Machining qualification of solid wood of Fagus silvatica L. and Picea excelsa L.:: Cutting forces, power requirements and surface roughness

Measured were the cutting forces, the power requirements and the surface roughness during the machining of pieces of beech (Fagus silvatica) and spruce (Picea excelsa). The machining process was carried out on a shaper with specific devices. The concerned variables were: cutting depth, feed rate and cutting speed. The mean chip thickness and cutting width were constant. The machining process was done in two different ways: conventional and climb cutting; thus it was possible to compare both working directions with the same machining parameters and watch their influence on the cutting forces, the power consumption and the surface roughness. The most important variables on the cutting forces are depth of cut, wood density and feed direction. With regard to power consumption, it was detected that the most important variables were cutting speed, feed direction, depth of cut and wood density. It was further demonstrated that the measured and calculated power have a very good correlation, and that the cutting forces can be determined by the calculated power. Thus, if cutting power is measured for a specific condition of wood and machine, the cutting forces can be estimated. The surface roughness was very homogeneous in all the tests. The better machining process was obtained when applying conventional cutting. Then the cutting forces, the power requirements and the roughness standard deviation reach smaller values.