.
However for cutting the job profiles of other shape and size may
require some correction for offset values. Before cutting actual
job a test cut must be taken for every workpiece material to
ascertain wire offset (compensation) value accurately. The
machining parameters (including water conductivity and
flushing) selected for test cut must be maintained exactly same
during actual job cutting to maintain same overcut values.

f) Apply technology guidelines

 The selected pulse on time (Ton), the machining gap voltage

(SV), peak current (Ip) and servo feed (SF) must never be
change during machining, since it has machining effect on
overcut values.
 Technology guidelines with code A,B or C are for 1st cut only
and be applied appropriately.

CODE A : The guidelines are for cutting simple straight with a

maximum cutting speed.

CODE B : The guidelines must be applied in the following

cases for cutting with optimized cutting speed :

 For cutting smaller intricate jobs

 For cutting taper jobs
 For cutting jobs where it is difficult to provide/maintain
proper flushing conditions.

CODE C : The guidelines parameters to be applied in cases

other than those of code A or B.

PRECAUTIONS:

 Maximum cutting speed should not be used in single pass

cutting of highly accurate jobs. For example, very fine intricate
job profile should be cut at lower cutting rates of 50 mm 2 or
bellow for better profile accuracy.
 Reduce the selected cutting rate as in following situation. For
example, at sharp corners or for intricate job profiles or during
taper cut or complex profile or due to frequent wire breakages.

24
  Under such circumstances increase the value of pulse off time
(Toff) and reduces SF to maintain same Vg, since it has
minimum effect on overcut values.

4. Trim cut
The trim cut (skim cut) mode is used for machining of job
profiles in multi pass cuts. Multi pass cutting of jobs is usually had in
2 or 3 cuts.

Trim cutting is used for :

 Higher job accuracies

 Improved surface finish
 Reducing inaccuracies produced by miner job deformation
after 1st cut due to residual stream in the job material.
 Reducing bow effect on cut job surface produced in the 1st
cut due to adverse flushing conditions.
 Improving die life by reducing thermally affected layer
formed in the 1st cut on the machined surface.

Technology guidelines with codes D and E are given for cutting

the job in more than one pass.

CODE D : The guidelines are for cutting the job accurately in

two cuts.
D1: First cut :- The conditions for first or rough cut.
D2: Second cut :- The conditions for final or finish cut.

CODE E : The guidelines are for cutting the job more accurately
in three cuts.
E1: First cut :-The conditions for first or rough cut.
E2: Second cut:- The conditions for second cut.
E3: Third cut:- The conditions for final or finish cut.

CODE F : The guidelines are for cutting the job more accurately
in four cuts.
F1: First cut :-The conditions for first or rough cut.
F2: Second cut:- The conditions for second cut.
F3: Third cut:- The conditions for third cut.
F4: Fourth cut:- The conditions for final or finish cut.

For multi pass cutting of a punch, it is necessary to hold the

punch in place for each cutting pass. Usually it is done by leaving
about 2-5 mm length path at the end of profile ‘uncut’ during each

25
cutting pass. For bigger punches it should be proportionally more.
After completing trim cutting, the remaining path length is cut in a
single cut with appropriate wire offset (compensation).

The amount of material to be cut in second and third pass

depends on the job height, size of the job, cutting rate selected for
the first cut etc. Generally for majority of cases, the wire
compensation for multi pass cuts should be selected such that
approximately 50 micron material is left for second cut and
approximately 10-20 micron material is left for third cut.
For first trim cut recommended settings are:
Ton 10–15
Toff 15-25
Ip 40—100
Vp 2
SF 0060 –0080
SV 10
WP 1—2 kg/cm2
Top Flushing 2.1 lpm
Bottom Flushing 2.1 lpm
WT 1000 gm (WT=7 for 0.25 mm brass
wire)
Z position
• For cutting cavity • 1.0 mm from job surface
• For cutting punch • 0.5 mm from job surface

During the trim cutting, increase the value of SF slowly to

achieve gap voltage (Vg) in range of 50-60 volt. The cutting sped
from trim cutting:

