& Construction

Integrated BIM tools, including Revit, AutoCAD, and Civil 3D
& Manufacturing

Professional CAD/CAM tools built on Inventor and AutoCAD
Integrated BIM tools, including Revit, AutoCAD, and Civil 3D
Professional CAD/CAM tools built on Inventor and AutoCAD
Any referenced datasets can be downloaded from "Module downloads" in the module overview.
Transcript
00:08
Now that we've completely setup our 5-axis part and created all of the necessary 5-axis features, we're ready to simulate the machining of our part.
00:18
Now up to this point, we've primarily run centerline and 3D simulations.
00:23
Again, centerline simulations shows a wire diagram of our toolpath
00:28
and 3D simulations show us a more realistic on-machine view of what the machining of our stock will look like.
00:36
Another added benefit of 3D simulations is gouge checking.
00:40
If at any point, we were to rapid our tool into the material, a 3D simulation would stop and let us know that there's a gouge.
00:47
When running 5-axis parts, we’ll generally want to run a machine simulation.
00:52
Machine simulations are similar to 3D simulations in that we see the physical machining of our part, but rather than the part floating in space, we actually get to see what it looks like on the machine.
01:04
Running a machine simulation before sending your NC Code to your machine is extremely important when working with 5-axis documents.
01:12
The risk for collision is just a lot higher than a 3-axis machine.
01:16
So with that, we'll select the machine simulation, slow down the slider, zoom out and press "Single Step".
01:26
Here we can see the start of our machine simulation.
01:31
Right off the bat, the major difference of the machine being involved in the simulation is pretty obvious.
01:37
For this lesson, we're just using a generic 5-axis post with a generic 5-axis machine design file.
01:44
But when you're working with your own machines, you'll want to make sure to have the machine design file specific to your machine.
01:52
What may not be a collision on this machine could certainly be a collision on your machine.
01:58
You'll also notice that we're starting the simulation from the user defined stock solid that we selected, not just a block.
02:05
So as I zoom out and press "Play", we can see this part rotate around and watch all of the 3+2 features be machined on this machine.
02:29
It looks like we're able to create a program that has no collisions or gouges, so this is ready to be sent to the machine.
02:36
I'll eject this simulation.
02:39
And before we move on to our NC Code step, I'd like you to take the time to dig through all of these features and change any attributes that you'd like.
02:49
At this point, you should be pretty comfortable with some of the main attributes.
02:53
So go and make small changes such as stepover, stepdown, feeds and speeds, tools, but feel free to deeper in the attributes.
03:02
The more time you spend now getting comfortable with the machining attributes in FeatureCAM, the more efficient you'll be later on, and the more control you'll have over your toolpath.
03:13
Once you're happy with how your part’s being machined, run a machine simulation, confirm that there's no gouges or collisions, and then feel free to move on to the next step, NC Code.
Video transcript
00:08
Now that we've completely setup our 5-axis part and created all of the necessary 5-axis features, we're ready to simulate the machining of our part.
00:18
Now up to this point, we've primarily run centerline and 3D simulations.
00:23
Again, centerline simulations shows a wire diagram of our toolpath
00:28
and 3D simulations show us a more realistic on-machine view of what the machining of our stock will look like.
00:36
Another added benefit of 3D simulations is gouge checking.
00:40
If at any point, we were to rapid our tool into the material, a 3D simulation would stop and let us know that there's a gouge.
00:47
When running 5-axis parts, we’ll generally want to run a machine simulation.
00:52
Machine simulations are similar to 3D simulations in that we see the physical machining of our part, but rather than the part floating in space, we actually get to see what it looks like on the machine.
01:04
Running a machine simulation before sending your NC Code to your machine is extremely important when working with 5-axis documents.
01:12
The risk for collision is just a lot higher than a 3-axis machine.
01:16
So with that, we'll select the machine simulation, slow down the slider, zoom out and press "Single Step".
01:26
Here we can see the start of our machine simulation.
01:31
Right off the bat, the major difference of the machine being involved in the simulation is pretty obvious.
01:37
For this lesson, we're just using a generic 5-axis post with a generic 5-axis machine design file.
01:44
But when you're working with your own machines, you'll want to make sure to have the machine design file specific to your machine.
01:52
What may not be a collision on this machine could certainly be a collision on your machine.
01:58
You'll also notice that we're starting the simulation from the user defined stock solid that we selected, not just a block.
02:05
So as I zoom out and press "Play", we can see this part rotate around and watch all of the 3+2 features be machined on this machine.
02:29
It looks like we're able to create a program that has no collisions or gouges, so this is ready to be sent to the machine.
02:36
I'll eject this simulation.
02:39
And before we move on to our NC Code step, I'd like you to take the time to dig through all of these features and change any attributes that you'd like.
02:49
At this point, you should be pretty comfortable with some of the main attributes.
02:53
So go and make small changes such as stepover, stepdown, feeds and speeds, tools, but feel free to deeper in the attributes.
03:02
The more time you spend now getting comfortable with the machining attributes in FeatureCAM, the more efficient you'll be later on, and the more control you'll have over your toolpath.
03:13
Once you're happy with how your part’s being machined, run a machine simulation, confirm that there's no gouges or collisions, and then feel free to move on to the next step, NC Code.
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