CNC lathe milling & programming?

[Brett]

Is there anyone here who has experience in CNC Engineering? Specifically, I want to get an idea of how the process works from design through to end product. For example, say I had a part, perhaps a mounting bracket, of a machine that has broken and I want to remake a new bracket? How do I go about this? (This is theoretical).

Cheers in advance.

(Edit) I know that I could just approach an engineering shop to do this, but I am extremely interested in the process itself. Hence the above is theoretical. Have seen a few youtube videos, the bit that is most obscure to me is the progamming side of things.

[nodrog:Me]

Is there anyone here who has experience in CNC Engineering? Specifically, I want to get an idea of how the process works from design through to end product. For example, say I had a part, perhaps a mounting bracket, of a machine that has broken and I want to remake a new bracket? How do I go about this? (This is theoretical).

Cheers in advance.

the part needs to be drawn up in some sort of cad programme, then exported to a conversion programme (depending on what software you are running) where tooling, parameters etc can be picked, which then automatically writes a programme which the machine can read.

or you can go all old school on it and write the programme line by line, just like the matrix.

[Brett]

the part needs to be drawn up in some sort of cad programme, then exported to a conversion programme (depending on what software you are running) where tooling, parameters etc can be picked, which then automatically writes a programme which the machine can read.

or you can go all old school on it and write the programme line by line, just like the matrix.

See this is one of the things I was wondering. I have seen the mathematical code required to make the automated parts move on their respective axis' etc. and it looks reasonably difficult (might not be...haven't ever had a try) but I did wonder if there were any programmes to automatically take a CAD and compute it into the required code to make the machine do its thing. however, i would have thought that this would depend on the different machines and the tools that they operate? Or do they all work with essentially the same basic movements meaning that the code is largely the same?

Excuse the ignorance, I am a complete noob at CNC programming and its fundamentals.

[nodrog:Me]

See this is one of the things I was wondering. I have seen the mathematical code required to make the automated parts move on their respective axis' etc. and it looks reasonably difficult (might not be...haven't ever had a try) but I did wonder if there were any programmes to automatically take a CAD and compute it into the required code to make the machine do its thing. however, i would have thought that this would depend on the different machines and the tools that they operate? Or do they all work with essentially the same basic movements meaning that the code is largely the same?

Excuse the ignorance, I am a complete noob at CNC programming and its fundamentals.

G code programming is pretty simple for point to point machining, but when you start to do complex shapes which have hundreds of lines to write it sucks arse.

Now i can just take a drawing of somthing, scan it, convert it, and send it to the machine in less than 5 mins.

leaves heaps of time for KB.

most machines come with their own software for programming and converting files, and even though they all do the same thing, they are all different. It would be too easy having them all the same (i run 2 machines, and i have to have 2 computers because the 2 lots of software wont run on the same computer.)

[Brett]

G code programming is pretty simple for point to point machining, but when you start to do complex shapes which have hundreds of lines to write it sucks arse.

Now i can just take a drawing of somthing, scan it, convert it, and send it to the machine in less than 5 mins.

leaves heaps of time for KB.

most machines come with their own software for programming and converting files, and even though they all do the same thing, they are all different. It would be too easy having them all the same (i run 2 machines, and i have to have 2 computers because the 2 lots of software wont run on the same computer.)

So really, to start making small basic objects, the real 'need to have' skill is cad design, assuming that the design can simply be uploaded into the cnc software?

[imdying]

The last bit I had done I just drew up in Google Sketchup and they handled the rest

[nodrog:Me]

So really, to start making small basic objects, the real 'need to have' skill is cad design, assuming that the design can simply be uploaded into the cnc software?

The last bit I had done I just drew up in Google Sketchup and they handled the rest

you could use a crayon and a ruler on a piece of toilet paper if you wanted to, as long as it can be scanned its all good.

any drawing programme can be used. we do lots of work for signwriters, and its seems everyone of those bastards uses a different format.

[Swoop]

Google sketchup (as Imdying says) is probably the second best option as it's free to download & use.
Best option is to provide beer to someone who knows what they're doing with CAM programming.


I normally draw up the item in the machine's drawing package then convert it.

Others primarily use Autocad and save it as a .dwg file, then we convert it from there. Normally a load of bugs to get rid of by using that process though.

[Brett]

you could use a crayon and a ruler on a piece of toilet paper if you wanted to, as long as it can be scanned its all good.

any drawing programme can be used. we do lots of work for signwriters, and its seems everyone of those bastards uses a different format.

I get that for 2d units such as a bracket cut from a 15mm plate of stainless steel, where the tooling is only on 2 planes/ x & y axis' but when you have to move to the 3rd plane/axis such as if you were milling a gear box casing from a block of aluminium, the drawing would somehow need to express this?

[Gremlin]

As nodrog has touched on, it depends on the business and it's size, whether or not it's the primary stuff, or a side effect of what they really need to do.

Client has a couple of large Trumpf machines, and use CAD to make the initial parts and pieces, but the machines are driven by software on the desktop side. Drawings are processed and sent to the machines, which then do the work.

[Brett]

As nodrog has touched on, it depends on the business and it's size, whether or not it's the primary stuff, or a side effect of what they really need to do.

Client has a couple of large Trumpf machines, and use CAD to make the initial parts and pieces, but the machines are driven by software on the desktop side. Drawings are processed and sent to the machines, which then do the work.

I suspect this is one of those things that you can only learn by doing. Might look around for someone offering a short-ish course in it.

[nodrog:Me]

I get that for 2d units such as a bracket cut from a 15mm plate of stainless steel, where the tooling is only on 2 planes/ x & y axis' but when you have to move to the 3rd plane/axis such as if you were milling a gear box casing from a block of aluminium, the drawing would somehow need to express this?

then you would want to use something like google sketch up, or any 3D able programme.

for basic 3D shapes its easy enough to modify it from a 2D drawing, ie if your 15mm thick bracket had a step up from 7mm on a 45 degree angle with a 2.5mm radius edge

[imdying]

I suspect this is one of those things that you can only learn by doing. Might look around for someone offering a short-ish course in it.

Sketchup is digustingly easy to use. It doesn't do much fancy, and you'll not design an entire bike in it, but very very easy to use. Plus they have a warehouse of parts to download, typically google.