Computer Numerical Control System Research Articles

Jerk limited continuous tool path generation for flexible systems in non-cartesian coordinate systems

Inspired by computer numerical control (CNC) technology and drastic changes in the world of electronics and microcontrollers, the idea of using non-cartesian coordinate system for CNC machines became a topic of interest. Non-cartesian coordinate systems provide freedom of movement in systems with large working spaces where high dimensional accuracy is not a prime concern. Applications of such systems can be found in murals, where a painting is applied to a large wall of any arbitrary build material. In the present paper, a new design was introduced to automate the process of drawing murals on large surfaces. The proposed mechanism utilized chain and sprocket to overcome the size limitations of traditionally available x-y tables. In addition to that, the developed mechanism does not utilize the common robust structures used in the conventional CNC systems and the tool motion is created using flexible arms that are not heavily constrained. The effect of systems unwanted vibration has been eliminated using continuous trajectory and kinematic profiles. Parametric curve interpolation algorithms for trajectory planning were implemented to increase the flexibility of drawing complex curves. Parametric curves such as B-spline and non-uniform rational B-spline (NURBS) were employed to generate a jerk limited trajectory for motion control and extraction of kinematic profiles. Such trajectory constrains the jerk of the system and guarantees a smooth motion free of feed-rate fluctuations. Compared to other methods available for extracting the kinematic profiles, jerk limited method decreases the travel time and trajectory error. Ultimately, motion commands were produced by using kinematic profiles and the second order Taylor interpolator. STM32746ZG card was used as the main processor and two stepper motors controlled by a Bit Pattern interpolation algorithm were utilized to drive the proposed mechanism. The input pulses of stepper motors were stored as binary bits and transmitted to drivers in real-time. The feedback was also evaluated by two rotary encoders, placed at the end of the motors’ shafts. Encoder data were acquired and transmitted using a TCP/IP protocol to guarantee zero data loss during the transmission.

Modelling of Bond Formation during Overprinting of PEEK Laminates.

The rapid technological progress of large-scale CNC (computer numerical control) systems for Screw Extrusion Additive Manufacturing (SEAM) has made the overprinting of composite laminates a much-discussed topic. It offers the potential to efficiently produce functionalised high-performance structures. However, bonding the 3D-printed structure to the laminate has proven to be a critical point. In particular, the bonding mechanisms must be precisely understood and controlled to ensure in situ bonding. This work investigates the applicability of healing models from 3D printing to the overprinting of thermoplastic laminates using semi-crystalline, high-performance material like PEEK (polyether ether ketone). For this purpose, a simulation methodology for predicting the bonding behaviour is developed and tested using experimental data from a previous study. The simulation consists of a transient heat analysis and a diffusion healing model. Using this model, a qualitative prediction of the bond strength could be made by considering the influence of wetting. It was shown that the thermal history of the interface and, in particular, the tolerance of the deposition of the first layer are decisive for in situ bonding. The results show basic requirements for future process and component developments and should further advance the maturation of overprinting.

Research on the key techniques of composite processing of EDM and vibration ultrasonic drilling

PurposeUtilizing electrical discharge machining (EDM) to process micro-holes in superalloys may lead to the formation of remelting layers and micro-cracks on the machined surface. This work proposes a method of composite processing of EDM and ultrasonic vibration drilling for machining precision micro-holes in complex positions of superalloys.Design/methodology/approachA six-axis computer numerical control (CNC) machine tool was developed, whose software control system adopted a real-time control architecture that integrates electrical discharge and ultrasonic vibration drilling. Among them, the CNC system software was developed based on Windows + RTX architecture, which could process the real-time processing state received by the hardware terminal and adjust the processing state. Based on the SoC (System on Chip) technology, an architecture for a pulse generator was developed. The circuit of the pulse generator was designed and implemented. Additionally, a composite mechanical system was engineered for both drilling and EDM. Two sets of control boards were designed for the hardware terminal. One set was the EDM discharge control board, which detected the discharge state and provided the pulse waveform for turning on the transistor. The other was a relay control card based on STM32, which could meet the switch between EDM and ultrasonic vibration, and used the Modbus protocol to communicate with the machining control software. FindingsThe mechanical structure of the designed composite machine tool can effectively avoid interference between the EDM spindle and the drilling spindle. The removal rate of the remelting layer on 1.5 mm single crystal superalloys after composite processing can reach over 90%. The average processing time per millimeter was 55 s, and the measured inner surface roughness of the hole was less than 1.6 µm, which realized the micro-hole machining without remelting layer, heat affected zone and micro-cracks in the single crystal superalloy.Originality/valueThe test results proved that the key techniques developed in this paper were suite for micro-hole machining of special materials.

