A planer machine is a linear reciprocating motion machine tool used for shaping the surface, groove, or forming surface of a workpiece using a planing tool. Planer machines have simple cutting tools, but lower productivity (excluding long and narrow surfaces), and are mainly used for single-piece, small batch production, and machine repair workshops. In mass production, they are often replaced by milling machines. Planer machines can be used to shape horizontal, vertical, inclined, curved, stepped, dovetail-shaped workpieces, T-slots, V-grooves, holes, gears, and racks.

Bullhead Planer Machine

The bullhead planer machine is a planer machine with a reciprocating motion bullhead-shaped cutter holder at the front end of the sliding block. It is mainly used for shaping the surface, forming surface, and groove of small and medium-sized workpieces in single-piece or small-batch production. The main motion of small bullhead planer machines mostly adopts the crank connecting rod mechanism, so the sliding block's movement speed is not uniform. Large bullhead planer machines mostly use hydraulic transmission, and the sliding block's movement is generally uniform. The return speed of the sliding block during the return stroke is faster than the working stroke speed. Due to the use of single-blade cutters and not cutting on the return stroke, the productivity of bullhead planer machines is relatively low.

Gantry Planer Machine

A gantry planer machine is a planer machine used to shape large workpieces. Some gantry planer machines can process workpieces with a length of tens of meters or even more. For medium and small workpieces, several can be loaded on the workbench at the same time, and several cutting tools can be used for planing at the same time, which has higher productivity. Gantry planer machines use the workbench's direct reciprocating motion (cutting) and the intermittent movement of the planer tool (feed motion) to perform planing processing. The crosswise cutter holder can move horizontally on the transverse guide rail to shape the horizontal surface of the workpiece. The side cutter holder on the column can move vertically along the column guide rail to shape the vertical surface. The cutter holder can also be tilted at a certain angle to shape the inclined surface. The crosswise cutter holder can move up and down along the column guide rail to adjust the relative position of the cutter and the workpiece.

Conclusion

Planer machines are an important type of machine tool used for shaping workpieces. The bullhead planer machine and gantry planer machine are two commonly used types. The bullhead planer machine is suitable for single-piece or small-batch production of small and medium-sized workpieces, while the gantry planer machine is used for shaping large workpieces and has higher productivity. When selecting a planer machine, it is essential to consider the size and shape of the workpiece and the required productivity.