CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
March 2005
Company News
Delcam To Show New Five-Axis Machining And Inspection Options At Industrie
Delcam will demonstrate the full range of options for both positional and continuous five-axis machining within its PowerMILL CAM system at the Industrie exhibition to be held in Lyon from 8th to 11th March. The company will also show the latest developments in its PowerINSPECT inspection software with demonstrations on a Romer portable CMM and an Acticm stereo photogrammetry inspection system.
The range of five-axis strategies within PowerMILL now includes machining through a point or to a point, or to or from a line; programming using a reference surface; swarf machining; and five-axis trimming, pocketing and drilling. For all the options, the software makes five-axis programming much easier than is possible with the more complicated systems traditionally used by the large corporations in the aerospace and automotive industries. This combination of flexibility and ease of use has enabled it to be used successfully in a wide variety of applications, including the manufacture of complex blades, blisks and structures by smaller aerospace sub-contractors, port machining and composite trimming by autosport companies, and the engraving of bottle moulds in the packaging industry.
Five-axis drilling in particular is much simpler. PowerMILL includes more comprehensive hole recognition from a wider range of CAD systems than other CAM systems, as well as automatic capping of holes to prevent any milling cutter entering them.
For milling options, the software incorporates automatic adjustment of tilt angles for both lead and lean (Lead is measured in the cutting direction; lean at right angles to the cutting direction.). Control of lead angle gives better cutting conditions, while the lean angle can be used to avoid collisions.
PowerMILL also includes many safety features to ensure that five-axis machining can be programmed easily and efficiently, without any risk of gouging either during cutting moves or during the leads and links. For example, five-axis collision checking is automatically undertaken for the tool holder as well as for the cutter, while contact point analysis allows the user to ensure that only the cutting surface touches the component and that rubbing with the shank is avoided. Furthermore, the machine simulation option for PowerMILL includes collision checking between the various parts of the machine tool and the model, and also ensures that the machine does not attempt to move outside its operating limits.
The live inspection demonstrations will highlight the three reasons why PowerINSPECT has become established as the preferred inspection solution for both large and small companies. Firstly, it is completely hardware independent, allowing companies with a variety of inspection devices to use the same software on all their equipment. Secondly, it can meet all the different inspection needs, including checking of geometric features, sections and edges, as well as surfaces.
Thirdly, the software is extremely flexible. Reports with pictorial, graphical and tabulated data can be produced to recognized international standards or in any customer-specified format. This flexibility ensures that everyone involved in the product development process, not just inspection specialists, can understand the resulting reports.
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