Direct Generation of Tool Axis Vector for Multi-axis NC Machining of Mesh Surface

Abstract

In many industrial fields, the triangular mesh had replaced the original CAD models for their simplicity and efficiency. The mesh surfaces have been widely used in the direct machining for the industrial needs. Compared with the general machining methods, the multi-axis machining can achieve the better curved surface processing effect. However, the tool axis vector cannot be accurately obtained from the mesh surface, and the multi-axis NC machining cannot be implemented directly and effectively. Base on the method that the tool axis vector perpendicular to the part, this paper proposes use the normal vector of the facet to approximatively substitute the tool axis vector and achieve the multi-axis NC machining of the mesh surface. To obtain the normal vector of the facet, the operations include facet data acquisition, regenerated triangles area calculation, selected facet judgement and extract the normal vector are introduced. And the proposed method is verified by computer programming and running in IDEL. This method will be benefit of the multi-axis NC machining of the mesh surface and solve the problem of tool axis vector generation.