LAUSR

Abstract This paper presents the modeling of cutting forces and instantaneous tool deflection in the micro end milling process. The cutting forces directly lead to the tool deflection, which will have influence on the quality of machined surface. In order to calculate the instantaneous tool deflection, it is necessary to model the cutting forces. According to cutting edge size effect and the minimum chip thickness, the cutting forces model of micro end milling process is proposed in the ploughing-dominant and shearing-dominant regimes, respectively. The tool run-out which consists of axial and tilt offset is also taken into account as well as the tooth trajectory. Thus, the tool deflection can be established based on the obtained cutting forces. To obtain the more precise model of instantaneous tool deflection, cutting forces are regarded as a distributed load acting on the cutting edge instead of a point load, and the tool is assumed to be a continuous Timoshenko beam. Based on the calibrated tool run-out parameters and cutting forces coefficients, the experimental results carried out on Al6061 for a wide range of cutting conditions show a good agreement with the proposed instantaneous cutting forces and tool deflection models.