Process Design and Optimization of Surface Roughness during M200 TS Milling Process using the Taguchi Method

Surface roughness (Ra) is a parameter normally used to indicate the level of surface finish. Milling is a process of material removal material by feeding a work piece into a rotating multi-edge cutting tool. The experimental design was carried out using the Autodesk Fusion and Taguchi’s technique including L9 orthogonal array with four factors for each variable and studying the contribution of each factor to surface roughness. The machining parameters evaluated in this study are the depth of cut (d), cutting speed (s) and cutting feed (f) while the response factor measured was the value of the corresponding surface roughness. The physical experiments were conducted on a M200 TS material using a DMC 635 V DMG ECOLINE, Deckel Maho Germany, Siemens 810D, 3- Axis, CNC vertical milling machine and carbide inserts. The surface roughness was measured using the Mitutoyo SJ – 201, surface roughness machine. The statistical analysis of both the numerical and physical experiments brought about the development of a mathematical model and optimum solutions for the evaluation of surface roughness during the milling process. The validations of the modelled equations and numerical results proved to be well within the range of experimental data. The successful completion of this work presents the process design requirements and generates design data for effective milling operations.