Selection of optimum tool geometry and cutting conditions using a surface roughness prediction model for end milling

Influence of tool geometry on the quality of surface produced is well known and hence any attempt to assess the performance of end milling should include the tool geometry. In the present work, experimental studies have been conducted to see the effect of tool geometry (radial rake angle and nose radius) and cutting conditions (cutting speed and feed rate) on the machining performance during end milling of medium carbon steel. The first and second order mathematical models, in terms of machining parameters, were developed for surface roughness prediction using response surface methodology (RSM) on the basis of experimental results. The model selected for optimization has been validated with the Chi square test. The significance of these parameters on surface roughness has been established with analysis of variance. An attempt has also been made to optimize the surface roughness prediction model using genetic algorithms (GA). The GA program gives minimum values of surface roughness and their respective optimal conditions.     

An integrated study of surface roughness for modelling and optimization of cutting parameters during end milling operation

The aim of this study is to develop an integrated study of surface roughness to model and optimize the cutting parameters when end milling of AISI 1040 steel material with TiAlN solid carbide tools under wet condition. A multiple regression analysis using analysis of variance is conducted to determine the performance of experimental measurements and to show the effect of four cutting parameters on the surface roughness. Artificial neural network (ANN) based on Back-propagation (BP) learning algorithm is used to construct the surface roughness model exploiting a full factorial design of experiments. Genetic algorithm (GA) supported with the tested ANN is utilized to determine the best combinations of cutting parameters providing roughness to the lower surface through optimization process. GA improves the surface roughness value from 0.67 to 0.59 μm with approximately 12% gain. Then, machining time has also decreased from 1.282 to 1.0316 min by about 20% reduction based on the cutting parameters before and after optimization process using the analytical formulas. The final measurement experiment has been performed to verify surface roughness value resulted from GA with that of the material surface by 3.278% error. From these results, it can be easily realized that the developed study is reliable and suitable for solving the other problems encountered in metal cutting operations as the same as surface roughness.     

An In-Process Neural Network-Based Surface Roughness Prediction (INN-SRP) System Using a Dynamometer in End Milling Operations

Surface roughness is influenced by the machining parameters and other uncontrollable factors resulting from the cutting tool in end milling operations. To perform the in-process surface roughness prediction (ISRP) system accurately, the uncontrollable factors must be monitored. In this paper, an empirical approach using a statistical analysis was employed to discover the proper cutting force to represent the uncontrollable factors in end milling operations. Furthermore, an in-process neural network-based surface roughness prediction (INN-SRP) system was developed. A neural network associated with sensing technology was applied as a decision-making system to predict the surface roughness for a wide range of machining parameters. The good accuracy of the results for a wide range of machining parameters indicates that the system is suitable for application in industry. ID="A1"Correspondance and offprint requests to: Dr J. C. Chen, Department of Industrial Education and Technology, Iowa State University, 221 I. ED II, Ames, IA 50011–3130, USA. E-mail: cschen@iastate.edu     

Optimization of cutting conditions for minimum residual stress,cutting force and surface roughness in end milling of S50C medium carbon steel

Residual stresses are usually imposed on a machined component due to thermal and mechanical loading. Tensile residual stresses are detrimental as it could shorten the fatigue life of the component; meanwhile, compressive residual stresses are beneficial as it could prolong the fatigue life. Thermal and mechanical loading significantly affect the behavior of residual stress. Therefore, this research focused on the effects of lubricant and milling mode during end milling of S50C medium carbon steel. Numerical factors, namely, spindle speed, feed rate and depth of cut and categorical factors, namely, lubrication and milling mode is optimized using D-optimal experimentation. Mathematical model is developed for the prediction of residual stress, cutting force and surface roughness based on response surface methodology (RSM). Results show that minimum residual stress and cutting force can be achieved during up milling, by adopting the MQL-SiO₂ nanolubrication system. Meanwhile, during down milling minimum residual stress and cutting force can be achieved with flood cutting. Moreover, minimum surface roughness can be attained during flood cutting in both up and down milling. The response surface plots indicate that the effect of spindle speed and feed rate is less significant at low depth of cut but this effect significantly increases the residual stress, cutting force and surface roughness as the depth of cut increases.     

