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in cooperation with

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Application Report

Proven that it works

Erwin Quarder mills SpeChip tool -
supported by MOLDINO

Highly complex contour areas that required the most minor milling cutter diameters, 5 µm accuracy on 384 measuring fields, and extremely long processing times. The mold for the SpeChip microfluidic sample carrier was a real challenge.

The tool shop at Erwin Quarder Systemtechnik in Espelkamp, East Westphalia, managed the project - with intensive support from MOLDINO.

SpeChip - what initially sounds like the title of a James Bond movie is a challenging project in whose toolmaking implementation Erwin Quarder Systemtechnik GmbH played a key role. The assignment originated from innoME GmbH, a spin-off of the Erwin Quarder Group, which specializes in analytical products for the laboratory and pharmaceutical sectors, among others. The SpeChip is a microfluidic disposable sample carrier made of transparent plastic.

in cooperation with

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Mark Rotzoll (left) from MOLDINO; in the middle is Reinhard Obernolte, who led the SpeChip project, and Jakob Kehler, CAM programmer and head of the milling department at Erwin Quarder Systemtechnik. The application was milled on a 5-axis Röders RXP601DSH.

The 96 sample channels, each with four measuring chambers, can be used to automatically measure the particle concentration in liquids down to the molecular size. As the SpeChip method is based on UV light absorption measurement, the optical properties of the sample carrier are of great importance. "Milling with a tolerance of plus 5 µm is one thing. But to mill in 384 different places - that was a real challenge for us," says Jakob Kehler, CAM programmer in the tool shop at Erwin Quarder Systemtechnik and also head of the milling department there, looking back on the SpeChip project. “In addition, due to the complexity and dimensions of the contour areas, we had to mill almost exclusively with minimal diameters below 1 mm.”

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Jakob Kehler's CAM workstation and the nozzle side of the SpeChip mold opened in Cimatron.

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Milling the nozzle side of the SpeChip mold on the Röders RXP601DSH. Except when milling the glossy surfaces with minimum quantity lubrication, cooling, and chip removal were done exclusively using air, which was supplied via the red medium distributor from MHT.

Injection compression molding improves the optical properties

The tool was designed for the injection compression molding process. This low-pressure process offers particular advantages for lighting applications. The cavity pressure is distributed more evenly, which minimizes stresses in the plastic. Once the design had been finalized, the first task was to determine the overall processing time. A small test workpiece with just six sample channels plus the measuring fields was, therefore, milled first. “Firstly, to demonstrate that we could do it, and secondly, to be able to extrapolate the time required for this to the total machining time,” says Jakob Kehler, explaining the procedure. “We got it right the first time, also thanks to the support of MOLDINO.”

About two and a half years ago, shortly before the start of the SpeChip project, Erwin Quarder began to expand HSC machining, particularly in high-precision hard milling significantly. This meant that die-sinking EDM was to be replaced to a large extent by milling. As a process optimizer, Mark Rotzoll, the application engineer of the Japanese precision cutting tool manufacturer MOLDINO (formerly MMC Hitachi Tool), had intensively accompanied this conversion process. This is why he immediately offered his support for the SpeChip project.

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The medium distributor from MHT (Merz & Haag) utilizes a special nozzle system to blow either clean compressed air or compressed air with a small amount of oil onto the cutting tool, ensuring optimal cooling and reliable chip removal.

Contract manufacturers immediately waved goodbye

It was a stroke of luck that Mark Rotzoll was on hand, bringing a wealth of experience in process design for hard-milling complex geometries. "This expertise was significant for us. Because the high requirements of the SpeChip mold didn't allow any tolerance for errors in the process design."

The material selected for the SpeChip mold was the low-corrosion plastic mold steel 1.2083 ESR, pre-hardened to 48 + 2 HRC and produced using the electroslag remelting process.

"The projection showed that we would need 200 to 300 hours for each mold half - which was, of course, extremely long," emphasizes Kehler. As the company's machine capacity was not to be tied up in this project for so long, inquiries were made to manufacturing service providers.

"Everyone who saw the component was immediately skeptical. This would have meant that a machine would have been permanently occupied for one to two months." So, the decision was made to manufacture the SpeChip tool in-house. "But in blocks, so that the machine could also be available for other orders in the meantime."

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The nozzle side of the ready-to-install SpeChip mold.

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The ejector side of the ready-to-install SpeChip mold.

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The coordinate measuring machine, integrated into the production cell, automatically measures electrodes and other workpieces delivered by the Fanuc articulated arm robot, which also collects the parts again.

