MPGEN5AX revisited

[MIL-TFP-41]

All,

 

After many years I have stared to revisit our posts based on MPGEN5AX. While they do produce good code there is one thing that I find extremely annoying. With the example contained within the zip2go file, I have a toolpath in the front plane with a clearance height of 6". Then it switches to the top plane with a clearance height of 12 inches. The result of which is this....

G0 Z6.
Z12.
Y0.
M22
G4 X2.
A0.
M21
Z8.1

 

Notice how it moves up to the 12" clearance height, then moves to Y0., then repositions the A axis. This is a crash waiting to happen on a trunnion machine. Now what has been our standard procedure is always make your clearance height the same no matter what tool plane you are in.....so the following code is when both the front & top toolpaths have a clearance plane of 12". Ignore the dwells, I am playing with an older machine that needs them there when unlocking the 4th & 5th axis.

 

G0 Z12.
M22
G4 X2.
A0. Y0.
M21
Z8.1
G1 Z8. F50.

Note how it goes up to the 12" clearance height then repositions the A and Y axis. (the Y axis is repositioning on this line because I was able to add that in to ppos_cax_lin section of the post) This is the result I am after.

 

So now what I would like to do, and it "should" be simple, is make the post so I can have different clearance heights on different toolplanes AND (the kicker) make it so it will do if safely as is happening on my second example. I believe it the psof_tlchg_blck section of the post, which is encrypted. Is there any workaround to this...getting it to position the way I want? It would also be nice to make an ultra safe version that sends the machine home in the Z axis, then repositions the X, Y, A, & C, then goes to town. (and I have come close to succeeding, other than it *still* repositions the X & Y before doing the tilt/rotation) This is how CamPlete does it (ultra safe)

 

Any thoughts? Or is this an encrypted thing that just is not gonna happen?

 

Thanks!

5AX TEST2.Z2G

[kccadcam]

Hi James,

The only way to make this work the way you want is use spherical safety zone in machine properties.

Set it to whatever height is safe for all indexes and it will retract to there no matter what your retract is set to.

You won't be able to change the logic,, already been down that road......

 

How's life back at CVM?? New York wasn't all that fun??

[MIL-TFP-41]

Hi James,

The only way to make this work the way you want is use spherical safety zone in machine properties.

Set it to whatever height is safe for all indexes and it will retract to there no matter what your retract is set to.

You won't be able to change the logic,, already been down that road......

 

How's life back at CVM?? New York wasn't all that fun??

 

And some b-tthead took out the safety zone unless you are in "classic" multiaxis toolpaths. *sigh*. I have figured out a way to take the Z home then reposition, but still not quite what I am looking for, and still risky.

Not gonna go back to NY any time soon...2 years was enough of that place. Great job, sh1tty location.

[Colin Gilchrist]

There are two different options that can be used here. The MR6$ value can be used for absolute "safe Z" moves. These can be set in each operation independently. The other option is to use "stock limits" as a reposition boundary by using MI7 and MI8 values to control the retract behavior. This can be made even more useful if you use the "stock setup" option. This uses your block in "stock setup" as the boundary, and you can set an incremental clearance value that gets added to that boundary.

 

This will be one of the things I cover in detail for my 5 Axis post class.

[MIL-TFP-41]

Thanks Colin...I was considering the class so I could better wrap my head around the vector and matrix stuff you have previously mentioned. I was hoping to get around using the MI's and MR's....that being a manual operation that you have to remember. This is one thing I really do like about CamPlete, you don't have to worry about a crash on a 3+2 transition move. I am hoping to do this with MPGEN5AX, make it bullet proof.