 | 2009 |
Abstract:
High-speed cutting is an important machining technique in the production of lightweight aerospace structures. However, during the NC milling of complex structures, dynamic effects can often lead to chatter, which, in turn, can lead to increased tool wear, and to strongly varying form deviations, both of which are identifiable by distinct artifacts on the surface of the machined workpiece. By simulating the dynamic milling process along arbitrary NC paths using a multiple-degree-of-freedom oscillator model, which is supplied with the simulated cutting forces, and modeling the resulting surface structure, it is possible to predict these artifacts in addition to over- and undermeasures. This allows an adjustment of the machining parameters before the actual milling process and may thereby reduce tool wear and prevent unnecessary wastage of expensive raw materials. In this paper, the simulation is presented, and its results are validated on an actual test workpiece for an aerospace structure.