MasterCam4 SolidWorks
MasterCam4 SolidWorks
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page Lesson 1: Lesson 2: Lesson 3: Lesson 4: Lesson 5: Lesson 6: Lesson 7: Lesson 8: Lesson 9: Mastercam for SolidWorksGetting Started Contour ToolpathsPart 1 Contour ToolpathsPart 2 Pocket Toolpaths Advanced Pocket Toolpaths Manual Drill Toolpaths FBM Drill Toolpaths 2D (HST) High Speed Toolpaths Miscellaneous 2D Toolpaths 11 21 31 41 51 61 71 81 91 101 111 121 131 141
Lesson 10: FBM Mill Toolpaths Lesson 11: 3D (HST) High Speed ToolpathsPart 1 Lesson 12: 3D (HST) High Speed Toolpaths Part 2 Lesson 13: Assembly Toolpaths: Configurations Lesson 14: Assembly Toolpaths: Replacing Parts
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTON: This lesson builds on the basic procedures you were introduced to in the first Contour lesson. You will gain ex perience in additional geometry selection (Chaining) techniques that will allow you to cut most Contour shapes you come across. The toolpaths will consist of several new types of contours.
Overview of Exercise: In this lesson we will machine the part shown by first Facing the 5.0 X 8.0 stock, then machining the yellow areas shown by using several different types of 2D contour toolpaths and tools. NEW CONCEPTS COVERED IN THIS LESSON:
x x x x x x x
Facing rough stock Multipass contour to cut an open pocket shape Removing excess stock Chamfer contour toolpath Multiple techniques for contour chain selection Chain Manager options Review of basic Mastercam for SolidWorks general workflow procedures
Lesson 3
Page 31
Lesson 3
Page 32
Multiple Edges: CTRL-Click each edge. (The Chain Manager will display all individual edges. The CHAINS tab will show how Mastercam has connected continuous edges into a single Chain.)
Select Tangency: Right Click on Edge and choose the option from the menu. (This will select all of the edges tangent to the one highlighted and put them in the Selection list in the Chain Manager.)
Lesson 3
Page 33
Mastercam for SolidWorks StepbyStep Programming Exercises Select Loop: Right Click on Edge and choose the option from the menu. (This will select every connecting edge on a face, whether tangent or not. If the wrong Loop is chosen by SolidWorks, click the yellow arrow to toggle to the other option.)
Partial Loop: Click the first entity, then CTRL-RIGHT Click on the second entity to choose the option from the menu. NOTE: When CTRL-RIGHT Clicking on the second entity, you must select on the end of the entity nearest the direction you want to close. For more information, see the SolidWorks Help menu. (This will allow a faster method of selecting a large number of individual edges on complicated contours.)
Select Face: Click on a Face. (This will select every individual edge on a face, including interior edges, whether tangent or not. The Chain Manager gives the option to use only outer loop on faces. This is useful if you only want to cut the outer shape.)
Lesson 3
Page 34
3. Select this face and select Insert Sketch from the popup icons or from the SolidWorks Insert menu. (This will start a new sketch on this top face. The following steps will have us create a single point at the theoretical sharp corner of the stock. So we can locate the machining origin where we want it.)
Lesson 3
Page 35
4. Rotate the model similar to the view shown and select both of the edges by pressing the Control key and selecting these two edges.
5. Select the Point icon from the SolidWorks Sketch toolbar or from the drop down menu Tools Sketch Entities Point, to create a point entity at the intersection of the two lines.
(Note: You must select the (2) edges first to get the point at the intersection.)
Lesson 3
Page 36
10. Rotate the model as needed so you can pick the top Solid Face to be the Machine View.
11. Rotate XY as desired for Direction. (We will leave at 0 in this example.)
13. Give the new view a Name. (2D Machining View in this example.)
Lesson 3
Page 37
14. Set the Current View and Origin equal to this new view by clicking the EQUALS button.
16. Select the sketch point previously created as shown. (In order to see this sketch Point, View Sketches must be on. See Step # 2)
18. Click OK to Accept again to exit and save the View Manager settings dialog. (The Mastercam Origin should be located on the point entity as shown.)
