Evaluation of microstructural complex geometry of robot laser hardened materials through a genetic programming model

Abstract

Surface-hardening process of steel materials by robot laser technologies can involve the challenge of modeling the determining process parameters through non-conventional tools in order to evaluate the quality of the heat treatment. In the current study a new method based on fractal geometry, used to determine the microstructural properties of laser hardened steels manufactured by anthropomorphic robots, is presented. The assumptions were that the microstructure of laser hardened steel can be studied as a complex structural geometry and the modeling of the analyzed complex geometries can be made through genetic programming for prediction purposes. The effect of process parameters and their joint combination on the final microstructures geometry of the heat treated steel was investigated. In particular, the influence of temperature, laser beam velocity, and impact angle were studied since they were showed in a preliminary study to be the process parameters that most significantly influenced the quality of the heat treated steel. The developed model reached a precision of the prediction equal to 98.59 %.