CGTech has released the Vericut Version 8.2 CNC Simulation Software. In addition to machine simulation that detects collisions and close calls, as well as over-travel errors, the focus of this edition has been to provide convenience features to improve simulation visibility, speed workflow and streamline each user’s verification process.
A WNMG Insert Right-Mouse-Button Ribbon makes functions more accessible and provides convenient access to external applications. The configurable Heads-Up Display (HUD) improves simulation monitoring and visibility by showing the NC program or machining and cutting-status information, overlaid on top of the graphical views. HUD provides constant access to important details about the machining process, while keeping simulation views as large as possible for optimal viewing. NC Program Alert symbols and colors highlight Indexable Threading Insert errors and warnings found in NC programs, making it faster and easier to identify problem sources, according to the company.
Force is a physics-based NC program-optimization module that analyzes and optimizes cutting conditions to improve chip thicknesses while managing the cutting forces and spindle power required. This version uses Force Turning to optimize lathe turning, and mill-turn operations, when combined with Force Milling.
With fierce competitive pressure to improve efficiency, manufacturers require more detailed data from their machine tools, and they need it in real time. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. The data need to be accessible and exchangeable, without expensive add-ons that take the profit out of the operation. Complete machine and process data from a machine tool that is easily linked to a factory network and easily exported are the key to Internet-enabled manufacturing.
There are four methods currently used in manufacturing to gather and analyze data:
1. Manual data gathering. Engineers conduct manual time studies using a clipboard and a stopwatch. This approach is expensive and neither precise nor timely.
2. Purchasing new machines equipped with application-specific sensors and data collection devices. This approach also has drawbacks. First, replacing old machines is expensive. Second, the new machines quite likely have limited data collection capabilities due to the limitations of the traditional, closed CNCs, which typically only have a data link via the PLC. Finally, if there are changes in what data needs to be collected because of changes in the manufacturing process, the data collection devices have to be changed, making it difficult and expensive to keep slot milling cutters up.
3. Using bolt-on or third-party data collection devices. These devices are expensive, limited in how finely detailed the data they collect can be and inflexible because they are tied into the machine control via a PLC. Thus, the rate of data collection is defined by the scan rate of the PLC. This means that an engineer does not have the ability to drill down and mine the data required to answer the question of why something happened.
4. Using a software CNC system that collects production and machine data into a single data repository. This method offers the flexibility and integration of control functions with data collection. It integrates both CNC and PLC data.
Why did cycle times increase during third shift? What caused the machine to fail? For complex manufacturing operations, it’s not enough to know what happened. Managers need to know why, in real time, so they can modify processes in a timely manner.
Traditional machine control technology relies upon loosely coupled or integrated solutions. The two components of the machine control—motion and PLC (programmable logic control)—are typically supplied by separate companies or by separate operating units of large corporations. A similar situation existed in the CAD/CAM industry, where computer-aided design products come from one company while computer-aided manufacturing (NC programming) products come from separate companies.
The CAD product has a database of information on the design of a part. The CAM product has a database on the manufacturing processes to machine the part. The connection in many cases is via IGES or similar data translators. As a result, it is difficult, expensive, and time-consuming to build cause-and-effect relationships. However, CAD/CAM products, such as IDEAS, Pro/Engineer or Catia, solved that long-standing data problem 10 years ago, because they provided integrated solutions built upon a common database. The objective is to provide data of associative relationships between design and manufacturing.
In the same way, there is a need for cause-and-event relationships between the motion and PLC components in machine control. This is what is necessary to truly understand the manufacturing process and to continue to improve those processes. Ideally, a machine control should integrate motion and PLC functions in its software and share a common data repository. This enables the development of associative relationships between PLC functions, such as coolant on/off, and motion functions, such as high speed cutting. All of this information should be accessible from the operator interface or remotely, across a network.
A software-based CNC with a real-time database at its core meets these criteria. Collection and distribution of data from the machine tool in real time are an automatic result of running the machine. Collection and distribution of the data is an integral part of the CNC. Data is generated by the operator, the part program, the motion control, and the PLC, concurrently, and all data is collected in a single data repository. Data collection does not require operator intervention or specialty hardware or software. While the control is running the machine tool, data is being collected automatically, in real time.
