An Improved Abrasive Flow Processing Method for Complex Geometric Surfaces of Titanium Alloy Artificial Joints

Material Removal and Surface Integrity Analysis of Ti6Al4V Alloy after Polishing by Flexible Tools with Different Rigidity

Ti6Al4V alloy has been widely used in many fields, such as aerospace and medicine, due to its excellent biocompatibility and mechanical properties. Most high-performance components made of Ti6Al4V alloy usually need to be polished to produce their specific functional requirements. However, due to the material properties of Ti6Al4V, its polishing process still requires significant development. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the performance of polishing Ti6Al4V by using tools with different rigidities. Two kinds of bonnet tool were used, namely a pure rubber (PR) bonnet and a semirigid (SR) bonnet. The characterization of material removal and surface integrity after polishing was conducted through a series of experiments on a 6-DOF robotic polishing device. The results demonstrate that both bonnet tools successfully produce nanometric level surface roughness. Moreover, the material removal rate of the SR bonnet tool is significantly higher than that of the PR bonnet, which is consistent with the material removal characteristics of glass polishing in previous research. In addition, the presented analysis on key polishing parameters and surface integrity lays the theoretical foundation for the polishing process of titanium alloy in different application fields.

A Kalman Filter-Based Kernelized Correlation Filter Algorithm for Pose Measurement of a Micro-Robot

This paper proposes a moving-target tracking algorithm that measures the pose of a micro-robot with high precision and high speed using the Kalman filter-based kernelized correlation filter (K2CF) algorithm. The adaptive Kalman filter can predict the state of linearly and nonlinearly fast-moving targets. The kernelized correlation filter algorithm then accurately detects the positions of the moving targets and uses the detection results to modify the moving states of the targets. This paper verifies the performance of the algorithm on a monocular vision measurement platform and using a pose measurement method. The K2CF algorithm was embedded in the micro-robot's attitude measurement system, and the tracking performances of three different trackers were compared under different motion conditions. Our tracker improved the positioning accuracy and maintained real-time operation. In a comparison study of K2CF and many other algorithms on Object Tracking Benchmark-50 and Object Tracking Benchmark-100 video sequences, the K2CF algorithm achieved the highest accuracy. In the 400 mm × 300 mm field of view, when the target radius is about 3 mm and the inter-frame acceleration displacement does not exceed 5.6 mm, the root-mean-square error of position and attitude angle can satisfy the precision requirements of the system.

Dynamic Characteristics and Wall Effects of Bubble Bursting in Gas-Liquid-Solid Three-Phase Particle Flow

The bubble bursting process existing in the particle flow is a complex gas-liquid-solid three-phase coupling dynamic problem. The bubble bursting mechanism, including dynamic characteristics and wall effects, is not clear. To address the above matters, we present a modeling method for the piecewise linear interface calculation-volume of fluid (PLIC-VOF) based bubble burst. The bubble bursting process near or on the wall is analyzed to reveal the dynamic characteristics of bubble bursting and obtain the effect of a bubble bursting on the surrounding flow field. Then a particle image velocimetry (PIV) based self-developed experimental observation platform is established, and the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified. Research results indicate that, in the high-speed turbulent environment, a large pressure difference existed in the bubble tail, which induces the bubble burst to occur; the distance between the wall and the bubble decreases; the higher the flow velocity is, the less time is acquired for bubble bursting, but when the flow velocity exceeds the critical velocity 50 m/s, more time is needed; the coalescence-burst process of double bubbles increases the bubble bursting time, which causes the acceleration of particle motion to reduce.

Synchronous Sampling-Based Direct Current Estimation Method for Self-Sensing Active Magnetic Bearings

Active magnetic bearings (AMBs) commonly use pulse-width modulation to reduce analogous hardware and manufacturing costs, but they experience sensing process, sensing accuracy and stability problems. To address these issues, a synchronous sampling-based direct current estimation (SS-DCE) method is proposed herein with a bistate switching power amplifier. First—considering the reluctance evolution mechanism of AMBs—a coupling relation mathematical model between rotor displacement and voltage/current is presented to acquire the rotor position from the working coil current alone. Then—assuming that the switching current was an approximately triangular signal—a DCE for the rotor position was established based on the estimation inductance of the charging/discharging phase. Finally—to decrease the phase shift caused by the self-sensing filters and position estimation algorithms—the SS-DCE method was introduced to conduct precise position detection for rotors with high velocities. The simulation and experimental results indicated that the proposed method could improve the sensing accuracy and stability. Compared to other AMB position estimation methods, the simple linearity of the SS-DCE method was greatly improved and could be controlled below 4%. Evaluation using frequency response analysis showed that the SS-DCE method had excellent dynamic accuracy and could perform at a higher phase margin, especially for the uprising/landing transient state. Moreover, there was a phase margin of 158° at the natural frequency of 19.26 HZ, and the peak sensitivity in the 50–250 μm range reached 10.7 dB.

Path Planning for Laser Cladding Robot on Artificial Joint Surface Based on Topology Reconstruction

Artificial joint surface coating is a hot issue in the interdisciplinary fields of manufacturing, materials and biomedicine. Due to the complex surface characteristics of artificial joints, there are some problems with efficiency and precision in automatic cladding path planning for coating fabrication. In this study, a path planning method for a laser cladding robot for artificial joints surface was proposed. The key of this method was the topological reconstruction of the artificial joint surface. On the basis of the topological relation, a set of parallel planes were used to intersect the CAD model to generate a set of continuous, directed and equidistant surface transversals on the artificial joint surface. The arch height error method was used to extract robot interpolation points from surface transversal lines according to machining accuracy requirements. The coordinates and normal vectors of interpolation points were used to calculate the position and pose of the robot tool center point (TCP). To ensure that the laser beam was always perpendicular to the artificial joint surface, a novel laser cladding set-up with a robot was designed, of which the joint part clamped by a six-axis robot moved while the laser head was fixed on the workbench. The proposed methodology was validated with the planned path on the surface of an artificial acetabular cup using simulation and experimentation via an industrial NACHI robot. The results indicated that the path planning method based on topological reconstruction was feasible and more efficient than the traditional robot teaching method.

Dynamic Performance Optimization of Circular Sawing Machine Gearbox

To optimize the rigidity and dynamic mechanical properties of a sawing machine and improve its processing quality and stability, a design method for the sawing machine’s gearbox was proposed. First, a lightweight design of the gearbox was realized by topology optimization. Second, the sensitivity of different design variables of the new gearbox was determined via sensitivity analysis of the objective function. Finally, multi-objective optimization was used to obtain the optimal solution for the gearbox. Considering the complexity of the internal structure of the gearbox assembly and the accuracy of the numerical calculation process, a modeling method with mass points was proposed. A comparison between the numerical calculation results and the operation mode analysis revealed that the former was accurate and can be applied to the verification of the optimized gearbox. By optimizing the vibration signals before and after, and the analysis of the end face quality of the workpiece, the results revealed that the optimized gearbox has a significantly reduced amplitude under various operating conditions. In addition, the vibration stability was improved, and the end face quality of the workpiece was significantly enhanced compared to that before optimization. This study serves as a theoretical reference for multi-body dynamics modeling and optimization of machine tools, and also outlines technical solutions for high-speed stable cutting with sawing machines.