REVIEW QUESTIONS 431
FIGURE 14.8 Optimal cutting speed to minimize costs
On the left side of the figure, costs are too high - this is because the machine tool is “being
driven too slowly” and the machining time T
M
per component is too long. On the other hand, on
the right side, the costs are too high - this is because the machine tool is “being driven too fast”,
the tools wear out too fast and both T
R
and tool costs increase. {In a teaching situation one can
make the race-car analogy - too slow means too long around the track but too fast might mean
too many visits to the pits}.
The first step is to maximize the feed rate, f. This is done by choosing the surface finish (R
a
)
as the main criterion that controls part quality. This is given by the equation shown near the end
of Chapter 12, where (R) is the nose radius of the tool.
(14. 6)
The second step is to perform the differentiation of equation 14.3 using the sub-equations
14.4 and 14.5 to isolate the parameter V.
The expressions are rather cumbersome. Detailed analyses are presented in other machining
text books (such as Cook or Armarego and Brown - see Bibliography). Only the final equations
- usable in the next three examples - are given below. The value of T appearing in the following
equations is the value of tool life that will give minimum cost with variations in V. The cutting
speed, V, at the minimum cost is also shown in these equations and in the above figure as V
opt
.
At this optimum set of values, all the variable parameters (f, V, and T, etc) are denoted with a
superscripted star (*).
The third step is to make note of some minor additions to the procedure.
•First, the Taylor equations can also be prepared in terms of feed rate. However, increases in
feed rate are “less damaging” to the tool life than increases in speed - thus a value of n
1
also
appears which is the exponent that is obtained from tool life testing leading to plots of (T vs.
f). The value of n
1
first appears in the third equation below - equation 14.9.
•Second, since the Taylor equations are now a function of both V and f, the constant (C) is
replaced by the constant (K), which combines both the feed and speed constants. This is also
shown in equation 14.9.
V
opt
Costs
R
a
0.0321 f
2
R⁄()=