Use of a virtual milling system to generate power-aware tool paths for 2.5-dimensional pocket machining

Abstract

Traditional (direction-parallel and contour-parallel) and non-traditional (trochoidal) tool paths are generated by specialized geometric algorithms based on the pocket shape and various parameters. However, the tool paths generated with those methods do not usually consider the required machining power. In this work, a method for generating power-aware tool paths is presented, which uses the power consumption estimation for the calculation of the tool path. A virtual milling system was developed to integrate with the tool path generation algorithm in order to obtain tool paths with precise power requirement control. The virtual milling system and the tests used to calibrate it are described within this article, as well as the proposed tool path generation algorithm. Results from machining a test pocket are presented, including the real and the estimated power requirements. Those results were compared with a contour-parallel tool path strategy, which has a shorter machining time but has higher in-process power consumption.