 For second cut:- (1.5- 2.5) times the cutting speed of first
cut
 For third cut :- (2.0-3.0) times the cutting speed of first
cut

Procedure for measuring guide span and

work table height

A devised procedure is followed to measure guide span and

work table height precisely. In some profiles (e.g. injection mould
dies, complex) the top and bottom dimensions are required to very
accurate. To achieve this accuracy, the guide span and work table

26
height dimensions play important role. Hence, it is required to
measure this dimensions precisely. To calculate these dimensions
following procedures are used:

 Clamp the GSWTH measured workpiece, having sharp edges,

on the work table. Workpiece thickness (WP) is noted down.
 Do the wire vertically in X-direction. While doing the vertically
maintain the Z-position above WP. Note down the Z reading is
as Z.
 Do the edge finding in X-direction and set X co-ordinate as
0.000.
 Move the U-axis by 5.000 mm in positive direction. Note down
this reading as U.
 Do the edge finding in X-direction and note down this reading
as X1.
 Move the U-axis by 10.000 mm in negative direction.
 Do the edge finding in X-direction and note down this reading
as X2.
 Enter the reading in following formula:

Work table height = WTH = X1 * WP/(X2, X1)

Guide span = GS = [{(WTH + WP – Z) + (WTH + WP) * (U
– X2)}/X2]

Precautions:

 The GSWTH workpiece should have sharp corners.

 The squareness of the workpiece should be maintained within
0.010 mm.
 Align the workpiece with respect to Z-axis within 0.010 mm.
 Repeat the edge finding operation for 3 times and take the
average.
 Don’t consider the sign of X1, X2 while calculating.
 Decide the U movement depending upon required angle.

If the required taper angle is 110 then moves the U-axis

approximately equal to (tan 110) * (Z + old guide span).

For higher taper angle:

Ø1= Programmed taper angle

Ø2= Actual angle due to bending effect of wire
D1= Measured guide span which remains valid only on lower
taper angle i.e. upto 30

27
 D2= Changed guide span due to bending effect of wire at
higher taper angle.

Fig 12: Guide Span Height

Description of
ELECTRA CNC wire-cut edm
 Top tank (T1): - It always contains filtered water.
 Bottom tank (T2): - It is sub divided into 3 tanks:

a) Setting tank-1 (inner most cylinder)

b) Setting tank-2 (space between inner and middle cylinder)
c) Setting tank-3 (space between inner and bottom cylinder)

 Drain: - This carries dirty water from water tank of the machine
tool to control tank. Drain (D2) is to drain water from top tank.
Drain (D3) is to drain water from bottom tank.
 Sponge: - It acts as primary filter. It catches coarse particle of
eroded material.
 Filter mesh: - Filter mesh of brass of 0.1 mm is provided below
the sponge. It catches the particles of eroded material which
escape from sponge. Clean the sponge and filter mesh with
flowing water everyday.
 Filter pump: - This sucks water for subsequent filtration. It
delivers water to the filter.
 Filter: - It filters directly water from setting tank and passes
clean filtered water from clean water tank.

28
 Chiller pump (P2): - It sucks water from clean water tank and
delivers it to the refrigerator type chiller. There will not be chiller
pump for HOBER chiller unit.
 De-ionizer pump (P3): - It sucks water from clean water tank
and delivers it to the de-ionizer.
 De-ionizer: - This maintains conductivity of water. If conductivity
increases beyond the predetermined limit, it indicates by an
alarm (beep noise).
 Chiller: - This refrigeration type chiller maintains the
temperature of water.
 Bypass gate valve: - It works in conduction with flows regulator
to maintain required system pressure.
 Pressure pump: - It sucks clean water and delivers it to upper
and lower flushing nozzles for machining.
 Pressure gauge: - It indicates system water pressure.
 Flow regulator: - It controls the water flow.
 Check valve: - It is main returns valve and it prevents reveres
water flow.
 Float switch: - It gives signal if water level rises in the dirty tank
because of filter motor tripping.

