Machine Tool Magic

Klingelnberg open house highlights gear production technologies

Klingelnberg recently invited customers to its first Open House in Saline and the two-day event did not disappoint. Customers from major automotive, off-highway, construction and agriculture OEMs attended a morning of technical presentations before heading into the showroom to learn more about Klingelnberg’s latest machine tool technology.

“Work hard and play hard is our motto at Klingelnberg America,” said Fabian Wolf, CEO. “We’re extremely excited to share some insightful educational presentations as well as live demonstrations highlighting our machine tool capabilities over the next two days." 

Technology and innovation

The team at Klingelnberg is seeing changing opportunities in manufacturing today including increased quality requirements, a greater demand for simple and efficient operability and more flexibility in production—this according to Patrick Helmecke, head of application engineering at Klingelnberg. In 2025, Klingelnberg is putting greater emphasis on data driven quality management, power skiving on bevel gear machines, face couplings and advancements to the smart factory.

“Regarding data driven quality management, we’re providing a system for monitoring and improving the quality of gears ground in your shop floor,” Helmecke said. 

This helps make production transparent and assists customers in identifying and solving quality problems in their facilities. Additionally, the company is looking into further innovations on noise-optimized bevel gears, polishing of automotive gears, wobble compensation and advancements to optical/hybrid metrology.

In the case of producing high quality gears for automotive applications, Helmecke discussed how the SpeedViper series enables high quality grinding by machine design as well by applying a data driven approach.  Gear polishing is available for improved surface finishes. 100 percent inspection can be achieved by single flank roll testing on the R300. Gear Noise Analyzer (GNA) software was developed to visualize and analyze roll testing results, develop roll testing tolerances and create internal and external reports for production management and customers.

Increasing machine tool efficiency  

The afternoon sessions included live machine demonstrations:

Hofler Rapid 800

Cylindrical gear manufacturers appreciate the advantages and productivity of the Rapid 800 for workpiece diameters of up to 800 mm. With standard features that include a cast polymer machine bed, a torque motor-driven machine table, an integrated inspection system, a sturdy grinding spindle, and a dressing system for frequent profile modifications, it is the perfect solution for cylindrical gear manufacturers. Technologies such as high-speed grinding and best-fit grinding also reduce grinding times by up to 30 percent ensuring a clear edge in production efficiency for the entire manufacturing process.

Klingelnberg P 40

The fully automatic CNC-controlled P 40 precision measuring center is designed as a compact unit for the workpiece diameter range up to 400 mm. The machine is used to inspect cylindrical gears, pinion type cutters and shaving cutters, worms and worm wheels, hobs, bevel gears, general dimensions, shape, and positional deviations of axially symmetrical workpieces, cam and camshaft measurement and rotor measurement. Quick changeover between the tactile 3D NANOSCAN stylus system and the HISPEED OPTOSCAN optical sensor enables economical operation and is the basis for flexible, fast, and highly accurate measurement under all conditions. 

Hofler R 300

The metrology on the Höfler Cylindrical Gear Roll Testing Machine R 300 provides a reliable way to determine the root causes of gearbox noise. Due to the short measuring time, it can be easily integrated into any manufacturing process and enables 100 percent quality control of the gears produced. The R 300 is designed for all roll testing processes that are relevant for evaluating the running behavior and noise behavior of gears. These include the single-flank test, the structure-borne noise test, and the torsional acceleration test. 

The double-flank test can also be performed if needed. Depending on its equipment, the R 300 enables testing of gears and shafts, a particularly important factor for components from an electric vehicle drivetrain system (eDrive). For testing the eDrive intermediate shaft, Klingelnberg will demonstrate a process for roll testing both gears on the shaft in one test cycle. This saves the time that would otherwise be required for a second loading and unloading and for re-tooling the machine and reduces test costs.

A celebration of gear production

Overall, the event gave Klingelnberg the opportunity to field questions and showcase the latest technologies in power skiving, quality inspection, e-Mobility and the advantages of producing massive gear components in the closed-loop. 

klingelnberg.com