ME 409 Intelligent Manufacturing Lab

Micro-Endmilling Simulation: Part II

Instructor: Soham Mujumdar, S23 ME Email: sohammujumdar@iitb.ac.in

Note: Major part of the following lab exercise is adopted from the 'Micro-endmilling Simulation
Lab' taught by Prof. S. G. Kapoor in the course' ME 498 Micromanufacturing Processes and
Automation' at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The code used in this lab to
simulate the micro-endmilling process is developed by Dr. Xinyu Liu [1] at the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

1 RECAP
In part I of the micro-endmilling simulation lab, we learned how to predict the surface profile of
the floor centerline of a slot machined on a single-phase material using a model developed by
Vogler et al. [2]. Such a model is particularly useful in selecting the micro-endmilling process
parameters for manufacturing parts with given design specifications, e.g., microchannel heat
sink shown in Fig. 1.

Figure 1: Microchannel heat sink [3]

It should be noted, however, that the model we used in part I was based on many assumptions.
For example, a single-phase material was assumed, tool dynamics were neglected, etc. The
output from the model was also limited to the prediction of the surface profile along the
centerline of the slot alone. Can this model be extended to simulate a more realistic micro-
endmilling process for multiphase materials that can predict the entire floor surface
profile, as well as other important characteristics of the process such as forces on the
tool, tool and workpiece vibrations, etc.? This lab exercise is designed to answer these
questions.

2 PROBLEM
The objective of this laboratory exercise is to simulate micro-endmilling slotting operation
carried out on multiphase ductile iron using an enhanced model proposed by Liu [1].
The overall geometry of the cut with the XYZ axis definitions is as shown in Fig. 2. The X-
direction is defined in the direction of the feed, the Y direction is defined perpendicular to the
feed and the Z direction is defined along the tool axis.

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As the tool cuts through the ductile iron sample it is

expected to cut through individual phases of the
graphite, ferrite and pearlite that are present in the
microstructure of the material (refer to Fig. 3). The
simulation accounts for the microstructural changes
encountered by the tool along the tool path. It also
accounts for the (imperfect) geometry of the micro-tool
along the edge, known as 'edge serration profile' (refer
to Fig. 1). Dynamics of the tool is taken into account,
while the workpiece is assumed to be stiff.

Figure 2: Overall geometry of the process

Figure 3: Microstructure of ductile iron

As the micro-tool cuts at a specified cutting condition the machining outputs of interest include
the

• Force magnitudes (in X, Y and Z directions)

• Vibrations of tool (in X and Y directions)
• Peak to valley forces and vibrations (X and Y direction)
• Volume of ploughed material and sheared material in every revolution of the tool
• Area of the ploughed zones and sheared zone (for 10 revolutions)
• Floor surface morphology (Z height of the machined floor)

The code that simulates the micro-endmilling process is written in C++. An executable file is
given to you along with sample input files with a specific format. Next few sections outline the
structure of various input files, instruction on how to run the code and how to interpret the
output files.

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3 INPUT FILES
Total four input files are required to run this code. They are listed below:
1. micro.txt
2. kphi.txt
3. serration.txt
4. main.inp

The structure of these files is explained in detail in rest of the section.

3.1 Microstructure Details (micro.txt)

The microstructure of ductile iron consists of three phases, i.e., graphite, ferrite, and pearlite
in the form of nodules as shown in Fig. 4. The grains consist of graphite phases embedded
inside the ferrite phases and dispersed in a pearlite matrix as shown in Fig. 4b. The
microstructure is characterized in terms of the number of grains, the center C of each grain,
and the radius R1 and R2 of the graphite and the ferrite phase in the grain.

Figure 4: (a) Actual microstructure of ductile iron, (b) Representation of ductile iron
microstructure in the model

‘micro.txt’ contains description of the microstructure of the workpiece material in following

format:
48 0 % Number of grains Shape(0-sphere, 1-Cylinder)

0.508000 0.024000 0.005 0.017500 0.001% cen_x cen_y cen_z r1 r2 of grain 1

0.517585 0.093380 0.005 0.017500 0.001% cen_x cen_y cen_z r1 r2 of grain 2

0.545616 0.157545 0.005 0.017500 0.001% cen_x cen_y cen_z r1 r2 of grain 3

...

