Högskolan i Skövde

Understanding the influence of the cutting edge geometry on the development of cutting forces during the milling process is of high importance in order to predict the mechanical loads on the cutting edge as well as the dynamic behavior on the milling tool. The work conducted in this study involves the force development over the entire engagement of a flute in milling, from peak force during the entry phase until the exit phase. The results show a significant difference in the behavior of the cutting process for a highly positive versus a highly negative cutting edge geometry. The negative edge geometry gives rise to larger force magnitudes and very similar developments of the tangential and radial cutting force. The positive cutting edge geometry produces considerably different developments of the tangential and radial cutting force. In case of positive cutting edge geometry, the radial cutting force increases while the uncut chip thickness decreases directly after the entry phase; reaching the peak value after a certain delay. The radial force fluctuation is significantly higher for the positive cutting edge geometry. The understanding of such behavior is important for modelling of the milling process, the design of the cutting edge and the interactive design of digital applications for the selection of the cutting parameters.

The ability to minimize vibrations in milling by the selection of cutting edge geometry and appropriate cutting conditions is an important asset in the optimization of the cutting process. This paper presents a measurement method and a signal processing technique to characterize and quantify the magnitude of the vibrations in an end milling application. Developed methods are then used to investigate the effects of various cutting edge geometries on vibrations in end milling. The experiments are carried out with five cutting edge geometries that are frequently used in machining industry for a wide range of milling applications. The results show that a modest protection chamfer combined with a relatively high rake angle has, for the most of cutting conditions, a reducing effect on vibration magnitudes. Furthermore, dynamics of a highly positive versus a highly negative cutting geometry is explored in time domain and its dependency on cutting conditions is presented. The results give concrete indications about the most optimal cutting edge geometry and cutting conditions in terms of dynamic behavior of the tool.

The choice of milling cutter geometry and appropriate cutting data for certain milling application is of vital importance for successful machining results. Unfavorable selection of cutting conditions might give rise to high load impacts that cause severe cutting edge damage. Under some circumstances the radial depth of cut in combination with milling cutter geometry might give unfavorable entry conditions in terms of cutting forces and vibration amplitudes. This phenomenon is originated from the geometrical features that affect the rise time of the cutting edge engagement into workpiece at different radial depths of cut. As the radial depth of cut is often an important parameter, particularly when machining difficult-to-cut materials, it is important to explore the driving mechanism behind vibrations generation. In this study, acceleration of the workpiece is measured for different radial depths of cut and cutting edge geometries. The influence of the radial depth of cut on the dynamical behavior is evaluated in time and frequency domains. The results for different radial depths of cut and cutting geometries are quantified using the root mean square value of acceleration. The outcome of this research study can be used both for the better cutting data recommendations and improved tool design.

In the intermittent turning and milling processes, during the entry phase the cutting edges are subjected to high impact loads that can give rise to dynamical and strength issues which in general cause tool life reduction. In this study the effect of geometrical features of the cutting tool on the force generation during the entry phase is investigated. Cutting forces are measured by a stiff dynamometer at a high sampling frequency. In addition, the chip load area is analyzed and related to the measured cutting force. The results show that micro-geometrical features, in particular the protection chamfer, significantly affect the force generation during the entry phase.

The choice of milling cutter geometry and appropriate cutting data for certain milling application is of vital importance for successful machining results. Unfavourable selection of cutting conditions might give rise to high load impacts that cause severe cutting edge damage. The radial depth of cut in combination with milling cutter geometry might under some circumstances give unfavourable entry conditions in terms of cutting forces and vibration amplitudes. This phenomenon originates from the geometrical features that affect the rise time of the cutting edge engagement into work piece at different radial depths of cut. As the radial depth of cut is often an important parameter, particularly when machining difficult to cut materials, it is important to explore the driving mechanism behind vibrations generation. In this study, acceleration of the work piece is measured for different radial depths of cut and cutting edge geometries. The influence of the radial depth of cut on the dynamical behaviour is evaluated in time and frequency domains. The results for different radial depths of cut and cutting geometries are quantified using root mean square value of acceleration. The outcome of this research study can be used both for the better cutting data recommendations and improved tool design.