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Procedia CIRP 00 (2017)

Procedia 000–000
CIRP 87 (2020) 474–479
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
5th CIRP CSI 2020
5th CIRP CSI 2020
Load Capacity of Rolling Contacts Manufactured by Wire EDM Turning
Load Capacity of Rolling
28th Contacts
CIRP Design Manufactured
Conference, byFrance
May 2018, Nantes, Wire EDM Turning
T. Bergs, U. Tombul*, D. Mevissen, A. Klink, J. Brimmers
A new methodology
Laboratory for Machine T. Bergs,
Tools toU.analyze
Tombul*,
and Production the functional
D. ofMevissen,
Engineering (WZL) RWTH Aachen A. andCampus-Boulevard
Klink,
University, physical
J. Brimmers 30,architecture
Aachen 52074, Germany of

existing products
Laboratory for for
Machine Tools and an assembly
Production Engineering (WZL) oforiented product
RWTH Aachen University,
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +49-241-8028175; E-mail address: u.tombul@wzl.rwth-aachen.de
family30,identification
Campus-Boulevard Aachen 52074, Germany

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +49-241-8028175; E-mail address: u.tombul@wzl.rwth-aachen.de

Paul Stief *, Jean-Yves Dantan, Alain Etienne, Ali Siadat
Abstract École Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers, Arts et Métiers ParisTech, LCFC EA 4495, 4 Rue Augustin Fresnel, Metz 57078, France
Abstract
Previous investigations have shown that load carrying capacity of gears manufactured by wire EDM is three times higher than ground gears for
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +33 3 87 37 54 30; E-mail address: paul.stief@ensam.eu
short time contact fatigue tests. Typical EDM surfaces are characterized by discharge craters, which lead to beneficial running-in topography
Previous investigations have shown that load carrying capacity of gears manufactured by wire EDM is three times higher than ground gears for
formation. Investigations of tooth flank load-carrying capacity of specimen represent the tribological performance of rolling contacts. In gear
short time contact fatigue tests. Typical EDM surfaces are characterized by discharge craters, which lead to beneficial running-in topography
testing, a tribological comparable disk-on-disk test is performed to reduce effort and costs during machining gears with complex geometries. For
formation. Investigations of tooth flank load-carrying capacity of specimen represent the tribological performance of rolling contacts. In gear
this purpose, testing shafts with high geometrical accuracy and different surface qualities were manufactured by wire EDM on a single-axis rotary
Abstract
testing, a tribological comparable disk-on-disk test is performed to reduce effort and costs during machining gears with complex geometries. For
indexing table. Following, the surface integrity and performance of these specimens on the disk-on-disk test were investigated focusing on short
this purpose, testing shafts with high geometrical accuracy and different surface qualities were manufactured by wire EDM on a single-axis rotary
Intime contact
today’s
indexing
fatigueenvironment,
business
table.
strength and the
Following, the surface
running-in
trend behavior.
towards
integrity and more productof
performance variety and customization
these specimens is unbroken.test
on the disk-on-disk Due to this
were development,
investigated the on
focusing need of
short
agile and reconfigurable production systems
time contact fatigue strength and running-in behavior. emerged to cope with various products and product families. To design and optimize production
© 2020 as
systems The Authors.
well Published
as to choose theby Elsevier
optimal B.V. matches, product analysis methods are needed. Indeed, most of the known methods aim to
product
© 2020
This
analyze The
is aan Authors.
open
product access
or Published
one article
product by Elsevier
under the on
family CCtheB.V.
BY-NC-ND license
physical level. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Different product families, however, may differ largely in terms of the number and
© 2020
This is anThe Authors.
open access Published by Elsevier
article under B.V.
the scientific
CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Peer-review
nature of under
components. responsibility
This fact of the
impedes an committee
efficient of
comparison the 5th
and CIRP
choiceCSI
of 2020
appropriate product family combinations for the production
This is an open
Peer-review access
under article under
responsibility CC BY-NC-ND