2Cr13不锈钢高速铣削表面粗糙度预测模型研究

针对汽轮机叶片常用钢2Cr13不锈钢在切削加工中表面质量存在的问题,对高速铣削条件下2Cr13不锈钢表面粗糙度预测模型进行了研究。将最小二乘支持向量机原理应用到高速铣削2Cr13不锈钢的表面粗糙度预测建模中。得出的模型能方便地预测铣削参数对表面粗糙度的影响,并能利用有限的试验数据得出整个工作范围内的表面粗糙度预测值。经试验验证,应用最小二乘支持向量机原理建立的粗糙度预测模型回归预测精度高。基于最小二乘支持向量机原理建模方法适合于表面粗糙度预测。     

Study on the prediction model of surface roughness for side milling operations

The paper presents a feasibility study on prediction of surface roughness in side milling operations using the different polynomial networks. A series of experiments using S45C steel plates is conducted to study the effects of the various cutting parameters on surface roughness. The different polynomial networks for predicting surface roughness are developed using the abductive modeling technique and based on the F-ratio to select their input variables. The results show that the developed models achieve high predicting capability on surface roughness, especially for the case of smaller flank wear of peripheral cutting edge. Hence, it can be concluded that the developed polynomial-network models posses promising potential in the application of predicting surface roughness in side milling operations.     

Surface roughness modeling in Laser-assisted End Milling of Inconel 718

Inconel 718 is a difficult-to-machine material while products of this material require good surface finish. Therefore, it is essential for the evaluation and prediction of surface roughness of machined Inconel 718 workpiece to be developed. An analytical model for the prediction of surface roughness under laser-assisted end milling of Inconel 718 is proposed based on kinematics of tool movement and elastic response of workpiece. The actual tool trajectory is first predicted with the consideration of overall tool movement, elastic deformation of tool, and the tool tip profile. The tool movements include the translation in feed direction and the rotation along its axis. The elastic deformation is calculated based on the previously established milling force prediction model. The tool tip profile is predicted based on the tool tip radius and angle. The machined surface profile is simulated based on the tool trajectory with elastic recovery, which is considered through the comparison between the minimum thickness and actual cutting thickness. Experiments are conducted in both conventional and laser-assisted milling under seven different sets of cutting parameters. Through the comparison between the analytical predictions and experimental measurements, the proposed model has high accuracy with the maximum error less than 27%, which is more accurate for lower feed rate with error less than 3%. The proposed analytical model is valuable for providing a fast, credible, and physics-based method for the prediction of surface roughness in milling process.     

SIMULATED ANNEALING TO ESTIMATE THE OPTIMAL CUTTING CONDITIONS FOR MINIMIZING SURFACE ROUGHNESS IN END MILLING Ti-6Al-4V

This study presents the estimation of the optimal effect of the radial rake angle of the tool, combined with cutting speed and feed in influencing the surface roughness result. Studies on optimization of cutting conditions for surface roughness in end milling involving radial rake angle are still lacking. Therefore, considering the radial rake angle, this study applied simulated annealing in determining the solution of the cutting conditions to obtain the minimum surface roughness when end milling Ti-6Al-4V. Considering a set of experimental machining data, the regression model is developed. The best regression model was considered to formulate the fitness function of the simulated annealing. It was recommended that the cutting conditions should be set at highest cutting speed, lowest feed and highest radial rake angle in order to achieve the minimum surface roughness of 0.1385 µm. Subsequently, it was found that by using simulated annealing, the minimum surface roughness was much lower than the experimental sample data, regression modelling and response surface methodology technique by about 27%, 26% and 50%, respectively.     

