Browse Topic: Machining processes
Impact testing utilizing instrumented hammers and accelerometers is a widely adopted technique in dynamic testing. The mass loading effect of the accelerometer alters the dynamic response of the test structure, leading to deviations between the measured frequency response functions (FRFs) and their true values. Furthermore, the effects on the FRFs are contingent upon the positioning of the accelerometer, thereby causing the measured FRFs between two points to fail to meet the principle of reciprocity. This paper investigates the compensation method for the mass of a single accelerometer in impact testing. Compensation formulas for both origin–FRF and cross–FRF are derived using the frequency domain substructure decoupling method. Numerical simulations on a cantilever beam and experimental tests with milling tools validate the proposed methodology. The compensation formulas for FRFs presented in this paper are expected to enhance the measurement accuracy of FRFs in modal testing of small structures, particularly relevant for lightweight components in aerospace, aircraft, and transportation systems, where precise dynamic characterization is critical.
This research develops a multi-arc cooperative additive fabrication to address the technical challenges of low forming efficiency and insufficient precision in the production of complex components using conventional single-arc additive manufacturing systems. With the core objective of achieving efficient and high-quality production of large high-performance metal parts, the equipment employs a modular architecture, incorporating four core modules: additive fabrication modular, 3D measurement module, subtractive machining module, and central control module. It creatively designs a multi-arc cooperative additive fabrication head assembly characterized by “two contours + one filling” arc layout, enabling synchronized operation of two contour single-wire arcs and an independently developed single-power three-wire oscillating filling arc. This system builds a multi-robot collaborative motion system based on the master-slave control strategy. It realizes time synchronization and trajectory synchronization of additive, measurement, and subtractive robots through the KUKA.RoboTeam software package. Meanwhile, it integrates a laser arc constraint device, a molten pool monitoring system, and a digital process parameter monitoring module. An integrated manufacturing capability of “additive - measurement - subtraction” is formed to enhance the forming efficiency and accuracy of components. Experimental verification shows that the forming efficiency of this equipment reaches 1800 cm^3/h, which is more than three times higher than that of traditional single-arc equipment. The surface roughness of the components is optimized to 41.50 μm, and the forming size error is controlled within ±0.5 μm. It can be adapted to the one-time forming of components with a width of 30 to 150 mm. It provides reliable technical support for the high-performance manufacturing of large metal components.
This study carefully designed and successfully developed a mechanical voltage stabilizing control device. The device uses silicone oil as the key component material of the liquid spring and 1Cr13 as the main material of the pressure control unit, enhancing its high-pressure resistance (up to 35 MPa), oxidation resistance, and acid-alkali corrosion resistance. By optimizing the transmission mechanism and simplifying the pressure regulation module, the device achieves a pressure regulation range of 0.1–21 MPa with an accuracy of ±0.01 MPa, significantly broader and more precise than traditional devices. To address manufacturing challenges, advanced CNC machine tools, ceramic cutting tools, and optimized heat treatment processes (e.g., quenching and tempering) were adopted, ensuring component machining accuracy within ±0.02 mm. Field applications in 13 oil wells demonstrated a 15.6% increase in daily oil production (from 25.5 t/d to 29.5 t/d) and a 17.9% increase in daily gas production (from 2800 m^3/d to 3300 m^3/d), with stable casing pressure control at 5.3 MPa. The device has created 1.225 million yuan in economic benefits while eliminating safety hazards, providing critical technical support for efficient and environmentally friendly oil and gas production.
This device belongs to the field of aviation materials technology and discloses a high-efficiency drilling equipment for manufacturing aviation materials, which includes a bottom plate. The top of the bottom plate is provided with a clamping structure and a positioning structure. The clamping structure includes a second moving plate, a third sliding groove, a second bi-directional screw, a fourth screw block, a clamping plate, and a rubber block. This device can hold materials through a clamping structure and effectively and quickly locate and drill holes through a positioning structure. By rotating the first threaded rod, it can drive the first screw block to move the U-shaped column. During the movement of the U-shaped column, it will drive the second threaded rod to move together. By rotating the second threaded rod, it will drive the second screw block to adjust the height of the connecting plate for drilling holes. By rotating the third threaded rod, it will drive the first moving plate to move, which will facilitate the multi-directional movement of the drill bit, improve the efficiency of drilling, avoid multiple position changes, and be beneficial for practical applications and operations.
