Assessing Component Machinability Using Voxelized Solid Models

New automated approaches in design often generate nonmanufacturable component geometries. Improved machinability of topology optimized parts, for example, has been under exploration for over a decade with limited success. Recent work is pursuing novel design approaches enabled by developments in voxel-based representation and advanced process technologies. Research reported here suggests a featureless approach for analyzing the machinability of a given geometry using voxels. The input is a tessellated shape, which is converted into a voxel representation. The voxelized shape is then filled in the orthogonal toolpath directions defined by the minimum bounding box to approximate the reach of the cutting tool in each part orientation. The filled shapes are intersected with each other to achieve a solid representation that can be readily accessed by a cutting tool. Overlaying this solid shape against the original tessellated shape will highlight the non-machinable regions of the part when visualized. The volume of non-machinable material can be estimated and used to inform a larger search process for separating and adding part features together to improve component manufacturability.Copyright © 2018 by ASME