of the scientific license
committee (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
of the 5th CIRP CSI 2020
system. A newunder
Peer-review methodology is proposed
responsibility of the to analyze
scientific existing products
committee of the 5thinCIRP
viewCSIof their
2020 functional and physical architecture. The aim is to cluster
Keywords:
these products Wire
inEDM Turning; Rolling
new assembly orientedContact; Load
product Capacity;
families forEroded Surface
the optimization of existing assembly lines and the creation of future reconfigurable
assembly
Keywords: systems.
Wire EDMBased on Datum
Turning; RollingFlow Chain,
Contact; Loadthe physical
Capacity; structure
Eroded Surfaceof the products is analyzed. Functional subassemblies are identified, and
a functional analysis is performed. Moreover, a hybrid functional and physical architecture graph (HyFPAG) is the output which depicts the
similarity between product families by providing design support to both, production system planners and product designers. An illustrative
1. Introduction
example of a nail-clipper is used to explain the proposed methodology. An cup structures
industrial yieldon
case study antwo
improved
product behavior
families ofinsteering
terms columns
of friction
of
thyssenkrupp Presta France is then carried out to give a first industrial results
evaluation compared
of the to
proposed polished
approach. surfaces [2,4,5].
1. Introduction cup structures yield an improved behavior in terms of friction
© 2017Heavily loadedPublished
The Authors. rolling contacts
by ElseviersuchB.V.as the tooth flank Electric discharge machining EDM can produce such a
results compared to polished surfaces [2,4,5].
contact,
Peer-review are complex tribological systems whose characteristics surface structure through the formation of the process inherent
Heavilyunder responsibility
loaded of the scientific
rolling contacts such as committee
the tooth of the 28th CIRP Design
flank ElectricConference
discharge2018.
machining EDM can produce such a
adjust themselves through the interactions between the contact crater landscape. In preliminary studies, it could be found that
contact, are complex tribological systems whose characteristics surface structure through the formation of the process inherent
partners,Assembly;
Keywords: the lubricant
Designand theFamily
method; surrounding medium
identification [1]. The tribological favorable surface structures can be set during wire
adjust themselves through the interactions between the contact crater landscape. In preliminary studies, it could be found that
properties of the tribological system significantly affect the cutting through the application of suitable finishing cuts. When
partners, the lubricant and the surrounding medium [1]. The tribological favorable surface structures can be set during wire
application behavior in terms of friction, wear and fatigue [2,3]. using a modern process the number of load cycles of wire-
properties of the tribological system significantly affect the cutting through the application of suitable finishing cuts. When
The rolling strength is significantly influenced by the material, eroded compared to ground gears can be significantly increased
1.application
Introduction behavior in terms of friction, wear and fatigue [2,3]. using
of a modernrange
the product process
and the number of manufactured
characteristics load cycles ofand/or wire-
the rim zone properties, surface finish, as well as the operating for short time fatigue strength (pitting). Sari et al. [6] showed
The rolling strength is significantly influenced by the material, eroded compared
assembled to ground
in this system. In gears can be significantly
this context, increased
the main challenge in
parameters of slip and total velocity rate. The friction results the potential of eroded surfaces for the improvement of contact
theDue
rim zone properties,
to the fast surface finish, asinwell
development theas the operating
domain of for short time
modelling and fatigue
analysisstrength
is now(pitting).
not onlySari et al. with
to cope [6] showed
single
from the state of lubrication in the contact which is established properties of tooth flank. The results showed a tripling of
parameters of slip
communication andand antotal velocity
ongoing rate.ofThe
trend friction results
digitization and the potential
products, of eroded
a limited surfaces
product range fororthe improvement
existing productoffamilies,
contact
in dependence on the lubricant, the temperature and the surface number of load cycles of eroded surfaces compared to the
from the state manufacturing
digitalization, of lubrication inenterprises
the contactare which
facingis established
important properties
but also to beofable
tooth flank. The
to analyze and toresults showed
compare a tripling
products of
to define
roughness and structure. To reduce friction and increase ground surface. In order to use these results to improve the
in dependence
challenges in on the lubricant,
today’s market the temperature and
environments: the surface
a continuing number
new of load
product cycles
families. of eroded
It can be observedsurfaces comparedexisting
that classical to the
sustainability of highly loaded rolling contacts in particular, the operational behavior of rolling contacts, a systematic analysis
roughness
tendency and structure.
towards reduction of Toproduct
reducedevelopment
friction andtimes increase
and ground families
product surface. are
In regrouped
order to use these results
in function to improve
of clients the
or features.
surface topography is analyzed as optimization parameters in of the influence of eroded surface on endurance strength is
sustainability
shortened of highly
product loaded
lifecycles. Inrolling contacts
addition, there in
is particular,
an increasing the operational
However, behavior
assembly of rolling
oriented contacts,
product a systematic
families are hardlyanalysis
to find.
the latest research [2]. A key result is that the filming in the necessary. Based on this, the aim is to investigate the
surface of
demand topography is analyzed
customization, being as at optimization
the same time parameters
in a global in of On
thethe
influence
productoffamily
eroded surface
level, on endurance
products differ mainlystrength
in twois
rolling contact and the service life can be improved for studies tribological behavior experimentally in the disk-on-disk
the latest research
competition [2]. A key all
with competitors result
overis the
thatworld.
the filming in the
This trend, necessary.
main Based on
characteristics: this,number
(i) the the aim is to investigate
of components and (ii) the
on the two-disk test by an optimized surface structure of the analogy test rig and evaluate the influence of surface integrity
rollingiscontact
which and the
inducing the service life can be
development fromimproved
macro for to studies
micro tribological
type behavior
of components (e.g.experimentally in theelectronical).
mechanical, electrical, disk-on-disk
final processing step. Deterministic surface textures like flat of the specimens.
on the two-disk
markets, results intestdiminished
by an optimized
lot sizessurface
due structure
to augmenting of the analogy testmethodologies
Classical rig and evaluate the influence
considering of surface
mainly integrity
single products
final processing
product step. Deterministic
varieties (high-volume surface textures
to low-volume production) like [1].
flat of the
or specimens.
solitary, already existing product families analyze the
2212-8271 © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
To
Thiscope
is an with this augmenting
open access article under thevariety as welllicense
CC BY-NC-ND as to(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
be able to product structure on a physical level (components level) which
identify
2212-8271 possible
© 2020 The optimization
Authors. Published potentials
by Elsevier in
B.V. the existing
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 5th CIRP CSI 2020 causes difficulties regarding an efficient definition and
This is an open
production access article
system, under the CCtoBY-NC-ND
it is important license knowledge
have a precise (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
comparison of different product families. Addressing this
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 5th CIRP CSI 2020
2212-8271 © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
This is an©open
2212-8271 2017access article Published
The Authors. under theby CC BY-NC-ND
Elsevier B.V. license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Peer-review
Peer-review under
under responsibility
responsibility of scientific
of the the scientific committee
committee of the of theCIRP
28th 5th CIRP
DesignCSI 2020 2018.
Conference
10.1016/j.procir.2020.02.111
 T. Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 87 (2020) 474–479 475
2 Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 00 (2019) 000–000