Internet-enabled manufacturing requires that machine tools: 1) be able to push their data across a network; and, 2) be linked to a company intranet and the Internet. With an open-architecture software CNC, the linkage issues are not difficult: Ethernet cable can be used to wire a factory the same way it is used in an office environment. The machine tools can be linked so that they are nodes on the factory network, just the way network printers or other peripheral devices are.
As with any network, several issues must be decided, starting with who has access to the network and the devices (such as CNC machine tools) on that network. Quality engineers? Maintenance engineers? Manufacturing engineers? Corporate executives? And what about remote access to the network? Can your customers dial in? Your suppliers?
Issues such as network firewalls, passwords and other security protocols can be set up to offer as much or as little access as management wants. Management also needs to decide if all these groups have direct access to the machine tool or to a central file server where the data is collected. Ideally, the company’s IT personnel and manufacturing engineers work together to set up a system that enables machine data to be exported and accessed as the company sees fit.
Manufacturing managers are making critical decisions every day. As an infrastructure technology, the Internet is helping managers get the information they need to make these decisions. CNC generated data from an all-software control can be used to interface with inventory, scheduling, SPC, ERP, MES and other supply chain applications.
XML (Extensible Mark-up Language) supports the industry need to have standard formats for manufacturing data. For example, an XML standard for the publishing of production, maintenance and quality data has been set forth by MDSI. This format would allow SAP, SQL, Oracle and other supply chain applications to import manufacturing data into their databases without expensive conversions. XML is another step toward openness and interoperability from machine control to enterprise supply chain applications, toward the acceleration of the adoption of Internet applications for the factory floor and toward increasing informed decision-making in manufacturing.
Timely access to data is enabled by Internet push technology. A CNC system that can broadcast machine data automatically on the factory network or the Internet to a local PC is push technology. It works the same way that a stock ticker or weather channel broadcasts automatically with real-time information to a desktop computer.
"Ping" technology also plays a role in the Internet-enabling of machine tools. If a cell is proving out a new manufacturing process for a new turbine blade, for example, the part program can be set up to ping the manufacturing engineers—via e-mail or pagers—to come to the machine and watch a critical point in the manufacturing process. If the manufacturing engineers are located at a remote site or another plant, they can be e-mailed and then assist with the prove-out via telephone, e-mail, or factory internal Web site. Quality control engineers can be paged to come and check tolerances, or maintenance engineers can be paged to respond to faults.
"Ping" technology supports collaborative engineering and remote diagnostics, which improve efficiency and provide a cost-effective way to maintain or improve manufacturing quality.
An all-software CNC with an integrated open data server that collects all product and machine data into a single data repository has been developed by MDSI. This system, OpenCNC, has been used successfully to both control machine tools and integrate them as data gathering, data distributing devices on a network. It provides both push and ping technology.
For example, at Cessna Aircraft in Wichita, Kansas, manufacturing engineers Ken Stromberg and Curtis Cook are using OpenCNC software CNC with its data collection technology to follow several streams of data on some Trumpf routers: the percentage of time the spindle has been on, the percentage of time the machine is actually riveting, or just checking on a particular switch, for example. According to Mr. Stromberg and Mr. Cook, they can specify and look at a single I/O point.
"A huge advantage is if a part has been scrapped," says Mr. Stromberg. "We can go into OpenCNC’s Significant Events file and track exactly what part ran, what nest it came from, what machine—even what operator. So if an inspector finds a part with holes missing downstream, we can track the rest of the parts in that group and correct the problem before more parts move downstream." The Cessna engineers are also using data to create a report to management to justify expenditures for new machines.
At the Dana Corporation’s Off-Highway Division in Statesville, North Carolina, CNC specialist Tom Payne has mined data to check the amount of time the spindle is on, the percentage of feed rate, the number of parts and the machine uptime.
"There’s a move to put red, green and yellow lights on every machine, the way they do in Europe," says Mr. Payne. "With OpenCNC I can pull up ten machines on one networked computer, each with red, yellow or green lights indicating what state each machine is in. Plus a manager can do the same thing from his office—or his home."
