Regression-Based Prediction of Surface Microgeometry in Biopolymers Processed for Dental Applications

This study focuses on streamlining the manufacturing process for milling dental prosthetic components from biopolymer materials in order to achieve the best possible surface roughness. Various combinations of cutting parameters were systematically tested in experiments, and their impact on the final surface roughness of the material was analyzed. The study provides a comprehensive view of how variations in cutting speed, feed per tooth and cutting depth affect the final surface quality. The results show that the appropriate configuration of cutting parameters can significantly improve surface roughness, reducing the need for additional finishing and increasing production efficiency. The findings provide valuable information for the manufacture of polymer-based dental prosthetic components, support process optimization, and contribute to the development of accurate and reproducible computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) manufacturing procedures. A full factorial design of experiments (DoE) approach was applied to evaluate the influence of cutting speed, feed per tooth, and cutting depth on the resulting surface roughness. The results confirmed that feed per tooth represented the most influential machining parameter affecting the resulting Ra values. The optimized cutting conditions resulted in the lowest surface roughness and improved process stability compared to manufacturer-recommended machining conditions.