Feedrate-preserved motion planning for five-axis directed energy deposition of freeform metal parts

Laser-powder DED (LP-DED) has been investigated extensively for the rapid prototype of complex and customized metallic parts and in-situ repairing tasks. However, unlike the material extrusion type which allows a relatively large overhang angle, the conventional 2.5-axis LP-DED faces a severe overhang issue that deteriorates the printing stability and quality. While five-axis LP-DED is able to effectively resolve the overhang problem, it however introduces new kinematic issues and limited nozzle orientation range due to physical restrictions of DED. The existing computer numerical control systems are mainly designed for machining, where the above issues can be mostly solved by feedrate scheduling, which, however, is not applicable for LP-DED processes, as the feedrate must be preserved as programmed lest deposition height would be altered since in most cases it is not practical to vary the powder flow rate in real-time. In this paper, a feedrate-preserved motion planning method is proposed to optimize the rotational angles of the machine tool in the machine coordinate system (MCS) under the constraints of MCS and workpiece coordinate system (WCS). Given a five-axis DED path as well as its accompanying initial nozzle orientation in WCS, we first map them via inverse kinematics to MCS, which is represented by a cylindrical coordinate system. Then, the motion path in the cylindrical coordinate system is optimized to avoid the singularity. Finally, the physical constraint of nozzle orientation in WCS is introduced into the time-weighted constrained Laplacian smoothing in MCS with the axial speed limits upheld. The experimental results confirm that the actual feedrate is successfully preserved as the theoretical one under the constraints of the axial kinematic limits, while the singularity is avoided.

Design and Construction of Batik Drawing Machine with an Arduino-based CNC System

Technology continues to develop, especially in the world of manufacturing. Processes done manually by humans are replaced gradually by machines through automation. This paper proposes a batik drawing machine with Arduino-based computer numerical control (CNC). The intention is to reduce the production of small-sized batik products by eliminating the sketching process of the batik design on the fabric. Besides, the expertise in using canting, a pen-like tool, to apply the liquid wax on the fabric will not be required. A prototype of a batik drawing machine was designed and constructed using main components such as Arduino Mega 2560, NEMA17 HS4401 stepper motor, and RAMPS 1.4 controller board. The batik design data is to be prepared by using a graphic editor, computer-aided design (CAD), and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software. After several trials, the best setting for the canting temperature was found to be 112 °C with a drawing speed of 25 steps/mm and a 3 mm distance between the cloth and the tip of the canting. Three batik designs with different difficulty levels were tested for fabric printing. The fabrics were colored to obtain the final results. The batik products with a diameter of up to 450 mm can be finished satisfactorily