Avoiding neural network fine tuning by using ensemble learning: application to ball-end milling operations

Surface roughness plays a key role in the performance of machined components??specially dies and moulds??manufactured for the aerospace and automotive industries, among others. However, roughness can only be measured off-line after the part has been machined, when cutting conditions may no longer be adjusted to surface roughness requirements. A reliable surface roughness prediction application is presented in this paper. It is based on ensemble learning for vertical high-speed milling operations with ball-end mills for finishing operations on quenched steel 1.2344 (AISI H13) that are widely used in the manufacture of moulds and dies. The new approach was validated with an experimental dataset that includes geometrical tool factors, cutting conditions, dynamic factors and lubricant type. An intensive comparison with an artificial neural network approach for the same dataset is included, to reveal the improvements of the new technique over other well-established ones for this industrial problem. This comparison shows that ensemble learning can by-pass the time-consuming task of tuning neural network parameters and can also improve prediction model accuracy, both of which are features that could lead to greater use of these kinds of prediction models in real workshops. Finally, a methodology, based on this new approach, is presented, in order to illustrate how the prediction model can be used in workshops to optimize cutting conditions in terms of their surface quality and productivity.     

MODELING APPROACHES AND SOFTWARE FOR PREDICTING THE PERFORMANCE OF MILLING OPERATIONS AT MAL-UBC

The author has been conducting research in the area of metal cutting mechanics, metal cutting dynamics, machine tool vibrations, precision machining and machine tool control in his Manufacturing Automation Laboratory, at The University of British Columbia, Canada since 1986. This article summarizes the research conducted in mechanics and dynamics of metal cutting in our laboratory. Modeling of mechanics of metal cutting is summarized first. The models include orthogonal to oblique cutting transformation, mechanistic modeling of cutting coefficients, slip line field and Finite Element modeling. The author mostly focused on milling. The kinematics of milling with and without structural vibrations is modeled. The geometric model of end mills and inserted cutters with arbitrary geometry are modeled. The prediction of forces, torque, power and dimensional surface finish is explained for milling operations. The chatter stability for milling operations is presented. The metal cutting knowledge is transferred to manufacturing industry by combining all the models in shop friendly software.     

Prediction of cutting force, tool wear and surface roughness of Al6061/SiC composite for end milling operations using RSM

The results of mathematical modeling and the experimental investigation on the machinability of aluminium (Al6061) silicon carbide particulate (SiCp) metal matrix composite (MMC) during end milling process is analyzed. The machining was difficult to cut the material because of its hardness and wear resistance due to its abrasive nature of reinforcement element. The influence of machining parameters such as spindle speed, feed rate, depth of cut and nose radius on the cutting force has been investigated. The influence of the length of machining on the tool wear and the machining parameters on the surface finish criteria have been determined through the response surface methodology (RSM) prediction model. The prediction model is also used to determine the combined effect of machining parameters on the cutting force, tool wear and surface roughness. The results of the model were compared with the experimental results and found to be good agreement with them. The results of prediction model help in the selection of process parameters to reduce the cutting force, tool wear and surface roughness, which ensures quality of milling processes.     

Optimization of machining parameters using genetic algorithm and experimental validation for end-milling operations

Optimization of cutting parameters is valuable in terms of providing high precision and efficient machining. Optimization of machining parameters for milling is an important step to minimize the machining time and cutting force, increase productivity and tool life and obtain better surface finish. In this work a mathematical model has been developed based on both the material behavior and the machine dynamics to determine cutting force for milling operations. The system used for optimization is based on powerful artificial intelligence called genetic algorithms (GA). The machining time is considered as the objective function and constraints are tool life, limits of feed rate, depth of cut, cutting speed, surface roughness, cutting force and amplitude of vibrations while maintaining a constant material removal rate. The result of the work shows how a complex optimization problem is handled by a genetic algorithm and converges very quickly. Experimental end milling tests have been performed on mild steel to measure surface roughness, cutting force using milling tool dynamometer and vibration using a FFT (fast Fourier transform) analyzer for the optimized cutting parameters in a Universal milling machine using an HSS cutter. From the estimated surface roughness value of 0.71 μm, the optimal cutting parameters that have given a maximum material removal rate of 6.0×10³ mm³/min with less amplitude of vibration at the work piece support 1.66 μm maximum displacement. The good agreement between the GA cutting forces and measured cutting forces clearly demonstrates the accuracy and effectiveness of the model presented and program developed. The obtained results indicate that the optimized parameters are capable of machining the work piece more efficiently with better surface finish.     

