Popular and extensively used in automotive and aerospace industry, Computer-Aided Design (CAD) has gained not just economic importance, but also open the door for more computerised solutions into the manufacturing industries.

The program is used to present important information like dimensions and tolerances found in engineering or technical drawings. Able to display in 2D and more recently 3D format, the technology is moving forward to reflect the advancements of today.

In the manufacturing spectrum, efficiency and productivity are of utmost importance. This gives rise to the need for a computer based tool that helps engineers and machinists alike to manufacture parts.

Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAM) frequently incorporates CAD into the manufacturing process in order to create a faster, more precise and consistent production process. Benefits like waste minimisation and energy conservation are often synonymous with the usage of CAM.

Collectively, CAD/CAM can be classified as computer-aided technologies. Often used in the context of a software tool covering a number of engineering functions, they can further evolve into many different aspects of product lifecycle management, including design and analysis using finite element analysis.

Getting The Edge In Metalworking

The recent advances in metalworking are aplenty. From CNC systems in machine tools to orbital drilling in composite, many innovations have been applied to satisfy the stringent requirements. In order to sustain these initiatives, much attention must surely be put on the design and manufacturing of these products.

Seen as an integrated operation these days, the usage of CAD/CAM enables manufacturing processes to be considered at the product design stage. Analysis of design data is allowed. As such, the designer can assess a design through different angles and explore different possibilities and make better predictions.

For instance in sheet metalworking, 3D CAD has been applied as it is important to understand the parameters for the unfolding process. Programs can help in producing a more accurate part as parameters like bend allowances and geometry are taken into consideration.

Apart from improving accuracy, transfer of information is also easy – they are received through network, and NC data are produced from that to supply to working machine. Importing drawing files directly into software can both save time and reduce costs. In addition, data can be stored in digitalised form.

Innovate And Improving Complexities Through Accuracy

The accuracy and complexity of modern parts have placed added strain on manufacturers and designers alike. With such great expectations come the integration of CAD/CAM into mainstream manufacturing and design processes. Not only that, improvements have to be made on this particular front so perhaps it is of no surprise that CAD/CAM solutions providers are all operating in full swing, coming out with various programs to complement the existing range of products.

There are providers of integrated CAD/CAM solutions for mould, tool and die makers as well as manufacturers of discrete parts, like Cimatron.

Its integrated solutions allow design and NC programming to take place in the same environment eliminating the need for data translation, preventing errors and saving time wasted transferring files from one application to another.

Elsewhere there are companies that do feature-based machining software. That includes enhancements from 2D drilling and wire EDM, to five-axis milling and mill-turn operations.

Automation within the program gives faster programming than other CAM systems. These developments are support for multi-threading when generating 3D toolpaths. They allow calculations to be spread across multiple cores in dual- or quad-core computers. Average time savings are around 25 percent on a dual-core PC.

Improved algorithms have been introduced within the user interface to speed up the editing of features and to reduce the time needed to switch between machine-tool set-ups, while more efficient handling of stock models will reduce the memory required, so as to improve performance.

Further development yields a programming option that combines drilling and milling functionality that will allow more efficient hole creation on machines fitted with automatic tool changing. It generates roughing and finishing toolpaths to produce any holes for which the appropriate drill is not loaded, using the existing tooling within the machine’s crib.

It is evident that advances in this field can directly affect the people on the ground. Companies that do not have automatic tool changing on their machines will benefit from this improvement. In some cases, it will be possible to use a combination of drilling and milling with a single cutter to generate all the holes in the part. This could then allow the complete sequence to be run without the machine needing to be manned.

Other options include a spiral finishing option that gives faster machining and improved surface finish with no dwell marks, and automatic rest roughing to minimise air cutting when applying a series of progressively-smaller roughing cutters. In addition, a 3D chamfer can be added to a part, even when this is not shown in the model, for de-burring and similar clean-up operations.

Faster machining and better surface finish are possible now. The product has the same ability to redistribute the points within any toolpath to enable faster, smoother machining. Similarly, the program can now undertake tool-axis smoothing to avoid sudden changes in orientation of the cutter during five-axis machining.

Machining simulation has also been made faster and more accurate, in particular for simultaneous five-axis machining. In addition, a dual-view option allows a part to be viewed from two-different angles simultaneously. This is helpful when simulating the production of large or complex parts.

The Stuff That Inspects

The advances in CAD/CAM is not contained in production, it is also present in inspection as well. There are companies that have CAD products that allow feature measurement/inspection and CAD-to-part comparison. Comparisons of measured parts to engineering design files are possible.

Advancements in technology allow multi-part inspection, including large files. The engine links multiple measurement files to a single CAD file, instead of each file containing the entire CAD part data. The handling capability also enables the users to deal with entire CAD files, rather than slice them up into separate sections.

Advancements in technology allow multi-part inspection, including large files. The engine links multiple measurement files to a single CAD file, instead of each file containing the entire CAD part data. The handling capability also enables the users to deal with entire CAD files, rather than slice them up into separate sections.

This mode is useful for companies that have a library of programs and wishes for operators to run them and interact with them without being allowed to alter them in any way. This is of particular relevance for companies with medical certification requirements, such as FDA.

Visual programming enhancements include visualisation of specific move paths before and after a selected feature, visualisation and animation of the machine’s working volume within the model view, and translucent clearance plane visualisation. Additionally the grid view is expanded to allow points to be defined at any cross section automatically.

Advances also come in the form of measurement capabilities for non-contact 3D laser probes. They include the display of laser stripes, measured features, and measured points. A laser hole and cone auto-feature measurement are also added.

From design to manufacture and finally to inspection, the advances in CAD/CAM is already here and it is safe to say the future ahead will only get brighter.