2. Objective and Approach Dial gauge 1 Screws for

Dial gauge 2 alignment 1
The aim of this paper is to analyze systematically the
influence of eroded surfaces on the load capacity of rolling-
sliding contacts. For this purpose, the load capacity of different
variants of eroded surfaces are compared with a ground surface.
The variants are mainly classified according to their surface
quality, but also have other different surface characteristics.
For economic reasons, an analogy test is used for this
investigation. For the investigations on the disk-on-disk test Touch point
Screws for
rig, shafts instead of gears are tested. Due to the geometry, the Cover alignment 2
outer diameter to be processed cannot be machined by
Fig. 1. Setup procedure of a test shaft
conventional wire EDM. Therefore, wire electrical discharge
turning (WEDT) is used to machine the specimens. Due to the
complexity and the limited use of this process, in the first work The machined test shafts are made of the case hardening
package a technology must be developed which produces steel 18CrNiMo7-6. They are heat-treated with a standard case-
comparable surface integrity compared with conventional wire hardening heat treatment. The surface hardness is 61 HRC with
EDM. 15-20% retained austenite. The case hardness depth is
In the second working package, contact fatigue strength for CHD550 ≈ 1.0 mm.
the different wire-eroded surface structures and roughness are
evaluated in comparison with a ground reference variant. For 3.2. Test Rig and Contact Geometry
efficient determination of the variant with highest potential
regarding contact fatigue strength, in this paper a screening on The disk-on-disk test rig is an economic alternative for
one constant load level is performed. The criterion for the investigation of contact fatigue strength in comparison to the
comparison of the different variants is therefore the number of back-to-back gear test rig [7]. The disk-on-disk contact
load cycles until a pitting damage occurs. Beside the number of represents the tribological conditions at a specific point on the
load cycles, the change of roughness after the test run as well path of contact. Each contact point on the path of contact can
as the surface wear are analyzed in detail. be described by the local radius of curvature, the tangential
velocities of pinion and gear as well as the local normal force.
3. Experimental Setup As a result, an analogy model can be derived that is comparable
to a disk-on-disk contact.
3.1. Wire Electrical Discharge Turning and Test Material An advantage of this testing concept compared to the gear
tests is a reduction of costs as the disks are cheaper than gears
The test shafts were machined on a Makino U6 H.E.A.T. and the test rigs are smaller (factor 3 smaller than back-to-back
machine tool with a water-based dielectric. It is equipped with test rig) [8]. Furthermore, the testing principle allows the
an anti-electrolysis generator, which offers different cutting investigation of the influence of single combination of loads on
strategies for various materials. A brass wire electrode with a strength and efficiency, because load and kinematic conditions
diameter of d = 0.25 mm was selected for the experiments. The do not vary compared to the gear contact. Hence, the sliding,
shafts were fixed with a special clamping system on the rotating curvature and normal force are independent from each other.
and indexing spindle H80R.MNC. of the manufacturer Carl Test Rig Data 3 5
Hirschmann and placed on the machine table. With the rotation a = 42.05 mm
axis, speeds of nmax = 1500 rpm, with a concentricity accuracy n = 3000 min-1 4
C < 3 μm are possible. Control is provided by a separate NC- s = -28 %
control system. Qoil,max = 1.5 l/min
Unlike conventional grinding, the shafts were not clamped Toil,max = 90 C
between centres. Due to the force free principle of the EDM Contact Geometry 1
process, one-sided clamping of rotary components during Point contact 2
machining can be sufficient to maintain still concentricity. For Rcr= 166 mm
this purpose, pre-grinded surfaces were used for the alignment Key
of the test shafts in the axis. Fig. 1 represents the setup 1 Test Shaft (cylindrical)
procedure of a test shaft. Two dial gauges were used to adjust 2 Counter Shaft (crowned)
the test shaft. In addition, two grinded surfaces – one area in 3 Pressure Piston 6
front and one at the end – were measured for clamping. The 4 Housing 9
clamping device has different screws to adjust the front and rear 5 Pressure Lever
concentricity. If the front and rear surfaces are aligned and have 6 Motor
the ground concentricity value, the shaft is set up. In order to 7 Gearbox (Slippage)
reduce the turbulences in the dielectric by the rotation of the 8 Pressure Reservoir
9 Lubricant Circulation 8 7
axis and to keep the wire deflections as small as possible, an
additional cover at the axis is used.
Fig. 2. Disk-on-disk test rig and contact geometry
476 T. Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 87 (2020) 474–479
Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 00 (2019) 000–000
The experimental investigations are performed on the WZL
disk-on-disk test rigs [9,10], see Fig. 2. The test rig consists of
the housing including two shafts and the pressure piston, a
gearbox and an electric motor. The gearbox determines the
different rotational speed of the disks and therefore the slippage
of the rolling-sliding contact. The normal force is applied by a
hydraulic piston in order to ensure a defined Hertzian pressure
in the contact area. The test rigs are run under jet lubrication.
In case of damage, the test is stopped by a vibration monitoring
system.
