Experimental investigation of tool wear in micro milling

Micro milling is a promising manufacturing process used to fabricate micro parts needed by today’s technology. Premature tool wear is one of the major concerns in micro milling. Due to the effect of minimum chip thickness, feed rate plays a significant role in micro milling operations. In this study, the effect of feed rate on tool wear in micro milling operations is experimentally investigated. Tool wear tests are conducted in various feed rates with micro tools which have different coating characteristics. Tool edge geometry, cutting forces and surface roughness measurements are performed to determine tool wear. The relation between feed rate and micro tool wear mechanism is investigated considering cutting edge geometry, minimum chip thickness, ploughing effect and tool coating characteristics.