THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

FACULTY OF INTERNATIONAL TRAINING

REPORT
DIAL INDICATOR ARE USED TO ALIGN A
WORKPIECE IN MILLING MACHINE

LECTURER : LE VAN NHAT

STUDENTS : HOANG MAI TRUNG
NGUYEN HAI MINH

THAI NGUYEN,2020
I. What is the milling and tramming ?
Milling is process in which a rotating multi-tooth cutter remove material
while traveling along various axes with respect to the workpiece.

Before starting a job where accuracy is at all important, it's necessary to

make sure the mill head is aligned square with the table. Aligning the head is
usually called "tramming" because the technique requires a dial indicator held
in a horizontal arm to "sweep" the face of the table. Tramming is a subject for a
slightly more advanced tutorial, so here we'll just concentrate on simple
checking of alignment.

Tram is the squareness of the mill head to the table, and tramming is a
subject for a slightly more advanced tutorial, so here we'll just concentrate on
simple checking of alignment, the process of squaring the head of the
milling machine to the table or adjusting the mill head to be square.
Tramming a milling machine head can ensure the cutting tool is
perpendicular to table surface in both X and Y directions, ensure the
milled surfaces are mutually perpendicular and avoid forming saw tooth
pattern on the surface of CNC milled parts . The ultimate goal is to
machine the milling parts correctly. Check the tram of a mill head often,
especially when the machine features a swivel head for cutting at angles.  

A dial indicator is a precision tool used to measure minute amounts of

deflection between two surfaces. When tramming, a dial indicator attached to
the chuck is used to determine the orientation of the mill head to the mill table. 
The same wrench used to tighten and loosen the quill can be used to adjust the
various bolts on the mill head.
 II. CLASSIFICATION
TRAMMING THE MILL HEAD

Tramming ensures that the mill head is perpendicular to the mill table’s X and
Y axis.  This process ensures that cutting tools and the milling surfaces are
perpendicular to the table.  Proper tramming also prevents irregular patterns from
forming when milling.

A dial indicator attached to the spindle for precise mill head alignment.

A vertical mill’s head is able to tilt from front to back and side to side. 
Occasionally these adjustments can drift.  The mill head should be checked and
adjusted periodically, ensuring that the spindle is perpendicular to the table.

1. Remove the vice from the milling table.

2. Attach a dial indicator to the spindle and offset the dial six inches from the
spindle’s axis.  Make sure the indicator probe is facing down.
3. Raise the mill table so that when it contacts the indicator, the indicator reads
between 0.005 inches to 0.010 inches.  This reading is called the preload.
4. Position the dial indicator so that it is visible, then set the bezel to zero.
5. Hand-turn the spindle while watching the indicator.
6. If the reading on the dial indicator stays at zero, the spindle is aligned.
7. If the reading is not zero, continue tramming the head as shown below.
 TRAMMING PROCESS FOR THE X-AXIS

To tram around the x-axis (the left-to-right direction of the mill bench when
facing the front of the mill).

1. Loosen the six clamping bolts on two sides of the mill using the mill
wrench
2. Tighten the loosened bolts by hand plus a quarter turn with the wrench
3. The adjustment bolts are used to move the mill head vertically around
the X-axis
4. Use two protractors to indicate general alignment. The larger one on
mill head should align with the zero marker on the curved protractor on the
mill body (two protractors are used to indicate general alignment.  The larger
protractor on the mill head has a red indicating arrow that should align with the
zero marker on the curved protractor on the body of the mill.  This only provides a
general guide, the dial indicator reading is required for precise alignment).
5. Put the dial indicator to the back of the mill table and measure on
pristine surface of the table: preload at 0.005” to 0.010” and zero the dial
indicator
6. Ensure the spindle in neutral, rotate it to make the dial indicator on the
front of the table, keep the fixtures attached. (with the dial zeroed and the
spindle in neutral, rotate the spindle so that the dial indicator is now on the front of
the table, ideally a 180 degree turn.  Be sure to grab the clamp that is attached to
the spindle (to avoid altering the dial’s vertical configuration)).
7. Determine the direction the mill head to go according to dial rotation:
dial moves in clockwise requires mill head will need to be adjusted up, while
a counter-clockwise reading requires downward adjustment. (Note the
direction that the dial rotates to determine the direction that the mill head needs to
travel.  A clockwise movement requires that the mill head will need to be adjusted
up, while a counter-clockwise reading requires that the mill head will need to be
adjusted downward).
8. Adjust the mill head so that 1/2 the difference between the back and
front measurements.
9. Zero the dial indicator again in the same position as before. ( Position the
dial indicator to the rear of the table.  Zero the dial indicator (preloaded at 0.005″
to 0.010″).  Be sure to measure on a pristine surface of the mill table.  It may be
necessary to shift the table to avoid the gaps that are in the table).
10. Continue to adjust mill head until the difference of the readings is not
more than 0.002 inches.
11. Tighten the bolts evenly, prevent the mill head from moving.
 Dial indicating around the mill head X-axis.

