Reuse machining knowledge for generating process plans of axisymmetric parts based on case-based reasoning

The basic idea of case-based reasoning (CBR) is to retrieve and modify the most relevant prior case to match new requirements. In this paper, a framew ork for a process planning system for machining of axisymmetric parts using case-based reasoning is introduced. It is composed of four major component s: retriever, modifier, simulator, and repairer. When a desired axisymmetri c part is to be machined, the proposed system first retrieves the most rele vant case from the case library as a plan candidate. Since the plan candida te is rarely the same as the desired one, the system performs modification, simulation, and reparation on it. The proposed system has been implemented on a Sun workstation using the ACIS geometric modeler and C++.