Efficient tool path planning for 5-axis flank milling of ruled surfaces using ant colony system algorithms

Five-axis CNC flank milling has recently received much attention in industry. The flank milling operation is efficient in shaping ruled geometry, but introduces a challenging task in machining error control. Previous work proposed a dynamic-programming based scheme for generating optimal tool path b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of production research 2011-03, Vol.49 (6), p.1557-1574
Main Authors: Chu, Chih-Hsing, Lee, Cheng-Ta, Tien, Kai-Wen, Ting, Ching-Jung
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
5-axis machining
Algorithms
ant colony
Applied sciences
Dynamic programming
Dynamical systems
Dynamics
Errors
Exact sciences and technology
flank milling
Flanks
Heuristic
Machining
machining error
Mathematical programming
Milling (machining)
Operational research and scientific management
Operational research. Management science
Operations research
Optimization algorithms
Path planning
Production controls
ruled surface
Studies
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Summary:Five-axis CNC flank milling has recently received much attention in industry. The flank milling operation is efficient in shaping ruled geometry, but introduces a challenging task in machining error control. Previous work proposed a dynamic-programming based scheme for generating optimal tool path by minimising the machining error. However, to compute the tool path takes a considerable amount of time. This paper presents a new scheme using meta-heuristics, ant colony system (ACS), for tool path planning in 5-axis flank milling, with a focus on improving the computation efficiency. The path planning problem is first formulated as mapping two boundary curves of a ruled surface. An ACS-based optimisation algorithm is then applied to search for the mapping that minimises the machining error. The solution is nearly as good as using dynamic programming but takes only half of the computational time. The results from machining experiment and 3D measurement validate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
ISSN:0020-7543
1366-588X
DOI:10.1080/00207540903501720