Stainless steel grooving is a technology that uses mechanical or special equipment to process grooves of specific sizes on sheets or profiles. It is widely used in fields such as architectural decoration, mechanical equipment, and household product manufacturing. A reasonable grooving process can not only enhance the structural strength and simplify the assembly process but also improve the aesthetics of the product. The following is a systematic analysis from three dimensions: processing methods, key process points, and application selection.

 

I. Core Processing Methods and Applicable Scenarios

1. Mechanical Processing Methods

   - CNC Milling Machine Grooving: Suitable for mass production with high precision requirements, it can achieve depth control at the 0.02mm level through programming. The CNC system supports the design of complex groove shapes, making it particularly suitable for the processing of precision parts such as elevator panels and medical device components.

   - Lathe Turning Groove Technology: For pipes and cylindrical workpieces, it processes annular grooves through the radial feed of the tool, which has significant efficiency advantages in the manufacturing of pipe connectors.

   - Hydraulic Planing Grooving Machine: It uses independent hydraulic clamps and a high - pressure cooling system to ensure no displacement of the material during processing. Its vertical structure can achieve a depth tolerance of 0.02mm, which is significantly better than traditional horizontal equipment.

2. Special Cutting Processes

   - Laser Cutting: Equipment with a power of over 3000W can process sheets with a thickness of less than 16mm, and the surface smoothness of the cross - section can reach Ra3.2μm. It is suitable for making special - shaped grooves and hollow patterns.

   - Water Jet Cutting: By adding garnet sand to a high - pressure water jet of 3,800 Bar, it can achieve cutting without thermal deformation, which is suitable for fields sensitive to material properties such as food machinery and chemical equipment.

 

II. Key Process Control Elements

1. Design Specifications for Groove Parameters

   - Depth Control: For a 5mm - thick sheet, the maximum recommended grooving depth is 4mm. For deeper processing, a stepped layered cutting process should be selected.

   - Width Tolerance: In conventional processing, a deviation of ±0.1mm should be maintained. In precision assembly scenarios, it should be improved to ±0.05mm.

2. Matching Principles of Materials and Equipment

   - For 304/316 stainless steel, carbide tools are preferred, while for ferritic steels such as 430, CBN tools are recommended.

   - For sheets with a thickness of ≥8mm, CNC equipment equipped with a chip - breaking device is recommended. The magnetic chip - coiling system can automatically handle processing waste, increasing the continuous operation efficiency by more than 30%.

3. Key Points for Surface Quality Control

   - After processing, chamfering should be carried out to eliminate burrs and control the R - angle of the groove edge at 0.2 - 0.5mm.

   - For precision parts, an electrolytic polishing process is recommended to reduce the surface roughness inside the groove to below Ra0.8μm.

 

III. Typical Industry Application Solutions

1. Architectural Decoration Field

   - The V - shaped groove process is used for curtain wall keels, so that the bending angle radius is ≤0.5mm, achieving a "zero - step" splicing effect.

   - The depth tolerance of the installation groove for door frame sealing strips should be ≤0.3mm to ensure uniform compression of the EPDM rubber strip.

2. Mechanical Manufacturing Field

   - The spiral milling process is used for the flow - through grooves of hydraulic valve bodies, and the surface waviness is controlled within 10μm.

   - When processing the positioning grooves of bearing housings, the 90° right - angle deviation should be <0.05°. It is recommended to use a right - angle milling head attachment.

3. Household Product Field

   - The laser cutting process is used for the embedded light grooves of kitchen cabinets, achieving a narrow - slit accuracy of 0.5mm.

   - When processing the notches of bathroom mirror frames, waterproof treatment should be carried out. Processing equipment with a dust - collection device is preferred.

 

When carrying out grooving operations, it is recommended to follow the "Three - Fixing" principle: fix the tool wear cycle (the cutting edge should be inspected every 20 linear meters of processing), fix the coolant ratio (an 8 - 10% emulsion concentration is recommended), and fix the equipment accuracy calibration cycle (the parallelism of the guide rail should be verified every 80 working hours). For the processing of special - shaped grooves, 3D simulation software can be used to predict the material deformation, and the scrap rate can be controlled within 2% through process parameter optimization.