Modeling and experimental study of unequal interval intermittent (UII) diamond micro grinding tool

In this paper, a kind of novel unequal interval intermittent (UII) micro grinding tool is proposed and fabricated, and an equal interval intermittent (EII) micro grinding tool and a regular cylindrical (RC) micro grinding tool are also fabricated as comparison. Machined surface quality of three different grinding tools was studied, a grinding force model considering the discontinuous grinding tool was built, and a contrast experiment was designed and carried out by using abovementioned three kinds of micro grinding tools to verify the force model. The machined results, including grinding force, machined surface quality, and grinding tool wear among three kinds of grinding tools, are compared, and the advantages and disadvantages of the new proposed discontinuous grinding tool (EII and UII tools) over a continuous tool (RC tool) and those of the UII tool over an EII tool are compared and analyzed. In respect to grinding force, it is found that EII and UII tools own a much lower grinding force than the RC tool, and the grinding force period in tool one rotation is divided into three from the original one period of the RC tool. In respect to machined surface quality, the RC tool is a little better than EII and UII tools in the early machining stage (fv ≤ 200 μm/s) but is much worse in the middle and late machining stages (fv ≥ 300 μm/s). In respect to tool wear, EII and UII tools own a much lighter tool wear and, therefore, a much longer tool life than the RC tool. The difference between EII and UII tools was compared in terms of grinding force, tool wear, and machined surface, and it is found that the UII tool is better than the EII tool. The proposed grinding force model is verified by dry-side micro grinding of titanium alloy, and the simulated grinding force also agrees well with the experimental force. The new proposed UII tool is anticipated not only to make the machined quality better in middle and late machining stages but also to extend the tool life.