Has anyone completed a 5 axis/face mill using a Camsoft control? I am considering it, but wonder about the kinematics. Any examples would be great. (Also looking at Siemens controls if anyone has experience with them.)
Thanks,
AL
Has anyone completed a 5 axis/face mill using a Camsoft control? I am considering it, but wonder about the kinematics. Any examples would be great. (Also looking at Siemens controls if anyone has experience with them.)
Thanks,
AL
Please define your 5 axes. We have completed a CamSoft CNC Pro 5 axis vertical mil, X, Y, Z, A, & B. The mill has a 30 hp spindle and is configured like a very oversized Bridgeport where A axis is the tilt and B axis is the rotate.
N174k,
And how does it work? I've never run Camsoft on a mill, but I bet that high feedrate contouring should work pretty slick.
One other thing I have wondered about though, is the implementation of special gcodes (to turn smoothing on and off) when configuring a post processor from any of the modern cadcam systems.
Any general details would be interesting. Thanks.
First you get good, then you get fast. Then grouchiness sets in.
(Note: The opinions expressed in this post are my own and are not necessarily those of CNCzone and its management)
We have a large planer mill with a 30hp spindle, and A and C rotary axes on the bottom of the head. C rotates around the Z axis and A perpendicular to the Z axis (I hope that makes sense). It has the ability to do any angle in between the 90 degree faces, but at this point I will keep it simple and focus on just the 5 faces. A and C are not coordinated axes - that is they are used for positioning only not for actual cutting. (They have to be clamped after movement).
AL
By this definition, it should be a piece a cake for Camsoft. I'm doing something with five axis - same only different. Full four axis control on a CNC knee mill. The knee has a servo to raise/lower the table for tool and part offsets - fifth axis.
Of course, it looks like you'll be manually G coding. Or at least tweaking the code developed by a CAM package.
You most likely already know this, you need another axis for the spindle. It will take a six axis Galil card to do this.
Karl
"By definition.......cake" - heard that before:-)
I will be nc programming this manually, so most of the work will have to be done in the .cbk file to G and M codes. I have an 8 axis card, so plenty of room there.
AL
After finishing my lathe last year I started a 5 axis project . This is a 5x10 gantry mill/router that has a 4th and 5th axis swinging head I call A & B axis.
It was an old machine that was only 3 axis. I had some help making it 5 axis with a head that was meant for a wood router. I pieced this together and saved over $100,000 from what is the going rate. I have been told this head won't cut metal but it does. It is heavy but sill fast and solid.
Camsoft gave me the routines for the 5 axis kenimatics. I had help with the math and logic, did some myself but the hardest part is the 5 axis programing. I don't have a 5 axis programing system and have been writing programs by hand to do 5 axis. I will get 5 axis cad/cam software later but for now I am just happy it works.
The Piston Man
Hi,
Are you doing simultaneous 5 axis cutting with this system or just 5 axis positioning..?
I am looking around for a pc based control retrofit for simultaneous 5 axis machining and just interested to know how the camsoft performs and how easy it is to install.
Thanks, John.