Improvement of Micro End Milling Tools through Variation of Tool Manufacturing Method and Geometry

Micro-cutting offers good potentialities for manufacturing small and medium lot sizes of micro-parts with unrestricted geometry at an economically reasonable expense, either by direct machining or as a means to make moulds for micro injection molding. It yields large removal rates, good compliance with allowances, good surface quality and a wide choice of workpiece materials. Particularly when highly wear resistant materials are to be sculptured, as in mould making for powder injection molding, micro cutting of tool steel is quite an eligible option. With the presentultra-precision drive train, guideways and spindle technology being rather advanced, restrictions to the cutting process efficiency results most of all from the cutting tool itself. Overcoming these shortcomings requires variation of tool material, tool manufacturing method and tool geometry.