Model Based Feedrate Scheduling for Free-Form Surface Machining

Free-form surfaces are commonly used in the auto-motive, aerospace, biomedical, home appliance, and die/mold industries. Minimizing cycle times is crucial for free-form surface machining in today’s competi-tive market. Although there have been remarkable enhancements in the CAD/CAM industry, these enhancements lack physical insight into machining pro-cesses. This article presents a model-based feedrate scheduling strategy for 3-axis machining of free-form surfaces. In feedrate scheduling strategy, cycle time is minimized by off-line control of cutting forces under a threshold value between specified feedrate values. Using tool deflection analysis, surface form error can also be predicted. The proposed approaches are tested under various machining conditions and the results are presented in the paper. © Fuji Technology Press Ltd.