Recent Patents on Thermal Characteristic Analysis and Modeling of Machine Tools

Modern machining machines are becoming more sophisticated and automated, but the problems of thermal deformation caused by machining have also come to the fore. CNC machine tools are used in high-speed, high-feed rate machining conditions, so the impact of thermal deformation factors will lead to a more prominent loss of accuracy. In this context, the design and manufacture of future CNC machine tools need to take further account of the errors caused by thermal deformation and the accompanying loss of accuracy. The principle of thermal characterisation and thermal error modeling of machine tools is to measure and reasonably analyse the machine tool at different temperature points and make corrections to the analysis data in order to get a value as close as possible to the real value and improve machining accuracy. Several representative patents and studies on thermal characterisation and thermal error modeling of machine tools at home and abroad are reviewed. This study presents a selection and summary of a large number of recent patents and studies on machine tool thermal characterisation and thermal error modeling, focusing on the selection of the machine tool thermal error measurement point area, thermal error modeling methods, spindle thermal displacement compensation, and other aspects, and discusses the future trends in the mainstream methods for reducing the thermal error of machine tools. The analysis and modeling of thermal errors in machine tools have an integral influence on further improvements in machining accuracy and efficiency in the future.