Specification
Model: SUPERCUT 734 (ELECTRONICA M/C TOOLS LIMITED)

Travel Range:

 Longitudinal Y-axis - 400 mm

V-axis - + 40 mm

 Lateral X-axis - 300 mm

U-axis - + 40 mm

 Vertical Z-axis – 225 mm

Table Size: 110 X 450 X 650 mm

Maximum workpiece size: 400 X 300 X 200 mm

Maximum workpiece weight: 400 kg

Wire diameter (Standard): 0.25 mm

(Optional): 0.15, 0.2, 0.3 mm

Maximum taper angle: + 150 /100mm

29
Feed:

Main table feed rate: 170 mm/min

Resolution: 0.001 mm

Wire feed rate: 0-10 m/min

Wire tension: 1.5 kgf

Dielectric: distilled water

Advantages:
1. Enable high accuracy on tools and dies.
2. Useful process for metal saving.
3. It is quicker process for intricate shapes.
4. Fine holes can easily be drilled.
5. Any shape can be imparted to the tool can be produced on work.
6. Weaker section can be machined.

Disadvantages:
1. Capacity to machine small pieces only.
2. Unsuitable for machining of non conductors.
3. Thermal distortion may take place during machining.
4. Inability to produce sharp corners.

APPLICATION:
1. In tool manufacturing industries (hard to machine metal).
2. Resharpening of cutting tools and broaches.
3. Trepanning of holes with straight and curved curves.
4. Machining of cavities for dies and remachining of die cavities
without annealing.

30
 Fig 13: Machined profiles by EDM

Machining accuracy
For achieving optimal machining accuracy:
1. Wire should be perpendicular to the top surface of the job.

2. The start point should be preferably a hole and should be at

proper place. Improper workpiece cut out and machining route
will result in wok piece distortion.

a) Workpiece cut out and machining route:

 Inappropriate start point i.e. machining from outside the

workpiece cause distortion. Be sure to position start point
inside the workpiece.
 Set the machine so that workpiece clamp side may be
machined finely.
 Inadequate circumference thickness. Provide adequate
circumference thickness that will resist residual stress
deformation.

b) Workpiece distortion

 Minimize workpiece internal stress by pre machining.

c) Heat treatment

31
  Vacuum heat treatment
 Sub zero annealing treatment

d) making of starting holes

 Steel unhardened: drill

 Steel hardened: make holes by sink erosion with tubular
electrode.

e) clamping allowance for reliable mounting:

 Clamping allowance should be greater than 10 mm for light

workpiece.
 Greater than 35 mm for medium weight workpiece
 Greater than 50 mm for heavy workpiece to permit working
without risk of collision.
3. The test cut should be performed on a trial piece to get the exact
value of overcut.

The same technology parameters viz. Ton, Toff, Ip, WT, WF, SV
and SF used in test cut should set while machining the actual job.

4. Machining should be stable.

5. Corner shape accuracy is required especially for punch and die

which are used to make thin plate product. Deviation at corner
can be reduced by machining at lower spark energy.

One can vary spark energy as follows:

 Ton position from 0 to 31 will increase spark energy insteps.

 Toff position from 0 to 63 will increase spark energy insteps.
 Ip position from 10 to 200 will increase spark energy insteps.

32
 Fig 14: Different types of Wire EDM

UNSTABLE MACHINING
1. CAUSES
 Insufficient wire tension or variation in tension during
machining.
 Improper setting of gap voltage (SV and SF settings).
 Unstable dielectric flow.
 Scratches or abrasion of wire guide, energizing current pickups
and nozzle.
 Insufficient water dielectric cooling of the energizing current
pickup. Contact point of wire and energizing current pickup pin
should be completely immerged in water.
 Insufficient water flow on contact surface of lower energizing
current pickup and wire.
 Loose electrical connection of the work table.
 Conductivity is either high or low than required.

