On the path planning method of polishing tool based on the abrasive belt flap wheel

In the process of blisk polishing, path planning is a crucial approach to ensure machining efficiency and enhance polishing accuracy. However, existing path generation software does not take into account the large elastic deformation of the polishing tool and cannot guarantee consistent residual error after the processing path. To address these problems, a special effective methodology is proposed for developing an abrasive belt flap wheel (ABFW) polishing path, enhancing the polishing quality of the blisk. To this end, we first establish a motion envelope surface of the ABFW. Then, based on the radial material removal depth model of the ABFW, the amount of material removal is obtained at each contact point. Additionally, the maximum error minimization method is employed to iteratively optimize the solution, obtaining the polishing path for constant residual error. In the experiments, we find that compared to the polishing path generated by commercial software, the optimized polishing path is capable of achieving lower surface residual error and better surface quality.