Coil winding machine - version 2

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JimGore

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I started building my new winding machine a couple of days ago.  Things are going slow at the moment - my day job is trying desperately to consume all my free time...

The initial idea was to make the entire thing out of aluminium, and that would have been great, except that I don't really have machines and tools to work with metal much.  A simple thing like milling slots in wood is easy for me, but becomes nearly impossible to do accurately when working with metal.

So, with that in mind I decided to go with my old trustworthy companion - MDF.  Who said you cannot make precision equipment out of MDF anyway?  True, it's not as strong as aluminium, but then the winding machine doesn't need to be insanely strong either as it will never be subject to much stress.

Let's discuss some of the main design considerations for the machine:
1.  No steel, ferrite, or brass near the coil winding area - this messes with the inductance, and makes it impossible to measure while winding. 
    In order to achieve this, I will work with aluminium, copper, and nylon - especially in the driveshaft which is the most critical part.

2.  As little play and buckle in the main drive shaft as possible.  The old machine had about 2mm worth of buckle in the shaft. 
    That could not be helped because of the way we made it, but I will do better this time.  Solutions to this problem is:
    a.  Convert from direct drive to timing belt drive.  That will eliminate any possible issues on the motor spindle.
    b.  Use 3 bearings on the driveshaft - one on either side of the gear on which the belt runs, and another on the far end of the machine.
    c.  No more using threaded rods inside the copper tubing to keep everything together - all parts will have threads on them for direct coupling.

3.  Guide system for the wire as it is wound onto the coil bobbin.  Thought about automating this, but it's just too much hassle for the time being, so manual it is. 
    Perhaps some other time when I am bored  ;D

I finally managed to get my hands on a lathe.  It is a 1.1kW geared head lathe with a 38mm spindle bore and 550mm between centres, and takes 16mm tooling.  Speed range from 60 rpm upwards.  It is HEAVY!!!  While this machine has largely made it possible for me to get this project under way, I can honestly tell you that it was (and still is) a serious learning curve to work it in such a way as to get accurate parts from it.

As usual, I have some pics to take you through the highlights of the project as it unfolds:
1.  These are the main parts of the machine frame.  The left, centre, and right sides.
2.  The frame right after assembly.
3.  Alignment of the main driveshaft holes.
4.  Sealed bearing in its place.

...contiunued...
 

Attachments

  • 01 Case parts.JPG
    01 Case parts.JPG
    59.9 KB · Views: 129
  • 02 Case Assembled.JPG
    02 Case Assembled.JPG
    61.7 KB · Views: 129
  • 03 Alignment.JPG
    03 Alignment.JPG
    49.4 KB · Views: 128
  • 04 Bearing.JPG
    04 Bearing.JPG
    56.9 KB · Views: 128

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