A cubic boron nitride sintered material comprises cubic boron nitride particles and a binding phase. The binding phase includes a first region and a second region. The first region accounts for 1.0 vol % or more in the binding phase. The first region includes a plurality of needle crystals. Each of the plurality of needle crystals includes a boride. Each of the plurality of needle crystals has an aspect ratio of 1.5 or more in a cross-section image of the cubic boron nitride sintered material.

Cutting tools (14) and cutting tool assemblies (10) include a friction ring (79). The friction ring (79) is provided in (disposed/secured within) a retaining groove (32) of a shank (30) of the cutting tool (14). The friction ring (79) can be formed from a resilient material or materials (150). The friction ring (79) can be secured in the retaining groove (32) by a retainer ring (80). The cutting tools (14) can also include a shank (30) having an increased diameter to provide increased strength and allow for a heavier cutting portion (28) of the cutting tool (14). The cutting tools (14) and cutting tool assemblies (10) can also include a washer (100) fitted about the shank (30) and positioned adjacent to a back side (26) of the cutting portion (28) of the cutting tool (14) for stabilizing the cutting tool body (22) in relation to a cutting tool holder (12).

A sensor system has a cutter element for a cutting tool, an interrogation transceiver operable to transmit a radio-frequency (RF) interrogation signal; and a sensor transceiver system operable to receive the RF interrogation signal and to transmit an RF response signal. The sensor transceiver system includes a signal guide medium configured to transduce between the RF interrogation signal, a guided signal in the signal guide medium, and the RF response signal. A characteristic of the RF response signal is dependent upon a condition of the signal guide medium. The cutter element includes the signal guide medium to allow the condition of the signal guide medium to depend upon a condition of the cutter element proximate the signal guide medium. A method of using the sensor system is also disclosed.

A cBN sintered compact has cubic boron nitride particles and a ceramic binder phase, and in the sintered compact, WSi.sub.2 having an average particle diameter of 10 nm to 200 nm is dispersed such that a content thereof is 1 vol % to 20 vol %. A cutting tool has the cBN sintered compact as a tool body.

The invention relates to a method for producing an indexable insert comprising the following steps: a) providing a starting material for use in an additive manufacturing method in several layers of material; and b) bonding each layer of the starting material in the form of an indexable insert.

A cutting insert of a substantially horizontal cylindrical segment shape may include top and bottom surfaces having a circular segment shape. The cutting insert may include a convex side and a flat side. The cutting insert may include a top cutting edge which is formed where the convex side and the top surface meet, and a bottom cutting edge which is formed where the convex side and the bottom surface meet. The cutting insert may include a hole extending from the convex side towards the flat side. The hole may be positioned at a center of a surface of the flat side.

Chip discharge during high-feed machining and low-feed machining particularly in a high-depth-of-cut state or the like is improved so as to provide adaptability to a wide range of cutting conditions during low depth and high depth cutting and during low-feed and high-feed machining and allow so-called freedom of feed during cutting to be improved. A cutting insert includes a cutting edge body and a substrate to which the cutting edge body is joined. The cutting edge body has a prismatic shape having a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and includes a cutting edge formed on an intersecting edge between a peripheral side surface and an upper surface of the cutting edge body having the prismatic shape and a recessed part formed at a position on the upper surface of the cutting edge body which is more distant from the intersecting edge than from the cutting edge. The substrate has a projected part upwardly projecting from the upper surface of the cutting edge body.

Chip discharge during high-feed machining and low-feed machining particularly in a high-depth-of-cut state or the like is improved so as to allow so-called freedom of feed during cutting to be improved. A cutting edge body of a cutting insert includes a front cutting edge formed on one end side in a longitudinal direction, the front cutting edge being a cutting edge formed on an intersecting edge between a peripheral side surface and an upper surface of the cutting edge body having a prismatic shape, a side cutting edge formed on one end side in a lateral direction, a recessed part provided in the upper surface of the cutting edge body to be subsequent to the side cutting edge in the lateral direction, and a wall part having a wavy wall surface formed in a portion of the recessed part and a discrete wall surface formed at a position between the wavy wall surface and the side cutting edge and including a plurality of surfaces which are discrete along the longitudinal direction.

A coated cutting tool comprising a substrate containing a cubic boron nitride-containing sintered body, and a coating layer formed on the substrate, wherein the coating layer comprises a lowermost layer and an alternating laminate structure in this order, the lowermost layer comprises (Al.sub.1-xCr.sub.x)N, an average thickness of the lowermost layer is 0.01 μm or more and 0.2 μm or less, the alternating laminate structure includes mutually different two kinds of compound layers of a first compound layer containing (Al.sub.1-y1Cr.sub.y1)N and a second compound layer containing (Al.sub.1-y2Cr.sub.y2)N alternately laminated repeatedly twice or more, an average thickness of the entire alternating laminate structure is 0.1 μm or more and 1.2 μm or less, an average thickness of the entire coating layer is 0.2 μm or more and 1.3 μm or less, and a compressive residual stress at the cubic crystal (111) plane is 3.0 GPa or less.

In one aspect, cutting tools are provided comprising radiation ablation regions defining at least one of refractory surface microstructures and/or nanostructures. For example, a cutting tool described herein comprises at least one cutting edge formed by intersection of a flank face and a rake face, the flank face formed of a refractory material comprising radiation ablation regions defining at least one of surface microstructures and surface nanostructures, wherein surface pore structure of the refractory material is not occluded by the surface microstructures and surface nanostructures.