Micro Milling
Jennifer Doyle, Aaron Ramirez, Adrienne Watral
Outline
What is micro milling Milling fundamentals Macro-scale physics Micro capabilities CAD/CAM Micromilled parts Tools Benefits Limitations Quality, cost, rate, accuracy
Summary
Micromilling best process for prototyping Variety of material possibilities 3D machining in one step good for microfluidic applications Risks: burrs, material grain size issues, tool wear/breakage
What is Micro Milling?
Used to create 3D features in the range of a few microns to a few hundred microns
Fields currently used in include: o optics, electronics, medical devices, telecommunications o micro-holes for fiber optics, nozzles for high-temperature jets, molds and x-ray lithography masks
Fundamentals of Milling Process I
Conventional Material Removal Chip formation Roughing and finishing Micromilling No roughing, finishing passes
Fundamentals of Milling Process II
Conventional Material Removal Important parameters: o Feed Speed o Chip load/tooth o Cooling o Cutter/workpiece material o Cutter geometry
electron.mit.edu
Additional Micro-milling considerations o Minimum Chip Thickness effect o Grain size effect o Dynamic response o Burr formation
Fundamentals of Milling Process III
Conventional Milling Climb Milling
electron.mit.edu
electron.mit.edu
Rubbing Work hardening Poor finish, in general
Better finish Increased cutting forces 'Special Case' materials
Fundamentals of Milling Process IV
Conventional micro-milling Climb micro-milling
electron.mit.edu
electron.mit.edu
What about at the micro-scale? Rubbing Better finish Work hardening Increased cutting forces Poor finish, in general 'Special Case' materials Digs into softer materials Vibrations Damages cutters Damages delicate features
Source: D. Korn
Fundamentals of Milling Process V
Thermal considerations
Macro-scale Heat treatment Thermal stresses Fire Micro-scale Thermal expansion Thermal conductivities Draper guy contradiction?
Source: X. Liu, R.E. DeVor, S.G. Kapoor.
Dominant Physics at Micro Scale I
Dynamic response Instability regions Dynamic Model Optimal feedrates Axial depth of cut
Source: X. Liu et. al.
Dominant Physics at Micro Scale II
Minimum Chip Thickness (MCT) effect Poor finish Increased forces MCT material dependent
MCT causing increased roughness, cutting forces.
X. Liu, et. al.
Dominant Physics at Micro Scale III
Grain size to chip thickness effect Erratic cutting forces + high frequency excitation o Instability and tool breakage! Mitigate with smaller grains and isotropy
Fig. 1: Grains in brass.
M. Takacs, et al.
Fig. 2: Comparison of grain sizes in macro- and micro- milling
G. Bissacco, et. al
Micro Milling Capabilities
CAD/CAM Considerations
Tool motion calculations Rounded toolpaths Rounding becomes useless below a certain value Low spindle speeds limits maximum attainable feedrate
Macro vs. Micro scale summary
Macro Well established Greater variety of tools
Micro Minimum Chip thickness Dynamic considerations Surface effects Grain effects Elastic-plastic machining Significant burrs CAM not as developed
Microlution 363-S 3 Axis CNC Micro Milling Machine http://www.microlution-inc.com/
What Can We Make?
http://www.microlution-inc.com/
What Can We Make?
