Advantages of EDM

(Advantages of EDM)

advantages of edm

Electric discharge machining (EDM), also known as spark machining, die sinking or burning, is an excellent way to shape hard metals and materials that are electrically conductive. It’s an extremely versatile and accurate machining process.

Unlike conventional milling and turning processes, EDM doesn’t require any force to cut material; it removes only the excess material by electrically separating the tool from the workpiece. That’s why it’s so popular for producing parts that require complex geometries and tight tolerances.

Wire EDM is especially useful for cutting sharp internal corners of solids, as long as the wire is correctly selected and the feed conditions are correct. It can also be used to produce non-round openings and cavities, blind slots, high aspect ratio pockets and much more.

Ram/Sink EDM

Ram/sink EDM involves using pre-machined copper or graphite electrodes to form a “positive” of the required shape. This is followed by pressing the electrode into the workpiece to create a negative of the desired material shape.

One disadvantage of Ram/Sink EDM is that it requires additional pre-machining time and cost for creating the electrodes. This can be problematic for certain shapes that are not easy to machine using traditional EDM.

Working fluid

In order to control the electrical discharges that are needed for accuracy in removing material, EDM uses a dielectric fluid–typically deionized water or a hydrocarbon compound of sorts–to separate the working electrodes from each other and flush waste. This also helps prevent particle linkages that could short circuit and interrupt the process.

(Advantages of EDM)