What Is Wire EDM?
by
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What exactly is wire electrical discharge machining, also referred to as Wire EDM? Wire EDM is the process whereby hard metals, those that previously could not be machined or manipulated by traditional methods, could now be machined, manipulated and designed by electrical charges in order to cut away the unwanted metal into heretofore unattainable shapes and designs with greater tolerances and precision.
The one limiting requirement for wire EDM is that the material must be electrically conductive. An example of traditional machining is putting a metal pipe on a lathe and turning it while cutting it with a carbide tip or some other similar cutting tool; in much the same way that wood is lathe-cut. While this is a pretty elementary example and shows how wide variances can be from product to product, wire EDM can allow companies to now manufacture much more elaborate items from metals heretofore incapable of being worked, even cutting shapes into 3D and extremely intricate Jewelry designs.
There are two general types of Electrical Discharge Machining, ram EDM and wire EDM. For the scope of this document, we will only discuss the latter - wire EDM.
Observed originally by Joseph Priestly in 1770, electrical discharge machining had its start but was very imprecise and prone to failures. However, it was not until it was fully developed and commercially available in the mid-1970s that wire EDM began its rapid rise and came into its own in the 1980s when it migrated into a machine tool and became much more widely available and attractive over the traditional machining processes. In attempts to work with metals that were harder and to increase the precision of the cut, wire EDM allows just for that ability and precision.
Some of the types of industries that benefit from utilizing wire EDM include jewelry designers, metal shops, automotive manufacturing plants, artists who work with metals, as well as plants that specialize in wire EDM to supply parts to various industries, to name a few benefactors.
Because of wire EDM, we have automobiles whose engines are much more efficient as well as appliances that long surpass the life expectancy of those built before the advent of wire EDM. Because of wire EDM, we are much more capable of producing durable goods while best utilizing raw natural resources, which is good for everyone.
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Wire EDM Info provides detailed information about wire EDM machines, machining, heat affected zone, technology and more. Wire EDM Info is the sister site of
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Electrical Discharge Machining Additional Electrical Discharge Machining Articles
Wire EDM Machining Wire Electrical Discharge Machining, Wire EDM, is a machining process that utilizes a wire filament that carries an electrical charge through the wire and is used to cut away the hard metal elements.
Wire EDM Machines: An Overview While there are many brands and models of Wire EDM machines available today, the three most prominent manufacturers are Elox, Japax, and Mitsubishi.
Used Wire EDM Machines Unfortunately, while the downturn in the economy in the United States has been an unwelcome event, there are numerous great deals one can find with used wire EDM sales on machines including the Elox-Fanuc, Japax, and Mitsubishi as well as numerous other brands.
Advances in Wire EDM Technology With modern wire EDM machines utilizing CNC (the Computer Control, or the brains of the machine if you will) for production, there is a user-interface device, the computer, where the worker will input the required data for design that will eventually guide the wire EDM machine during the passes and cuts in the process of creating the final product. Moreover, like any computer today, software is needed to run the equipment. This is no different in wire EDM. The CNC Controller and the software application comprise the wire EDM technology.
Wire EDM and the "Heat Affected Zone" In Wire Electrical Discharge Machining (Wire EDM), the process of tooling by using electricity to cut the materials, there is an area that is known as the Heat Affected Zone. What this means is that wherever the electrical wire passes to make the cut, heat is a generated by-product of the electrical cut. The area where the cut is made is known as the heat affected zone.
