MATRIX® SILVER CLAMP IN MACHINING AT DAIMLER AG

In the Daimler AG’s factory in Untertürkheim, vehicle parts are manufactured in the rapid prototyping division for a later serial productionTo achieve this, materials from aluminum to high-quality stainless steel have to be processed. These parts are just as complex as they are sensitive to workpiece clamping.

In the past, Matthias Miller and Bastian Bosl, both employed by Daimler in the rapid prototyping division, often were confronted with the problem of how to, for example, positively clamp an unmachined mirror holder or a raw intake manifold on the 5-axis machining center in order to mill the first surface. Nowadays, they simply snap the SILVER CLAMP top jaws by MATRIX® into the already existing vices. Subsequently, the complexly shaped workpiece creates an indentation or adaptation in the absolutely correct shape just by a light spring pressure onto the movable pins. “In a matter of seconds, I obtain a form fit to the given, complex actual shape of the workpiece”, Miller puts it straight.

Controlled clamping of the workpiece: In this case, the shape is being mechanically fixed – and the clamping jaws are ready. Now the workpiece can be clamped coordinatedly with the vice. The principle behind the flexible MATRIX® pin systems is the idea to shape the support directly by using the workpiece itself. Against the light spring pressure of the individually coordinated pins, one creates a perfectly shaped indentation with the soft push of the original workpiece.

This form is being mechanically fixed. And the part-specific and stabile form support is ready. What was previously only possible by using expensively milled or molded supports, can be done in less than no time. While conventional supports can be used exclusively for a single workpiece, the MATRIX® pin system adapts to any component. The integrated air purge system makes it easier to perform maintenance work when needed and ensures that everything functions reliably. In the prototype construction at Daimler, the Silver Clamp convinces with its high flexibility, quick convertibility, and easy handling. After all, constructive changeovers are daily business of this department and lead to rapidly changing clamping situations. “The Silver Clamp system is ideally suited for our challenging components”, as Miller and Bosl confirm unanimously. With the large number of defined clamping points, damage to the surface and shape of the workpiece is being prevented. At Daimler, this was previously only possible by the use of expensively manufactured molded jaws. The classic three-point support is rarely used nowadays because the stable form fit of the Silver Clamp eliminates the vibrations during the milling process and thus the quality gets increased.

The robust design and the easy cleaning of the Silver Clamp systems ensures that the clamping jaws can optimally cope with chips, cooling lubricants, and normal machining forces.