In-process monitoring of tool wear in milling using cutting force signature

This paper presents a new approach for on-line monitoring of flank wear in milling. This approach is based on the variations of the magnitude of cutting force harmonics with flank wear. It is shown first, using computer simulations, that the sensitivity of the magnitude of various harmonics in the cutting force spectrum to flank wear, varies depending on the immersion ratio and the number of teeth in the cutter. The results of the computer simulations were verified experimentally at various cutting conditions. An on-line monitoring strategy is then proposed which uses signature features selected from the harmonics of the cutting force signals. Incorporated in this strategy is a new method for the in-process identification of the immersion ratio.