Fay automatic lathe
Encyclopedia
The Fay automatic lathe was an automatic lathe
tailored to cutting workpieces that were mounted on centers
(tools with pointed ends to accurately position a center-drilled workpiece about an axis, either directly or by using a mandrel
). It could also do chucking work (feeding of unformed blanks or pieces of stock from a magazine to be automatically gripped by the machine for turning). Examples of workpieces included automotive steering knuckles and transmission gears, and such work done on mandrels as flanges, disks, and hubs. The machine tool was developed by F.C. Fay of Philadelphia and improved by Otto A. Schaum. It was originally manufactured by the Fay & Scott Machine Shop. James Hartness
acquired manufacturing rights on behalf of the Jones & Lamson Machine Company and manufactured an improved version, developed under the management of Ralph Flanders
.
In 1937 Roe, writing for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers
, framed the importance of the Fay automatic lathe to the capabilities of machine tools by saying that, "This machine does for the engine lathe what Spencer
did for the old hand-operated turret lathe." These machines took an entire class of turned work formerly requiring an operator to execute the series of movements necessary to shape a piece of metal (manual control) and allowed the same work to be done automatically. This step forward in automation
lowered a manufacturer's unit
expense per part by reducing labor costs. Today, numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools
such as turning centers, turn-mills, and rotary transfer machines have largely supplanted cam-operated automatics.
Automatic lathe
An automatic lathe is a lathe whose actions are controlled automatically. Although all electronically controlled lathes are automatic, they are usually not called by that name, as explained under "General nomenclature"...
tailored to cutting workpieces that were mounted on centers
Lathe center
A lathe center, often shortened to center, is a tool that has been ground to a point as to accurately position a workpiece about an axis...
(tools with pointed ends to accurately position a center-drilled workpiece about an axis, either directly or by using a mandrel
Mandrel
A mandrel is one of the following:* an object used to shape machined work.* a tool component that grips or clamps materials to be machined.* a tool component that can be used to grip other moving tool components.- Variants :...
). It could also do chucking work (feeding of unformed blanks or pieces of stock from a magazine to be automatically gripped by the machine for turning). Examples of workpieces included automotive steering knuckles and transmission gears, and such work done on mandrels as flanges, disks, and hubs. The machine tool was developed by F.C. Fay of Philadelphia and improved by Otto A. Schaum. It was originally manufactured by the Fay & Scott Machine Shop. James Hartness
James Hartness
James Hartness was an American inventor; a mechanical engineer; an entrepreneur who mentored other inventors to develop their machine tool products and create a thriving industrial center in southeastern Vermont; an amateur astronomer who fostered the construction of telescopes by amateurs in his...
acquired manufacturing rights on behalf of the Jones & Lamson Machine Company and manufactured an improved version, developed under the management of Ralph Flanders
Ralph Flanders
Ralph Edward Flanders was an American mechanical engineer, industrialist and Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Vermont. He grew up on subsistence farms in Vermont and Rhode Island, became an apprentice first as a machinist, then as a draftsman, before training as a mechanical engineer...
.
In 1937 Roe, writing for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers
American Society of Mechanical Engineers
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers is a professional body, specifically an engineering society, focused on mechanical engineering....
, framed the importance of the Fay automatic lathe to the capabilities of machine tools by saying that, "This machine does for the engine lathe what Spencer
Christopher Miner Spencer
Christopher Miner Spencer was an American inventor, from Manchester, Connecticut, who invented the Spencer repeating rifle, one of the earliest models of lever-action rifle, a steam powered "horseless carriage", and several other inventions...
did for the old hand-operated turret lathe." These machines took an entire class of turned work formerly requiring an operator to execute the series of movements necessary to shape a piece of metal (manual control) and allowed the same work to be done automatically. This step forward in automation
Automation
Automation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization...
lowered a manufacturer's unit
Unit cost
The unit cost of a product is the cost per standard unit supplied, which may be a single sample or a container of a given number. When purchasing more than a single unit, the total cost will increase with the number of units, but it is common for the unit cost to decrease as quantity is increased...
expense per part by reducing labor costs. Today, numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools
Numerical control
Numerical control refers to the automation of machine tools that are operated by abstractly programmed commands encoded on a storage medium, as opposed to controlled manually via handwheels or levers, or mechanically automated via cams alone...
such as turning centers, turn-mills, and rotary transfer machines have largely supplanted cam-operated automatics.