TOOL CONDITION MONITORING IN METAL-CUTTING - A NEURAL NETWORK APPROACH

This paper discusses the application of neural network-based pattern recognition techniques for monitoring the metal-cutting process. The specific application considered is in-process monitoring of the condition of the cutting tool. Tool condition monitoring is an important prerequisite for successful automation of the metal cutting process. In this paper, we demonstrate the application of supervised and unsupervised neural network paradigms to pattern recognition of sensor signal features. The supervised technique used is back-propagation and the unsupervised technique used is adaptive resonance theory (ART). The results support the premise that, despite excellent classification accuracy by both networks, the unsupervised system holds greater promise in a real world setting. The advantages are discussed and a framework for exploiting them in tool condition monitoring systems is presented.