Lesson 3
Page 38
19. Select the Mastercam Toolpath Manager Icon from the Property Manager page.
20. Expand the Properties in the Toolpath Manager. (Click the plus (+) sign if the Files, Tool Settings and Stock Setup icons are not visible.)
Program # Identifies the program in the output NC machine code. Feed Calculation from tool uses the feed rate, plunge rate, and spindle speed directly from the tool definition. Assign tool numbers sequentially assigns the next available tool number. This option overrides the tool numbers stored in the tool definition. Warn of duplicate tool numbers informs you when a duplicate tool number is entered and displays a description of the duplicate tool. Override defaults with modal values When selected, the default values for any of the checked items will be the value from the previous operation. These override the values found in the toolpath defaults file.
Lesson 3
Page 39
24. Select the icon and then set the Stock View to the previously created view. (2D Machining View)
26. Accept the default Bounding Box values as shown: (In this example, the Stock size will be defined as the extents of the solid model.)
Lesson 3
Page 310
29. Rotate model as needed and select the top face as shown: (Note: In this example, the shape is simple enough to allow selecting the top face. In other cases, additional sketching may be required to define the stock shape for the facing operation.)
30. Click OK to accept and close the Chain Manager. (In facing operations, the entire boundary must be closed and the facing tool cuts inside the boundary, so chaining direction and cut side is not required to be set in this example.)
Lesson 3
Page 311
31. When prompted, enter a name for the NC program we are going to create. (CONTOUR 2 is used in this lesson.) 32. Click OK to accept and close the NC name dialog box.
33. Facing Toolpath Parameters Dialog Box Preview: (In the following steps we will be setting the parameters to make our Facing toolpath.)
35. Tool: Select Library Tool (We will choose a 2 Face Mill from the Library of tools provided by Mastercam.)
Lesson 3
Page 312
36. Select the Filter button. (The Filter button will allow searching through the tool library for a specific tool type to make it easier and quicker to find the desired tool.)
37. Select the None button. (This will deselect all tool types to clear the filter.)
38. Select the Face Mill tool type. (You can hover your cursor over the icons to see what tool type is represented by each icon.)
39. Confirm that the rest of your settings match the screenshot as shown and click OK to accept.
40. Select the 2 Face Mill from the filtered list and click OK to accept.
41. Other Tool settings: (Tool numbers should be automatically assigned from our Job Setup settings.) Rapid Retract = Selected Comment: (Enter a description of what the toolpath does. This will be part of the NC program to assist the operator of the machine identify what this part of the program does.) In this example we inserted FACE OFF THE TOP OF THE STOCK
Lesson 3
Page 313
42. Cut Parameters: Style = Zigzag Across overlap = 25% Along overlap = 110% Approach distance = 0 Exit distance = 0 Move between cuts = High speed loops
43. Linking Parameters values: Clearance = 2.0 (Absolute) Retract = .25 (Absolute) Feed Plane = 0.1 (Incremental) Top of Stock = 0.0 (Absolute) Depth = 0.0 (Absolute) (Depth value is set from the value of the selected faces. In this case, Absolute depth of the top face is at Z 0.0)
Lesson 3
Page 314
47. Select the Operation and Backplot and/or Verify the toolpath operation to confirm your results.
Open Contour Toolpath with Multiple Passes (In this operation we will remove the cutout area using Contour toolpath.)
Lesson 3
Page 315
48. Before starting the next operation, turn off the toolpath display for the Facing operation. (This will remove selected toolpaths to make it easier to view and select the model edges for the next operation.)
49. Select Contour Toolpaths from the Mastercam X4 Drop Down Menu or from the Command Manager.
50. Rotate the model as shown, then Right Mouse Click on the edge Shown and choose Select Tangency.
(We are using the SolidWorks selection option to select all of the entities that are Tangent to this edge instead of selecting each entity individually.)