...

Where, cen_x, cen_y, and cen_z are center coordinates of a grain, r1 is radius of the
secondary phase (e.g. ferrite in ductile iron), and r2 is radius of the tertiary phase (e.g. graphite
in ductile iron). The surrounding matrix is pearlite. All units are in mm.

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3.2 Elastic-Plastic Deformation Properties (kphi.txt)

This input file contains the cutting coefficients and elastic plastic deformation properties of
each phase in the following format:
Num of matls

flow stress a0 a1 tcmin tce ke kint mint prow

flow stress a0 a1 tcmin tce ke kint mint prow

Where,

• Coefficient a0 and a1 are used to compute the shear angle  = a 0 + a1   eff (Ref.
Vogler et al. [4]);

• tcmin is the critical minimum chip thickness to edge radius ratio;

• tce is the critical chip thickness for the transition from elastic deformation to elastic-
plastic deformation;
• ke is the elastic recovery rate for the material
• Kint and int are the elastic deformation force coefficients (Refer: Vogler et al. [4])
• prow: Prow angle

For example, 3 materials and the corresponding values listed for the case of Vogler et al. [4]
3
650.0 35.48 0.32 0.25 0.001 0.31 3800000 0.6 0.0
525.0 31.66 0.30 0.35 0.001 0.09 3200000 0.5 0.0
300.0 45.0 0.00 0.30 0.001 1.0 2000000 0.3 0.0

3.3 Tool Serration (serration.txt)

The tool edge serration profile is depicted in Fig. 5. Data points denoted by Asi need to be
collected for the micro endmill along the length of the tool along the helix. In this case, all 200
data points are collected at axial increments of 0.5 micron along both flutes of a 2-fluted tool.
A portion of this data for each of the flutes is listed in Table 2.
Table 2: Tool edge serration profile
Axial slice distance Flute 1 (serration height) Flute 2 (serration height)
Sr. No (mm) (mm) (mm)
0 0 0 0
1 0.0005 0.000056 -0.000042
2 0.001 0.000085 -0.000063
.
.
199 0.0995 0.000083 -0.000287
200 0.1 0.000011 -0.000615

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Figure 5: Tool serration profile

The serration profile is entered into the input file in following format:

Num of flutes, num of points

Point number, Z1, Z2,… Znum of flutes

Where Zi, is the Z height of the profile of the tool on flute i.

3.4 Main Input File (main.inp)

The main input file (the filename can be set by the user) contains information about tool
geometry, cutting conditions, simulation parameters, modal parameters and simulation output
options. The output file will have the same file name with different suffix to indicate different
type of output.
An example of the main.inp file is as follows. The explanation of the inputs is provided along
each entry.

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Input File for MicroEMSIM

Unit: length in mm, angle in degree, mass in kg.
*ToolGeometry
cutter_diameter 0.500000
no_of_flutes 2 % value should be 2 or more.
helix_angle 30.000000
radial_rake_angle 9.000000
edge_radius 0.003000
clearance_angle 11.000000
runout 0.003000
loc_angle 0.000000 % spindle runout locating angle

EC_R1 0.200000 % end cutting edge geometry parameters (from

Melkote et al. [5])
EC_R2 0.210000
EC_Rn 0.003000
EC_c 0.025000
EC_rad_rake 9.000000
EC_axial_relief 15.000000

*CuttingConditions
mill_conv DOWNMILLING %other possible values: UPMILLING, SLOTTING
axial_doc 0.100000
radial_doc 0.050000
feed_per_tooth 0.000250
spindle_speed 80000.000000

*SimulationParameters
DynamicTool 1 % a value of 1 accounts for tool dynamics and
0 does not
DynamicWork 0 % a value of 1 accounts for workpiece dynamics and
0 does not
numrevs 800
axial_inc 0.002000 % thickness of each slice of the tool for calculation
ang_inc 0.500000 % angular increments to calculate force

xresFr 0.000500 % resolution in X dir to generate the final surface

yresFr 0.000500 % resolution in Y dir to generate the final surface
eff_len_Fr 0.020000 % the effective length of the end cutting edge
(measured from the tool tip towards the tool center) that is engaged in the
floor surface.

