Vertical Lens Generating Machine Auto-SG-20W
A vertical lens generating machine that grinds both faces of a small lens in one pass on two vertical spindles, fed loose from a vibratory bowl. Parts Ø5–20 mm, with a protective chamfer built in.
What this machine makes, and what happens before and after it
An optical element starts as a sawn or pressed blank and ends as a coated, centred lens. A vertical lens generating machine owns the roughing step in the middle: it cuts the radius of curvature into the faces of a small blank Ø5–20 mm and brings the centre thickness close to the drawing. What is distinctive here is that it does both faces in a single pass, standing up, on two spindles.
A vibratory bowl feeds blanks in bulk; the first spindle grinds one face, the part is flipped and shifted to the second spindle, and the other face is ground before the finished part is set down. Both faces leave close enough that the lapping and polishing stage removes microns rather than re-cutting the curve.
Single-spindle generators cut one face at a time — the tray-fed and bowl-fed Auto-SG-20V among them. This vertical machine takes on both faces of a small lens in one loading, which is where it earns its place on a high-volume line.
How does a vertical lens generating machine grind a radius?
No template, no copy former, no profile cam. On this class of machine the radius comes out of an angle.
Each spindle grinds through the centre of the part. The wheel spindle carries a diamond cup wheel turning at up to 10,000 rpm; the workpiece is held in a film collet and turned at up to 55 rpm while the wheel is fed in under oil-pressure control.
Because the cup wheel is tilted, its circular cutting edge sweeps out a sphere as the blank turns underneath it. The radius of that sphere is fixed by geometry alone:
- sin θ = d / (2R) — where θ is the wheel tilt, d the effective cutting-edge diameter of the cup wheel, and R the radius produced
- θ = 0° — the wheel axis is parallel to the workpiece and the machine generates a plane
- swing −5° to +45° — the steeper the setting, the shorter the radius produced
- Convex or concave — decided by which way the wheel is swung relative to the workpiece axis
Set the angle on each of the two spindles and every part comes out with the same pair of radii. This is why a vertical lens generating machine changes no tooling between one part and the next — only the two swing angles and the wheels.
You are buying a range, ±R2.5 mm to plane on each face, and the wheels for your material — not a fixed set of radii. Send us the two radii and a sample of your loose blanks, and we specify the wheels with the quotation.
Four things the machine does while nobody is watching
This is where a vertical lens generating machine separates itself from a hand-loaded one. Each of these replaces a step an operator would otherwise do part by part.
Grinds both faces in one loading
The first vertical spindle grinds one face; a flip-and-transfer arm carries the part to the second spindle for the other face. One load, two finished faces — no second setup.
Feeds itself from a vibratory bowl
A vibratory bowl orients and presents each loose blank, and a set of pneumatic arms handles pick, transfer and set-down. Bulk parts go in without hand loading.
Tells the two faces apart
A micrometer gauge identifies which face is presented, so the bowl does not have to be hand-sorted before the parts go on and each face reaches the right spindle.
Chamfers as it goes
A protective chamfer device is fitted as standard on this model, taking the sharp edge off each part in the same cycle so brittle rims are less likely to chip downstream.
Which materials and geometries can it handle?
| Item | Capability |
|---|---|
| Surfaces generated | Convex and concave spherical surfaces; plane (flat) surfaces, both faces |
| Radius range | ±R2.5 mm to plane, set by wheel swing −5° to +45° |
| Workpiece diameter | Ø5 – Ø20 mm |
| Spindles | 2 — twin vertical, one per face |
| Feed | Vibratory bowl in, pneumatic pick-and-place |
| Materials | Optical lenses — send your material for a free trial run; suitability confirmed on your own parts |
| Face recognition | Micrometer gauge, both faces in one loading |
| Chamfer | Protective chamfer device, standard |
If your drawings are dimensioned to the ISO 10110 framework, send one with the enquiry. On a vertical lens generating machine the two radius tolerances and the centre-thickness tolerance are what decide whether the job fits, and the part size decides the collet — see the optical materials data if you are choosing glass.