Lesson 3
Page 316
51. Results: (You should have 5 edges in the selection list. If you do not have all 5, you may select the missing edge from the model or Right Mouse click in the box and Clear Selections to try again.)
52. Select Chains tab in the Chain Manager. (Notice that all 5 edges have been combined into one continuous chain automatically by Mastercam for SolidWorks.)
Lesson 3
Page 317
54. Verify the Direction of cut and Cut side of the selected chain by selecting the icons. (Match screenshot shown to Climb Cut the contour.)
REFERENCE INFORMATION Change Sides changes which side of the selected chain the cutter will travel. Delete Chain deletes the currently selected chain(s) from the list. Analyze Chain provides technical information about the selected chain. Reverse Chain changes the selected chain cut direction. Rename Chain allows changing the name from Chain #1, etc. to a more meaningful name to help user recall the purpose of the chain. Start Point allows user to change the start point by scrolling through each possible chain point. End Point allows user to change the end point by scrolling through each possible chain point.
55. Click OK to accept the Chains and close the Chain Manager.
56. Contour Toolpath Parameters Dialog Box: (In the following steps we will be setting the parameters to make our toolpath.) 57. Toolpath Type: Contour
Lesson 3
Page 318
58. Tool: Select Library Tool (We will choose a Flat Endmill from the Library of tools provided by Mastercam.)
59. Select the Filter button. (The Filter button will allow searching through the tool library for a specific tool type to make it easier and quicker to find the desired tool.)
60. Select the None button. (This will deselect all tool types to clear the filter.)
61. Select the Flat Endmill tool type. (You can hover your cursor over the icons to see what tool type is represented by each icon.)
62. Confirm that the rest or your settings match the screenshot as shown and click OK to accept.
Lesson 3
Page 319
63. Select the 1/2 Flat Endmill from the filtered list and click OK.
64. Other Tool settings: Rapid Retract = Selected Comment: REMOVE THE OPEN POCKET AREA
65. Cut Parameter Settings: Compensation = Wear Stock to leave on walls = .005 (We will leave .005 for final cleanup contour operation we will add later. Confirm other settings match the default values as shown.)
Lesson 3
Page 320
66. Lead In/Out Settings: Lead In/Out = Selected Entry = Selected Entry Line Tangent = 30% Entry Arc Radius = 30%
Select the Double Arrow to copy all values to the Exit Values.
67. Set Break Through values as shown: Break through = Selected Break through amount = 0.05
68. Set Multi Passes settings as shown: Multi Passes = Selected Rough = 3 Spacing = .25 Finish = 0 Spacing = 0 Keep tool down = Selected (Since there is no danger of cutting through the part in this toolpath, it is more efficient to keep the tool down.)
Lesson 3
Page 321
69. Set the Linking Parameters values as shown: Clearance = 2.0 (Absolute) Retract = .25 (Absolute) Feed Plane = 0.1 (Incremental) Top of Stock = 0.0 (Absolute) Depth = 0.0 (Incremental)
(Depth value is set from the value of the chained edges. Incremental value is used in case there are multiple edges are at different depths. Incremental values always display 0.0)
72. Results:
Lesson 3
Page 322
73. Select the Operation and Backplot and/or Verify the toolpath operation to confirm your results. (If your verify does not look like this result, click the Parameters icon under the Contour operation in the Mastercam Operations Manager and confirm your settings are correct. Then Regenerate the toolpath.)
Partial Contour Toolpaths (In this Contour operation we will remove the excess material at the four corners of the stock.)
74. Before starting the next operation, turn off the toolpath display for the Contour operation you just completed.
75. Select Contour Toolpaths from the Mastercam Drop Down Menu or from the Command Manager.
Lesson 3
Page 323
76. Rotate the model as shown and select the 3 individual edges as highlighted.
77. Rotate the model so you can select 3 more edges from the next angled corner of the model.
78. Repeat rotating the model and selecting the edges for all 4 angled corners. When complete, you should have 12 edges listed in the Selection list.
