I've got some request to cuts fabric, leather and linoleum and I'm in the process of making a tangential knife for this application.
I've got a 130x260 cnc router with a vacuum bed so fixing the material should not be a problem.
I started with a simple dragknife but was not satisfied. After reading the Eding CNC manual I had a tangential knife output to point the knife in the right direction with a steppermotor in under a hour and this is much cleaner way of cutting materials.
I've got all the hardware (stepper, knifeholder, some bearings etc) but I was thinking to upgrade the system with a oscillating movement or maybe even a ultrasonic movement.
In this video you see a ultrasonic knife.
I don't have a ultrasonic cleaner but let's say I remove the piezo element and attached it to a blade and find the right frequency for cutting. Would it be that simple?
I can't find real information on the internet but when I do find it I will post it in this topic.
Thanks for the replay, are ultrasonic oscillators not exactly the same as the units used in the cleaners? I would probably search for a kit with driver an oscillator.
My biggest problem is (I think) the connection between the ultrasonic oscillator and the knife. It seems to be quite difficult to get the vibration right where it is needed. How would you connect the ultrasonic oscillator, between the rotating axis and the knife?
Sadly there is not much information to find about this subject or i'm searching with the wrong keywords.
Another option is this:
Just a jigsaw system, seems to work great. I've found information that the average is 3000 cycles per minute. You could do this with a small motor with a offset axis like a smal vibrating sander but I would like a pre build unit so that don't need to reinvent the wheel. Something like a solenoid system?