9612352 Rajurkar Sometimes the best or only alternative to processing complex or intricate shapes in advanced and difficult to machine materials is by electrical discharge machining (EDM). However, state of the art EDM equipment cannot economically produce many complex cavities, threaded or twisted surfaces characteristic of airfoils, and is not designed for integration into new generations of agile manufacturing systems. This project will develop a new computer numerical controlled (CNC) six degree of freedom EDM system capable of producing complex cavities. The six degree of freedom device will use a specially designed three axis CNC tooling unit mounted on a commercial three axis CNC-EDM. In addition to the articulation provided by this design, this new machine's controller will incorporate the investigator's research results for EDM gap monitoring, six axis CNC interpolation, and motion generation for conjugate machining and complex shape generation. The prototype machine will be a major leap forward in the technology of EDM tools; capable of ready integration into agile manufacturing systems for producing complex shapes in high performance alloys. This project will advance the science and technology of EDM process tools, and it will help U.S. producers and users of precision EDM advance their manufacturing base.
