Development of an Electrode Motion Control Device for Curved Hole Electrical Discharge Machining

Abstract

This study deals with the development of a new curved hole machining device which has been improved to diversify the shapes of the curved holes it produces. Holes are generally bored with drills, so they are straight. As a result, mechanical designers are limited to designing products with straight holes in them, even though straight holes may not be optimal for the products they design. This often becomes a problem when designing the water channels in molds or the pipelines used in pneumatic components or hydraulic equipment, since curved channels or curved pipelines would be optimal yet it is impossible for drills to produce them. To solve this problem, a method of machining curved holes is required, so the authors have developed devices which can produce them. Previous to this study, the most recent device was mechanically controlled, and the curved holes it produced were limited in shape. The device has been improved, and the latest device is controlled via software. Experimental results indicate that the improved device has much higher controllability of the shape of the curved holes it produces.