Application of the laser scanning microscopy to evaluation of abrasive tool wear

Grinding is one of the basic precise machining methods. Evaluation of the abrasive tool surface is the basic criterion of forecasting the tools' durability and the process results. The applied method of laser scanning made determination of the surface coordinates and subsequently of its geometric features with micrometric accuracy possible. Using the information on the abrasive tool surface geometric structure, a methodology of evaluation of the level of changes of the tool during the machining process was developed. The developed method allowed for evaluation of the level of abrasive tools' wear, and subsequently formed foundations for assessment of the influence of the machining parameters on the durability of abrasive tools, evaluation of the influence of the parameters of the process of shaping the abrasive tools' active surfaces on their geometric characteristic and evaluation of the level of correlation between the monitored process parameters and the degree of the abrasive tools' wear.