Lesson 3
Page 324
79. Select the Chains tab in the Chain Manager. (Notice once again the Mastercam has combined the 12 edges into 4 separate chains.)
81. Verify the direction of cut and cut side of the selected chain by selecting the icons.
(Cut side and direction should match screenshot so we Climb Cut the contours.)
82. Repeat for Chain 2, Chain 3, and Chain 4. Make sure cut side and cut direction matches the screenshot. (We want to make sure the cutter is on the outside of the part and moves in direction shown so we Climb Cut the contours.)
Lesson 3
Page 325
84. Contour Toolpath Parameters Dialog Box. (Most settings should remain correct from the previous contour operation.) Confirm the following Settings. All others set as in screenshot or as desired: 85. Toolpath Type = Contour
86. Tool = Flat Endmill Rapid Retract = ON Comment = Remove excess stock from corners
87. Cut Parameters: Compensation type = Wear Compensation Direction = Left Contour Type = 2D
Lesson 3
Page 326
88. Depth Cuts = OFF 89. Lead In/Out: Entry = Selected Entry Line = Tangent Length = 30% Entry Arc Radius = 30% Arc Sweep = 30 degrees Exit moves should be same as Entry
91. Multi Passes = Selected Rough = 2 Rough Spacing = .25 Finish = 0 Finish Spacing = 0 Keep tool down = OFF
(Note: in this case, we must turn off Keep tool down to avoid the tool cutting through the part as it moves to the next corner.)
Lesson 3
Page 327
92. Linking Parameters Clearance = 2.0 (Absolute) Retract = .25 (Absolute) Feed plane = .01 (Incremental) Top of Stock = 0.0 (Absolute) Depth = 0.5 (Absolute)
95. Results:
96. Select the Operation and Backplot and/or Verify the toolpath operation to confirm your results. (If your verify does not look like this result, click the Parameters icon under the Contour operation in the Mastercam Operations Manager and confirm your settings are correct.)
Lesson 3
Page 328
Contour the Entire Outside Periphery (In this Contour operation we will run a cleanup contour around the entire outside edge of the part.)
97. Before starting the next operation, turn off the toolpath display for the Contour operation you just completed.
98. Select Contour Toolpaths from the Mastercam Drop Down Menu or from the Command Manager.
99. Rotate the model as shown then Right Mouse Click on the edge and choose Select Loop.
Lesson 3
Page 329
100. Make sure the arrow has the correct loop selected. If it is incorrect, click on the arrow to select the alternate loop option.
(Confirm the arrow has selected the bottom edge loop as shown in the screenshot.)
Lesson 3
Page 330
103. Verify the direction of cut and cut side of the selected chain by selecting the icons.
104. Move the Start Point to the corner shown by clicking the Start Point Icon until it matches screenshot.
105. Click OK to accept the Chains and close the Chain Manager.
106. Contour Toolpath Parameters Dialog Box. (Most settings should remain correct from the previous contour operation.) Confirm the following Settings: 107. Toolpath Type = Contour 108. Tool = Flat Endmill 109. Cut Parameters: Compensation type = Wear Compensation Direction = Left Contour Type = 2D 110. Lead In/Out: Entry = Selected Entry Line = Tangent Length = 30% Entry Arc = 30% Exit moves should be same as Entry 111. Break Through = Selected Break through amount = .05 112. Multi Passes = OFF
Contour Toolpaths Part 2 Lesson 3 Page 331
113. Linking Parameters Clearance = 2.0 (Absolute) Retract = .25 (Absolute) Feed plane = .01 (Incremental) Top of Stock = 0.0 (Absolute) Depth = 0.5 (Absolute)
114. Coolant: Flood = On 115. Click OK to accept the Contour Toolpath Parame ters.
116. Results:
117. Select the Operation and Backplot and/or Verify the toolpath operation to confirm your results. (Note: the screenshot shown is a Verify of just the finish contour operation.)