Editorial

Dear Readers, It gives me great pleasure to announce the third regular issue of 2024. In this issue, 6 papers by 20 authors from 6 countries - China, Ecuador, Spain, The Netherlands, Turkey, United Kingdom - cover various topical aspects of computer science. In a continuous effort to further strengthen our journal, I would like to expand the editorial board: If you are a tenured associate professor or above with a strong publication record, you are welcome to apply to join our editorial board. We are also interested in high-quality proposals for special issues on new topics and trends.  As always, I would like to thank all the authors for their sound research and the editorial board for their extremely valuable review effort and suggestions for improvement. I also want to thank the readers for their interest on our articles indicated by an increasing access number and PDF downloads. These contributions, together with the generous support of the consortium members, sustain the quality of our journal.  In the third regular issue, I am very pleased to introduce the following 6 accepted articles: In a collaboration between researchers from The Netherlands and the United Kingdom, Jan Bergstra and John V. Tucker discuss their research on synthetic fracterm calculus, more specifically they introduce a new intermediate and informal axiomatisation of elementary arithmetic. Yasir Yakup Demircan and Serhat Ozekes from Turkey highlight their research on least significant bit steganography technique based on image segmentation. In a collaborative research effort between Spain and Ecuador, Alberto Jimenez-Macias, Pedro Muñoz-Merino, Margarita Ortiz-Rojas, Mario Muñoz-Organero, and Carlos Delgado-Kloos present their study on a systematic literature review on content modeling using machine learning algorithms in smart learning environments considering content indicators based on student interaction. Melih Kuncan, Kaplan Kaplan, Yılmaz Kaya, Mehmet Recep Minaz, and H. Metin Ertunç from Turkey focus on computer numerical control (CNC) systems, more specifically on classification of CNC vibration speeds by Heralick features. Lifang Ren, Jing Li, and Wenjian Wang from China address in their research support vector regression (SVR) and the location-aware method for mobile QoS prediction to overcome the difficulty caused by the sparsity of data and to predict the unknown QoS more accurately. Last but not least, Emre Sadıkoğlu, İrfan Kösesoy, and Murat Gök from Turkey look into the vulnerability of artificial systems to cyber-attacks by applying a gradient descent-based method to generate fake data. Enjoy Reading! Cordially,  Christian Gütl, Managing Editor-in-Chief Graz University of Technology, Graz, Austria

A Health Management Technology Based on PHM for Diagnosis, Prediction of Machine Tool Servo System Failures

The computer numerically controlled (CNC) system is the key functional component of CNC machine tool control systems, and the servo drive system is an important part of CNC systems. The complex working environment will lead to frequent failure of servo drive systems. Taking effective health management measures is the key to ensure the normal operation of CNC machine tools. In this paper, the comprehensive effect of fault prediction and fault diagnosis is considered for the first time, and a health management system for machine tool servo drive systems is proposed and applied to operation and maintenance management. According to the data collected by the system and related indicators, the technology can predict the state trend of equipment operation, identify the hidden fault characteristics in the data, and further diagnose the fault types. A health management system mainly includes fault prediction and fault diagnosis. The core of fault prediction is the gated recurrent unit (GRU). The attention mechanism is introduced into a GRU neural network, which can solve the long-term dependence problem and improve the model performance. At the same time, the Nadam optimizer is used to update the model parameters, which improves the convergence speed and generalization ability of the model and makes it suitable for solving the prediction problem of large-scale data. The core of fault diagnosis is the self-organizing mapping (SOM) neural network, which performs cluster analysis on data with different characteristics, to realize fault diagnosis. In addition, feature standardization and principal component analysis (PCA) are introduced to balance the influence of different feature scales, enhance the feature of fault data, and achieve data dimensionality reduction. Compared with the other two algorithms and their improved versions, the superiority of the health management system with high-dimensional data and the enhancement effect of fault identification are verified. The relative relationship between fault prediction and diagnosis is further revealed, and the adjustment idea of the production plan is provided for decision makers. The rationality and effectiveness of the system in practical application are verified by a series of tests of fault data sets.

A Hybrid-Model-Based CNC Machining Trajectory Error Prediction and Compensation Method

Intelligent manufacturing is the main direction of Industry 4.0, pointing towards the future development of manufacturing. The core component of intelligent manufacturing is the computer numerical control (CNC) system. Predicting and compensating for machining trajectory errors by controlling the CNC system’s accuracy is of great significance in enhancing the efficiency, quality, and flexibility of intelligent manufacturing. Traditional machining trajectory error prediction and compensation methods make it challenging to consider the uncertainties that occur during the machining process, and they cannot meet the requirements of intelligent manufacturing with respect to the complexity and accuracy of process parameter optimization. In this paper, we propose a hybrid-model-based machining trajectory error prediction and compensation method to address these issues. Firstly, a digital twin framework for the CNC system, based on a hybrid model, was constructed. The machining trajectory error prediction and compensation mechanisms were then analyzed, and an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm was used to predict the machining trajectory error. This error was then compensated for via the adaptive compensation method. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the method were verified through specific experiments, and a realization case for this digital-twin-driven machining trajectory error prediction and compensation method was provided.

