Advanced Multi-Axis Milling

A totally revamped surface machining module with some of the most powerful CAM machining algorithms on the market today for 3-, 4- and 5-axis simultaneous milling operations is part of this new release of programming software for CNC mills, turn-mill centers, bar-fed mills and Swiss-type lathes.

PartMaker Inc. (Fort Washington, PA), a division of Delcam Plc, has pioneered the field of CAM software for multi-axis turn-mill centers and Swiss-type lathes with a vast array of robust post processors and machine simulation files for virtually every machine model ever built, from such leading builders as Citizen, Mazak, Star, Mori-Seiki, Tsugami, Okuma, Tornos, Doosan, Hanwha, Nakamura and many, many others.

These pioneering efforts included the patented Visual Programming Approach for programming multi-axis lathes with live tooling to assure quicker learning and easier use by making extensive use of pictures to help the user describe tools, part features and machining data. Synchronization of tools working on multiple spindles is achieved by a few mouse clicks. The company’s technology for automating the programming of multi-axis turn-mill centers and Swiss-type lathes is protected by two U.S. patents.

Next month in Chicago this developer will unveil PartMaker Version 2013, its latest version of software for programming at IMTS 2012. “Version 2013 proves that power and ease of use don’t have to be trade-offs users have to make with their CAM system,” says division president Hanan Fishman. “With a host of new and advanced milling strategies, Version 2013 offers its users perhaps the most comprehensive and powerful CAM system on the market today for the full spectrum of production machining applications, all while maintaining the software’s hallmark, industry-leading ease of use.”

http://youtu.be/83V0tc5MyJI

The new high-end milling functionality available in Version 2013 will be known as the Advanced Surface Machining module, or ASM for short. This new milling functionality is based on the same technology and algorithms that underpin Delcam’s PowerMILL, a leading CAM system on the market for the manufacture of complex shapes. “The new functionality being offered in ASM answers the needs of our customers making ever increasingly more complicated parts, particularly for those in the medical device and aerospace arena,” says Fishman. “Also, machine tools are becoming more complex, with 5-axis simultaneous milling now even becoming available on a number of Swiss-type lathes.”

ASM will replace PartMaker’s Surface Machining Wizard (SMW) module for three-, four- and five-axis machining. For existing software users, the upgrade to ASM will be provided free of cost and the transition will be very easy to make. The benefits of the ASM module for users are numerous, including faster tool path calculation, greater tool control and improved surface finishes.