Digital toolholding

Schunk’s iTENDO sensory toolholder puts the power of data in your hands. Users can monitor machining processes at high resolution at the tool and control cutting parameters in real-time. The required acceleration sensor and electronics are integrated into the toolholder without affecting its interfering contour and other characteristics.

The iTENDO seamlessly records the metal cutting process, monitors previously defined exact limit values, and in the event of irregularities enables real-time adaptive control of the speed of rotation and feed rate, among other measures.

Equipped with a sensor, battery, and transmitting unit, the intelligent toolholder records the data at the tool and transmits it wirelessly via Bluetooth to a receiver unit in the machine room, where it is forwarded by cable to a control and evaluation unit. This makes the system fundamentally different to other solutions for process monitoring by providing precise process data. In pilot applications, the intelligent mounting has proven performance for milling, drilling, countersinking, and even deburring.

This information collection closes the loop on industry 4.0 machine processes and takes the guesswork out of machine adjustments.

Schunk is standardizing the iTENDO for the common interface HSK-A 63 with clamping diameters from 6mm to 32mm and a length of 130mm. The sensory toolholder is suitable for the use of coolant and is designed for speeds of up to 10,000rpm. The commissioning and data analysis is carried out via a browser-based dashboard on standard PCs, tablet computers, or smartphones.

In the simplest configuration, which can be implemented completely without machine-side adjustments, the live data from the sensor can be displayed on the Schunk dashboard via a local connection. For this purpose, Schunk provides a special case system with integrated display, enabling toolholder commissioning within two hours and with minimal effort.

In a second configuration, the real-time controller is ideally connected to the machine control system by a service technician via digital or analog I/O so that, for example, alarms can be triggered or processes can be adaptively controlled.

The third and most sophisticated configuration enables additional information exchange with the machine (e.g. in the case of the latest Siemens control system via OPC UA). All variants can also be operated and centrally controlled via a cloud solution.