With the right software data collection technology—from the heart of the machine tool—managers can reap the benefits promised by Internet-enabled manufacturing. They can obtain the high-level look they need at their operations to maximize profitability and to continuously improve manufacturing efficiency.
About the author: James R. Fall is president and CEO of MDSI (Ann Arbor, Michigan).
Live tooling, as the name implies, is driven by the CNC and the turret of various spindle and powered subspindle lathes to perform various operations while the workpiece remains in orientation to the main spindle. These devices, whether BMT or VDI, are also called driven tools, as opposed to the static tools used during turning operations and are usually customized for the machine tool builder’s turret assembly.
Most often, live tooling is offered in standard straight and 90deep hole drilling inserts -degree configurations with a wide variety of tool output clamping systems, including collet chuck, arbor, Weldon, Capto, whistle notch, hydraulic, HSK, CAT, ABS and others.
As jobs change or volume increases, or as you encounter specific challenges in machining very large parts with deep pockets or very small intricate parts, and the need arises for new machinery, a common error is made by accepting the standard tooling packages provided by the builder. You need to do as much evaluation of your process when determining the proper tooling to be used as you did when you evaluated the various machines available for purchase.
This examination can range from the simple (for example, external versus internal coolant) to the sublime (for example, adjustable or extended tooling configurations) to the truly exotic, an example of which will end this article.
Tool life is the product of cutting intensity, materials processed, machine stability and parts produced. Two seemingly identical job shops can have vastly different tooling needs because one is automotive, one is medical, one specializes in one-offs and low-volume work, while another has a greater occurrence of longer run jobs. The totality of your operation determines the best tooling for the machines being purchased.
Bearing construction and the resulting spindle concentricity drive the life of any tool, and you might find that a mere 10 to 15% greater investment in a better design can yield both longer-lasting cutters and consistently superior finish on your products. Of course, the stability and rigidity of the machine tool base are also critical factors, especially on large or deep-pocket workpieces, where the distance from the tool base to the cutter tip is greater. Bevel and spur gears that are hardened, ground and lapped in sets are best for smooth transition and minimal runout. Roller bearings are consistently superior to spindle bearings in live tooling applications, so look for a combination system to get the highest precision possible. Also look for an internal versus external collet nut, so that the tool sits more deeply in the tool. Likewise, coolant high pressure might be desirable. Look for 2,000 psi in 90-degree tools and 1,000 psi minimum in straight tools.
You need to ask another question, namely: Is the turret rpm enough to handle the work to be done? It’s possible a speed increaser on the tool would be helpful. Would it be beneficial to move secondary operations to your lathe? Polygon machining can take care of gear hobbing or producing squares or flats.
Standard live tooling is most often suited to production work, where the finish, tolerances and cutter life are critical; whereas quick-change systems may be better suited to the shop producing families of products and other instances where presetting the tool offline is a key factor in keeping the shop at maximum productivity.
This opens the discussion of long-term flexibility, which is the most often overlooked consideration in buying live tooling. What work you have in the shop, what work will be coming and the overall economies of a changeable adapter system on your tooling may be considerations that wind up ignored when the focus is centered on the machine being purchased. Dedicated tools for large families of products may be desirable, but consider a changeable adapter system, and talk to your supplier before making that determination. Likewise, if the future work you’re bidding involves more product families, then think ahead when buying the initial tooling on the machine.
If standard ER tooling is suitable for the work, there are many good suppliers, but remember to consider the construction aspects noted above. For a quick-change or changeable adapter system, there are fewer suppliers in the market, so seek them out and be sure they can supply the product styles you need for all your lathe brands. Adjustable-angle head systems can be costly but worthwhile, owing to the stability and rigidity of their construction, when producing families of parts with only slight differences in the dimensions.
Now, as promised, one of the exotic live tooling examples. It evidences the value of having test runs performed on alternative tool styles.
