Ultraprecision Dexterous Machining of Micro Complex Shape

Abstract

Corresponding to diverse consumer needs, high-mix and low-volume production is becoming more important. Unique products matching consumer's sensitiveness tend to be welcome. These products will be something like art and craft products, which require skill and experience to create. This study deals with 5-axis control tool path generation to dexterously and efficiently create such craft-like microshapes, while maintaining the quality. Concerning 5-axis control machining, the way of using ball end mills is generally employed. However, it needs a lot of time to get high quality surface. To solve this problem, a side cutting edge of the ball end mill is positively utilized with its tool axis parallel to the ruled surface. Therefore, a new CAM system is developed to detect the surface to be machined with the side cutting edge, and to generate the collision-free tool paths between the tool and the workpiece. The effectiveness of the developed CAM system is experimentally confirmed by creating a tiny Möbius ring.