Study on Influence of Skill Level on Tool Wear during Feed Mode Change in Lathe Work

In this report, our attention was paid on the tool wear due to the stop of tool-feed, caused by change from the automatic operation to the manual one in the lathe work, because it was thought that skill level of workers influences the tool wear significantly. First, the workers gaze-point movement was recorded with an eye camera and analyzed with the application software. The results showed that the stop time of the tool-feed for skilled workers was very shorter than that of beginners. Then, the relationship between the tool-feed stop time and the tool wear was investigated by using an NC lathe. It was found that the shorter the stop time is, the smaller the tool wear becomes. Based on the above findings, the influence of the skill level on the tool wear due to the tool-feed stop in lathe work was revealed and key issues in the skill transfer of lathe work were confirmed.