Five-axis milling machine tool kinematic chain design and analysis

Five-axis CNC machining centers have become quite common today. The kinematics of most of the machines are based on a rectangular Cartesian coordinate system. This paper classifies the possible conceptual designs and actual existing implementations based on the theoretically possible combinations of the degrees of freedom. Some useful quantitative parameters, such as the workspace utilization factor, machine tool space efficiency, orientation space index and orientation angle index are defined. The advantages and disadvantages of each concept are analyzed. Criteria for selection and design of a machine configuration are given. New concepts based on the Stewart platform have been introduced recently in industry and are also briefly discussed. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.