The components of new energy vehicles can be produced through five-axis machining. The following introduces the advantages, precision requirements, and types of components that can be machined using five-axis machine tools for various components in new energy vehicles such as battery housings, motor housings, and vehicle wheels.
-
Advantages:
- Improving Machining Efficiency:
- Reducing Clamping Times: Five-axis machine tools can complete the machining of multiple surfaces in a single clamping. For the components of new energy vehicles with complex shapes, this significantly reduces the clamping times and clamping time. For example, when machining a motor housing, traditional machine tools may require multiple clampings to complete the machining of different parts, while a five-axis machine tool can do it in one clamping, saving more than 70% of the clamping time.
- Higher Cutting Speeds: Five-axis machining can ensure that the cutting tool is tangent to the cutting surface. This arrangement allows the tool to remove more material with each rotation, thereby increasing the machining efficiency and reducing the machining cycle. Compared with traditional machining methods, the cutting speed of five-axis machining can be increased by 30% – 50%.
- Enhancing Machining Precision:
- Capability of Machining Complex Contours: The components of new energy vehicles often have complex geometric shapes. Five-axis machine tools can machine the parts in multiple directions, well adapting to the machining requirements of these complex shapes. For example, various curved surfaces and reinforcing ribs on the battery housing can be precisely machined by five-axis machine tools, with a machining precision of ±0.01mm, ensuring the precision and quality of the components.
- Reducing Errors: Five-axis machine tools have high motion precision and reduce the errors caused by multiple clampings and repositioning during the machining process, improving the dimensional and geometric precision of the components. For vehicle wheels, which have high precision requirements, five-axis machining can ensure the roundness, flatness and other precision indicators of the wheels, improving the quality and reliability of the products.
- Meeting Special Process Requirements:
- Machining Special Materials: To improve the cruising range and reduce the vehicle weight, new energy vehicles extensively use lightweight materials such as aluminum alloys and carbon fiber composite materials. Five-axis machine tools can effectively machine these materials and select appropriate machining parameters and cutting tools according to the characteristics and machining requirements of the materials to ensure the machining quality. For example, when machining carbon fiber composite materials, five-axis machine tools can precisely control the cutting force and cutting speed to avoid delamination and damage to the materials.
- Machining Internal Structures: The inside of the motor housing usually requires the machining of complex cooling channels and mounting holes and other structures. Five-axis machine tools can precisely machine these internal structures through flexible control of the motion axes, meeting the heat dissipation and mounting requirements of the motor. Moreover, five-axis machine tools can use smaller diameter cutting tools to enter narrow spaces for machining, improving the feasibility and precision of the machining.
- Increasing Design Flexibility:
- Supporting Customized Production: The new energy vehicle market has an increasing demand for personalized products. Five-axis machine tools can quickly adapt to different design requirements and support small-batch or even single-piece customized production. Designers can design the shapes and structures of components more freely, and five-axis machine tools can accurately transform the designs into actual products, meeting the diverse needs of the market.
- Facilitating Design Optimization: During the machining process, five-axis machine tools can provide real-time feedback on machining information, helping designers and engineers understand the machining situation of the components, timely discover and solve problems. This helps to optimize and improve the design, improving the performance and quality of the products.
- Improving Machining Efficiency:
-
Precision Requirements:
- Dimensional Precision: The dimensional precision requirements of the components of new energy vehicles are very high. For example, the length, width, and height dimensional tolerances of the battery housing are generally required to be within ±0.1mm to ensure the correct installation and use of the battery. The dimensional precision requirements of the mounting holes on the motor housing are even higher, with the tolerance usually within ±0.05mm to ensure the accurate assembly of the motor with other components.
- Geometric Precision: For vehicle wheels, the roundness, cylindricity and other geometric precision requirements are relatively high. The roundness error is generally required to be within ±0.05mm, and the cylindricity error is required to be within ±0.03mm to ensure the smooth rotation and driving safety of the wheels. The flatness, perpendicularity and other geometric precision requirements of the motor housing are also strictly required. The flatness error is usually within ±0.03mm, and the perpendicularity error is within ±0.02mm to ensure the normal operation and service life of the motor.
- Surface Quality: The surface quality of the components of new energy vehicles directly affects the appearance and performance of the products. For example, the surface of the battery housing needs to have good flatness and smoothness, with the surface roughness generally required to be between Ra0.8 – Ra1.6μm to ensure the heat dissipation effect and sealing performance of the battery. The surface of the vehicle wheels needs to be polished, with the surface roughness required to be between Ra0.4 – Ra0.8μm to improve the aesthetics and corrosion resistance of the wheels.
-
Types of Components that Can be Machined:
- Structural Components:
- Battery Housing: It is a key structural component of new energy vehicles, usually made of aluminum alloy or high-strength steel plate, used to protect the battery module. Five-axis machine tools can machine complex curved surfaces to ensure the precision and strength of the battery housing, and can also machine the mounting holes, heat dissipation holes and other structures on the battery housing.
- Sub-frame: As an important part of the vehicle suspension system, the sub-frame needs to bear the weight of the vehicle and various forces during driving. Five-axis machine tools can machine a complex structure with high precision requirements for the sub-frame, meeting the performance requirements of the new energy vehicle suspension system.
- Integrated Rear Base: The integrated rear base of new energy vehicles usually has a complex structure and needs to integrate the installation positions of multiple components. Five-axis machine tools can machine from multiple angles to ensure the precision and quality of the components, providing convenience for the subsequent assembly work.
- Power System Components:
- Motor Housing: The motor is the core component of new energy vehicles, and the machining precision of the motor housing directly affects the performance and reliability of the motor. Five-axis machine tools can machine the cooling channels, mounting holes and other structures inside the motor housing, ensuring the heat dissipation effect and mounting precision of the motor.
- Motor End Cover: The motor end cover is used to seal the motor and also plays a role of supporting and fixing the motor rotor. Five-axis machine tools can machine the mounting holes, sealing grooves and other structures on the motor end cover, ensuring the sealing and running stability of the motor.
- Electronic Control Housing: The electronic control system is the control center of new energy vehicles, and the electronic control housing needs to have good protection performance and heat dissipation performance. Five-axis machine tools can machine the heat dissipation holes, mounting holes and other structures on the electronic control housing, meeting the use requirements of the electronic control system.
- Driving System Components:
- Vehicle Wheel: The wheels of new energy vehicles usually need to be lightweight and high-strength. Five-axis machine tools can machine a complex structure of the wheels, such as the complex shape and pattern of forged wheels, to meet these requirements. At the same time, five-axis machining can ensure the precision and dynamic balance performance of the wheels, improving the driving safety and comfort of the vehicle.
- Steering System Components: The steering system components of new energy vehicles, such as the steering joint and steering arm, need to have high precision and high reliability. Five-axis machine tools can perform high-precision machining to ensure the exactness and reliability of the steering system, ensuring the handling performance of the vehicle.
- Other Components:
- Vehicle Sunroof Guide Rail: The sunroof guide rail requires precise dimensions and good surface smoothness. Five-axis machine tools can provide these precision machining services, ensuring the smooth opening and closing of the sunroof.
- Vehicle Pedal: The pedal needs to have good grip and durability. Five-axis machine tools can machine a pedal with anti-slip texture, improving the safety of the driver’s operation.
- Vehicle Decoration Strip: The vehicle decoration strip usually requires good appearance and surface treatment. Five-axis machine tools can perform fine machining to reach the design requirements, enhancing the overall aesthetics of the vehicle.
- Structural Components:
