Process Planning and Simulation Strategies for Perimeter Milling of Thin-walled Flexible Parts Held by Reconfigurable Fixturing System

Applications of the reconfigurable fix Turing system for machining operations of thin-walled compliant parts are becoming more and more extensive. Compared with dedicated fixtures and jigs, the reconfigurable fix Turing system need to meet distinctive requirements. This paper discusses the process planning and simulation strategies for the multi-point vacuum suction cups reconfigurable fix Turing system (MPVC-RFS) developed by our research group. The implementation approaches for adjusting parameters calculation, layout design, set-up and milling simulation were detailed and a special supporting software system was developed. For the validation of clamping and processing stability, the finite element method (FEM) simulation of milling process was employed. The results of an engineering case confirm the validity of the proposed process planning and simulation strategies.