Both disks have the same outer diameters of
d1/2 = 42.05 mm (centre distance a = 42.05 mm), see Fig. 2.
The test surfaces have a maximum contact width of b = 14 mm.
The contact geometry of the disk-on-disk contact is a point
contact. The test shaft is cylindrical, whereas the counter shaft
has a crowning in axial direction of Rcr = 166 mm (amount for
crowning Cb = 108 µm) [9].
4. Process Development and Surface Integrity
4.1. Development of the WEDT Process
Wire electrical discharge turning is used for high precision
machining of long components with small diameters.
Depending on the ratio between length and diameter, typical
cutting forces can cause a bending of workpieces. Furthermore,
WEDT is applied for machining materials with mechanical
properties, which make them difficult to cut. The process has
already been verified for some applications like trueing fine
grained diamond grinding wheels [11]. Current erosion
machines still have no standard technologies for the dynamic
process yet. Thereby, the use of WEDT requires a technology
development.
The technology was developed based on own preparatory
work and knowledge from the state of the art. In analogy
experiments the influence of free wire length, the flushing
pressure and the discharge current as well as the pulse interval
time were investigated [12]. A model to describe the relation
between the material removal rate and the geometrical values
was developed by Qu et al. [13]. A maximum removal rate to
machine carbide materials was explored. The influence of
electrical process parameters on the WEDT process were
analyzed by Haddad et al. [14]. The discharge voltage and
power were identified as influential parameters for the
roundness. The influence of the pulse interval time was not
significant. The surface roughness increases proportionally
with the discharge voltage and power, while decreasing pulse
interval time. In addition, the rotational speed of the axis was
analyzed. While a decreasing rotational speed has a negative
impact on the surface roughness, the roundness of the
workpiece is improved by lower speeds.
Further investigations regarding to the influence of
rotational speed have been conducted by Weingärtner et al.
[15,16]. They analyzed the crater formation for different
relative speeds between tool and workpiece, which occur in the
WEDT process. The eroded volume increases with rising
relative speeds. As a result, the material removal rate increases.
Based on these relations, the used technology was developed.
3
Since the operation behavior of different eroded surface
finishes are investigated, a technology with a main cut (MC)
and seven trim cuts (TC) was developed. In preliminary
examinations a rotational speed of n = 700 rpm was
determined. The flushing pressure of the upper and lower
nozzle was almost switched off and has been set to a minimum
possible value. The working gap was flushed by the rotation of
the workpiece. Since the aim is the investigation of eroded
surfaces in rolling contacts, the generation of concentricity is
of less importance. Therefore, the surface to be eroded has
already been ground almost to the nominal concentricity. Thus,
the concentricity could be maintained and high repeatability
could be ensured. Contrary to other works, the technology has
been developed with a controlled feed rate. Hence, shafts with
slightly different diameters could also be machined and
productivity compared to other works could be increased.
The diagram in Fig. 3 shows the machined concentricity and
cutting speeds for different cuts. The concentricity is
continuously improved and the best accuracy is achieved after
the fourth trim cut. All test shafts met the requirement of a
maximum concentricity run-out C = 5 µm. The cutting speed is
for the first four cuts nearly the same. The last four trim cuts
are mainly executed to smooth the surface.
5 8
Concentricity C / µm
Cutting speed vf /
4 6
(mm/min)
3
4
2
1 2
0 0
MC 1TC 2TC 3TC 4TC 5TC 6TC 7TC
Fig. 3. Concentricity and cutting speed for different cuts
The different testing variations are divided in different
surface qualities. For this purpose, a technology with energy
gradations and varied number of discharges per second was
developed. Thereto, the discharge energy We and the interval
pulse time t0 from the main to the trim cuts were reduced. The
energies for the main and the first four trim cuts were
determined by measuring the current and voltage signals and
following calculation of the values stored on an oscilloscope.
This is an established method for calculating the discharge
energy, which is quantified by the product of the discharge
voltage and current multiplied with the discharge duration [17].
However, the sampling frequency of the measuring equipment
was not sufficient to record signals of the last trim cuts. The
signals were recorded in static operation, but can be transferred
to the WEDT process due to the isoenergetic working mode of
the generator. In Fig. 4, the gradations of the discharge energies
are presented. The values are displayed logarithmically. The
energy of the first trim cut is reduced by a factor of 10
compared to the main cut. The further gradations are made with
the factor 2 to 4. It is expected that the discharge crater area is
reduced and part of the recast layer is removed.
The pulse interval time t0 determines the pause after a
discharge and ensures among other things the removal of debris
in the working gap. This parameter affects the number of
discharges occurring per second and is decreased for increasing
 T. Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 87 (2020) 474–479 477
4 Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 00 (2019) 000–000

