Design and fabrication of micro cutting tools using micro electro discharge machining (µ-EDM)

With the advent of sophisticated electro discharge machines, design and fabrication of micro cutting tools and their employment in micro machining operations have become a popular research area. These machines have been used to fabricate micro milling, drilling, and grinding tools made from tungsten carbide and polycrystalline diamond with diameters as low as 5-10 micrometers. Successful fabrication and application of micro tools require a great deal of process knowledge. In this study, a methodology based on analytical and computational process models is proposed and some preliminary results are presented.