The increasing pressure to decarbonize manufacturing systems is pushing industry beyond conventional lightweighting strategies toward material and process paradigms, capable of delivering functional performance with radically lower environmental impact. In this context, polymer-based composite Additive Manufacturing (AM) offers an underexplored yet highly promising pathway for sustainable production of load-bearing components. This study presents a preliminary comparative cradle-to-gate Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of a Formula SAE brake pedal, assessing the environmental transition from conventional sheet metal fabrication and finishing operations of Aluminum 7075-T6 to additive manufacturing solutions, with specific focus on Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) composites. Two topology-optimized designs, respectively for Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) in AlSi10Mg and Material Extrusion (MEX) in Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol with Carbon Fiber (PETG-CF) are compared to conventional fabrication aluminum benchmark. The analysis is integrated in the product and process design following ISO 14040/14044 standards and is implemented using the Environmental Footprint 3.0 methodology within the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. Results outline that Material Extrusion (MEX) composite manufacturing achieves the lowest environmental impact across all evaluated categories. Compared to conventional manufacturing, the PETG-CF solution enables an approximate 50% reduction in Global Warming Potential and an almost complete elimination of mineral depletion. Unlike metal additive manufacturing, which remains constrained by high process energy demand, MEX benefits from low processing temperatures, minimal auxiliary systems, and highly efficient material deposition. Crucially, these sustainability gains are achieved while maintaining functional performance through design-driven topology optimization. AM composite solutions, by merging advanced material science with additive flexibility, may lead to design approaches which cease to be ‘potential’ enablers of sustainable manufacturing for the Industry 5.0 transition.
Five-Axis CNC machines have become essential for creating the complex geometries demanded by industries such as aerospace and defense. These advanced machines offer superior part accessibility and minimize the need for repositioning, enabling shops to eliminate secondary set-ups and post-processing. However, for many machine shops, unlocking the full performance potential of five-axis equipment requires more than sophisticated motion control: it also demands higher spindle speeds. Traditional five-axis machines often top out at spindle speeds between 6,000 and 15,000 RPM. While this is sufficient for heavy roughing operations using large diameter tools, when it comes to finishing intricate features or micro-drilling, small tools require consistent spindle speeds of 40,000 to 90,000 RPM on the toolpath to function effectively. Without that capability, shops risk poor surface finishes, broken tools and unacceptably long cycle times. This is where governed high-speed air-driven spindles offer a transformative upgrade.
3D Printing of metal components is gaining in popularity. This is partly because it can reduce production times and improve part quality in many applications. Its growth is also due to the use of generative design tools that produce topology-optimized shapes, as well as its ability to create special surface textures. Additive manufacturing (AM) has been adopted in the medical industry due to these advantages over conventional subtractive machining.
Structural aircraft components and the methods for making them have changed significantly, driven by advancements in technology and new demands in the industry. Aerospace assemblies are becoming lighter and more complex, while every aspect of how these components are designed and made is evolving. As CAD and finite element analysis (FEA) allow engineers to optimize every surface for strength and weight, structural components are taking on more sophisticated forms. Many parts today are delivered at near-net shape, which can reduce waste and roughing operations, but on the other hand, can present more challenging features to machine.
Bruno Boutantin, Extrude Hone
In modern defense manufacturing, achieving technological superiority hinges on both rapid decision-making and unparalleled precision engineering. Advanced machining systems, such as 5-axis CNC machines, play a pivotal role by enabling the production of intricate, free-form geometries with micron-level accuracy. However, these advances often necessitate deep domain expertise for optimal tool selection and machining parameter configuration. This paper introduces GraphLLM, a model-agnostic approach that integrates structured knowledge graphs with large language models (LLMs) to enhance the accuracy and reliability of technical responses. By automatically extracting domain-specific entities and relationships from documents, GraphLLM mitigates LLM hallucinations and improves performance, especially in technically challenging or out-of-distribution queries. Experimental evaluations across various LLaMA models demonstrate significant uplifts of 25%, highlighting the framework’s potential to provide grounded answers for decision-making in advanced manufacturing.
