Seminar: Process Optimization for Machining of Hardened Steel Material

JingYing ZhangGeorge W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering,
Georgia Institute of TechnologyABSTRACTFinish machining of hardened steel is receiving increasing attention as an alternative to the grinding process, because it offers comparable part finish, lower production cost, shorter cycle time, fewer process steps, higher flexibility and the elimination of environmentally hazardous cutting fluids. In order to demonstrate its economic viability, it is of particular importance to enable critical hard turning processes to run in optimal conditions based on specified objectives and practical constraints. The primary challenge for this process optimization stems from the fact that the procedure is highly constrained, and highly non-linear, involving mixed-integer-discrete-continuous design variables. Additionally, hard turning process models are discontinuous, non-explicit, not analytically differentiable and computationally expensive. In this seminar, a scientific and systematic methodology to design optimal tool geometry and cutting conditions is demonstrated. First, models to predict process thermal, stress, tool life and surface integrity are addressed. Then a systematic evolutionary algorithm is illustrated as its optimization block in the areas of: problem representation; selection scheme; genetic operators for integer, discrete, and continuous variables; constraint handling and population initialization. Finally, an intelligent advisory system for hard turning technology by integrating experimental, numerical and analytical knowledge into one system is presented. It can aid the industry to design the tool geometry and optimize cutting parameters over an extended range of tool designs and process configurations.

Location: Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center (GER) - 309

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Shah Nirav