Turning is a mechanical manufacturing process involving cutting (material removal) using single-edged tools.
The part rotates (cutting motion), which is the main motion of the process (figure
1
).
The tool is driven by a complementary translational movement (straight or not) called the feed movement, which defines the part profile.
The combination of these two movements, together with the shape of the active part of the tool, enables the machining of revolutionary shapes (cylinders, planes, cones or complex revolutionary shapes).
Although the process kinematics and tooling are fairly simple, this process has undergone considerable optimization due to the importance of its applications.
This optimization has involved machines (NC lathes), tools (industrial cutting speeds have increased almost 10-fold in 50 years), workpiece holders, automated loading/unloading, and even parts whose materials can sometimes be improved in terms of machinability (figures
2
and
3
).