Uniform coverage scanning path planning for magnetorheological polishing of complex surfaces

Abstract This paper presents a uniform coverage scanning path planning method for magnetorheological polishing of complex curved surfaces, which realizes the uniform removal of polished surface materials and further ameliorate the quality and effectiveness of optical surface polishing. The contact motion of abrasive grains is considered in the polishing process, and an efficient iterative approximation algorithm is used. On this basis, an efficient and accurate equal-error step size algorithm suitable for magnetorheological polishing of complex surfaces is applied. Fixed the value of the motion step to ensure that each approximation deviation is within the allowable error range of the allowable machining. At the same time, the relationship among residual height, radius of curvature and polishing line spacing is determined by mathematical operation, and the contact area map of the planned polishing path in the three-dimensional space was established. The effectiveness and superiority of the presented polishing path generation method compared to traditional paths in promoting material removal uniformity are verified by simulation and virtual machining. The results show that the planned polishing path is more suitable for complex surface polishing.