Study of the burr height at hole exit in bone drilling by twist drills

The burr at the hole exit is one of the key factors affecting bone drilling performances. In order to reduce burr height at hole exit during cortical bone drilling, the four key parameters in twist drilling of bones are analyzed based on the response surface method (RSM). The prediction model of the burr height is obtained via the analysis of variance. The influence trend and size of each factor on the height of the burr are further analyzed based on the RSM. Experimental results show that smaller point angle and diameter of the twist drill, smaller feed speed, and higher rotational speed can effectively reduce the burr height at hole exit. Then, the geometric variables of the twist drill and process parameters are optimized. When the point angle of the twist drill 2Φ = 95°, the diameter D = 2.5 mm, the rotational speed n = 1500 rpm, and the feed speed v_f = 10 mm/min, the height of the burr at hole exit reaches the smallest. At the same time, the burr at the exit of the hole with different diameters of twist drills is studied. It is found to be beneficial to select a twist drill with a smaller diameter for drilling when the requirements of drilling are fulfilled.