Адаптация системы ЧПУ станка к условиям комбинированной обработки

Introduction. Increasing the efficiency of processing technologies for products made from modern high-strength, difficult-to-process materials with increased physical, mechanical and operational properties consists not only in improving the technology itself, the tools for its implementation, but also in modernizing technological equipment taking into account new achievements in the field of mechanical engineering. Modern computer numerical control (CNC) equipment is now quite advanced in terms of controlling basic cutting movements. Adaptive monitoring and control systems, as a rule, additionally installed on processing equipment, make it possible to further improve the quality of processing parameters. With the development of new hybrid and combined technologies that combine several types of influence on the product being processed, the issue of synchronizing the automatic control of the movements of parts of technological equipment with the control and management of accompanying processes of combined technologies has become acute. One example of such technologies is electrochemical diamond grinding with periodic dressing of the working surface of a diamond wheel using reverse polarity current. The polarity of the current and the duration of its pulses are controlled by special programmable devices. Current switching units are connected to it. It serves to supply alternating currents of direct and reverse polarity to the electrical circuit and is made on the basis of key elements. Installing such programmable devices on CNC machines leads to its’ equipping with an additional autonomous automatic control system. At the same time, it is difficult to coordinate the operation of the machine’s CNC system, which controls the movements of its working parts, and the programmable device used to control the polarity and duration of current pulses during combined processing. The purpose of the work is to synchronize the CNC system of the machine with the control system for the process of periodically changing the polarity of the current. The study was carried out on an experimental stand. Methods. The research methodology involved conducting an experiment consisting of synchronizing the operation of the machine’s CNC system with the operation of the control system for the process of periodically changing the polarity of the current. To evaluate the results, the time of movement of the diamond wheel as a result of the working stroke was compared with the duration of current pulses of different polarities specified in the control program of the developed software. Results and discussions. As a result of the research, it is established that the developed software and hardware complex makes it possible to synchronize in the CNC system of the machine tool the control of the movements of the working parts with automatic control of the periodic change of current polarity during electrochemical diamond grinding, which can significantly expand the technical capabilities of CNC machines.

Integrating and interconnecting of older SINUMERIK CNC machines with industry 4.0 using a plug-and-play system

Interconnectivity and the standardization of communications promotes the growth of Industry 4.0. The most modern industrial machinery, devices and processes are equipped with communication systems that favor such connectivity throughout industrial standards such as OPC UA (Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture). On the other hand, older computer numerical control systems (CNCs), although generating large amounts of data, lack standardized communication interfaces. Based on the above, the purpose of this research has been to provide connectivity to a subset of Siemens numerical controls, specifically the SINUMERIK 840D models in their older versions. Although previous research has explored this issue, limitations were encountered due to hardware and/or software requirements that present incompatibilities with the older versions. To address this issue, in this article, we present a Unified Communications System (UNIFIK) based on OPC UA for older SIEMENS CNCs, namely the Siemens 840D powerline (pl) and solution line (sl), through their PC Unit systems (PCU) SINUMERIK MMC, SINUMERIK HMI Advanced and SINUMERIK Operate 4.5. UNIFIK has been developed, tested, and validated in an Industry 4.0 laboratory as well as on real end-customer production lines. For the validation phase, 21 SINUMERIK devices were connected, and 7 OPC-UA clients simultaneously read 250 variables for 4 months. RAM usage was observed to range from 75 MB to 100 MB and CPU was observed to be within the normal range, fluctuating between 5 % and 30 %. These performance metrics were achieved alongside a data refresh time of less than one second (250 milliseconds for SINUMERIK Operate) and a transfer rate between the OPC-Server and the drivers of 1.65 kB/s, which represents a significant advancement in the connectivity of this type of machinery.