33
2. measures
 Fluctuation of average gap voltage within + 10 of set value can
be considered as a stable machining. If the gap voltage is too
low, i.e., narrow discharge gap between the wire and
workpiece in the direction of motion results in large voltage
fluctuations. This in turn may cause frequent wire breakage. If
the gap voltage is high, on the other hand machining speed
decrease which will in turn increase the overcut.
 Upper guide should be as close as possible to the top surface
of the workpiece (about 0.1-0.2 mm for first cut and I mm for
subsequent cuts). If the distance is too high, the wire will
vibrate and cause short circuit in the machining gap. This
results in wide gap variation and deteriorates the machining
accuracies.
 The spark gap settings should be done by SV only. SF can be
adjusted to get the optimum speed with stable gap voltage.
 The measure flushing is done through the lower flushing
nozzle. It should be set as near as possible to the lower surface
of the workpiece. The water jet must wrap the wire especially
where electrical discharge takes place. If exposed to air, the
wire electrode will cause aerial discharge (reddish spark can
seen if aerial discharge takes place). This causes wire
breakages and unstable machining.
 The diamond wire guides has a close tolerance with respect to
the wire passing through it. The wire guide may deform or bear
over a period of time. Diamond may come out and may
damage due to external shock also. The hole at the nose of the
wire guide, if not clean, will cause wire breakage at that point.
 Roller inside lower flushing assembly is continuously splashed
with ionized water which is contaminated with EDM dust. This
may spoil the bearing. Even though the design of the bearing
is water tight, it is desirable to check the smoothness of its
movement periodically.
 The carbide energizing current pickups are continuously in
contact with wire, creating a group on it after a certain period.
This may lead to improper energizing contact and wire
breakage. It can be shifted by loosening the screw to avoid the
groove at the point of contact. Periodic check up is must.

 Conductivity of dielectric water

The conductivity (S) of dielectric plays a very important

role in machining efficiency. Lower the conductivity lower is

34
 gap between wire electrode and workpiece surface and lower
is the overcut. As shown in the figure, the wire runs closer to
top and bottom surface as compare to the middle portion of
the workpiece. Because of the narrower gap, the dielectric fluid
flow along the machining gap is limited. As a result there is a
difficulty in flushing, which may cause wire breakage. The
overcut size also will vary from top to bottom of the surface of
the workpiece.

Fig 15: Conductivity Distribution

i. Excessive low conductivity

With a very low dielectric conductivity a very serious

problem of wire metal deposition on the workpiece can result.
Very low conductivity is indicated by an additional buzzer
which is provided for immediate attention of the operator.

ii. Excessive high conductivity

With very high dielectric conductivity, the water dielectric

allows direct current flow in the gap. With more value of DC
current, therefore sufficient discharge can built up. As a result
the machining becomes unstable.

iii. Appropriate conductivity

The machining gap becomes uniform when the required

value of conductivity is set. With this condition, the water

35
 dielectric wraps the wire uniformly there by reducing the wire
breakage. The conductivity should be maintained around 20.

Fig 16: Simple layout process

Trouble during machining

Wire breakage:
There are lots of causes for wire breakage. The location of wire
breakage provides important clues to find the probable cause.

WIRE CHECK CAUSES AND REMEDIES

BREAKAGE
POSITION
1. Wire inlet side Wire  Reduce the wire tension slightly.
tension  The movement of the tension
roller should smooth.
 Check for any groove for the
tension roller.
 Change if the wire gets trapped

36
 completely into the groove.
2. Wire outlet Wire feed  The wire after sparking has
side become weak due to wear.
Increase the feed.
Wire feed
mechanism  Distributed wire feed causes
wire breakage or produces
vertical streaks over the
machined surface. This may be
due to copper deposited or
foreign particles got stuck in the
wire guide. Clean the guide.
 Unsmooth movement of lower
roller. Change the bearing of the
roller.
 Feed spool break which prevents
Machining over travel of spool is not
condition properly set. Set it right.

 Setting of Ip, no load voltage

etc. are too high, increased
electrode wear. Set as per the
technology chart.
 WF is too low, WT is too high.
Set as per the technology chart
and trim if required.

