EFH43S/I Wire EDM Machine

Features:

> Servo Motor Driver

> Extra Wide "T" Type machine Base

>  "C" Type Frame Stucture

> Branded THK Ball Screw & Linear Guide Rail

> Double Directions Intelligent Auto Wire Tension Device

> Win XP / AutoCut / Esuntek control system

> Industrial PC supports USB & LAN

> Large Capacity Database

> Wire Winding Drum stability system

> High Precision Diamond Wire Guider

> Remote Jog Handle

> 180L Extra-Large Capacity Water Tank

> 2 working pumps & 4 Layers Filters

> Automatic Central Lubrication System

> 1-Year Warranty / Lifetime Maintenance

> Free Training (in Esuntek plant)

> Reliable & Efficient after-sales service

> Included all necessary accessories and tools

> Long terms favorable price support of consumable & spare parts

A Brief Bit of EDM History

The electrical discharge machining (EDM) process as we know it today started with the observations of Joseph Preistly in 1770. He noticed that electrical discharges had removed material from the electrodes in his experiments. This is also known as electro-discharge erosion.

In the 1940s two Soviet researchers, the Lazarenkos, developed a machining process that formed the foundation for modern wire EDM and small hole EDM. Practical electrical discharge machines were eventually developed, using more powerful pulse generators, automatic repeated discharge and steady dielectric fluid flow to control the process.

EDM is also known as: spark machining, spark eroding, and die sinking.

illustration of the positive and negative charges of the edm process

The tool electrode (upper) and workpiece electrode (lower) are connected to a power supply which generates electrical potential between them.

How Electrical Discharge Machining Works

The basic electrical discharge machining process is really quite simple. An electrical discharge (spark) is created between two electrodes (solid electric conductors). The tool electrode is typically referred to as the electrode, and the workpiece electrode as the workpiece. The spark is visible evidence of the flow of electricity. This electric spark produces intense heat with temperatures reaching 8000 to 12000 degrees Celsius, melting/vaporizing almost any conductive material. These rapid, repeated electrical current discharges take place in a very small gap between the two electrodes, which never come in contact with each other. The spark gap (aka discharge gap, electrode gap) is maintained by adaptive machine controls to ensure a constant, stable distance as the electric discharge occurs up to millions of times per second.

illustration of how electrical discharge machining works to erode the surface of a workpiece

Illustration of electric discharge machining. The electrode (yellow) moves closer to the workpiece (blue) as the electric discharge (red) erodes the workpiece material. Machine automation maintains the spark gap so the process is continuous.

The spark is very precisely controlled and localized so it only affects the surface of the material. The EDM process usually does not affect the heat treat below the surface. Both the tool and workpiece are submerged in dielectric (not conductive) fluid, typically deionized water.

The spark always takes place in the dielectric fluid. The conductivity of the deionized water is carefully controlled, creating an ideal environment for the EDM process. The deionized water also provides cooling during the machining process, and flushes away the tiny eroded metal particles.

Electrical discharge machining is considered a non-traditional machining method because it uses electric discharge to remove material from the workpiece. This is in contrast to traditional machining methods such as drilling or grinding which use mechanical force to remove material.

What is Wire Electrical Discharge Machining?

Wire EDM is also known as: wire-cut EDM, wire cutting, EDN cutting, EDM wire cutting, wire burning, wire erosion, wire cut electric discharge machining, and ‘cheese-cutter’ EDM.

Wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM) uses a metallic wire to cut or shape a workpiece, often a conductive material, with a thin electrode wire that follows a precisely programmed path. Typically the electrode diameters range from .004″ – .012″ (.10mm – .30mm), although smaller and larger diameters are available.

During the wire cutting process there is no direct contact between the wire and the workpiece which allows for machining without causing any distortion in the path of the wire, or the shape of the material. To accomplish this, the wire is very rapidly charged to a desired voltage. The wire is also surrounded by deionized water. When the voltage reaches the correct level, a spark jumps the gap and melts a small portion of the work piece. The deionized water cools and flushes away the small particles from the gap.

The hardness of the work piece material has no detrimental effect on the cutting speed. Extrusion dies and blanking punches are very often machined by wire cutting.

How Wire EDM Works – A basic introduction to the wire EDM process.

6 Common Questions About Wire EDM

Want to know what else Wire EDM can do?

1. What’s the maximum material thickness you can cut? While entry-level EDM machines typically only cut materials up to about 8” thick, Arbiser Machine’s high-tech equipment slices materials up to almost 15.75”.

2. What materials can you cut? We can cut anything capable of conducting electricity, including: Inconel, titanium, aluminum, stainless steel, carbon steel, carbide, and more.

3. How accurate is Wire EDM? Our state-of-the-art EDM machines have positioning and contour accuracy of +/- 2 microns (0.00008”) which means they are more accurate than we can effectively measure.

4. What kind of surface finish can you obtain with Wire EDM? We do three kinds of cuts: rough cuts, finish cuts and surface finish cuts. With polish passes, we can get down to Ra 0.08µm for many materials, eliminating the need for additional finishing operations. The end result is a finishing that’s super smooth at a microscopic level. (With additional operations, we can achieve a mirrored finish of 2 µin.)

5. How big of a part can you cut? We can cut parts using x, y, z travels of approximately 23.62” in the  X,  13.77” in the Y, and 15.75” in Z.

6. How many parts can you make at a time? Depending on their size, we can make multiple parts simultaneously using our extensive 3R tooling that accurately loads multiple jobs at a time into the machine. We can also stack parts on top of each other and drop a wire down the same path, pulling 16, 20, even 40 pieces out at the same time with a single cut.

7. How does Wire EDM compare in price to CNC machining? There’s a misconception that Wire EDM is expensive. The truth is that when used correctly, spark machining can achieve the most complex features for a reasonable price.