The development of an in-process surface roughness adaptive control system in end milling operations

An in-process surface roughness adaptive control (ISRAC) system in end milling operations was researched and developed. A multiple regression algorithm was employed to establish two subsystems: the in-process surface roughness evaluation (ISRE) subsystem and the in-process adaptive parameter control (IAPC) subsystem. These systems included not only machine cutting parameters such as feed rate, spindle speed, and depth of cut, but also cutting force signals detected by a dynamometer sensor. The multiple-regression-based ISRE subsystem predicted surface roughness during the finish cutting process with an accuracy of 91.5%. The integration of the two subsystems led to the ISRAC system. The testing resulted in a 100% success rate for adaptive control, proving that this proposed system could be implemented to adaptively control surface roughness during milling operations. This research suggests that multiple linear regression used in this study was straightforward and effective for in-process adaptive control.     

基于ANFIS的铝合金铣削加工表面粗糙度预测模型研究

分析以往建立表面粗糙度预测模型方法的不足，采用自适应神经模糊推理系统(ANFIS)建立了铝合金铣削加工表面粗糙度预测模型。经检验，该模型预测精度高，泛化能力强，且可简便预测铣削参数对已加工表面的表面粗糙度的影响，有助于准确认识已加工表面质量随铣削参数的变化规律，为切削参数的优选和表面质量的控制提供了依据。     

Surface roughness prediction for the milling of Ti–6Al–4V ELI alloy with the use of statistical and soft computing techniques

This study focuses on Ti–6Al–4V ELI titanium alloy machining by means of plain peripheral down milling process and subsequent modeling of this process, in order to predict surface quality of the workpiece and identify optimal cutting parameters, that lead to minimum surface roughness. For the purpose of accomplishing this task a set of experiments were performed on a CNC milling centre and design of experiments based on Box Behnken Design (BBD) for a three factor and three level central composite design concept was conducted. Depth of cut, cutting speed and feed rate were selected as input parameters and surface roughness was measured after each experiment performed. At first, Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was employed for establishing a quadratic relationship between input and output parameters. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was then conducted for the evaluation of the proposed formula. RSM was also used for the optimization analysis that followed for the determination of milling cutting parameters for minimum surface roughness. The analysis indicates that the use of BBD can reduce the number of experiments needed for modeling and optimizing the milling operation of Titanium alloys. Furthermore, this method is able to provide models that can reliably be used for any cutting conditions within the limits of the input data. Finally, Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) models were developed to allow for a more robust simulation model to be built and comparison between ANN and RSM models to be performed. From the presented results, for RSM, the mean square error and the correlation coefficient were determined to be 8.633 × 10⁻³ and 0.9713, respectively; for ANN models, the corresponding values were 2 × 10⁻³ and 0.9824, for the test group of the optimum model. Simulations indicated that, although input data were too few, a considerably reliable ANN model was able to be built and despite of its complexity compared to RSM model, it was proven to be superior in terms of prediction accuracy.     

A new approach to analysing machined surfaces by ball-end milling, part II:

This paper presents a procedure for the evaluation of maximum surface roughness using the ridges analysed in part 1 of this paper. Maximum surface roughness is predicted for the plane cutting mode of ball-end milling. Two types of cutting modes, i.e., unidirectional mode and bidirectional mode, are investigated. The various cutting conditions in plane cutting are simplified employing the concept of the path interval ratio, f_p/f_t. In addition, mathematical expressions for calculating maximum surface roughness have been described for each case. The predicted results show that the geometrical surface roughness of the bidirectional mode is usually larger than that of the unidirectional mode differing from the results of the conventional roughness model. Maximum roughness and the shapes of the cut remainder are affected by path interval, feedrate and cutting mode. Experiments are carried out at various cutting conditions for both cutting modes. A high level of agreement between the expected surface roughness and measured value confirms the validity of the proposed method.     

