Tech Tuesday is a weekly blog that addresses some of the most common questions and concerns that I hear throughout the previous week from users of BobCAD-CAM software. Both customers and future customers are more than welcome to leave a comment on what they would like to see covered for the following Tech Tuesday. Enjoy!
Programming 5 Axis machines: Are You Ready?
Over the last few years, 5 Axis machining technology has come down in price, making it more accessible for everyday shops. If you aren’t programming a 5 Axis machine today, it’s likely you will be in the near future. For many CAD-CAM programmers, this is a cause for concern. How am I going to program 5 Axis?! I think we all agree, 5 Axis machines offer many benefits, even for the small shops, like 5 sided machining.
Using BobCAD’s 5 Axis Mill Standard, users can easily program index moves (supporting TCP, origin tracking or traditional methods) to position the part to machine on different sides.
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How do I program 5 Axis indexing? Do I have to calculate the index position?
That’s the best part, you don’t have to! Using an index system, your machine’s kinematics and BobCAD’s post processor, complex index positions require no calculations by the programmer.
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Join your fellow manufacturers! Get BobCAD-CAM’s latest CAD-CAM articles straight to your inbox. Enter your email below:BobCAD’s Index systems are easy to set up. The programmer simply selects a surface or UCS they want to machine to, and that’s it. “ BobCAD makes it so simple,” Al DePoalo / BobCAD After Dark.
5 Axis indexing allows users to rotate their part to gain accessibility to different sides of their part geometry. Prior to using 5 Axis machines, many shops were forced to re-fixture the part for every operation. This not only takes longer, but it is also error-prone.
One of the best features BobCAD-CAM’s 5 Axis Mill Standard offers machinists is 5 Axis Indexing, allowing users of all skills sets to program on any side of the part quick and easy. This is designed to make your daily workflow as smooth as possible, while still delivering quality functionality. Thank you for joining me for another Tech Tuesday!
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