Macroanalysis of Hand Scraping

Hand scraping is a manual metalworking method that is still used in many industries to obtain good planarity, low friction and good gliding properties of metal and plastic surfaces. However, it is characterized by low productivity and requires skilled and well-trained workers. This macroanalysis focuses on the strategy and procedure of the workers during the scraping operation. Forces and tool positions were acquired simultaneously and the resulting surfaces were measured after each scraping pass. Results show that in most instances differences between individual workers’ scraping styles are more significant than between consecutive scraping passes. This research was conducted in order to gather sufficient insight into the hand scraping method to take steps towards its automation.