Hybrid Toolpath Planning and Feed Rate Optimization for Cavity Machining Under Constant Loads

The CNC machining of molds and various 3D parts involves numerous cavity features, and the design of machining toolpaths directly affects machining quality and efficiency. With the advancements in high-speed milling technology, CNC machines provide the hardware foundation for improving cavity machining efficiency, but they also place higher demands on CAM toolpath design. Traditional CAM toolpaths tend to cause abrupt changes in cutting load when dealing with areas such as cavity corners, slots, and intersections of circular paths. This load instability limits the improvement of feed rate and cutting depth, negatively impacting both machining efficiency and quality. To address these issues, this paper proposes a hybrid toolpath planning and feed rate optimization method aiming at achieving constant load machining for cavities. The method, which is based on a multi-level block structure, first calculates the material removal rate and then divides the machining areas into stable, semi-stable and load fluctuation regions. For different regions, circular toolpaths, feed speed optimization and variable-radius trochoidal paths are comprehensively adopted to ensure smooth load control throughout the machining process. By applying trochoidal paths in areas prone to load fluctuations, sudden load variations can be reduced and stable machining process can be ensured. Experimental results show that the proposed toolpath planning and feed rate optimization method is suitable for generating CAM toolpaths for various complex cavities, with good load stability and better machining quality.