Acceleration mechanism of abrasive particle in ultrasonic polishing under synergistic physical vibration and cavitation: Numerical study

Ultrasonic technology is widely applied in the engineering ceramic polishing processes without the limitation of material properties and ideally integrated into computer numerical control system. Ultrasonic-induced cavitation and mechanical vibration effect could accelerate the motion of solid abrasives. The individual behaviors of microjet/shockwave of ultrasonic cavitation in gases and liquids, and micro-abrasives with simple harmonic vibrations in solids and liquids has been extensively studied. To conduct a systematic and integrated study of abrasives behavior in the polishing contact region involving abrasive, surround-workpiece wall, ultrasonic physical vibration, and ultrasonic cavitation impact, a novel model integrating the free abrasive motion velocity and fixed abrasive indentation depth under multi-scale contact was proposed according to Hertzian contact theory, Greenwood-Williamson model, indentation deformation theory, the basic equations of cavitation bubble dynamics, cavitation impact control equations, and Newton's law of motion equation. The effects of ultrasonic amplitude, ultrasonic frequency, preloading force and particle size on the proposed model were investigated by theoretical analysis and numerical simulations. Ultrasonic physical vibration mainly influences the dynamic gap and further influence the number of different abrasives. Furthermore, the indentation depth of fixed abrasive depends mainly on the abrasive geometry. As the contact gap and abrasive size decrease, the indentation depth gradually decreases. Under the synergistic effect of cavitation-induced shock wave and microjet, the velocity of free abrasive in this paper is generally 0–150 m/s, and the kinetic energy of free abrasive increases roughly linearly with increasing frequency and approximately as a quadratic function with increasing particle size. Increasing the preloading force leads to a reduction in the abrasive kinetic energy. Besides, the kinetic energy induced by the shock wave has a cliff-like increment at an amplitude of 0.7–0.8 μm. It is revealed that the abrasive kinetic energy is suppressed by the cavitation bubble expansion and collapse at smaller ultrasonic pressure amplitude and surround-wall distance. This research provides a theoretical reference for the modeling of potential defects and material removal on the workpiece surface caused by abrasive motion during polishing, and reduces the trial cost for parameter optimization in actual polishing processing.

Hardware–Software Embedded System for Real-Time Trajectory Planning of Multi-Axis Machine Using B-Spline Curve Interpolation Algorithm

This paper proposes a B-spline trajectory algorithm to realize multi-axis trajectory interpolation and analyzes the operating accuracy in an embedded system. However, the existing trajectory generation method needs to use computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software to convert the interpolating trajectory into G code and download the code into the computer numerical control (CNC) system for processing. In this paper, the method of third-degree B-spline interpolation is proposed to generate a curved surface trajectory, and the trajectory generated by this algorithm can be run directly into a CNC system. The precision analysis of the ISO parameter segmentation interpolation algorithm and the theory of constant velocity motion is also presented. The significance of this project is that it designs a complete set of embedded systems, including hardware circuit design and software logic design, and uses low-cost STM32 architecture to realize a B-spline constant-speed interpolation algorithm, which is verified on CNC polishing equipment. A simulation conducted with the MATLAB software and the B-spline curve interpolation experiments performed on a multi-axis polishing machine tool demonstrate the effectiveness and accuracy of the optimized third-degree B-spline algorithm.

Accuracy and margin quality of advanced 3D-printed monolithic zirconia crowns

Nanoparticle jetting (NPJ) is a novel ceramic 3D-printing technology with high printing accuracy. However, studies reporting the accuracy of zirconia crowns manufactured by NPJ and comparing them with conventional zirconia crowns are lacking. The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate and compare the trueness, crown fit, and margin quality of monolithic zirconia crowns manufactured by NPJ with those milled by a computer numerical control system. A gypsum left mandibular first molar was prepared and scanned with an intraoral scanner (TRIOS 4). Three types of monolithic crowns were manufactured through 3D printing and subtractive manufacturing (SM): NPJ (3D printing), VITA (milling), UPCERA (milling). The crowns were scanned, and the dimensional deviation (trueness) was evaluated and compared by using a software program. The triple scan method was used to measure crown fit and uniform index through precise alignment in the software program, and margin quality was also observed with an optical microscope. The data were analyzed with 1-way analysis of variance and the Tukey post hoc test (α=.05). The NPJ group reported better trueness of all crown and axial surfaces compared with the other SM group (P<.001), but marginal trueness (P=.601), intaglio surface (P=.596), and occlusal surface (P=.641) were statistically similar compared with the Vita milled group. All 3 groups reported clinically acceptable crown fit and uniformity with statistically similar values (P>.05). The NPJ group had more crowns judged to have flawless margin quality compared with the milled groups. All 3 manufacturing methods can fabricate zirconia crowns with a clinically acceptable crown fit. The NPJ system could be used to manufacture monolithic zirconia crowns with better margin quality and proximal surface trueness than milled crowns.

