Suppressing Milling Chatter of Thin-Walled Parts by Eddy Current Dampers

Machining vibrations often occur when working with thin-walled workpieces. One effective method to mitigate these vibrations is by using a damper, which can enhance machining accuracy, surface finish, and tool life. However, traditional contact dampers have a drawback in that they require direct contact with the workpiece, leading to friction, wear, increased cutting forces, and reduced machining accuracy. In contrast, electromagnetic eddy current dampers are noncontact dampers that can effectively suppress machining vibrations without the need for physical contact. In this study, a method to suppress machining vibrations in thin-walled workpieces using electromagnetic eddy current dampers is proposed. By establishing a theoretical model for the electromagnetic damper, the damping force and equivalent damping of the damper are determined. Subsequently, the impact of electromagnetic dampers on frequency response functions and machining vibrations are investigated through hammer impact tests. The results indicate that increasing the surface damper voltage and reducing the air gap both enhance the equivalent damping of the electromagnetic eddy current damper. Moreover, cutting experiments are conducted to analyze the surface roughness of thin-walled workpieces with and without dampers. The results demonstrate that the eddy current damper can effectively increase the equivalent damping and provide the necessary damping force to suppress machining chatter. Overall, the proposed method utilizing electromagnetic eddy current dampers presents a promising solution for suppressing machining vibrations in thin-walled workpieces.