The right strategy is key

MOLDINO always proceeds with optimization projects according to the Production50 method developed by the Japanese cutting tool manufacturer specifically for the milling sector. This involves analyzing existing milling processes to gain a new perspective on the entire production process and identifying potential improvements that can be implemented together with the customer. Cost-effectiveness calculations show the added value of this changeover.

By Production50, the MOLDINO process optimizer defined the basic strategy at the beginning, i.e., where to start milling and which steps to follow. The selection of suitable MOLDINO cutting tools was made successively according to the machining progress.

The EHHR end mill with polygon geometry, the EPDRF and EPDRE torus end mills, and the EPDBE, EPDBPE, and EPDBEH ball end mills with diameters ranging from 0.2 mm to 1 mm were mainly used.

“The aim here was to precisely coordinate the complex machining sequences, the respective cutting tools, and the usually very long processing times,” explains Rotzoll. The advantage here is that not too many different cutting tools follow one another. For this reason, he decided to start with small tools from the outset. A total of three different diameters were used for roughing. The minor diameter was 0.6 mm for finish roughing, a double-edged EPDRE torus end mill with a working length of 4 mm. To create homogeneous allowances for the final finishing, pre-finishing was done first.

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The nozzle side of the ready-to-install SpeChip mold.

With 0.1 degree angle to the gloss surface

"That produced the very best results," reports Kehler. Otherwise, only air was used in the project. The medium distributor from MHT (Merz & Haag) was used for all production steps. "It also ensures that the chips and dust are reliably removed." But why were the permitted tolerance to each other and the height differences of 0 to 5 µm so extremely low for all 384 measuring fields? "UV light shines through the transparent plastic. However, the light deviation may only be 0.2 percent," says Kehler, explaining the strict specifications.

A center roughness value of Ra 0.2 µm to 0.5 µm was specified for all 384 measuring surfaces, i.e., glossy surfaces. Rotzoll applied minimal protective surfaces to these areas. "This provides a small additional allowance to create the high-gloss surfaces then." He and Kehler had previously tried out various procedures using the test workpiece. "The best result was achieved with the EHHR end mill with a diameter of 1 mm." With this polygon cutting tool, very good surfaces could be achieved in flat areas. "The trick was that we set the tool to a minimum of 0.1 degrees. We then went to the final dimension." These shiny surfaces were milled at the very end with minimum quantity lubrication.

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One of the two 5-axis Röders, RXP601DSH, are arranged next to each other in the production cell and is supplemented by an RXP500. The SpeChip mold was also milled here.

Welding ribs with 0.2 mm ball end mill

The 0.2 mm ribs are ultrasonically welded to the article with a foil. “For these tiny and extremely thin welding ribs, we used EPDBEH ball end mills with a diameter of 0.2 mm to mill the depths,” explains Kehler. These tools, equipped with the newly developed TH3 nano-coating, have two cutting edges, each with a two-stage clearance angle. This increases tool life many times over and improves contour accuracy under wear. The 31 hours of machining required 15 EPDBEH milling cutters.

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SpeChip multiwell plate for UV/Vis measurements.

Successful project - despite many demands on the house

Finally, Kehler points out the issue of sister tools, which played an important role simply because of the 384 measuring fields: "The Röders machine has a special measuring device so that all tools have the same length. This was the only way we could maintain the 5 µm tolerances." It took a total of 710 hours to mill this complex mold. "Despite the many challenges, the SpeChip project was a great success, which we would not have been able to achieve without the MOLDINO cutting tools and, above all, the support of Mark Rotzoll," says Jakob Kehler, drawing a positive conclusion. In the past, a mold like this would have been die-sunk with graphite, and the rough functional surfaces would then have been polished by hand by a service provider at a cost of around 14,000 euros. "However, we would never have achieved the high level of precision that we achieve today through milling."

Cooperation as the key to success

Erwin Quarder Group

The roots of the now globally active Group of companies with a total of 1,100 employees lie in toolmaking, which was founded by Erwin Quarder in 1971 in Espelkamp, East Westphalia. The Group's core competencies are product development, injection molding tool technology, the establishment of automated production, and the global production of plastic hybrid components for automotive applications. This also includes MID technology (Molded Interconnect Devices) and clean room production. Toolmaking is part of Erwin Quarder Systemtechnik GmbH, which employs 530 people at its Espelkamp site. The tools are used both by Quarder itself and by external customers.

www.quarder.de

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