Fully Integrated Machine Control for Ultra Precision Machining

To meet the demands for highly advanced components with ultra precise contour accuracy and optical surface quality arising in the fields of photonics and optics, automotive, medical applications and biotechnology, consumer electronics and renewable energy, more advanced production machines and processes have to be developed. As the complexity of machine tools rises steadily, the automation of manufacture increases rapidly, processes become more integrated and cycle times have to be reduced significantly, challenges of engineering efficient machine tools with respect to these demands expand every day. Especially the manufacture of freeform geometries with non-continuous and asymmetric surfaces requires advanced diamond machining strategies involving highly dynamic axes movements with a high bandwidth and position accuracy. Ultra precision lathes additionally equipped with Slow Tool and Fast Tool systems can be regarded as state-of-the-art machines achieving the objectives of high quality optical components. The mechanical design of such ultra precision machine tools as well as the mechanical integration of additional highly dynamic axes are very well understood today. In contrast to that, neither advanced control strategies for ultra precision machining nor the control integration of additional Fast Tool systems have been sufficiently developed yet. Considering a complex machine setup as a mechatronic system, it becomes obvious that enhancements to further increase the achievable form accuracy and surface quality and at the same time decrease cycle times and error sensitivity can only be accomplished by innovative, integrated control systems. At the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT a novel, fully integrated control approach has been developed to overcome the drawbacks of state-of-the-art machine controls for ultra precision processes. Current control systems are often realized as decentralized solutions consisting of various computational hardware components for setpoint generation, machine control, HMI （human machine interface）, Slow Tool control and Fast Tool control. While implementing such a distributed control strategy, many disadvantages arise in terms of complex communication interfaces, discontinuous safety structures, synchronization of cycle times and the machining accuracy as a whole. The novel control approach has been developed as a fully integrated machine control including standard CNC （computer numerical control） and PLC （programmable logic controller） functionality, advanced setpoint generation methods, an extended HMI as well as an FPGA （field programmable gate array）-based controller for a voice coil driven Slow Tool and a piezo driven Fast Tool axis. As the new control system has been implemented as a fully integrated platform using digital communication via EtherCAT, a continuous safety strategy could be realized, the error sensitivity and EMC susceptibility could be significantly decreased and the overall process accuracy from setpoint generation over path interpolation to axes movements could be enhanced. The novel control at the same time offers additional possibilities of automation, process integration, online data acquisition and evaluation as well as error compensation methods.

Active Vibration Isolation System for Sub microultra precision Turning Machine

Now vibration isolation of ultra precision machine tool is usually achieved through air springs systems. As far as HCM I sub micro turning machine developed by HIT, an active vibration isolation system that consists of air springs and electro magnetic actuators was presented. The primary function of air springs is to support the turning machine and to isolate the high frequency vibration. The electro magnetic actuators controlled by fuzzy neural networks isolate the low frequency vibration. The experiment indicates that active vibration isolation system isolates base vibration effectively in all the frequency range. So the vibration of the machine bed is controlled under 10 -6 g and the surface roughness is improved.

Hybrid multibody system method for the dynamic analysis of an ultra‐precision fly‐cutting machine tool

The dynamics of an ultra‐precision machine tool determines the precision of the machined surface.This study aims to propose an effective method to model and analyze the dynamics of an ultra‐precision fly‐cutting machine tool.First,the dynamic model of the machine tool considering the deformations of the cutter head and the lathe head is developed.Then,the mechanical elements are classified into M subsystems and F subsystems according to their properties and connections.The M‐subsystem equations are formulated using the transfer matrix method for multibody systems(MSTMM),and the F‐subsystem equations are analyzed using the finite element method and the Craig-Bampton reduction method.Furthermore,all the subsystems are assembled by combining the restriction equations at connection points among the subsystems to obtain the overall transfer equation of the machine tool system.Finally,the vibration characteristics of the machine tool are evaluated numerically and are validated experimentally.The proposed modeling and analysis method preserves the advantages of the MSTMM,such as high computational efficiency,low computational load,systematic reduction of the overall transfer equation,and generalization of its computational capability to general flexible‐body elements.In addition,this study provides theoretical insights and guidance for the design of ultra‐precision machine tools.