Experimental Study of the Influence of the Static Stiffness of Lathes on the Tool Wear Behavior

The aim of this study is the study of the influence of the machine tools rigidity on the tool wear when turning with carbide tools in an industrial environment. The tests were carried on three different lathes characterized by their static stiffness. On each lathe, the evolution of the carbide tool wear was studied according to a method based of the experimental design included the cutting time, the cutting speed and the feed rate. Significant differences clearly appeared between the three machine tools showing the necessity of integrating of a rigidity parameter on the tool life models. Thus, a modified Gilbert tool life model included the rigidity of the machine tool was proposed which can be easily used for industrial application.