RESEARCH OF MICRO ELECTRO DISCHARGE MACHINING EQUIPMENT AND PROCESS TECHNIQUES

Micro electro discharge machining (micro EDM) is a feasible way to manufacture micro structures and has potential application in advanced industrial fields. For the realization of micro EDM, it is necessary to pay careful attention to its equipment design and the development of process techniques. The present status of research and development of micro EDM equipment and process techniques is overviewed. A micro electro discharge machine incorporated with an inchworm type of micro feed mechanism is introduced, and a micro electro discharge machine for drilling micro holes suitable to industrial use is also introduced. Some of the machining experiments carried out on the micro EDM prototypes are shown and the feasibility of the micro EDM technology to practical use is discussed.