Compiling a top ten list of &#;must have&#; software design features for CNC components is no easy task! Design software has become so advanced that there is a massive array of features available to designers nowadays. Of course, this is great for component designers, since most manufacturers have a variety of needs and demands for their products.
Please visit our website for more information on this topic.
In this article, we&#;ll take a look at some of the key features that are most useful for designers and professional CNC machine users working with a variety of materials.
Please bear in mind that some may not apply to certain applications, and so feel free to skip over the ones that don&#;t apply to you.
Toolpaths that adapt and optimise themselves are useful for all CNC machine users, but are especially important for tool and die manufacturers.
Toolpath optimisation allows faster production, decreased tool wear and smoother cuts compared to old-school CNC machining that used limited or user-defined toolpaths. Software with a high-speed adaptive toolpath feature can seriously increase productivity, and reduce CNC machine maintenance costs.
Most professional CNC machining operations use 3 to 5 axes these days. Depending on what you are using your CNC machine for, or whether you want to upgrade from a lower axis machine to a higher one, there&#;s a good chance you&#;ll need support for multiple types.
3 to 5 axis machines are ideal for machining complex and non-planar surfaces, with 5-axis CNC machines offering the broadest scope of geometry.
Converting raster to vector simply means taking an image such as a .JPEG and converting it to a CAD file such as .DWG. The ability to convert raster to vector is useful for many CNC applications. Another thing to look out for is compatibility with all CAD drawing formats, as this makes it easier to import vectors straight into CAM or CNC design packages.
Feature detection can save vast amounts of time in the design process. Instead of taking an existing part or component, measuring it and drawing it &#; software with feature detection will do all of this automatically. It will also work out the toolpath strategies to apply to it.
Typically, features such as holes, pockets, grooves, slots, bosses and T-slots can be recognised.
This feature is useful for most CNC applications. Without boundary control, the user defines specific boundaries which the tool centre stays within. With boundary control, you can select whether the tool stays inside, goes outside or cuts right on the edge of the boundary. You can choose offset parameters to control how far the tool centre can go either side of the boundary. This saves time compared to traditional user-defined boundaries, as the need for additional CAD geometry is removed.
Many of the more recent CNC and CAM software releases have cloud compatibility, meaning that designs, code and toolpaths can be stored and retrieved from the cloud. There are many benefits to cloud features, including prevention of lost data and the ability for individual team members to collaborate on CNC designs remotely which is becoming more and more common.
Some CNC software come with a large library of finishing effects and toolpaths. This means you can get the surface finish you want straight from the machine, reducing the amount of manual polishing required.
High-speed roughing helps to cut workpieces more quickly, keeping the tool in constant motion and reducing tool wear. 3D high-speed roughing is available on several CNC software packages and is especially useful for cutting strong metal materials.
Tool axis tilting is very important to avoid collisions when 5-axis machining. The automatic tilting feature saves a lot of time as the program will take into account potential collisions contained in the toolpaths, and will tilt to the correct degree to avoid them.
Newer CNC software releases enable surface probing which involves spindle probes measuring the part surface and creating highly optimised toolpaths. This will reduce tool wear and speed up the cutting process, making professional CNC machining operations more productive.
For our guide to designing CNC machined parts for manufacturability, check out this article.
Challenge Engineering is an ISO : certified CNC machining company based in Sydney, Australia. We manufacture parts for large rail companies. To find out more visit www.challengecnc.com.au.
thingyfy are exported all over the world and different industries with quality first. Our belief is to provide our customers with more and better high value-added products. Let's create a better future together.
Rapid prototyping means building a physical model of a new product design as quickly and as economically as possible. Some prototypes will be used merely as cosmetic mock-ups or scale models, while others must meet more demanding performance criteria. Prototypes are used for testing, design iteration and to improve overall performance through gradual refinements. For these reasons speed, flexibility and scalability in manufacturing are key attributes to look for.
Using CNC machining to make rapid prototypes can be an ideal product development solution. Here are the top 7 advantages to consider on your next project.
Speed refers not only to actual production time but all the preparatory steps preceding that, including programming and material set-up. In all cases, digital manufacturing is one of the fastest ways to go from a product design to a finished or semi-finished part.
CAD files can be turned into digital cutting files in a matter or hours, while actual cutting time can be measured in minutes. The resulting part is then ready for measurement, finishing (painting, sanding or other secondary processes) and shipment. Injection molding may be faster on a per-part basis, but there is a much longer set-up time to make and approve mold tools.
2. Choice
CNC milling and turning works on almost any solid stock, including hard plastics, stainless and mild steels, brass, nickel, aluminum, magnesium and many more. There are thousands of commercially available raw materials to choose from so it&#;s easy to find one that matches your application requirements.
And for prototypes, it&#;s possible to first use a less expensive and easy-to-machine variant, for example aluminum , while optimizing your design. Only when the design is then perfected can you then switch to the final material, say a more expensive stainless steel. This is another way to save on development costs.
3. Economy
This means that it&#;s not necessary to create casting or mold tools or other complex fixtures. To be sure, dedicated tools and dies are needed for large volume production for pressure die casting or plastic injection molding. But for only a few hundred or even a thousand parts, it may make more sense and be more economical to opt instead for CNC machining.
Avoiding unnecessary expense helps product developers to instead focus their resources on design improvements, testing and certification.
Digital manufacturing using modern CNC machine tools lets manufacturers easily dial in tolerances of a few microns, or thousandths of an inch, at the press of a button
For a product developer, this means quicky making prototypes that have full production-quality accuracy and repeatability. Then, by exploiting this same accuracy, it&#;s easy to make further refinements to a part&#;s dimensions by simply tweaking the digital program.
Do you need one part? Five? A hundred? CNC machining is indifferent to volume, so it is just as effective making one part as one hundred.
This advantage is perfect for developers when they are introducing a new product to the market and are unsure about consumer response. But it&#;s also relevant for non-consumer industrial products that may have fluctuating and unpredictable demand cycles and therefore will benefit from the scalability inherent to digital manufacturing. This can also help developers to avoid carrying unwanted inventory for stock items that can otherwise be made on-demand.
Versatility means that one machine can be pre-loaded with a variety of cutting tools mounted on a rotating carousel. Multiple tools are then called up, as needed, to machine tapped and threaded holes, complex curves, flat faces, precise angles and other geometric features &#; all without requiring that the workpiece be dismounted and moved to another work cell. This is time and money saved.
CNC machining produces completely functional, full-strength finished parts and components. They can be used for full performance testing and certification or to build working models. This is an important advantage if you&#;re developing a product that needs to meet more stringent engineering requirements.
Quality also extends to the surface finish and appearance. Using the right cutting tools at the right cutting speed produces surface finishes that need little post-processing. This again saves time and money so you get the prototypes you need faster.
Taken together, these seven advantages make CNC machining a very attractive alternative to some other rapid prototyping methods. Find out how we can support your next project when you upload your CAD files for a free quotation today.
Want more information on CNC Machining Services for Prototypes and Production Parts? Feel free to contact us.