A Feedrate Planning Method in CNC System Based on Servo Response Error Model

Reducing servo response error and further making reduction on contour error is crucial for high-precision computer numerical control (CNC) machine tools. For a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) servo system, there is always a response lag in feedrate tracking, which would introduce response error into the machining trajectory. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the performance of feedrate planning and interpolation for trajectory path. In this paper, a novel contour error compensation strategy is proposed. Compared with the mainstream methods, the proposed method offers a simplified alternative to existing contour error estimation techniques. Through a three-closed-loop control structure of a PMSM servo system, a response error model is founded. Afterwards, an improved S-model feedrate planning method is introduced according to the servo response error compensation. This predicted error is subsequently compensated in each interpolation cycle, resulting in a reduction of contour error. Finally, simulations and experiments are performed to demonstrate that the contour error can be reduced in both the ‘∞’-shaped Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline (NURBS) curve path and the butterfly-shaped NURBS curve path using the proposed method.

An online monitoring methodology for grinding state identification based on real-time signal of CNC grinding machine

The grinding state is closely related to machining accuracy, wheel wear, and material removal efficiency. Changes in the grinding state often mean instability of the processing state, which will cause additional costs such as wheel wear and a decline in the processing quality of the workpiece. Various methods for monitoring grinding conditions have been proposed in the past, but none of these methods have been universally successful due to the complex nature of the machining processes. This research presents a new method for real-time monitoring of grinding forces and workpiece surface topography during grinding processing using real-time signals from the computer numerical control (CNC) system of the grinding machine without any additional sensors. By extracting real-time signals during the grinding process for time and frequency-domain analysis, the grinding state can be identified online. Based on this method, the time–frequency domain calibration experiment is carried out. The resolution of the time-domain calibration results reached 6e-5N, which can characterize the real-time change of grinding force during the grinding process. The frequency-domain analysis can achieve real-time monitoring of the spindle state of the workpiece and the grinding spindle state and obtain the frequency-domain transmission path under different processing conditions. The workpiece surface morphology is estimated in real-time using the feedback signal of the grinding machine, and the results are verified in mm, μm, and nm scales. The test results show that the use of real-time signals from the grinding machine to monitor the grinding state has the advantages of high precision, reliability, and convenient implementation.

Analisa Keausan Mata Pahat Kardiba dan Kedalaman Potong pada Proses Milling Baja SKD 11

Not all machining processes are carried out using a CNC (Computer Numerical Control) system, but are started by using conventional machines that do not require a high level of accuracy. In accordance with the advantages it has for product accuracy, most CNC systems are intended for finishing processes. The level of surface roughness of a product is indeed adjusted to the usefulness of the product itself, but it cannot be denied that the better the quality produced, the higher the selling value of the product. This study aims to determine the effect of variations in depth of cut on the wear value of the EndMill Carbide chisel on the SKD 11 steel material used in the manufacture of Dies. This study used a literature study type method, research procedures, first material preparation, second specimen machining procedure, recorded cutting time, looked at the surface of the tool after the cutting process was carried out using a microscope, determined the condition of the tool damage and then re-cut until the tool could not be used again or wear has reached 0.3 mm, then record the cutting length every 5 minutes of cutting and finally data analysis. Based on the results of the test data obtained, it shows that the wear of the carbide endmill (VB) chisel blade from the comparison of machining time and feed rate has a graph, namely if the cutting time is longer, namely 30 minutes. The higher the cutting length, the faster the wear value occurs and vice versa the lower the cutting length value, the smaller the wear value achieved. The type of endmill carbide cutting tool wear that occurs is flank wear.

