6-Axis Robotic Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic Drilling Process Using Real-Time Path Control

Abstract

Carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) has high strength and light weight. Thus, it has the advantage of improving fuel efficiency. Because of its strength compared to weight, this material is used to manufacture large parts such as aircraft parts. In this paper, we study CFRP drilling and how to improve the machining accuracy of robotic drilling without an additional driving system in the robot’s end-effector. Robotic drilling hole defects cause drilling force and error displacement at the end-effector. To address this problem, the authors apply real-time calibration on the drilling path based on drilling force signals from the dynamometer. As a result, it has been confirmed that real-time path control is effective for improving robotic drilling hole quality in CFRP specimens compared to drilling without real-time path control.