Multi-Hole Drilling Tool Path Planning and Cost Management through Hybrid SFLA-ACO Algorithm for Composites and Hybrid Materials

Abstract

In the process of drilling multiple holes in composites and hybrid materials, almost 70% of the time is consumed in tool traveling and tool changing. Recently, researchers have focused on this consumption of time for optimization of the tool path. A literature review revealed the following research gap: little work has been performed on the hybridization of metaheuristics. In the present study, the hybridization of SFLA and ACO metaheuristic algorithms is carried out, which is based on this research gap. The hybridization of SFLA and ACO metaheuristic algorithms provides originality and novelty in this study. The main objective of this study is to minimize the tool path in drilling problems. The proposed algorithm was applied to five benchmark multi-hole drilling problems and one industrial problem from the literature. The outcome of this work is evaluated with the results of dynamic programming (DP), ACO, an immune-based evolutionary approach (IA), and a modified SFLA for five benchmark problems. The accuracy of the results was improved by 2.27% using the proposed hybrid algorithm, indicating that the proposed algorithm is superior to DP, ACO, IA, and the modified SFLA. Additionally, the results of the proposed hybrid algorithm for an example industrial problem from the literature were compared with those of the SFLA and modified SFLA. The proposed algorithm reduced the total cost by 6.17% and 3.76% compared with the SFLA and modified SFLA, respectively. Thus, the efficacy of the proposed hybrid algorithm was confirmed, along with its applicability.

Application of hybrid SFLA-ACO algorithm and CAM softwares for optimization of drilling tool path problems

“…The basics of ACO have been provided in detail in [ 2 ], however for coherence and better understanding, it is briefly explained in next few lines. Dorigo et al [ 21 ] introduced the term ACO and proposed ACO algorithm in 1991 which finds the shortest path through indirect communication of ants called stigmergy.…”

“…In hybrid SFLA-ACO algorithm, SFLA and ACO algorithms have been hybridized to improve the performance by improving the accuracy of the results. The working of hybrid SFLA-ACO has been explained in [ 2 ] in detail. A brief account is given below to understand the flow of algorithm.…”

“…In order to reduce this non productive time, hybrid SFLA-ACO has been applied to six benchmark problems in [ 2 ] which has proven the efficacy and better performance of hybrid SFLA-ACO algorithm as compared to its predecessors, SFLA and ACO. The originality and novelty of hybrid SFLA-ACO algorithm demand its validation through application to practical problems of manufacturing industry.…”

Modeling of Optimizing Multi-Hole Drilling Toolpath Distance with Multiple Tool Dimensions

“…Using multiple tools may require additional equipment and resources. However, it can increase efficiency and accuracy, resulting in significant cost savings over time [2]. This makes multi-hole drilling a cost-effective option for many industries.…”