http://www.microlution-inc.com/
Micromilled Features
Source: www.nist.gov
Micromilled Features
Source: www.nist.gov
Micro Mill Endmill Tooling Examples
Draper Lab: Drill bit: .006"
Draper Lab: Endmill: .001" 2 flute carbide
Slots Micromilled in Steel
Rectangular Features Micromilled in Steel
Tools: Focused Ion Beam Machining
Alternative Micro Manufacturing Technologies
Lithographic Methods MEMs-Based Methods Micro EDM (Electrical Discharge Machining) Laser Machining
Benefits of Micro Milling vs Other Technologies
Relatively rapid manufacture of prototype devices Broad range of materials can be used o Steel, brass, aluminum, ceramics, plastics, other polymers o Ability to use solvent and heat resistant materials (i.e. stainless steel, tool steel) True 3D geometry creation o Other techniques such as lithography, only work in one plane - constructing a 3rd dimension requires multilayering o Milling offers manufacturing of 3D structures in just one machining operation
Benefits of Micro Milling vs Other Technologies
Potential Microfluidics Applications: Micromilling can be used to fabricate stamping dies or directly fabricate micro channels Geometries useful for microfluidic devices o Shaped walls o In-channel features for fluid mixing o Transitions between channel elevations
Limitations of Micro Milling
Size/accuracy constraints imposed by limits of tool geometry Issues with surface quality and finish Tooling wear and breakage Issues involving material grains Still less knowledge of appropriate machining techniques and values (spindle speed, feed rate, etc) for different tasks Burrs
Quality
There are quality concerns, particularly with regards to surface quality/roughness If roughing and finishing are combined as advised, optimal quality may not be achieved o However, vibration or fracture that can arise from multiple passes also damaging to surface quality For multiphase materials, significant variations in machining process arise when moving between grains o Affects cutting forces and causes dynamic excitation/vibrations of tool-workpiece system Can lead to uneven surface generation
Quality
Burr Formation Disproportionate burr formation, on scale of a few microns in size up through 50Fig. 1: Burrs in stainless microns o Rounded cutting edges of tools - in the curved region, workpiece is compressed and forms burrs o Reduced when using sharp diamond tools and increased when using worn out tools o With multiphase materials, burr formation occurs between grains as chip formation gets interrupted
Source: K. Lee
Fig. 2: Correlation between feed per tooth and burr heigh
Quality
Burr Formation Possible to reduce burrs, both during or after cutting o During cutting: Protect surface with polymer coating such as cyanacrylate Works as shield to prevent burrs from growing, can be removed with acetone after cutting o After cutting: Can also use polymer coating to embed burrs For steel, polymer not stiff enough to prevent burring Clean off burrs with electrochemical polishing o But need to make sure not to damage or reduce desired structures
Source: Th. Schaller et. all
Accuracy
Accuracy in principle in the 1E-3 to 1E-5 range (tolerance to feature size), compared to 10E-1 to 10E-2 range for most MEMs-based methods Accurate features have been made to the following limits: o Minimum 50 micron wide channels o Minimum 8 micron wide walls Draper says their machine's tolerances are very accurate, though did not specify numbers However, potential for tool variance even among tools of the "same" size o On the order of +/- 5 microns o Draper noted this variance even from tools in the same package They inspects all their tools and pick the "best" ones for the real jobs
Accuracy
Tooling wear impacts quality and accuracy o Lack of tool sharpness promotes burr formation o Increases cutting forces which lead to tool breakage o Desired profiles of grooves and walls quickly become more rounded
Limited stiffness of mill tools can cause dynamic vibration - leads to problems with both surface quality and tool wear
Source: Schaller et al
Cost
Compared to other micro-manufacturing methods, micromilling is considered more cost-feasible for small series runs and prototyping o Lithographic techniques are based on more costly and time consuming multi-layering methods o Higher manufacturing costs associated with the masks required for exposure for lithographic methods Thus, less suitable for small batches or single-part production
More automation/computer control means less labor involvement o Draper says process is almost completely automated Tool breakage risks run higher with micro milling than with conventional milling o Greater tool replacement costs
Speed
Similarities between High Speed Machining and micromilling -- thus might assume fast speeds Small tool edge radii mean spindle speed is often too slow to produce high cutting feed o Limits the maximum attainable feedrate o For example, a feedrate of 100m/min with a 10mm cutter should require a spindle speed of approx 3200rpm (N = V/pi*D) o Scaling down to 100 micron cutter would theoretically require a spindle speed of 320000rpm, which is currently unattainable Combined roughing and finishing may reduce time because of fewer passes Machining time is on magnitude of hours to days
Works Cited
X. Liu, R. E. DeVor, and S. G. Kapoor. "An Analytical Model for the Prediction of Minimum Chip Thickness in Micromachining." J. Manuf. Sci. Eng. 128, 474 (2006) X. Liu, R.E. DeVor, S.G. Kapoor. "The Mechanics of Machining at the Microscale: Assessment of the Current State of the Science." ASME 2004 X. Liu et. al. "Cutting Mechanisms and Their Influence On Dynamic Forces, Vibrations, and Stability in Micro Endmilling." Proceedings of ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition. November 13-20, 2004, Anaheim, California USA M. Takacs, B. Vero, I. Meszaros. "Micromilling of metallic materials." Journal of Materials Processing Technology, Volume 138, Issues 1-3, IMCC2000, 20 July 2003 G. Bissacco, H.N. Hansen, L. De Chiffre. "Micromilling of hardened tool steel for mould making applications." Journal of Materials Processing Technology, Volume 167, Issues 2-3 K. Lee, David A. Dornfeld. "Micro-burr formation and minimization through process control." Precision Engineering, Volume 29, Issue 2, April 2005, Pages 246-252
