Tool-Edge Wear and Wavelet Packet Transform Analysis in High-Speed Machining of Inconel 718

Tool-edge wear (i.e., the wear of a tool cutting edge before it is fully worn away) is among significant concerns in high-speed machining because it can result in early tool failure and deteriorated quality of machined parts. Based on extensive experimental results, this paper shows how tool-edge wear is correlated with the cutting forces and vibrations in high-speed turning of Inconel 718. The following research findings are made from the present study: 1) The development of tool-edge wear depends on the initial tool-edge geometry and the cutting conditions employed. 2) The amount of tool-edge wear varies at different measurement points along the tool cutting edge, and increases as the feed rate increases. 3) The effect of tool-edge wear on the cutting forces depends on the initial tool-edge geometry and the cutting conditions employed. 4) The traditional time-domain analysis based on the vibration amplitude is not helpful in explaining and showing the dynamic development of tool-edge wear, and wavelet packet transform helps in identifying the changes in the vibration signals in different frequency bands.