Multi-cutter selection and cutter location (CL) path generation for five-axis end-milling (finish cut) of sculptured surfaces

Abstract

This paper presents an optimization method for planning five-axis end milling (finish cut) of sculptured surfaces with multi-cutters. Compared to single-cutter machining, the application of multi-cutters can produce much shorter cutter location (CL) paths and, hence, reduce the machining time. The work presented in this paper focuses on the selection of an optimal multi-cutter set that is utilized to finish different regions of a design surface, followed by the generation of CL paths for each region/cutter combination. The planning starts by identifying all the feasible cutters that form all the possible multi-cutter sets by evaluating their accessibility. The candidate multi-cutter sets are then extracted by maintaining every cutter's cutting region sufficiently large. Based on a proposed method for machining time estimation without generating the tool path, the optimal multi-cutter set with the best cutting efficiency is selected. The iso-planar CL paths are then generated for the cutters in the optimal set for machining their allocated surface regions. Examples are given to show the validity and robustness of the developed methods.