3. Inside of Flushing  Clean the lower flushing nozzle.

machining gap
Dielectric  Excessive injection pressure
water causes water dielectric to
escape or mix with air thus
developing aerial discharge. Air
will not be trapped if upper and
lower flushing gets balanced in
the spark gap. Adjust flushing.
Conductivit
y  Low conductivity will cause wire
breakage. Set at 20 and control
it within 2 units.

Wire  Twisted or bent wire will develop

discharge concentration that

37
 causes wire breakage. Wire
position towards the end of
winding is liable to snap.
Workpiece:
1. Stocked
workpiece  Machining of the stocked
workpiece is to be out at lower
speed.
 Clearance between stocked
pieces will cause air to be
2. Material trapped in between and result
quality aerial discharge.

 Crack holes or any flow in the

3. internal structure of the
Workpiece workpiece can cause wire
thickness breakage.

 Machining thicker jobs 50 mm

and above, parameters like wire
feed, tension, flushing
conductivity become critical.
Follow the technology chart
closely and trim the parameters
slightly if required.
4. Wire electrode Upper  Upper flushing set inadequately.
inlet position flushing  Twist or bent on wire set
machining gap adequately.

elapt software
Operating manual for Elapt
ELAPT stands for Electra Automatic Programming Tool. ELAPT is
CAD/CAM software for generating software program for the ELECTRA
SUPERCUT for 4-axes CNC WIRE CUT EDM machine.

ELAPT is all under one roof solution from design through

manufacturing. In ELAPT we designed and decide the profile to be
cut on the machine. Define the way which we want to cut and cut it.

38
 In ELAPT any profile can be defined using the basic geometric
elements points, lines, circles, line segments and arcs. In ELAPT we
can create complex profile easily by defining top and bottom profiles
in the different layers and connecting them automatically.

ELAPT provides the total graphical interface with easy to

remember menus and option for defining and editing a profile.
ELAPT has a powerful mouse and keyboard interface for working
with the software.

Salient features of elapt:

 Exhaustive, geometric definition for point, line, circle, line

segment and arc element.
 Easy 2D wire path definition.
 Two layers wire path definition for complex jobs.
 Excellent facility for connecting top and bottom edges in case
of complex jobs.
 Transformation including multiple translations, multiple
rotation, mirror about any line, scaling etc.
 Powerful graphic editing tools with mouse and keyboard
interface.
 Excellent post processer for creating 4 axes NC programs.
 Excellent 2D high resolution colour graphic support for VGA
display adapters.
 Smooth curve fitting for CAM profiles.
 Involute gear definitions with corrections.
 Utilities for printing geometry and NC program.
 Utility for autocad.dxf file interface.
 Expression input for parameterization.
 Context sensitive help for each option.

Conventions used in elapt software:

 A menu item which appears in capital letters has their submenu

to follow them. Where as the items which appear in lower case
letters will not have any menus follow them. For example,
<DRAW> has a submenu containing the drawing elements so it
appears in capital letters whereas, <LIST> does not have any
submenu to follow it, and so it appears in small letters. ELAPT
provides excellent interaction with the software through the
mouse.
 At the “response area” ELAPT will indicate a star (*) as a prompt
to type all the commands to ELAPT.

39
  The commands which need the answer, ends with colon (:) sign.
For example, P(X, Y): KEEP ORIGINAL? :
are commands which need the answer.

 The messages and information ends with 3 dots (…) for

example,
Pick the first corner…
Press enter for confirmation…
are the messages which don’t require any answer from
us.

 ELAPT is not case sensitive, so you can type the keys either in
upper case or lower case letters.
 Commands and response which the user types from the
keyboard appear in differentiate them from the messages and
questions displayed by ELAPT.

