Tool path generation for machining free-form pockets using Voronoi diagrams

Abstract

Voronoi diagrams for closed shapes have many practical applications, ranging from numerical control machining to mesh generation. Curve offsetting based on Voronoi diagrams avoids the topological problems encountered in the traditional offsetting algorithms. In this paper, we propose a procedure using Voronoi diagram-based tool-path generation for machining pockets with free-form boundaries. A pocket can be bounded by 2D free-form curve elements that are differentiable twice. The procedure consists of three steps: 1. Segmentation of a free-form pecker boundary. 2. Construction of the Voronoi diagram for the pecker boundary. 3. Generation of the tool path for machining the pocket using the Voronoi diagram.