Cutting tool wear measurement by using active contour model based image processing

Tool wear in machining processes is directly related to the quality of machined surfaces. Tool wear needs to be measured in order to evaluate if the tool reaches its design life and should be replaced. In this paper, a new tool wear measurement technology using geometric active contour model based computer image processing is represented. This developed technology accurately and rapidly extracts the boundaries of the wear region in the captured image. The active contour model theory is applied to develop an image processing algorithm. The algorithm was implemented by using MATLAB. Many cutting tests were conducted to obtain the tool wear and wear images with these tools were acquired by use of a computer vision system. The effectiveness of the developed technology is verified.