The Electroimpact Automatic Fan Cowl Riveter uses two novel drill processes to control exit burr height and achieve the required hole quality in CRES (Corrosion-Resistant Steel, also called stainless steel) material stacks. Both processes use piloted cutters on the OML (Outer Mold Line, referring to the exterior surface of an airframe) side, and two different tools are used in a backside spindle on the IML (Inner Mold Line, referring to the inside surface of an airframe) side of the component. The first process uses a shallow-angle shave tool in the IML spindle to directly control the exit burr height after it is produced by the OML spindle and is called the “burr shave” technique. The second process uses a countersink tool in the IML spindle and produces an “intermediate countersink” after the pilot hole is drilled by the OML spindle, but before the final hole diameter is drilled. These drill processes were able to achieve the required hole quality in a challenging CRES material stack, which allows the machine to be qualified for one-up assembly of the component.
Machining metal has its challenges as many shops will attest, but machining glass is another matter – one that Dan Bukaty Jr., President of Precision Glass & Optics (PG&O) is well schooled in. Mr. Bukaty and his 35-person shop manufacture high-end precision glass optics for customers such as IMAX, Intuitive Surgical, Boeing and NASA, to name a few. The products PG&O make can range from the ordinary to the extraterrestrial, such as mirrors that it fabricated for the Hobby–Eberly Telescope to measure dark energy in outer space.
The initial powder used for the manufacturing of NdFeB permanent magnets is usually prepared through rapid cooling, either by melt spinning or strip casting. The powders produced by these two methods are suitable for different applications: while melt-spun powder is a good initial material for bonded and hot-deformed magnets, strip-cast powder is normally used for sintered magnets. To investigate the suitability of using strip-cast powder to manufacture hot-deformed magnets, NdFeB powder prepared by strip casting was hot pressed (without particle alignment) and compared with melt-spun powder prepared under the same conditions (700 °C, 45 MPa, 90 min). Although the processing parameters are the same (pressed in the same mold), the magnetic properties of the magnets made from the two powders are significantly different. Surprisingly, the magnet made from the strip-cast powder (after ball milling) shows comparable magnetic properties to those of isotropic magnets, with coercivity (HcJ) of 1270 kA/m and remanence (Br) of 0.7 T, while that made from the melt-spun powder exhibits much lower properties: HcJ = 480 kA/m, Br = 0.5 T, although the melt-spun powder initially shows much better magnetic properties than the strip-cast powder. Possible reasons for such a difference in magnetic properties are discussed. It was shown that the particle size of the initial powder plays an important role in determining the final magnetic properties of the hot-pressed magnets.
Los Angeles-based plastics contract manufacturer Kal Plastics deployed UR10e trimming cobot for a fraction of the cost and lead time of a CNC machine, cut trimming time nearly in half, and reduced late shipments to under one percent — all while improving employee safety and growth opportunities.
The experimental investigation analyzed the performance of three machining conditions: dry machining, cryogenic machining, and cryogenic machining with minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) on tool wear, cutting forces, material removal rate, and microhardness. The outcome of this study presents valuable knowledge regarding optimizing conditions of turning operations for Ti6Al4V and understanding the machinability under cryogenic-based cooling strategies. Based on the experimentation, cryogenic machining with MQL is the most beneficial approach, as it reduces cutting force and flank wear with a required material removal rate. This strategy significantly enhances the machining efficiency and quality of Ti6Al4V under variable feed rates (0.05 mm/rev, 0.1 mm/rev, 0.15 mm/rev, 0.2 mm/rev, 0.25 mm/rev) where cutting velocity (120 m/min) and depth of cut (1 mm) are constant. The effects of the main cutting force, feed force, thrust force, material removal mechanism, flank wear, and microhardness on machining performance have been analyzed in this research work. It has been observed that higher cutting forces result in greater energy transferred to the workpiece material, leading to more effective material removal, and chip thickness is reduced in cryogenic plus MQL conditions compared to dry and cryogenic machining due to the excellent cushioning effect and reduced adhesion.
With over 15,000 products, Boston Scientific is a market leader in pacemakers, defibrillators, monitoring equipment, spinal and brain stimulation, stents, catheters, and ablation devices. On one recent cardiac monitoring battery component, the company had an application running year-round on multiple mills, rectangular in shape, consisting of multiple milling operations per part, requiring an operator per mill at all times. Both Mill operations consist of multi-part fixtures as the process involved running Mill OP-1, light hand deburring and prepping the parts for Mill OP-2 fixture & process, following manual deburring step. The overall process was running around seven minutes per part.
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