Classification and Application of 4 Sided Planer Moulders

The 4 sided planer moulder is a woodworking machine tool, mainly used to process wooden products such as wood squares, boards, decorative wood lines, wooden floors, etc. It improves processing capacity and production efficiency by planing the top, bottom and sides of the wood, while also improving the wood yield and product quality.

The classification of 4 sided planer moulders is usually divided into three types: light, medium, and heavy. The main parameter for measuring the processing capacity of 4 sided planer moulders is the maximum width of the workpiece, followed by the feed speed, the number of cutter shafts, and the cutting power value.

Light 4 Sided Planer Moulders

Light 4 sided planer moulders are generally equipped with 4 cutting cutter shafts, and their processing width is 20–180 mm. The arrangement of the cutter shafts is usually two horizontal cutter shafts and two vertical cutter shafts, of which the upper horizontal cutter shaft and the left vertical cutter shaft can be moved and adjusted relative to the other two cutter shafts. Feeding adopts full-length traction of the roller or starting end roller push feeding.

Medium 4 Sided Planer Moulders

Medium 4 sided planer moulders are generally equipped with 5 or 6 cutting cutter shafts, and their processing width is 20–230 mm. The arrangement and order of the first four axes of the 5-axis moulder are exactly the same as those of the 4-axis moulder. The 5th cutting tool is a rotatable cutter axis, which is mainly used for forming milling processing; or the 5th cutter axis is a lower horizontal cutter axis, which is mainly used for precise size processing. The 6-axis moulder is based on the 5-axis moulder. A lower horizontal cutter axis is added in front of all the cutter axes, equipped with a toothed milling cutter, and the lower surface of the wood workpiece is processed twice to obtain an accurate processing reference and ensure processing accuracy.

Heavy-Duty 4 Sided Planer Moulders

The heavy-duty moulder has 7 or 8 cutting axes, and its processing width is more than 200 mm. The heavy-duty moulder is mostly improved on the basis of the 6-axis moulder. According to different processing purposes, the last two cutter axes can be changed in various ways. The main purpose is to process high-precision reference surfaces or forming surfaces.

Usually, a 7-axis moulder is formed by adding a rotating cutter shaft to the rear end of a 6-axis moulder, and two rotating cutter shafts are used to process more complex surfaces; or a vertical cutter shaft is added to the 6-axis moulder, and the vertical cutter shaft and the rotating cutter shaft are used to process complex surfaces. The 8-axis moulder is generally 2 up, 2 down, 3 vertical plus 1 rotating cutter shaft, or 2 up, 2 down, 2 vertical and 2 rotating cutter shafts, which are used to process larger molding surfaces or perform precise cross-sectional dimension processing. A few heavy-duty planers are equipped with a scraper box or sanding roller at the rear end, and their purpose is also to obtain precise size and shape.

• Light Planers
  Used to process square materials with smaller lengths and better rigidity, or boards with a thickness-to-width ratio of less than 1:4. When the length is less than 1 m, the raw material can be directly processed by the moulder, and it can also be used for the tenoning and grooving of standard board square materials.
• Medium Planers
  Used for processing square materials or forming surfaces with standard cross-sectional shapes. The 5-axis 4 sided planer can process one forming surface, and the 6-axis 4 sided planer is mainly used for processing planes or forming surfaces with high precision requirements. The two lower horizontal planers at the front end of the 6-planer process the workpiece twice, mainly to improve the accuracy of the positioning reference.
• Heavy-Duty 4 Sided Planers
  There are two situations: one is that the workpiece to be processed has a simple cross-sectional shape, and the processing accuracy and surface finish requirements are not high, but the length of the workpiece is large. The feed speed of the machine tool used for this type of processing is very high, the processing volume is large, the machine tool has high power, and the rough material can meet the requirements after one cutting process, such as car box panels; the other is to process complex forming surfaces with high precision and high surface finish requirements. The feed speed of this type of processing is not high, but the speed of the cutter shaft is high, the processing volume is not large, and the machine tool requires at least one cutter shaft to rotate, such as processing wood lines, tongue-and-groove floors, etc.

When selecting a multi-axis forming milling machine tool, the main focus is to choose the number of cutter shafts and the adjustment range between the cutter shafts. Generally, it is necessary to consider factors such as the shape of the workpiece being processed, batch size, direction of feeding, positioning, processing reference, and the convenience of the workpiece passing through the cutter axis. Due to different conditions in the use environment, the workpiece being processed varies, so there is no fixed principle when selecting. Usually, a main processing direction is considered, taking into account the requirements of other aspects, to meet the most processing needs while minimizing costs and ensuring simple and convenient operation and maintenance.

1.Determine the Processing Width and Number of Cutter Axes According to the Cross-Sectional Shape of the Workpiece Being Processed

The processing width and number of cutter axes of the 4 sided planer determine the processing capacity of the machine tool, as well as the cross-sectional size and shape of the workpiece that can be processed.

In general, a 4-axis 4 sided moulder can meet the requirements for processing workpieces with regular cross-sectional shapes; when processing line workpieces with one surface as a profile and the other as a plane, a 5-axis 4 sided moulder with a rotatable cutter axis can meet the requirements; when processing complex cross-sectional shapes, such as opening mortises, tenons, and milling decorative surfaces, a 6-axis or 7-axis 4 sided moulder is required.

Select the processing capacity of the machine tool according to the batch of possible workpieces to be processed. The processing capacity of the 4 sided planer is mainly determined by the feed speed, cutter shaft speed, and cutting power of the machine tool.

In general, when the feed speed is high, the cutting amount (i.e., the cutting width and thickness) should be small, and the cutter shaft speed should be increased.

When the feed speed is low, the cutting amount can be appropriately increased, and the cutter shaft speed can be reduced accordingly to meet the power requirements of the motor. However, if the speed is too low, it will affect the surface finish of the processed workpiece. Within the allowable range, the higher the speed, the more beneficial it is to improve the surface quality of the workpiece.

2.Determine the Mutual Position and Feeding Method of the Machine Tool Cutter Shaft According to the Size Specifications and Accuracy of the Workpiece to be Processed

The maximum width of the workpiece processed by the 4 sided planer is the main parameter of the machine tool. The cross-sectional size, width, and height of the workpiece determine the limit range of adjustment between the upper and lower horizontal cutter shafts and the left and right vertical cutter shafts of the 4 sided planer, as well as the adjustment and positioning accuracy of the cutter shaft.

In general, the cutter shafts of the machine tool should not be at the limit position of their adjustable range, and a certain margin should be left; otherwise, it will affect the processing accuracy. The feeding method affects machining accuracy because it influences the positioning and clamping of the workpiece during machine tool processing.

Usually, for thin and long plates and workpieces with poor rigidity, the clamping force of each roller of the feeding mechanism should be small, and the clamping roller should be increased accordingly. For short square materials and workpieces with good rigidity, the clamping force of each roller of the feeding mechanism can be increased, and the clamping roller can be reduced accordingly.