trim cuts. The pulse interval time amounts to approx. t0 ≈ 0.7 µs
for the fourth trim cut and was hardly reduced for the last ones.
Thus, the last trim cuts mainly remove the roughness peaks of
the surface by a lateral feed of the wire during changed offset-
values.
100
Discharge energy
roughness and crater sizes, the recast layer can also affect the
load capacity. Hence, cross section has been analyzed with
light microscopy and the same image-editing program. The
average and maximum white layer thickness after the cuts are
displayed in Fig. 6. The maximum white layer thickness could
25 be reduced under dr,max = 4 µm after the last trim cut. It can be

Pulse interval time

20 seen that no significant removal of the white layer is conducted
10
We / mJ

after the third trim cut. These observations also correlate with
15

t0 / µs
1 the gradations of the energy levels of the different cuts.
10 Furthermore, the rim zone inspections of the tested EDM
0.1 5 variants are pictured in this figure.
0.01 0 12 40

thickness dr,avg / µm

thickness dr,max / µm
Average white layer
MC 1TC 2TC 3TC 4TC 10

Max. white layer

30
Fig. 4. Discharge energy We and pulse interval time t0 for the first five cuts 8
6 20
4.2. Surface Integrity after WEDT
4
10
In addition to the surface roughness, other parameters of the 2
surface integrity influence a rolling contact [6]. The resulting 0 0
surface roughness and the determined size of crater areas for MC 1TC2TC3TC4TC5TC6TC7TC
different cuts are presented in Fig. 5. The roughness was 2TC 3TC
measured on surface measurement devise of Jenoptik (type:
Hommel etamic nanoscan 855). The needle had a tip radius of
5 µm and tip angle of 90°. The evaluation of roughness was
10 µm
performed according to DIN EN ISO 4288 (lt = 4,8 mm;
5TC 7TC
λc = 0.8 mm). The developed technology reaches a surface
roughness of Ra ≤ 0.4 µm after the last trim cut. Craters can
produce different roughness regardless of their size [18]. Since
the surface structure also has an influence on the rolling
contact, the influence of the energy gradations on the size of Fig. 6. Measured white layer thickness after single cuts and rim zone
inspections of the four eroded testing variations
the discharge craters was considered. For this purpose,
recordings of the topography were made with a scanning
5. Evaluation of Contact Fatigue Strength
electron microscope (SEM). Afterwards the images were
evaluated with an image-editing program. In Fig. 5 exemplarily
For the investigations, four different EDM variants were
also the topography images are shown after the main and last
compared with a ground one. The WEDT process was designed
trim cut.
to produce similar surface integrity such like conventional
Average crater area / µm2

5 5,000 EDM. For the further investigations, the testing variations are
Average roughness

