Slotting milling cutter for machining with a high feed and a low pass depth

1. A milling cutter, in particular a slotting milling cutter, which comprises a carbide body extending along the rotation axis of the milling cutter and a ceramic head fixed to one end of the body by brazing, this head having teeth regularly distributed around the axis of the milling cutter and separated from one another by chip pockets, each tooth having an approximately radial main cutting edge formed by the intersection between a front cutting face and a lower flank face, wherein:

the milling cutter has a frustoconical general shape, the large base of which is located on the head side, the milling cutter having a conicity between about 1° and 5°;

the profile of the flank face, formed by the intersection of the flank face with a plane passing through the axis of the milling cutter, has an outwardly convex rounded shape, the radius of curvature of which is between about 5 mm and 20 mm; and

the radial cutting angle between the cutting face of each tooth and a reference plane passing through the rotation axis of the milling cutter and through a point in question on the main cutting edge of the tooth is negative and between about 2° and 8°, this angle being measured in a working plane perpendicular to the rotation axis of the milling cutter and passing through the point in question on the main cutting edge of the tooth.

2. The milling cutter as claimed in claim 1 , which has a conicity of about 3°.

3. The milling cutter as claimed in claim 1 or 2 , wherein the radial cutting angle is about −5°.

4. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the profile of the flank face has a radius of curvature of about 12 mm.

5. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , which includes an approximately axial secondary cutting edge joined to the main cutting edge via a nose, this nose having a convex rounded shape whose radius of curvature is between about 0.5 mm and 1 mm.

6. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the axial cutting angle between the cutting face of each tooth and the reference plane is positive and between about 1° and 5°, this angle being measured in a rearward plane perpendicular to the reference and working planes.

7. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the flank face of each tooth is joined to a side wall of the tooth via a rounded edge having a radius of curvature of between about 0.5 mm and 1 mm.

8. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the teeth extend around a central annular cavity of the head, this cavity having a frustoconical general shape aligned with the axis of the milling cutter and the base of which is located on the lower end side of the milling cutter, the top of the cavity being a portion of a sphere, the radius of which is between about 2 mm and 8 mm.

9. The milling cutter as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the opening angle of the cavity is between about 90° and 150°, and is for example 120°.

10. The milling cutter as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the cavity is joined to the flank face of each tooth via a rounded edge having a radius of curvature of between about 0.5 mm and 1 mm.

11. The milling cutter as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the cavity has a diameter of between about 5 mm and 15 mm and an axial dimension of between about 1 mm and 3 mm.

12. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , which has from two to eight teeth.

13. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the flank face extends circumferentially over a distance of between about 0.1 mm and 2 mm.

14. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the flank angle between the flank face and an edge plane tangential to a point in question on the main cutting edge and perpendicular to the reference plane is positive and between about 5° and 10°, this angle being measured in a normal plane perpendicular to the main cutting edge at the point in question on this edge.

15. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein a rake face extends rearwards from the flank face, the profile of the rake face, formed by the intersection of this face with a plane passing through the axis of the milling cutter, has an outwardly convex rounded shape whose radius of curvature is between about 5 mm and 20 mm.

16. The milling cutter as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the rake angle between the rake face and an edge plane tangential to the main cutting edge, at a point in question on this edge, and perpendicular to the reference plane, is positive and between about 10° and 20°, this angle being measured in a normal plane perpendicular to the main cutting edge at the point in question on the edge.

17. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , which has an outside diameter of between about 10 mm and 30 mm, for example 18 mm.

18. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the main cutting edge is joined to the cutting face via a bevel, this bevel having an axial dimension of between about 0.01 mm and 0.3 mm and making an angle of between about 10° and 30° with the cutting face.

19. The milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the head has an axial dimension of between about 5 mm and 10 mm, for example 7 mm.

20. A method for the milling cutting of a composite or superalloy part by means of a milling cutter as claimed in one of claims 1 or 2 , wherein the cutting speed of the milling cutter is between 200 and 1500 m/min, the feed per tooth is between 0.1 and 1 mm and the pass depth is between 0.01 and 2 mm.