*ModalParameters % These parameters are obtained using FEM analysis.

m_x 0.000250 %mass of tool in X direction

k_x 1008000.000000 %stiffness of tool in X direction
zeta_x 0.023000 % damping ratio of tool in X direction

m_y 0.000250 %mass of tool in Y direction

k_y 1008000.000000 %stiffness of tool in Y direction
zeta_y 0.023000 %damping ratio of tool in Y direction

mp_x 0.080000 %mass of workpiece in X direction

kp_x 2000000.000000 %stiffness of workpiece in X direction
zetap_x 0.020000 %damping ratio of workpiece in X direction

mp_y 0.080000 %mass of workpiece in Y direction

kp_y 2000000.000000 %stiffness of workpiece in Y direction
zetap_y 0.020000 %damping ratio of workpiece in Y direction

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*PrnOutOption % controls the printing options and files for output

bBinary 1 % value of 1 sets output files in binary output:

main_bin.yyy OR value of 0 sets it as a ASCII file output: main_asc.yyy

bPrnForce 0 % set 1 if you want to output forces

bPrnVib 0 % set 1 if you want to output Vibrations
bPrnChip 0 % set 1 if you want to output chiploads
bPrnPV 0 % set 1 if you want to output Peak-to-
Valley values of force and vibrations
bPrnSPAs 1 % set 1 if you want to output volume of
ploughed material and sheared material
bPrnSPAf 0 % set 1 if you want to output the area
of ploughed zones and sheared zone
bPrnSideSurf 1 % set 1 if you want to output sidewall
surface point array
bPrnFloorSurf 0 % set 1 if you want to output floor surface
point array

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4 OUTPUT FILES
There are 9 output files that can either be output as binary or ascii file depending on the setting
of the parameter of "bBinary" in the input file. The binary file has the file name as main_bin.yy,
where 'main' is the input file name, yy is suffix of the output file. Different output file has
different suffix.

4.1 Cutting Force (.fc file)

Records the cutting forces in X and Y directions for each angular position.
Format:
0 -0.0074442 0.0133186 0.00336459
1 -0.00910975 0.0156722 0
2 -0.0165832 0.0276377 0
3 -0.030226 0.0490836 0
4 -0.048454 0.0761021 0.00366179
5 -0.0617722 0.0917583 0
.
.
.
Where,
Column 1 = angles in degrees (Note: 0-359 degrees in one revolution, this is a 100-
revolution simulation therefore a total 36000 points)
Column 2 = Force in X direction
Column 3 = Force in Y direction
Column 4 = Force in Z direction

4.2 Tool Vibration (.vt file)

Records the tool vibrations in X and Y direction for each angular position. The program will
generate this file ONLY when the tool dynamics is considered in the simulation. Note dx and
dy are in microns.
Format:
MicroEMSIM Tool Vibration Data: theta(degree) dx(um) dy(um)
VibToolData
0 0.0360839 -0.0817406
1 0.0456373 -0.0923736
2 0.0540271 -0.100841
3 0.0609666 -0.106785
4 0.0661503 -0.109839
5 0.0693629 -0.109817
.
.

Where,

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Column 1 = angles in degrees (Note: 0-359 degrees in one revolution, this is a 100-
revolution simulation therefore a total 36000 points)
Column 2 = deflection in X direction
Column 3 = deflection in Y direction

4.3 Workpiece Vibration (.vw file)

Records the workpiece vibrations in X and Y direction for each angular position. The program
will generate this file ONLY when the workpiece dynamics is considered in the simulation.
Format is similar to the tool vibration file.

4.4 Chip Thickness (.cp file)

Records the chip thickness as well as the chip formation history for the very bottom axial slice.

