Minimizing Thermal Deformation of Aerostatic Spindle System by Temperature Control of Supply Air

Aerostatic spindle systems have been widely used in many machine tools due to their low heat generation and high-speed capability. To meet industrial demands for higher accuracy and higher productivity, such spindle systems have recently become important as the kernel component in an ultraprecision machine tool. In this study, therefore, thermal deformation control for aerostatic spindle systems has been proposed considering heat balance in an objective spindle bearing system. In the proposed method, the temperature of supply air is controlled by monitoring that of exhaust air to minimize the thermal deformation of the spindle. The performance of the thermal deformation control system developed has been evaluated through a series of actual experiments.