Characterization of surface polishing with spindle mounted abrasive disk-type filament tool for manufacturing of machine tool sliding guideways

Abstract

In order to expand the regional production of machine tools which utilize precision machined sliding guideways, cubic boron nitride (CBN) hard milling may be implemented as an alternative finish process instead of conventional surface grinding. While higher material removal rates can be achieved with a milling strategy, the use of a defined cutting edge leads to surfaces with asperities. These sharp peaks quickly wear down during sliding contact, resulting in unacceptable changes in the load bearing surface of the guide. Therefore, a post process to milling must be implemented to mitigate these features. This paper investigates the use of a spindle mounted abrasive disk filament tool for producing a functional surface similar to the ground surfaces. The optimal process parameters were investigated using 2D profile measurements, followed by comparison using areal analysis of ground, milled, and polished surfaces. It was found that polishing reduces both the height and volume of asperities on the milled surface, leading to contact characteristics which were more similar to those of the conventional ground surfaces currently used for sliding guideways.