Selection of an optimal parametric combination for achieving a better surface finish in dry milling using genetic algorithms

In machining, coolants improve machinability, increase productivity by reducing tool wear and extend tool life. However, due to ecological and human health problems, manufacturing industries are now being forced to implement strategies to reduce the amount of cutting fluids used in their production lines. A trend that has emerged to solve these problems is machining without fluid – a method called dry machining – which has been made possible due to technological innovations. This paper presents an experimental investigation of the influence of tool geometry (radial rake angle and nose radius) and cutting conditions (cutting speed and feed rate) on machining performance in dry milling with four fluted solid TiAlN-coated carbide end mill cutters based on Taguchi’s experimental design method. The mathematical model, in terms of machining parameters, was developed for surface roughness prediction using response surface methodology. The optimization is then carried out with genetic algorithms using the surface roughness model developed and validated in this work. This methodology helps to determine the best possible tool geometry and cutting conditions for dry milling.     

Optimization of surface roughness in end milling Castamide

Castamide is vulnerable to humidity up to 7%; therefore, it is important to know the effect of processing parameters on Castamide with and without humidity during machining. In this study, obtained quality of surface roughness of Castamide block samples prepared in wet and dry conditions, which is processed by using the same cutting parameters, were compared. Moreover, an artificial neural network (ANN) modeling technique was developed with the results obtained from the experiments. For the training of ANN model, material type, cutting speed, cutting rate, and depth of cutting parameters were used. In this way, average surface roughness values could be estimated without performing actual application for those values. Various experimental results for different material types with cutting parameters were evaluated by different ANN training algorithms. So, it aims to define the average surface roughness with minimum error by using the best reliable ANN training algorithm. Parameters as cutting speed (V _c), feed rate (f), diameter of cutting equipment, and depth of cut (a _p) have been used as the input layers; average surface roughness has been also used as output layer. For testing data, root mean squared error, the fraction of variance (R ²), and mean absolute percentage error were found to be 0.0681%, 0.9999%, and 0.1563%, respectively. With these results, we believe that the ANN can be used for prediction of average surface roughness.     

螺旋铣孔工艺的切削稳定性及工艺参数规划

以螺旋铣孔工艺时域解析切削力建模、时域与频域切削过程动力学建模、切削颤振及切削稳定性建模为基础,研究了螺旋铣孔的切削参数工艺规划模型和方法。切削力模型同时考虑了刀具周向进给和轴向进给,沿刀具螺旋进给方向综合了侧刃和底刃的瞬时受力特性;动力学模型中同时包含了主轴自转和螺旋进给两种周期对系统动力学特性的影响,并分别建立了轴向切削稳定域和径向切削稳定域的预测模型,求解了相关工艺条件下的切削稳定域叶瓣图。在切削力和动力学模型基础之上,研究了包括轴向切削深度、径向切削深度、主轴转速、周向进给率、轴向进给率等切削工艺参数的多目标工艺参数规划方法。最后通过试验对所规划的工艺参数进行了验证,试验过程中未出现颤振现象,表面粗糙度、圆度、圆柱度可以达到镗孔工艺的加工精度。     

基于响应曲面法的表面粗糙度预测模型的建立与切削参数的优选

文中通过试验设计的方法研究了高速精加工中切削参数的选择对表面粗糙度的影响.采用响应曲面法建立表面粗糙度的响应模型,分析了切削速度、进给量、背吃刀量对表面粗糙度的影响以及切削参数的优选.结果显示背吃刀量对表面粗糙度的影响最为显著,进给量次之,切削速度影响最小.在表面粗糙度选定的情况下,优先选择背吃刀量可以提高加工效率.