Format:
for(i=1:num_ang)
theta tc1 tc2 … tcnf ichip1 ichip2 … ichipnf
end

Where, nf is the total number of cutting flutes, if ichip = 1, chip formed, ichip = 0, no chip formed

4.5 Peak-to-Valley Forces and Vibrations (.pv file)

Records the peak-to-valley values for cutting forces and vibrations for each revolution. If the
dynamic is not considered, then there will be no peak-to-valley vibration values.
Format:

for (i=1:num_rev)
Fx Fy Vtx Vty Vwx Vwy
End

Where,
Fx and Fy: Peak to valley forces in X and Y directions
V tx and Vty: Peak to valley vibration values for the tool
Vwx and Vwy: Peak to valley vibration values for the workpiece

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4.6 Volume of Ploughed and Sheared Material (.spas file)

Records Vp (Volume of ploughing material) and Vs (Volume of shearing material) for each
revolution.
Format:
MicroEMSIM SPAs Data:
V_plough V_shear (every rev)
1.52389 18.9065
1.41786 22.0047
1.50098 22.0702
.
.
Where,

Column 1 = Volume of ploughed material (m3)

Column 2 = Volume of sheared material (m3)

Each row is calculated for every revolution. Therefore, there are 100 revolution data.

4.7 Area of Ploughing and Cutting Zones (.spaf file)

Records the Ap (area of ploughing zone) and Ac (area of cutting zone) history for the last 20
revolutions at every position expressed in rotation angle (0 – 90 –180 degree represents
location moving from one sidewall to slot center to the other sidewall). This data will later be
used for the computation of the SPAf values at different locations across the swept arc of the
cutter.
Format:
Note this file is a 180 X 21 matrix.
Every row corresponds to 1-degree increment of the tool during the cut. [total of 180 rows].
The file first has a section that has the ploughing areas: The format is as follows
Column 1 = Angle in degrees (Note it goes from 0 to 180 to the end of the file)
Column 2 = ploughed area in first revolution
Column 3 = ploughed area in second revolution
.
Column 21 = ploughed area in 20th revolution
This section is followed by another section that has the corresponding shearing areas listed
in the same fashion. [Note, it the material is purely ploughed, this section will have "0" are
those corresponding places, so you can comment on the relative magnitudes of ploughing and
shearing that happen in the material by looking at these values.]

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4.8 Sidewall Surface (.sup/.sdn file)

Outputs .sup for upmilling surface and. sdn for downmilling surface, and for slotting, both
surfaces will be generated. Records the surface point coordinates P(x,y,z). The surface height
information is stored in y coordinate. The Y coordinate is offset by nominal tool radius;
therefore, it reflects the deviation from the intended location (surface error). For both upmilled
and downmilled surface, positive y coordinate means overcut. (coordinates are in unit of
mm)
Format:
num_ax_slice, dz
num_pt_in_layer[i], i=1, … num_ax_slice
num_total_pt
For (i=1:num_ax_slice)
P1(x,y,z) P2(x,y,z) … Pni(x,y,z)
End

4.9. Floor Surface File (.sfr file)

Records the surface points on the floor surface (in m).

Format:
nX %- Usually 400
x1 x2 … xnX

nY %- Usually 510
y1 y2 … ynY

for (j = 0; j < nY; j++)

for (i = 0; i < nX; i++)
{
z[i][j];
}
}

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5 ASSIGNMENT
Note: This is an individual assignment. Please upload your report on Moodle. The file
should be named 'MICROEMSIM2_Report_XYZ.docx', where 'XYZ' is replaced by your
roll number.
Any student found to have committed or aided and abetted the offense of plagiarism
will receive ZERO marks for the relevant assignment/quiz without any exceptions.
A. First, read the instructions carefully to understand the working of micro-EMSIM code. It is
important for you to understand the document to be able to do the simulations mentioned
in the assignment. At the end of this, you should be able to identify:
o Structure and nature of the input files
o Structure and nature of the output files

B. How will "micro.txt" have to be modified to simulate a single-phase material?

C. How will "serration.txt" have to be modified to neglect the serrations in the tool edge?

D. You will now simulate a multiphase material and study the effect of feed-per-tooth (FPT)
on

• Cutting forces,
• Surface morphology,
• Area undergoing shear/ploughing and
• Tool vibrations

Use the given input files, i.e., 'micro.txt', 'kphi.txt', 'serration.txt', and 'main.inp' for the
simulations. The 'main.inp' will have to be modified by you to generate the various outputs
required as part of this exercise.
To run this simulation, copy all the input files and "MicroEMSIM.exe" file into a single folder.
Say, the folder is located at: "C:\user\desktop\HW". Then to run the simulation using the
'main.inp', type in 'MicroEMSIM main' at the command line
C:\user\desktop\HW\MicroEMSIM main

The specified revolutions will be simulated, and the output files will be generated
accordingly in the same folder. You can then use MATLAB/Python to process the output
files.