Chamfer the top edge (In this Contour operation we will run a cleanup Chamfer contour around the entire top edge of the part. We will select our geometry Chain at the bottom edge of the chamfer.) 118. Before starting the next operation, turn off the toolpath display for the Contour operation you just completed.
Lesson 3
Page 332
119. Select Contour Toolpaths from the Mastercam Drop Down Menu or from the Command Manager.
120. Rotate the model as shown then Right Mouse Click on the edge at the bottom of the chamfer and choose Select Tangency.
121. Since there is a sharp corner where the inside cutout starts, the selection stops. To get the rest of the edges, rotate the model again as shown and Right Mouse Click the next edge and choose Select Tangency.
Lesson 3
Page 333
Lesson 3
Page 334
124. Verify the Cut Direction, Cutter Side and Start Point of the selected chain by selecting the icons.
125. Click OK to accept the Chains and close the Chain Manager.
126. Contour Toolpath Parameters Dialog Box. (Most settings should remain correct from the previous contour operation.) Confirm the following Settings for each category: 127. Toolpath Type = Contour 128. Tool : Chamfer Mill (User Filter as needed to locate the Chamfer Mill tool.)
129. Cut Parameters: Compensation type = Wear Compensation Direction = Left Contour Type = 2D Chamfer Width = 0.06 Tip Offset = 0.1 (Match other parameters as shown. Note: the 2D Chamfer toolpath is a special type of contour that compensates for the chamfer size. It has been designed to calculate from a Depth of 0.0. We will set this value in upcoming step.)
Lesson 3
Page 335
130. Lead In/Out: Entry = Selected Entry/Exit at midpoint in closed contours = OFF Entry Line = Tangent Length = 30% Entry Arc = 30% Exit moves should be same as Entry (Set other values as desired or as shown.)
131. Break Through: OFF 132. Multi Passes: OFF 133. Linking Parameters Clearance = 2.0 (Absolute) Retract = .25 (Absolute) Feed plane = .01 (Incremental) Top of Stock = 0.0 (Absolute) Depth = Type in Value = 0 (Absolute) (Note The chamfer toolpath is designed to calcu late the correct depth from an input value of 0.0, so we need to enter this value even though our chained geometry was at a different depth.)
136. Results:
Lesson 3
Page 336
With this step, we will view all operations in the completed toolpath on the computer screen to confirm that we have the results we expected before we send the NC code to the machine. This step will help avoid costly mistakes.
Backplot the toolpath. (Backplotting is the quickest way to confirm the toolpath. With backplot, you do not see material being removed, you only see tool motion compared to the finished part.) 137. Make sure ALL operations of the toolpath are selected.
(These buttons are similar to a video recorder. You can hover your cursor over each button to see what their function is.)
Lesson 3
Page 337
REFERENCE INFORMATION Display with Color Codes Shows the toolpath moves using the color codes from the Backplot Options. Display Tool Toggles the tool on and off Display Holder Toggles the tool holder on and off. Display Rapid Moves Includes the rapid moves in the backplot. Display Endpoints Shows the entity endpoints in the toolpath. This allows you to see how many tool moves actually occur. Display Quick Verify Displays a shaded path the width of the tool as the backplot progresses. Options Opens the backplot options dialog. Details Gives tool location and other information during the backplot.
Lesson 3
Page 338
Lesson 3
Page 339
Process Step 5: Making ChangesEditing the Toolpath (Mastercam for SolidWorks allows you to make changes to your geometry and any parameters or settings without requiring you to start over. In this example, an Engineering Change Order requires the slot to change dimensions. We will make the necessary modifications and make the required changes to get a correct new toolpath.) ENGINEERING CHANGE ORDER: A. Slot dimension to change from 2 wide by 1.75 deep to 2.5 wide by 2.5 deep.
