We investigated the polishing mechanism and industrial effectiveness of the ultrasonic vibration fixed abrasive grain polishing method in which the grindstone is ultrasonically vibrated in perpendicular to the polishing direction. First, the polishing characteristics and industrial effectiveness were analyzed based on the behavior of the abrasive grains in low-speed polishing using this method. Next, diamond and cBN abrasive grain electrodeposited square grindstones that ultrasonically vibrate at a frequency of 20 kHz and a maximum amplitude of 15 μm were manufactured, and polishing experiments were conducted on high-speed tool steel. The results clarified the amount of processing, chip properties, and characteristics of the polished surface.

In the grinding process, the finished surface is created by repeated high-speed micro-cutting generated by a large number of abrasive grains. The grinding wheel surface condition is not directly transferred to the finished surface, and factors of the elastic and plastic behavior at the abrasive grain and workpiece affect the creation of the finished surface. This study proposes a simulator for generation of the finished surface, which depends on the elastic and plastic behavior at the abrasive grain and workpiece. The simulation is performed using the results of grinding wheel surface measurements. Comparison of the finished surface of the workpiece and simulation indicated that the simulation can obtain almost the same shape and the same roughness as the workpiece.