Materials Science Forum, Vol.505-507, 877-882, 2006
Spiral-layer machining for making thin-wall structures
CNC machining is one of the most widely used manufacturing processes. While possessing good flexibility and fast cycle time, there are some restrictions imposed depending on the geometry of the part to be machined. One challenge often encountered is the machining of thin-wall structures. The instability and deflection of the thin-wall causes difficulty for control of the machining condition, affecting the accuracy of the modeling and simulation of the process. This paper presents an alternative machining method called spiral-layer machining that could improve this condition using the concept of layer manufacturing technology and technologies that would reduce the machining force or tool-force variation and divert the force-vector. A case study of machining a turbine blade was conducted to verify the method. The result was successful in terms of stability and feasibility. Error correction techniques are being investigated to ensure good dimensional precision of the part.
Keywords:thin-wall machining;layer manufacturing technology;computer numerical control (CNC);spiral-layer machining;error correction and compensation