Control vs. Software

[L Hanft]

If you have a program with say "rigid tap", do the tool path, post it and then send it to the machine...... will every control "react" to this G-code in a predictable way? I'm really trying to understand machine control options vs. Mastercam. If I program it, can I run the code even though the machine control "option" may not have been purchased? Trying to spec out a new machine and all the options packages..... well, it confuses me. This should be simple, but do these machine options affect programing at the control only or do the affect control programing and imported code?

[Trevor Bailey]

Especially for rigid tap, if the option has not been purchased, you will get an alarm.

[PE @ IHS]

For rigid tapping to work, there needs to be an encoder on the spindle so that the spindle can synchronize with the programmed feedrate. This is a function of the machine, rather than the software. Otherwise, you will need to use a tapping head, which overcomes the lack of synchronization. The same holds true for tapping on lathes.

 

Peter Eigler

[L Hanft]

Maybe my question was a little too sketchy. In general there are lots of available machine options/add-ons. If most of the programing is done with Mastercam vs. at the control is it necessary to have all the control add-ons to get the functionality. Rigid tapping may have been a poor example - so you are saying no matter where you program control or MC if the option/add-on isn't purchased it isn't available?

[gstephens]

It really depends on what kind of operation you're talking about. As far as drill cycles, etc., Everything but tapping could be long-hand coded into the post for output (peck drilling or boring with a shift for example). Usually the only other kinds of things available in a control are things like automatic pocketing routines, macros and the like which Mastercam can do just fine. Basically as long as there are codes (M,G,whatever) in the control that can accomplish what you want to do, a post can be written to do it.

[L Hanft]

Thanks, I think i'm getting it now. If you look at option packages, there are things like coordinate rotation/scaling, helical interpolation, thread milling, etc. I know these things can be done in MC. What seems confusing is..... the difference in "upgrading" to control to be able to do this operations at the "control" vs. not upgrading the control with the options and doing the operations inside Mastercam..... maybe I'm not getting it!

[iowajim62]

Hi Larry,

You're getting it. The machine tools come with different option packages,you buy what you want and start running your new toy. And yes you're right about MC being able to do those optional things as well. But if the machine tool doesn't have that option the program won't run, it'll alarm out on the unrecognized code. Now if you "know" a techie type person they can generally "turn" on these options for you at little or no cost at all if they like you.

Usually just parameters but sometimes hardware changes to the machine tool for some options.

[L Hanft]

Thanks Jim... it finally makes sense. You'd think the machine tool builders would see the value in marketing full featured machines. Having the features built into the control but hidden (turned off) seems short sighted to me.... the few extra bucks they make by turning them on or the money spent inventing way to keep the "machine owners" from turning the features on; is surely lost.... When everyone complains about how worthless this or that machine is!

 

Now I get it.....

[chris m]

quote:

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Having the features built into the control but hidden (turned off) seems short sighted to me.... the few extra bucks they make by turning them on or the money spent inventing way to keep the "machine owners" from turning the features on; is surely lost.... When everyone complains about how worthless this or that machine is!

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They would say that you're short-sighted in not ordering the machine with the options you want.

 

This all goes back to the question of how much $$ the development of special features is worth. The control or machine tool manufacturer feels that you should pay for the work that they did in developing their equipment; they also don't want to rebuild the machine every time you decide you want to upgrade your machine with a new control option so they build most of the features into their controls and password protect them (or bury them where it is unlikely that you'll find them) so that they can easily activate for you when you want. Okuma claims that they do not do this and they actually do a physical upgrade or change on the control; why? I don't know.

 

I must say that new machines are much more fully loaded that they were in the 80's and early 90's because of the fact that we, as machine tool customers, are not particularly interested in machines without canned bolt-circles, man-readables, 10-line program capacity, etc.

 

C

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

In most cases the options on the control are not the responsibility of the builder. Some builders carry more weight that others and can get the control mfr. to put more features in at no additional cost. In a nutshell, the control mfr. is who turns options on and off. Most options are well worth ehe money. Custom Macro B is a Must, added memory or a Dataserver is a must, helical interpolation, and at the bare minimum a basic look ahead feature. I could not live without these. As a programmer the last thing on my mind should be if I have enough memory in the machine to run the part out. That's just poor planning on the buyer's part.

 

JM2C