Review of ultrasonic vibration-assisted milling technology

Compared with the conventional milling technology, the ultrasonic vibration-assisted milling technology has better machining performance for hard-to-machine materials. With the progress of ultrasonic generators and ultrasonic transducers, the research of the ultrasonic-assisted milling technology has been developed rapidly. Correspondingly, new design requirements and theoretical concepts are proposed to meet the high-performance requirements of manufacturing complex structures with hard-to-machine materials. There are few comprehensive reviews about the ultrasonic vibration-assisted milling technology. Therefore, we present the first comprehensive review of the advantages, the basic principles, the historical research progress, the cutting tools, the workpiece material properties and the cutting characteristics of the ultrasonic vibration-assisted milling technology to lay a foundation for the related research. In addition, the shortcomings of the existing theories and the outlook for future research directions are also discussed.