CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive

11 July 2008

Product News

Delcam Launches Latest Version of PartMaker CAM Software

Delcam has launched the latest version of its PartMaker family of software. The PartMaker range includes systems for the programming of turn-mill equipment and Swiss-type lathes, plus supporting software for milling, turning and wire EDM. PartMaker Version 8.6 features a number of productivity-enhancing improvements, including improved solids-based programming, tool selection, surface machining and simulation. All these enhancements are designed to make PartMaker users more productive across the full range of applications.

“PartMaker Version 8.6 represents another value-added release for PartMaker users across all of our applications modules,” according to Hanan Fishman, President of Delcam’s PartMaker Division. “The enhancements will make the programming of parts requiring multi-axis machining techniques more productive than ever before.”

Solids-based Programming

PartMaker Version 8.6 sees the introduction of the concept of “Face Planes”. When programming a part from an imported solid model, a Face Plane indicates very clearly the plane in which machining is occurring. Face Planes simplify the programming of parts with multiple faces from solid models and improve visualization of the areas that need to be machined on a model. They simplify the definition of multiple coordinate systems in PartMaker, which allows the user to perform surface machining more easily across multiple parts or on multiple sides of the same part. Face Planes also give the ability to set a view normal to any surface more quickly.

For Cylindrical Surfaces, a Face Plane can be displayed “wrapped” or “unwrapped”. The user can then specify the transfer of just slots and holes for indexing, or unwrapped geometry for cylindrical milling.

Improvements to Surface Machining

The Surface Machining Wizard offers improved machining strategies by adding axial step options to finishing and projection strategies, giving effectively nine more roughing strategies and more control in finishing operations. The ability to follow stock shape when needed has also been added. Additionally, 3D milling can now be performed in multiple coordinate systems on mills, ideal for 3D milling applications on horizontal machining centres.

Grooving Improvements

Version 8.6 supports the simulation of inclined turning tools used on lathes equipped with “B-axis” heads. It also supports the simulation of mini-turrets, which must be tipped on an angle when used in practice. This release also has a number of enhancements to grooving, including the ability to support inclined grooving. Better control of tool retraction is possible by indicating the retract distance for a peck-grooving operation.

Improved Tool Selection

In Version 8.6, users can now automatically select a Turning, Grooving or Threading tool in any Turning Profile machining strategy, i.e. Turning, Contouring, Grooving, Threading or Cut-Off. This makes programming faster and easier, for example when performing Turning with a Grooving tool.

Full Machine Simulation Improvements

The Full Machine Simulation Module (FMS) in Version 8.6 has a number of improvements, in particular, the ability to support even more complicated machine architectures. The visualisations have been made more realistic and the library of machine models has been greatly expanded.

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