An analysis of overcut variation and coupling effects of dimensional variable in EDM process

In the electrical discharge machining (EDM) process, the overcut greatly affects the precision and accuracy of the workpiece dimensions. However, the overcut and the final workpiece dimensions are difficult to predict due to the non-linear, complex relationship among the electrode wear, the electrode diameter, electrical discharging parameters, and the machine positioning accuracy. In the present study, the variation of the side overcut and the bottom overcut, the electrode dimensions, the spark hole dimensions, and the machine positioning accuracy in the EDM process are investigated. Variance analysis is used in a batch process under different electrical discharging parameters. The experiment results show that the coupling effect between the electrode diameter and spark hole diameter is an important factor for estimating the variation of the side overcut in the EDM process. With inclusion of the coupling effects, the predicted variation of side and bottom overcut in a batch EDM process and the EDM machine positioning accuracy is shown to be in good agreement with experimental results.