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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2006
For more information, please contact:
FeatureCAM - Delcam USA
888-393-6455
info@featurecam.com
Advanced Machining Strategies Added to
FeatureMILL3D
Salt
Lake City, UT
– Delcam
USA, developer of the FeatureCAM suite of CAD/CAM software,
announces the upcoming release of new advanced machining
strategies to its FeatureMILL3D software.
The new strategies will be released in June as part
of FeatureCAM Version 2007 and will help customers achieve
significant increases in calculation speeds for 3D toolpaths
and improved surface finish.
The
new FeatureMILL3D strategies help maximize tool life by
keeping the load on the cutter as consistent as possible.
The strategies also can help minimize sudden changes
in the cutting direction that would put excessive load on
the tool or require a slowing in the feed rate.
Some of the strategies added include Arcing Moves,
Delcam’s patented Race Line Machining, a Finishing
Combination, a new Spiral Toolpath and Rest Finishing.
Arcing
Moves
With
FeatureMILL3D’s rough and finish machining strategies,
arcing moves can be used when approaching and leaving the
job. Similarly,
arcs can be used to link the various cutting moves.
This is more efficient than the traditional approach
of using right-angle moves that can require the cutting
speed to be reduced and also leave dwell marks.
In
addition, arcs can be inserted automatically into roughing
toolpaths as the tool approaches any steep face.
Without the arc, there will be a sudden increase in
the load on the tool as it engages the steep surface.
To prevent damage to the tool, the feed rate must be
reduced, thus increasing overall machining times.
With the arcs added, the resulting smoother toolpath
can be run at higher speeds and with less tool wear.
Race Line Machining
The new
release of FeatureMILL3D offers Delcam’s patented Race
Line Machining strategy.
With this option, roughing passes are progressively
smoothed out as the toolpaths move further from the main
form. The
resulting paths minimize sudden changes in direction and
allow faster machining, with less wear on the cutter and
lower stress on the machine tool.
For
even more efficient metal removal, Race Line Machining can
be combined with trochoidal machining.
This strategy avoids full-width cuts by generating
toolpaths that progressively shave material from the block
in a circular motion.
Finishing Combination
New
finishing options include a combination strategy in which 3D
offset finishing is used on flatter areas and Z-level
finishing used on steeper areas.
The 3D offset toolpaths can be calculated with the
surface stepover varying so that a constant cusp height is
applied over the part.
This approach will reduce the amount of hand
finishing needed.
Spiral
Toolpath
A new spiral
path milling strategy keeps the cutter in constant contact
with the job, eliminating the number of air moves needed
with the conventional approach of machining down the job
level by level. The
smoother toolpaths minimize any dwell marks and protect the
cutter and machine tool.
Rest
Finishing
New rest
finishing options ensure the highest possible quality of
surface finish. These include pencil machining, in which the material
remaining is removed in a single pass, and Z-level rest
finishing, the preferred option for material left on steep
surfaces.
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