Technical specifications
The Auto-SG-20W is the twin-spindle vertical lens generating machine in the family; the single-spindle generators cut one face at a time.
| Curvature machining range | ±R2.5 mm – flat (plane) |
| Diameter machining range | Ø5 – Ø20 mm |
| Number of spindles | 2 (twin vertical) |
| Wheel spindle speed | up to 10,000 rpm |
| Workpiece speed | up to 55 rpm |
| Wheel swing range | −5° to +45° |
| Spindle runout | ≤ 0.02 mm |
| Wheel-spindle thread | M12 × 1 · chamfer wheel M10 × 1 |
| Clamping | Film collet (diaphragm) |
| Feed cut control | Oil-pressure |
| Total installed power | approx. 1 kW |
| Overall dimensions (L × W × H) | 1160 × 980 × 1780 mm |
| Total weight | approx. 550 kg |
| Base construction | One-piece welded steel base |
The diamond cup wheels, the chamfer wheel and the film collets are process consumables chosen for the material and the radii. They are quoted separately — tell us your materials and radii and we will specify them.
Main assemblies and what each one is for
This is the vocabulary your operator and our service engineer will share on the shop floor.
| Assembly | Function |
|---|---|
| Two wheel spindles | Vertical diamond cup-wheel spindles, one per face, swing set independently |
| Chamfer unit | Protective chamfer device, standard on this model |
| Workpiece spindles | Film-collet chucks turning the blank at up to 55 rpm against each wheel |
| Vibratory feed bowl | Orients and presents loose blanks Ø5–20 mm to the pick point |
| Flip & transfer arms | Pneumatic arms that flip the part and shift it between the two spindles |
| Micrometer gauge | Identifies the presented face before grinding |
| Coolant system | Circulating supply, corrosion-resistant PVC and stainless pipework |
Utilities, environment and safety
Electrical supply, compressed air, coolant, floor loading and the ambient conditions the machine is to run in are confirmed with us for each order, together with the safety and protective arrangement supplied with it. These figures depend on the voltage and frequency of your site, the material you are running and the destination market, so we do not publish a single set of them here.
Send us the site conditions with your enquiry and we will return the utility and environmental requirements in writing, before the order is placed.
The twin-spindle vertical layout pays off on small parts run in volume, where grinding both faces in one loading saves a whole handling step. For larger parts, or one face at a time, a single-spindle generator is the simpler choice — and a new material needs its pressure, feed and swing settled on trial parts, the reason we ask for your blanks before quoting.
What happens after the machine is installed?
The same terms apply to every machine we ship, wherever in the world it goes.
| Warranty period | 12 months from final acceptance |
| Response during warranty | Response within 8 hours · solution proposed within 24 hours · issue resolved within 48 hours, including procurement, installation and commissioning of parts |
| After the warranty period | Service and spare parts available for the life of the machine |
| Certification | CE |
Specifications are subject to change as a result of design upgrades. Minor differences may occur at certain parts. For a binding specification, refer to the order confirmation.
See the machine running
The Auto-SG-20W grinding both faces of a part, and the flip-and-transfer arm moving it between the two vertical spindles.
01 — Both-face generating cycle, bowl-fed blank
02 — Flip and transfer between the two spindles
Send one drawing and a few blanks
A vertical lens generating machine is easy to specify badly from a datasheet. Send us one element drawing — diameter, both radii, centre thickness, material and the tolerance grade you have to hold — with a few of your own blanks. We run them, return them, and send the process sheet with the quotation.
If your parts are larger than Ø20 mm, or you only grind one face, we will point you to the right member of the family instead of quoting this one.
12-month warranty · free trial run on customer-supplied material
Optics customers include Edmund Optics and Coherent
Related equipment and reading:
- Small lens generating machine Auto-SG-20V — the single-spindle bowl-fed generator
- Tray fed lens generator Auto-SG-80T — tray in, tray out, up to Ø80 mm
- CNC optical curve generator Auto-SG-50 — the CNC generator
- Optical lens fabrication line — how the stations connect