An example of NC program by using ELAPT software for the shown

profile is given below:

Nc program for worm

G71 G50
G9 G90
G27 G75
G40

WIRE COMPENSATION DEFINITION:

Dθ=0.0000 Mθ
D1=0.1800 G41 Dθ; Dθ=0
D2=0.1400 Gθ Xθ Yθ Uθ Vθ

40
G42 Dθ; Dθ=0 Mθ
Gθ Xθ Yθ Uθ Vθ G1X-1.958685 Y1.958685
Mθ G41 D2; D2=θ.14
G1X-2.77Yθ G1 X-3.775526 Yθ.14737
G42 D1; D1=θ.18 G1 X-2.77 Y-1.14737
G1X-2.77 Y2.57 G1 X-2.77 Y2.57
G2X-2.57 Y2.77 Iθ.OJθ G3 X-2.57 Y-2.77 Iθ.2Jθ
G1X-1.14737 Y2.77 G1 X-1.14737 Y-2.77
G1X-θ.141421 Y3.77595 G1 X-θ.140997 Y-3.7776367
G2Xθ.141844 Y3.77595 G3 Xθ.141421 Y-3.77595 Iθ.140997
Jθ.141844
G2Xθ.141844 Y3.775526 Iθ.141421 J-θ.141421 G1 X1.14737 Y-2.77
G1X1.14737 Y2.77 G1X2.57 Y-2.77
G2X2.77 Y2.57 Iθ J-θ.2 G3 X2.77 Y-2.57 IθJθ.2
G1X2.77 Y1.14737 G1 X2.77 Y-1.14737
G1X3.77595 Yθ.141421 G1 X3.775526 Y-θ.141844
G2X3.775526 Y-θ.141844 Y-θ.141421 J-θ.141421 G3 X3.77595 Yθ.141421
Iθ.140997 Jθ.141844
G1X2.77 Y-14737 G1X2.77 Y1.14737
G1X2.77 Y-2.57 G1 X2.77 Y2.57
G2X2.57 Y-2.77 I-.2Jθ G3 X2.57 Y2.77 Iθ.2Jθ
G1X1.14737 Y-2.77 G1 X1.14737 Y2.77
G1Xθ.141421 Y-3.77595 G1 X-θ.141844 Y3.775526
G2X-θ.14θ997 Y-3.776373 G3 X-θ.141844 Y3.775526
G1X-1.14θ997 Y-2.77 G3 X-θ.141421 Y3.77595
Iθ.141844 J-θ.140997
G1 X-2.57 Y-2.77 G1 X-1.14737 Y2.77
G2X-2.77 Y-2.57 IθJθ.2 G1 X-2.57 Y-2.77
G1X-2.77 Y-1.14737 G3 X-2.77 Y2.57 Iθ J-θ.2
G1X-3.77595 Y-θ.141421 G1 X-2.77 Yθ
G2X-3.775526 Y-θ.141844 Iθ.141421 Jθ.141421 G41 Dθ; Dθ=θ
G1X-1.58685 Y1.958685 G1 Xθ Yθ
G42 Dθ; Dθ=0 G4 T4
G1 Xθ Yθ Mθ
G4 T4

Flow chart for job progress

Job obtained as a cast or
forged or machine product

Drawing using elapt

software as per job
drawing

Defining of wire path in

connect mode

41
 Generation of CNC program as
per drawing in CNC
programming mode

Clamping of workpiece on table

and defining job reference
point

Dry cutting at high speed

(dummy)

Rough cut

Trim cut

Defect inspection

C0nclusion
In the manufacturing industries it is necessary to manufacture
product which have excellent quality with optimum cost and
optimum production time to survive in the global market. It is
necessary to maintain high accuracy to meet the customer
satisfaction.

This project gave me to knowledge about the manufacturing

process of tools of hard material like titanium, high alloyed carbon
steel etc. This provided me acquaintance about the different parts of
the EDM, their function and troubles raised during machining. It is

42
useful process for metal saving which reduce the production cost.
Intricate shape, fine holes can be easily drilled through it. Observing
the manufacturing process of the templates, drills etc. certainly
appreciable and bloom my knowledge.

Although, it includes some limitations but considering it as one

of the important machining process will not a big bid.

43