An effective approach for non-singular trajectory generation of a 5-DOF hybrid machining robot

By taking a newly developed 5-DOF (degree of freedom) hybrid robot as an exemplar, this paper presents a novel and effective approach for non-singular tool trajectory generation. Based upon singularity analysis via inverse kinematics, an algorithm for the C-axis path optimization is developed using the weighted S-curve. Incorporated singular domain detection with the C-axis angle correction, the algorithm can easily be programmed and embedded into the CNC (computer numerical control) system as a postprocessing module and works in real-time. Then, an offline feedrate scheduling method is proposed by considering the drive and geometric accuracy constraints, allowing the rapid yet smooth movement in the neighborhood of singularity to be achieved. Additionally, it is found that the orientation accuracy can be improved by setting adequate cone angle and feedrate value. The results of both simulations and experiments on a prototype machine show that the C-axis can follow the non-singular tool trajectory well with relatively high rotary speed to pass through the singular domain, thereby verifying the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Fabrication of Fe-Fe1-xO based 3D coplanar microsupercapacitors by electric discharge rusting of pure iron substrates.

Iron oxides with advanced functional properties show great potential for applications in the fields of water splitting, drug delivery, sensors, batteries and supercapacitors. However, it is challenging to develop a simple and efficient strategy for fabricating patterned iron oxide based electrodes for supercapacitor applications. Herein, a facile, simple, scalable, binder-free, surfactant-free and conductive additive-free electric discharge rusting (EDR) technique is proposed to directly synthesize Fe1-xO oxide layer on a pure iron substrate. This new EDR strategy is successfully adopted to fabricate Fe-Fe1-xO integrative patterned electrodes and coplanar microsupercapacitors (CMSC) in one step. The CMSC devices with different geometries could be directly patterned by EDR, which is automatically controlled by a computer numerical control system. The fabricated Fe-Fe1-xO based 3D 2F-CMSC exhibits a maximum areal specific capacitance of 112.4 mF cm-2. Another important finding is the fabrication of 3D 2F-CMSC devices, which show good capacitive behavior at an ultra high scanning rate of 20 000 mV s-1. The results prove that EDR is a low-cost and versatile strategy for the scalable fabrication of high-performance patterned supercapacitor integrative electrodes and devices. Furthermore, it is a versatile technique which shows a great potential for development of next generation microelectronic devices, such as microbatteries and microsensors.

B-Spline-Based Curve Fitting to Cam Pitch Curve Using Reinforcement Learning

Directly applying the B-spline interpolation function to process plate cams in a computer numerical control (CNC) system may produce verbose tool-path codes and unsmooth trajectories. This paper is devoted to addressing the problem of B-spline fitting for cam pitch curves. Considering that the B-spline curve needs to meet the motion law of the follower to approximate the pitch curve, we use the radial error to quantify the effects of the fitting B-spline curve and the pitch curve. The problem thus boils down to solving a difficult global optimization problem to find the numbers and positions of the control points or data points of the B-spline curve such that the cumulative radial error between the fitting curve and the original curve is minimized, and this problem is attempted in this paper with a double deep Q-network (DDQN) reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm with data points traceability. Specifically, the RL environment, actions set and current states set are designed to facilitate the search of the data points, along with the design of the reward function and the initialization of the neural network. The experimental results show that when the angle division value of the actions set is fixed, the proposed algorithm can maximize the number of data points of the B-spline curve, and accurately place these data points to the right positions, with the minimum average of radial errors. Our work establishes the theoretical foundation for studying spline fitting using the RL method.

Five-Axis Contour Error Control Based on Spatial Iterative Learning

In this paper, a contour error control strategy based on spatial iterative learning control (sILC) is developed for repetitive processing of five-axis computer numerical control (CNC) machine tools. A curve approximation method with an adaptive moving window is developed to achieve accurate tool position and orientation contour error estimation, and a five-axis contour error control strategy based on sILC is proposed. The compensation method is derived using an sILC algorithm to modify the geometric reference path instead of modifying the controller. The experimental results show that the proposed control strategy reduces contour errors of five-axis CNC machine tools, and it outperforms the traditional tracking error control. Note to Practitioners—This paper aims to propose an effective five-axis contour error control scheme. At present, most of the five-axis contour error control methods rely on the modification of the controller, which is not allowed in commercial CNC systems. Therefore, we propose a five-axis contour error compensation algorithm based on sILC, which modifies the system’s reference path. Experimental results show that the proposed method can reduce the five-axis contour errors, while maintaining the machining efficiency.