Method and apparatus for use in electrolytic machining

Claim 1

IN A DEVICE FOR REMOVING MATERIAL FROM AN ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE AND ELECTRO-CHEMICALLY ERODIBLE WORKPIECE BY ELECTROLYTIC ACTION, THE COMBINATION OF AN ELECTRODE HAVING A CONDUCTIVE WORKING FACE, SAID WORKPIECE BEING MOUNTED AND ROTATED ABOUT ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS, MEANS FOR MOVING SAID ELECTRODE FACE TOWARD THE WORKPIECE AT A PREDETERMINED RATE, CONTROL MEANS OPERABLE IN CONJUNCTION WITH SAID MEANS FOR MOVING SAID ELECTRODE FOR ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING A PREDETERMINED GAP BETWEEN SAID FACE AND THE WORKPIECE AS SAID FACE IS ADVANCED TOWARD THE SAME, SAID WORKING FACE DEFINING A SECTOR GENERATED ABOUT THE AXIS COINCIDENT WITH THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID WORKPIECE, SAID SECTOR HAVING AN ARCUATE WIDTH AT ANY GIVEN RADIAL DISTANCE WHICH IS INVERSELY PROPORTIONAL TO THE ANGULAR VELOCITY OF A POINT ON SAID WORKPIECE AT THE SAME RADIAL DISTANCE, SO THAT THE TIME REQUIRED FOR ANY POINT ON THE WORKPIECE TO TRANSVERSE THE WIDTH OF SAID SECTOR WILL BE THE SAME, A SOURCE OF ELECTRICAL POWER CONNECTED BETWEEN SAID ELECTRODE AND THE WORKPIECE SO AS TO ESTABLISH THE FORMER AS A CATHODE, AND THE LATTER AN ANODE, THE MEANS FOR PUMPING FLUID ELECTROLYTE TO AND THROUGH SAID GAP SO AS TO PROVIDE A HIGH DENSITY CURRENT CARRYING PATH BETWEEN SAID FACE AND A PORTION OF THE ROTATING WORKPIECE IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT THERETO, WHEREBY MATERIAL IS REMOVED FROM SAID WORKPIECE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONTOUR OF SAID FACE, THE ROTATION OF SAID WORKPIECE, AND TO A DEPTH CORRESPONDING TO THE TRAVEL OF SAID ELECTRODE TOWARD SAID WORKPIECE ONCE SAID GAP HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED.