Modelling of surface roughness in inclined milling operations with circle-segment end mills

There is currently a lack of knowledge in the manufacturing of high complexity aerospace components. Impellers or blade-integrated disks (blisks) are expensive, and manufacturers tend to prefer reliability over productivity. Thus, manufacturing times are higher than they should be. These challenging parts need to be machined using new advanced tools for several reasons, such as requirement of 1) special and complex tool paths, 2) smoother cutting forces, and 3) good accessibility. Circle-segment or oval-form cutters have recently demonstrated their usefulness and adaptability in the machining of profile and free-form surface operations, and are becoming a solution for a wide range of applications and materials. However, machinists who use them know very little about such tools. In fact, there has been a lack of real-world modelling applications. This paper proposes for the first time a geometrical model that allows the prediction of the surface topography in flank-milling operations using circle-segment end mills. This time-domain model includes the most important mechanical and kinematical parameters during cutting: the tool geometry, feed rate, radial immersion, and tool runout. Tool orientation angles commonly used in 5-axis operations are also included. The developed model was positively verified against experimentally measured values in a milled wall made of aluminium Al7075T. This knowledge-based tool is useful for manufacturing companies and suppliers interested in optimizing and controlling their production parameters.