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Controls in medical technology

Implants are designed to replace complex human anatomy such as knee joints, hip joints, and teeth. They must be manufactured for a perfect fit and exhibit uniform surface quality. No less demanding is the production of surgical instruments, requiring smooth surfaces and high precision. HEIDENHAIN controls are ideal for manufacturing both the implants and the instruments.

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Controls from HEIDENHAIN offer many specialized functions for fast, economical, reliable, and high-accuracy manufacturing of implants and surgical instruments. Motion control for five-axis milling, in-process dynamic collision monitoring for milling tools, and axial error compensation are just a few of the benefits of HEIDENHAIN milling and turning controls within the field of medical technology.

Fast precision machining

Maximize your machine tool's accuracy. The Dynamic Precision functions for HEIDENHAIN controls can compensate for your machine tool's dynamic error, empowering users to produce parts with accurate contours and superior surfaces in less time.

  • CTC compensates for acceleration-based position error
  • MVC dampens low-frequency machine vibrations through the following two combined functions:
    • AVD: active vibration damping
    • FSC: model-based vibration damping
  • PAC, LAC, and MAC adapt controller parameters based on position, load, or motion parameters
Find out more about Dynamic Precision

Monitoring all processes

StateMonitor makes operational processes transparent, optimizes production workflows, and provides real-time insight into the production status of machines. As a result, StateMonitor delivers key data for answering questions about machine usage:

  • How can users boost productivity?
  • Is a new milling machine worth the investment?
  • Are all machines running during multi-machine operation?

StateMonitor provides extensive notification and evaluation capabilities for uncovering machine availability potential, boosting machine utilization, and documenting every process. StateMonitor lets you digitalize your manufacturing operations through the machine tool on the shop floor. It does not require cloud computing and can be individually configured to meet your customers' needs.

Digitalized manufacturing gives you 360° of insight into your operations while assisting users with medical product documentation.

Solutions for the Digital Shop Floor

Leverage the benefits of 5-axis machining

Productivity and accuracy are key characteristics of machine tools used in medical technology applications. Five-axis machining can greatly enhance these seemingly contradictory requirements in the following ways:

  • Higher removal rates compared with 3-axis machining
  • Shorter machining times thanks to complete, single-setup machining
  • Efficient machining of geometrically complex parts
  • Greater part accuracy
  • Highly productive tools 

These benefits can be leveraged starting with lot size 1, making 5-axis machining highly appealing to end users in the medical technology industry. HEIDENHAIN TNC controls give you easy mastery of dynamic, high-complexity 5-axis processes through a variety of functions.

Perfectly calibrated machine kinematics

Machine components undergo temperature fluctuations during the machining process. For optimal machining results at all times, KinematicsOpt allows users to recalibrate their machine within minutes. This requires no detailed knowledge of the machine's kinematic configuration.

Zero-collision machining

The complex motion of 5-axis machining is difficult to predict. Dynamic Collision Monitoring (DCM) for TNC controls monitors the work envelope for possible collisions and interrupts machining if necessary. DCM thereby prevents downtime and expensive machine damage, providing peace of mind during unattended shifts.

Optimized motion control

Each machining step would normally require special adaptation of the machine, giving greater emphasis to contouring accuracy and smoothness during finishing but maximizing the feed rate during roughing. Cycle 32, TOLERANCE, allows the user to adapt the machine and thus the TNC's motion control to the specific machining operation.

Realistic process simulation

The realistic 3D simulation graphics of HEIDENHAIN TNC controls help you identify missing program entries or bugs at no risk to the workpiece, tool, or machine prior to actual machining. This is particularly useful for the complex motion and high traversing speeds of 5-axis machining.

Milling with the actual radius

Even in high-precision tool manufacturing, radius cutters may exhibit errors in circularity. In this case, the tool's point of contact with the workpiece calculated by the control will deviate from the actual radius. The 3D-ToolComp function compensates for these errors, thus considerably increasing workpiece accuracy.

Dynamic calculation of contours

Advanced Dynamic Prediction (ADP) ensures optimized motion control for feed axes. The TNC can dynamically calculate the contour in advance, especially when the NC program's data quality is insufficient. This results in clean surfaces with short machining times, even with a strongly fluctuating point distribution in neighboring tool paths.

Perfectly calibrated machine kinematics

Machine components undergo temperature fluctuations during the machining process. For optimal machining results at all times, KinematicsOpt allows users to recalibrate their machine within minutes. This requires no detailed knowledge of the machine's kinematic configuration.

Zero-collision machining

The complex motion of 5-axis machining is difficult to predict. Dynamic Collision Monitoring (DCM) for TNC controls monitors the work envelope for possible collisions and interrupts machining if necessary. DCM thereby prevents downtime and expensive machine damage, providing peace of mind during unattended shifts.

Optimized motion control

Each machining step would normally require special adaptation of the machine, giving greater emphasis to contouring accuracy and smoothness during finishing but maximizing the feed rate during roughing. Cycle 32, TOLERANCE, allows the user to adapt the machine and thus the TNC's motion control to the specific machining operation.

Realistic process simulation

The realistic 3D simulation graphics of HEIDENHAIN TNC controls help you identify missing program entries or bugs at no risk to the workpiece, tool, or machine prior to actual machining. This is particularly useful for the complex motion and high traversing speeds of 5-axis machining.

Milling with the actual radius

Even in high-precision tool manufacturing, radius cutters may exhibit errors in circularity. In this case, the tool's point of contact with the workpiece calculated by the control will deviate from the actual radius. The 3D-ToolComp function compensates for these errors, thus considerably increasing workpiece accuracy.

Dynamic calculation of contours

Advanced Dynamic Prediction (ADP) ensures optimized motion control for feed axes. The TNC can dynamically calculate the contour in advance, especially when the NC program's data quality is insufficient. This results in clean surfaces with short machining times, even with a strongly fluctuating point distribution in neighboring tool paths.

This may interest medical product manufacturers

The right control for you

Which HEIDENHAIN control is the right choice for your machine? Here is a quick overview of our milling and turning controls and their key features.
See the overview

The meeting point for experts

The TNC Club answers all your questions about TNC controls from HEIDENHAIN. As a member, you benefit from tailored training courses, events, workshops, and numerous personalized offerings.
Visit the TNC Club page

Certification and training

High productivity and perfect results start with trained specialists. To support your employee training program, we offer practical training courses in using HEIDENHAIN controls.
Our training offerings

Plan the production sequence

You can organize your production jobs quickly, intuitively, and reliably for the upcoming night shift, entire day, or coming weekend by using Batch Process Manager.
Batch Process Manager
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