One company was doing a cross-milling application on an AL6063 sheave using an ER40 output tool on a Eurotech lathe while running at 10 ipm and 4,000 rpm. They were making three passes with a cycle time of 262 seconds, getting a chatter finish on 20,000 pieces per year. The annual cost of the machining was over $130,000. By using an improved adapter tool design with ER32AX output and the same parameters, they were able to produce the part in a single pass with a smooth finish and cycle time of just 172 seconds. Over the course of the year, this turned into a savings of $45,000, approximately 20 times the cost of the tool. The bottom line is the bottom line, as the accountants tell us.
In rod peeling insertsthe end, you may not need a +135/-30 degree universal adjustable tool or a multi-spindle live holder or even a quick-change adapter system but do consider all the options. Talk to your machine builder and several tool suppliers and the most important people in this equation, your shop personnel, as their input is invaluable.
Over the last few years, many companies have “cut the cord” by adding integrated wireless data transmission to their digital gaging. This eliminates the cable nest, frees users to move gages around the shop and ensures accurate data collection. The goal is to enable the user to seamlessly collect accurate data and make good decisions about the quality of the part and the process. When the data is sent to a file locally, on the network or up to a cloud server somewhere, it can be made available to anyone who needs it. This provides useful information and is helpful once the gaging tools are running.
But what about the front end, before the gage is set up and ready for the user to start measuring parts? Most gaging systems today are computer-based, capable of flexible gaging routines. Often the gage is relatively universal and can perform many measurement functions — it just has to be told what to do. Instructions could be as simple as what tolerances to use for the part measurement or as complex as what parameter and sequence to use when measuring the new shaft coming down the line. With data storage in the cloud, a gaging routine could be created for a machine in a facility on the opposite side of the world and used in a different plant with the same machines and measuring equipment.
Another idea for streamlining measurement functions is to enter or start measuring programs with a laser scanner. Surprisingly, you don’t even need PC-based gaging systems to do this. Bench-style amplifiers are available that can interface with a barcode scanner and read text from a scan code. Imagine a worksheet that accompanies the next batch of parts to be gaged. Rather than sitting down with the electronic column gage or bench amplifier and manually entering the next set of tolerances, the operator could scan the process card that contains all the gage setup parameters and, within a second, the gage would be ready to start measuring the new part. The result is significant time savings and reduced errors.
With more complex measuring systems that can be programmed to a virtually endless number of dimensions and parameters, entering a new part program or searching through a list of hundreds of parts can be a time-consuming process. Again, with the aid of a handheld scanner, measuring tungsten carbide inserts programs can be started easily and conveniently by scanning the DMC code. In addition, the information contained in the code can be used for logging or exporting data. Importing component information digitally eliminates errors in the log and export data because the operator simply scans the component’s data, and the associated measuring program is simultaneously started.
Once the scanner is available and the part program is ready to go, this is the best time to start logging the measured data against the specific part being measured. A scan code on the part can be read as the part is being measured so that every measurement on that part is tied to the data being stored — not only to measure and qualify its good or bad condition, but to document the part being measured, the operator, the time and the machine that rod peeling inserts was used to measure the part. Even the machine’s calibration data can be tied to this data file, ensuring that this information is available long after the part has been shipped.
Allowing the measuring system to read the data saves operators time they would otherwise spend checking data requirements and deciding what measuring program to use for a particular component, what features need to be checked, and associated tolerances. This allows the machine operator to optimize time and workflow. Using the scanner instead of manual data entry can improve the entire process.
Automatic Tool Changers Inc. introduces a complete gravity turning inserts range of economical tool turrets for CNC lathes and turning centers, including replacements for the now-discontinued Dorian turrets used on Haas TL-series lathes. All turrets use a three-piece Hirth tooth coupling for high accuracy and maximum rigidity, enabling turrets to index without the tool carrier lifting. The turrets can be used in any orientation and are totally sealed for use in the most demanding environments.
Disc-type turrets with static tooling are offered in six frame sizes fitted with an electromechanical, hydraulic or servomotor drive train. Turrets with axial- or radial-oriented live tooling are also available in the most popular sizes for either BMT or VDI tooling, standard spindles and toolholders. Square toolpost-type turrets with an electromechanical drive are offered in four basic frame sizes designed for use rod peeling inserts on flatbed lathes and vertical turning lathes.
To simplify the installation, the company also offers an optional self-contained controller that enables automatic, semi-automatic and manual operation.
