With the onset of the energy crisis, electric vehicles emerged and have since experienced rapid development. The shift from internal-combustion-engine vehicles to electric vehicles signifies a shortening of the value chain in the automotive industry and among its component suppliers, prompting an increasing number of automakers to move upstream. As traditional internal-combustion engines are being replaced, the number of mechanical components in electric vehicles has declined substantially, leading to a year-on-year decrease in market demand for specialized cutting tools used to machine engine blocks, cylinder heads, crankshafts, camshafts, connecting rods, and other such parts.

Meanwhile, the emergence of electric vehicles has given rise to new metal-cutting applications, such as the machining of motor shafts, motor housings, battery trays, and a variety of newly developed molds. For most of these components, while high production efficiency is essential, the requirements for machining accuracy and quality are even more stringent. In addition, lightweight design is of paramount importance for electric vehicles. Achieving vehicle weight reduction primarily involves the adoption of new materials, along with innovative structural and mold designs and corresponding manufacturing processes, which in turn present new challenges for tool and machine-tool manufacturers.

       Leveraging more than a decade of extensive experience in automotive component machining, ArrowStone is not only able to provide innovative, efficient, and reliable specialized cutting tools and machining solutions for complex, high-precision components such as engines and transmissions; it is also fully prepared to address the machining of critical components for electric vehicles. For the machining of these EV components, Nanjing ArrowStone offers a comprehensive suite of advanced tooling solutions designed to meet diverse operating conditions and customer requirements.

I. Advanced Cutting Tool Solutions for the Electric Motor Housing of Arrowstone New Energy Vehicles

      In new-energy vehicles, the electric motor is a critical component whose performance directly impacts the overall performance of the vehicle’s powertrain.

Electric motors are sometimes integrated with gearboxes and differentials, sometimes with the axle housing, and sometimes directly with the wheels, resulting in a wide variety of housing shapes and structures; however, the machining characteristics of these housings are generally similar. To align with the overarching trend of vehicle lightweighting, cast aluminum alloys—such as A6061-T6—are commonly used as the primary material for electric motor housings. The typical machining operations for these housings include face milling, drilling, boring, reaming, and tapping.

      1. PCD Finishing Face Mill

Cutting head diameter: 40–260 mm

Burr-free machining

The large-diameter cutterhead is made of aluminum alloy, making it suitable for high-speed machining.

The use of an adjustable tool holder design allows for precise adjustment of end-face runout, resulting in superior surface finish and extended tool life.

The fine-tooth structure design enables higher production efficiency.

The cutterhead features an unequal-tooth-spacing design to suppress vibration.

  Processing Cases

  2. Machining of Motor Housing Holes

      1. Non-standard bridge-type rough boring tool

A high-precision tool dynamic balancing design ensures machining stability.

Step-type boring tool design for simultaneously removing stock from multiple step dimensions.

The tool body is made of aluminum alloy, reducing the tool weight and overturning moment and facilitating automatic tool changing on machine tools.

  2. Non-standard guide-bushing reamer

The design of a guide-bushing-type adjustable precision reamer enables effortless machining of Grade 6 holes.

It exhibits good dimensional stability during production.

The multi-edge guide strip design can counteract deformation during deep-hole machining.

3. Carbide Drill Bits

For drilling aluminum alloy parts, ArrowStone offers both solid carbide and PCD tool materials for customers to choose from. Combined with its optimized polished chip evacuation flutes and high-precision internal coolant holes, these tools deliver superior hole quality while extending tool life. In addition, we can provide custom-designed, complex multi-stage form drills tailored to specific machining conditions and customer requirements.

4. Thread Tap