Analysis of the grain depth-of-cut in plunge grinding

The grain depth-of-cut in plunge grinding was analyzed using computer simulation and an analytic model. Two regimes were identified for the depth-of-cut as a function of the infeed. At lower infeeds, there is a unique correlation between grinding grooves and cutting grains, and the depth-of-cut is equal to the infeed. At higher infeeds, the correlation is destroyed, and the depth-of-cut can be much less than the infeed. An analytic model that takes into account only the mean surface position while ignoring the surface profile can describe the latter regime.