Tramming for the Y-axis

1. Loosen the four clamping bolts on the front of the mill to allow the head
to move.
2. Turn the adjusting bolt on the top of the mill
3. Adjust the mill head to the zero on the protractor through turning the bolt
4. Attach the dial indicator to the chuck, and lower the chuck until the
indicator touches the table surface.
5. Adjust the table height until the indicator preload at 0.005” to 0.010”
6. Position the indicator at the right side of the worktable
7. Zero the dial indicator
8. Rotate the chuck so as to make the indicator at the left side of the table
9. Determine where the head needs to be moved according to the reading:
positive reading means the head needs to be rotated in clockwise, negative
reading, moves in counter-clockwise.
10. Adjust the mill head to make the reading difference between front and
rear is no more than 0.002”.
11. Re-tighten the clamping bolts, while keeping the mill head is stationary.
 III. Operating principle
Before you start to work with any tool, it's important to make sure that it is
ready for your use. Unlike simple tools such as screwdrivers, hammers and
wrenches that don't need routine attention, virtually all machine tools have loads of
controls and adjustments that affect their performance. Particularly in a shared tool
environment, it's important to check the equipment so you'll have a safe and
productive work session.

When you approach the milling machine, you might notice that the person who
used it before you had changed some important adjustments.  Vertical milling
machines generally have adjustments for tilting the head both side-to-side and
front-to-back. Here, the milling head has been left tilted backward at a serious
angle:
 Clearly, there'd be no chance of drilling a vertical hole with the head in that
position. While it may seem careless to leave the head tilted that way, at least
the next person using the machine will KNOW that it needs to be realigned.

Most of the time when the head is out of adjustment, you can't see it at all.
It may seem simple enough to rely on the graduated degree markings, but you
can't see them closely enough, and you can't trust their accuracy. These
markings are here only for rough estimations of angle:

Before starting a job where accuracy is at all important, it's necessary to

make sure the mill head is aligned square with the table. Aligning the head is
usually called "tramming" because the technique requires a dial indicator held
in a horizontal arm to "sweep" the face of the table. Tramming is a subject for a
slightly more advanced tutorial, so here we'll just concentrate on simple
checking of alignment. Most of the time the milling machine will be in
respectable adjustment, so a simple check is all that's required for you to have
confidence to begin work. Clean any chips or dirt off the surfaces, and place a
large angle plate on the milling table, with its face roughly parallel to the "X" or
long axis of the table. Mount a dial indicator in a collet or clamped to the quill
and bring it down close to the table. Use the "Y" axis crank to bring the table
forward to touch the tip of the indicator and bring the dial to the zero position:
 Then, slowly raise the quill to notice how much the indicator moves. If
the head is perfectly "in tram" then the indicator will show essentially no
movement through the full height of the angle plate. You can decide how
accurate you need the adjustment at this point. For most regular work, a few
thousandths of misalignment over several inches may be insignificant. Once
you've measured the "fore and aft" vertical alignment this way, turn the entire
setup ninety degrees to measure the right-to-left alignment in a similar manner.
Now, with the head checked, we're ready to work, yes? Well, maybe not. Many,
if not most, milling operations are carried out on work pieces held in the milling
vise. The vise is clamped to the table, but is it aligned to the axis of movement?
Better check that, too. The same dial indicator held on the quill does the job
nicely just as above. Bring the table forward until the fixed jaw of the vise
brings the indicator to a zero position, and run the table to the right and left with
the X-axis crank:
 If the vise is aligned to the X-axis, you'll see virtually no movement of the
needle. Once again, you can judge how accurate you need to have the setup,
but most of the time you'll want to be very close to perfect so you can make
parallel cuts. These are your vise alignment tools, a wrench and a mallet:

While they may seem rather crude, they are very effective and easy to
use. If the vise is way out of whack, try to set it as closely parallel to the table as
you can with the bolts loose. Then, as you check the alignment with the
indicator, you'll tighten one bolt lightly, then the other, tapping the vise to get it
into alignment. It takes a few tries to get the knack of it. Now, you're ready to
go, once you have made these simple checks and tightened the vise securely.