2-D Path Planning for Direct Laser Deposition Process

The zigzag and offset path have been the two most popular path patterns for tool movement in machining process. Different from the traditional machining processes, the quality of parts produced by the metal deposition process is much more dependent upon the choice of deposition paths. Due to the nature of the metal deposition processes, various tool path patterns not only change the efficiency but also affect the deposition height, a critical quality for metal deposition process. This paper presents the research conducted on calculating zigzag pattern to improve efficiency by minimizing the idle path. The deposition height is highly dependent on the laser scanning speed. The paper also discussed the deposition offset pattern calculation to reduce the height variation by adjusting the tool-path to achieve a constant scanning speed. The results show the improvement on both efficiency and height.