Within the eleventh video of this 25-video series on programming a Multus U3000 with TopSolid'CAM, we will explore milling a 4-axis radial slot.
So many CAM software packages make an operation like this much harder than it needs to be.Milling a 4-axis radial slot is really just milling an open pocket, so we select end milling within the list of 2D operations. After selecting end milling, I will turn on multi-axis. Because I have already taught TopSolid all of the definitions of this machine, the system knows that the machine I am programming is capable of multi-axis milling. Therefore, TopSolid made the multi-axis function available.
As you will see, as soon as I select 4-axis radial mill, a toolpath generates. However, I need to change my tool selection because the tool the system selected for me was too large. I simply select the tool I want to work with and the toolpath recalculates.
Programming Final Details
As smart as TopSolid is, the system does not automatically know where to start cutting. So, you still must be a little bit of a NC programmer and select an appropriate starting point for the operation. Finally, we need to set our precise cutting attributes.
In a matter of minutes, we have created a 4-axis tool path and as always when working in TopSolid, our machine simulation is there to verify that everything is working flawlessly.
Ready for the next step, click here