Tool path strategies for high speed milling aluminum workpieces with thin webs

This paper describes the research and development of a successful method for high-speed end-milling of aluminum parts with large, thin, flexible webs. Webs are the thin structures created at the face of the end mill, as opposed to ribs, which are the thin structures created at the periphery of the end mill. High speed machining of parts with thin ribs and webs from a solid workpiece is a rapidly developing machining technology. Using high speed machining, it is now frequently possible to replace complicated and expensive sheet metal assemblies with functionally equivalent, lighter and less expensive monolithic structures. However, the tool geometries and the tool paths required to produce such monolithic structures are not obvious. The tool paths are not easily available using existing commercial NC programming software.