147. Double Click on an interior face of the slot on the solid model to display the parametric dimensions.
Lesson 3
Page 340
148. Double click on the text of the first dimension value to be changed.
by repeating the procedure. (In this example the 1.75 value needs also needs to be changed to 2.50)
153. Results:
Lesson 3
Page 341
toolpath. (Note: Since we did not change the overall dimensions of the model size, we will not need to update the Stock Setup on this example.) Select All Operations in the Operations Manager.
Lesson 3
Page 342
(NOTE: The dimensional changes caused a problem with removing all of the material from the open contour area. We will need to make a change to the parameters to fix this.)
(Note: Operation #2 is the operation that cuts the open pocket area. You can confirm this by hovering your cursor over the operation and reading the comment we previously input to identify this operation.)
Lesson 3
Page 343
159. Set the Multi Passes parameters as shown: Rough Number = 4 (All other parameters should remain as shown.)
161. Click the icon to Select all Dirty Operations. (Since we changed parameters, Mastercam recognizes the toolpath needs to be regenerated and marks it as Dirty in the Operations Manager.)
163. Repeat Solid Verify procedures. (Select all operations then Solid Verify all Selected operations.)
Lesson 3
Page 344
165. Select the operations to Post Process. (Usually we will select ALL Operations to post.)
Lesson 3
Page 345
169. Give the program a name. (CONTOUR 2.NC is used in this example.)
Lesson 3
Page 346
SUMMARY: In this lesson, you added to your experience in the basic procedures of cutting contour shapes with Mastercam for SolidWorks. You experienced multiple new ways to select geometry to identify chains to cut and created a program with multiple operations. After completing this lesson and the practice exercises that follow you should be able to:
x x x x x x x x x x x
Select multiple sets of individual edges to create Chains to generate Contour toolpaths. Select Tangent edges to create Chains. Select Loop edges to create Chains. Face extra stock from the top of a part. Create a cleanup contour pass around the outside of a part. Chamfer edges of a part. Cut an open pocket area with multiple contour passes. Remove areas that have additional stock with multiple contour passes. Verify using Backplot and Solid Verify multiple operations. Modify parameters and solid model dimensions and have the toolpath update parametrically. Create NC code to send to the machine.
Lesson 3
Page 347
Lab Exercise Instructions: Program the part above (Contour2Lab 1.SLDPRT) with the following requirements: 1. Use View Manager to create and setup the machining view and locate the origin 2. Job Setup Notes/Tips: Stock Size = Bounding Box Locate Origin at Corner of Stock 3. Operations: Remove excess material from the angled corners (Tool = 1 Flat Endmill) Contour the entire outside periphery (Tool = 1 Flat Endmill) Chamfer the top edge to remove sharp corners (Tool = 1/2 Chamfer Mill) 4. Run Backplot and Solid Verify to confirm results 5. Create Gcode for NC machine
Lesson 3
Page 348
Job Description: Incorporate the changes to the Contour 2 Handson exercise you completed during the lesson. An Engineering change order modifies: 1. The 8.00 length dimension needs to be changed to 6.00. 2. The .06 X 45 Chamfer needs to be changed to .125 X 45 Chamfer. Lab Exercise Instructions: 1. Modify the Part model to the new dimensions shown and listed above. 2. Use View Manager to relocate the origin. 3. Use Job Setup to redefine the stock size (Bounding Box) 4. Update parameters as needed to make a correct part. 5. Run Backplot and Solid Verify to confirm results 6. Create Gcode for NC machine
Lesson 3
Page 349
Lab Exercise Instructions: 1. Open the part CONTOUR2LAB 3.SLDPRT. 2. Use View Manager to create and setup the machining view and locate the origin. 3. Job Setup Notes/Tips: Stock Size = Bounding Box Locate Origin at Corner of Stock 4. Operations: Multipass Contour to remove the material from the two flat relieved areas. (Tool = 1 Flat Endmill) Contour the entire outside periphery (Tool = 1 Flat Endmill) Chamfer the top edge to remove sharp corners (Tool = 1/2 Chamfer Mill) 5. Run Backplot and Solid Verify to confirm results 6. Create Gcode for NC machine
Lesson 3
Page 350