Modify main.inp file in notepad to simulate the following cutting conditions:

• Cutter diameter 508 micron, 2 fluted

• Axial depth of cut 50 microns
• Feed per tooth 2.5 micron
• Edge radius 3 micron
• Spindle speed 70,000 RPM
• Slotting test (implies that the radial depth of cut will be equal to the tool dia.).
• (Do NOT change any other * TOOL GEOMETRY parameters in the INP file).
• Turn ON tool dynamics
• Turn OFF workpiece dynamics
• Simulate 100 revolutions of the cut

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• (Do NOT change any other * SIMULATION parameters in the INP file).
• (Do NOT change any * MODAL parameters in the INP file).
• Write ONLY the following files as output in ASCII: (Note: Do not specify any of the
other output files else there will be memory leak issues)
o Force magnitudes
o Tool vibrations
o Peak to valley forces and vibrations
o Area of ploughed zones and shearing zones
o Floor surface

Answer the following using the output files generated by the micro-EMSIM program for
the above simulation:
(i) Plot variation in Fx, Fy, and Fz over ten revolutions (3600 degrees). Comment on
the overall shape of the predicted force signal.
(ii) Calculate the average peak-to-valley force variation over ten revolutions for forces
in the X and Y direction.
(iii) Calculate the average tool deflection over ten revolutions for in both the X and the
Y direction. What is the reason for the relative magnitude difference that you see
in the tool deflections in the X and Y directions?
(iv) Generate a 3-D surface plot of the machined surface. Note the 3-D plot has to be
rotated and presented in such a way that the surface characteristics are
visible clearly. Comment on the characteristics seen on the floor of the slot.
(v) Plot the variation of the surface profile along the center of the slot and along a scan
that is 25 micron away from one of the edges of the slot. Explain the profile that
you see.
(vi) Plot the X and Y vibration of the tool over ten revolutions. Comment on the shape
and the relative magnitudes on the vibrations.
E. An increase in the cutting velocity translates as an increase in strain rate in the sample
during machining. Repeat Q. D (i) - (vi) now with a cutting velocity of 140,000 RPM. As
you generate the various plots, comment on the effect of strain rate on each plot you
generate. (You will have to compare the plots between 70 K and 140 K to do this).

F. Repeat Q. D (i) - (vi) now with FPT of 0.25 microns and 6 microns (keep cutting velocity
constant at 70K). As you generate the various plots, comment on the effect of FPT (i.e.,
the minimum chip thickness phenomenon) on each plot you generate.

G. Simulate the problem assigned to your group in part I (Q. D) of the lab using this model?
What modifications must be made in the input files? How do the two surface profiles and
Ra values (model I vs. model II) compare? (Question G can be solved as a group, and you
can share the solution among the group members).

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6 REFERENCES
[1] Liu X., "Cutting Mechanisms in Micro-Endmilling and Their Influence on Surface
Generation", PhD Dissertation, University of Illinois, Urbana IL, 2006
[2] M. P. Vogler, R. E. DeVor, and S. G. Kapoor, "On the Modeling and Analysis of Machining
Performance in Micro-Endmilling, Part I: Surface Generation," J. Manuf. Sci. Eng., Vol. 126,
No. 4, P. 685, 2005.
[3] Van Oevelen, Tijs. "Optimal heat sink design for liquid cooling of electronics." 2014.
[4] Vogler M. P., DeVor R. E., and Kapoor S. G., "On the Modeling and Analysis of Machining
Performance in Micro-Endmilling, Part II: Cutting Force Prediction", Journal of Manufacturing
Science and Engineering, vol. 128, pp. 695-705, 2004.
[5] S. N. Melkote, A. R. Thangaraj, "An Enhanced End Milling Surface Texture Model Including
the Effects of Radial Rake and Primary Relief Angles," ASME J. of Eng. for Ind., Vol. 116, pp.
166-174, 1994.

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