Finish Machining of Hardened Steel Using the Oblique Cutting Method

—Effect of the Oblique Cutting Method on Interrupted Cutting—

Abstract

With the aim of reducing the use of finite resources and cost in the production of automobile parts, the technology for replacing grinding processes with metal-cutting ones is developing. Compared with grinding processes, the reuse of metal chips resulting from cutting is possible, and the amount of water consumed is also smaller. Moreover, metal-cutting equipment has the advantage of being less expensive than grinding equipment. For materials having a hardness of 60 HRC or more, continuous cutting is possible with CBN tools and ceramic tools in conventional single-point cutting processes. However, in interrupted cutting of the spline outer diameter of transmission parts, there is the problem that tool life is shortened by the continuous impulse force acting on the tool cutting edge. To avoid that problem, the oblique cutting method in interrupted cutting is applied, and the effect on tool life is investigated. The results showed that tool life was substantially extended compared with conventional single-point cutting.