4 4,000 declared regarding to their surface roughness. As a reference

variant REF0.3, ground specimens with a of Ra =0.3 µm was
Ra / µm

3 3,000 chosen. The other variants were eroded with different surface
2 2,000 roughness by applying more trim cuts after the main cut. Table
1 gives an overview of the tested variants.
1 1,000
Table 1. Overview of the testing variations
0 0
MC 1TC 2TC 3TC 4TC 5TC 6TC 7TC
Variant REF0.3 EDM0.4 EDM0.5 EDM0.9 EDM1.5
MC 7TC Technology Grinding WEDT WEDT WEDT WEDT
Surface
roughness 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.9 1.5
40 µm 25 µm Ra [µm]
Number of
Fig. 5. SEM images, surface roughness and average crater area - 7 4 3 2
trim cuts

Due to the thermo-physical removal principle of the EDM
process, a recast layer – also known as the white layer - and
heat-affected zone are caused in the workpiece. Especially, the
white layer is susceptible to cracks and pores which affect the
life cycle of rolling components. Therefore, besides surface
For the evaluation of the contact fatigue the disk-on-disk
analogy test rig is used, compare chapter 3. The testing
conditions of the investigation for all variants are closely
defined to the tribological conditions of tooth flank contact. In
analogy to the pitting critical area on case-hardened gears, the
478 T. Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 87 (2020) 474–479
Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 00 (2019) 000–000
slippage is set to s = -28 % [19]. The rotational speed of the test
shaft is n1 = 3000 min-1. The running-in procedure is performed
at a Hertzian pressure of pH,running-in = 1100 MPa for
Nrunning-in = 1.8·105 load cycles in order to flatten the surface
asperities in the contact area. The applied oil type is FVA3A
4% Anglamol (ISO VG100). The oil inlet temperature is
TOil = 90°C. The load during the test run is kept constant. For
the screening of the potential of the different test variants the
Hertzian Pressure of each test run is pH = 2600 MPa. This load
stage was determined in pre-tests considering the number of
load cycles until the damage occurs (10-30 Mio. load cycles).
The countershaft properties were kept constant for all tests with
an average roughness of Ra = 0.19 ±0.05 µm (cylindrical
grinding).
5.1. Determination of Short Time Contact Fatigue Strength
In Fig. 7 the test results for the different wire-eroded
variants in comparison to a ground reference variant is shown.
For each variant, at least three tests were performed. The scatter
bar marks the minimum and maximum value. For the reference
variant, pittings occur after 30 Mio. load cycles in average. For
all wire-eroded variants, the average number of load cycle is
lower. It has to be noticed that the roughness of the reference
variant with Ra = 0.3 µm is lower than the roughness of the
best wire-eroded variant. The difference in roughness correlate
with the change of load cycles according to the state of the art.
The roughness of the reference variant was defined lower,
because with higher roughness micro pitting occurred for the
ground surface in pre-tests. In this case, the evaluation of
pitting contact fatigue strength is not clearly possible because
different damage pattern overlap each other. In contrast, the
limiting roughness for occurrence of micro pitting is higher for
the wire-eroded surfaces. Only for the highest roughness of
Ra = 1.5 µm, micro pittings in combination with surface wear
occur.
The best wire-eroded variant is EDM0.4 with an average
roughness of Ra = 0.4 µm. This roughness is the highest
quality to be manufactured by WEDT for the given conditions.
With increasing roughness, the number of load cycles decrease
digressively. In regard of the number of load cycles, variant
EDM1.5 is comparable with the variant EMD0.5, but the
scatter of the three tests is higher. In comparison to the
reference variant, the scatter of wire-eroded variants seems to
be lower in general. For a secure, statistical conclusion,
additional tests need to be performed.
Besides the number of load cycles, the change of roughness
during the contact fatigue test is shown in Fig. 7. The roughness
values before the test are the values from the manufacturing
processes. According to the test plan, the roughness of the
different wire-eroded variants increases from
Ra = 0.4 to 1.5 µm. After the test, the roughness decreases for
all variants caused by the normal force acting during the test.
Independent of the initial roughness, the roughness after
