Circle segment milling cutters are quickly becoming the norm in 5-axis machining. These cutters can reduce cycle times while still providing superior surface finishes and flexibility in machining. Although the traditional ball-nosed endmill is still the most widely used tool for surfacing, the circle segment (or barrel) cutter isn’t far behind.
Hurco's 3D Import feature provides the ability to import a solid model directly into the CNC control and conversationally program features from that solid on both 3-axis and 5-axis machining centers.
Well I’m just too excited about this not to share this news with my readers. With the help of Hurco Companies, I just recently published my very first actual book! It is a comprehensive guide to 5-axis CNC machining, and I wrote it to help the machinist as a shop floor guide of sorts.
Anyone who runs a 5-axis CNC machine knows how important correct centerline measurements can be for accurate machining. Often times, however, when troubleshooting for issues, or after a slight “bump” of the machine, there might be a need to verify or re-measure these centerline values.
A while back, I received a comment on one of my previous blog posts asking how to designate 5-axis transform planes using IJK UVW vector tokens instead of the traditional ABC rotary axis designations on their 5-axis CNC machine. Instead of just replying to that comment, I thought I would write this post as a response. Since this will be a continuation of the 5-axis CNC basics series, I suggest that you read and understand using IJK tool vectors as a pre-cursor to this article.
The idea behind creating a 5-axis transform plane using vectors is exactly the same as programming tool movement with IJK tool vectors on any machine with a fifth axis. However, the difference lies in the fact that you will have two separate vectors: one using IJK and the other using UVW. The reason you need two separate “legs” for this function is because you cannot designate a plane with only one axis. I will use the floor inside a room as my analogy: you could not create a floor in a room without having at least two walls. With only one, the floor would simply spin around that single axis and could actually point in literally any direction. To accommodate the two legs of the transform plane, and because we want to determine the direction of the Z-axis ultimately, we will use the X-axis and Y-axis as our legs, or walls of the desired transform plane.
Previously, I posted an article titled “5-Axis Machining: It just ain’t that scary,” and to date it has been one of the most popularly read articles in my blog series. So, I'm expanding on that article and diving deeper into what can be done with 5-axis machining to show that even the advanced features of 5-axis really aren't anything more than multi-axis common sense, when you break it down.
Hurco recently partnered with Modern Machine Shop magazine for an educational online 5-axis webinar, called: “Take Five for 5-Axis”. It was very well received by everyone who attended, and the feedback afterward was outstanding. In this webinar, I try to present this information in a very simple way, and attempt to explain things in a manner that even those who have no history of 5-axis machining can understand it. After all, that was the intention…to educate and teach!
As CNC machinists, we apply our skill, knowledge and experience to manufacture the best looking and most accurate parts that we can. We take a great deal of pride in the products that we produce, and we want others to see that pride in the finished product. But what do we do when we aren’t getting the results that we want? When dimensionally the parts meet blueprint specifications, but the surface finish and overall appearance is less than desirable? When this happens, we need to go back to the basics and ensure that we are using the best machining practices that we know to be correct.
