AN APPROACH FOR COMPARATIVE PERFORMANCE TESTING OF SURGICAL BURS

In this paper, a numerical procedure for obtaining a cutting performance "signature" for a bur is proposed. This procedure is applied to a comparative analysis of the cutting performance of a surgical bur under various operating conditions. An experimental method, which uses a constant feed rate and measures feed force, is utilized to perform tests leading to the data needed for the aforementioned procedure. Several proof-of-concept tests are performed and their results are presented. The proposed approach shows capability for tracking the cutting performance of a bur as it gets duller.