loading is in the same range for all wire-eroded variants. The
number of load cycles correlates with the roughness after the
5
test, which confirms the state of the art that the roughness after
running-in is most important for the performance for rolling-
sliding contacts. In contrast to a ground surface, the wire-
eroded surface is therefore not as sensitive in regard to
increasing roughness, because the running-in leads to a similar
smoothing.
40
Load cycles / 10 6
Millionen
30
20
10
0
REF0.3 EDM0.4 EDM0.5 EDM0.9 EDM1.5
2
Average roughness
Before
1.5 After
Ra / µm
1
0.5
0
REF0.3 EDM0.4 EDM0.5 EDM0.9 EDM1.5
Fig. 7. Test results of short time contact fatigue strength
5.2. Analysis of Damage Pattern und Surface Wear
For a deeper understanding of the damage pattern and
fatigue mechanisms, the pitting outbreaks and the surface wear
are analyzed in Fig. 8. All variants show a classic pitting
damage after the test. The central pitting breaks out shell-
shaped according to the observations in literature, pointing in
direction of the friction force FR [7,20]. Furthermore the pitting
outbreaks can be separated into the two regions of a fatigue
zone (1) and remaining fracture zone (2) [20]. Besides the
central pitting, there are also secondary pittings, which occur
after the central pitting and before the detonation sensors stops
the test rig. Except for the variant EDM1.5, the surface of the
disk is shiny and intact, not showing micro pitting or surface
wear. Additionally to the damage pattern, the wear is analyzed
in Fig. 8. The profile of the test and counter disk is measured
before as well as after testing and aligned to each other using
the unloaded area next to the contact area as reference point.
For the counter disk, the initial state is dark grey and the state
after test light grey. For the test disk, it is vice versa (light/dark
blue). According to the damage pattern, there is no wear
resulting from micro pitting or abrasive wear on the reference
variant. For the wire-eroded variant, the change of roughness
during running-in is visible on the test disk in the area of the
roughness peaks. The higher the initial roughness, this effect
can be seen clearer on the wear pictures. For the wire-eroded
variant with highest roughness EDM1.5, there is also wear on
the counter disk caused by the higher initial roughness. In
regard of wear, the variant EDM1.5 is therefore a limit.
 T. Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 87 (2020) 474–479
6 Bergs et al. / Procedia CIRP 00 (2019) 000–000
REF Ground0.3 EDM0.4
Damage Pattern
2 mm
zoom
fatigue (1)
rupture (2)
Counter
Wear Analysis
100 µm
After
Test
12 mm Test Shaft
Fig. 8. Test Results of Short Time Contact Fatigue Strength
6. Summary and Conclusions
This paper deals with the systematic analysis of load
capacity tests of eroded surfaces. For this purpose, the
performance of variants with different eroded surface
roughness were compared with a ground one. The main results
of the paper can be summarized as follows:
 The life cycle tests were performed on an analogy disk-on-
disk test rig. Therefore, shafts were machined as test
specimens.
 Due to their geometry, the specimens had to be machined by
wire discharge machine turning (WEDT).
 A WEDT process was developed which produces a typical
surface compared with conventional WEDM.
 The short time contact fatigue strength of wire-eroded
surfaces is lower but on the same level in comparison to
ground surfaces.
 Caused by a pronounced running-in for the wire-eroded
surface under normal loading, the roughness after the test
run is independent of the initial roughness after
manufacturing. Therefore, the initial roughness shows only
a small influence on the number of load cycle in regard of
contact fatigue.
 As an outline, the surface properties of the different variants
need to be analyzed in regard to residual stress and hardness
to clearly classify the test results to the state of the art.
 To evaluate the influence of the white layer, rim zone
inspections after the cycle test should be conducted.
 Furthermore, the test results in regard of short time contact
fatigue should be extended to full S/N curves in order to
evaluate the difference in endurance strength.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the German
Research Foundation (DFG) for funding project KL 500/188-1
“Tribological Performance of Rolling Contacts Produced by
EDM“.
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