Process planning and electrode wear compensation for 3D micro-EDM

摘要

This paper presents a novel multi-cut process planning method and a new electrode wear compensation method based on a machine vision system for three-dimensional (3D) micro-electrical discharge machining (micro-EDM). Front wear and corner wear of tool electrode can be measured and compensated in a direct manner by the vision system’s image processing software capabilities. Experiments have shown that corner wear ratio (defined as a ratio between the length of corner wear and electrode diameter) is linearly proportional to machining length under a fixed machining depth condition. Track overlapping between the two adjoining paths is designed appropriately according to the corner wear ratio. Experimental results not only indicate that the proposed multi-cut process planning and electrode wear compensation methods can significantly improve machining accuracy and reduce machining time for the micro-EDM process, they also demonstrate that the X–Y dimensional errors of micro-structures can be controlled within 10 μm.