A method of generating sculptured surfaces at multiple points of contact be
tween the tool and the workpiece was developed and proven viable by the cur
rent authors in previous work. They denoted this finish machining method, "
Multi Point Machining", or simply MPM. This paper compares MPM with two oth
er fi-axis tool positioning strategies; namely: the inclined tool, and the
principal axis method. It is also compared with 3-axis ball nose machining.
Comparisons are conducted using computer simulations and experimental cutt
ing tests. Results obtained-show that MPM produced scallop heights that are
much smaller than those produced by the other tool positioning strategies.
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