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Whats New in Mastercam PDF
Whats New in Mastercam PDF
Whats New
in Mastercam X5
September 2010
Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................. 1
Before You Begin ..................................................................................... 1
If You Need More Help ............................................................................ 2
Additional Documentation ...................................................................... 3
Mastercam Customer Feedback Program ............................................ 3
Note: Some of the options shown in the Whats New dialog box are only available if
you have certain products enabled on your Mastercam SIM.
features. For example, the Mill Level 1 Enhancements chapter discusses new
functionality that you can access in Mastercam X5 Mill Level 1 or higher.
Tutorial Requirements
Many chapters in this book contain short tutorials on new features in Mastercam X5.
To complete these tutorials, you should meet the following requirements:
Additional Documentation
You can find more information on using Mastercam in the following materials, located
in the \Documentation folder of your Mastercam installation:
Mastercam X5 Installation Guide
Mastercam X5 Administrator Guide
Mastercam X5 Quick Start
Mastercam X5 Reference Guide
Mastercam X5 Transition Guide
Mastercam X5 Quick Reference Card
Mastercam X5 Wire Getting Started Guide
Version 9 to X Function Map
Mastercam X5 NCI & Parameter Reference
Mastercam X5 Post Debugger Users Guide
The program is turned off by default. You must choose to participate in the program by
clicking the option shown below in the Mastercam Customer Feedback Program dialog
box.
This dialog box appears the first time you open Mastercam after an install. To
participate, select the Yes option and click OK.
You can change your status at any time. To change your participation settings, select
Customer Feedback Program from the Help menu.
The name of the function you called and how you accessed it (toolbar button,
hot keys, menu)
CNC combines the data gathered from Mastercam Customer Feedback Program
participants to answer the following types of questions:
Which Mastercam functions are used the most, and which are used the least?
Which file translators are used, and how often?
Which C-Hooks are used and how often?
Which commands are used sequentially or in conjunction with each other?
Note: The lists above are not comprehensive. These are examples of the types of data
CNC collects.
If you are running the Mastercam Customer Feedback Program, an icon (shown below)
displays in your Windows program tray in the bottom right corner of your computer
screen.
Notes:
Participating in this program does not impact your processing time or computer
performance.
If you are running the Mastercam Customer Feedback Program, the tool
automatically closes when you exit Mastercam.
The data gathered by this program is sent to CNC when you exit Mastercam, or
after a specific number of transactions.
If you do not have an Internet connection, the data is saved to your local drive.
The next time you start Mastercam, the program attempts to send the data. If the
data cannot be sent over a period of five days, it is automatically purged from
your system.
You can turn your participation settings on and off at any time during a
Mastercam session.
6 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
General System Enhancements
Installation Location Changes
To be more compatible with Microsoft guidelines and security measures, the default
installation directory for Mastercam is now C:\Program Files\mcamx5 for 32-bit
operating systems and C:\Program Files (x86)\mcamx5 for 64-bit operating
systems. This change requires that user-modifiable data be relocated from the
installation location to two different locations, depending on whether the data is user-
specific or shared.
The POWER, Post, NC, and NCI file extensions are unaffected.
8 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
The Art Design Library is only installed if you select the Art Sample Files during
installation.
Note: You must have a licensed copy of Mastercam Art to modify or create Art
surfaces and operations. If you do not have Art installed, you can still import, view,
and machine Art models.
GENERAL SYSTEM ENHANCEMENTS 9
The Dynamic Planes dialog box has also been enhanced. Within the dialog box, you
can now name the view you created using the interactive gnomon, assign a work offset
code, and automatically align the Work Coordinate System (WCS) to your new view.
6 The next step is to reposition the view origin. Click once on the ball that
represents the gnomons origin and then drag it to the left end of the front
edge of the part.
GENERAL SYSTEM ENHANCEMENTS 11
12 The icon indicating which view is the current WCS has moved to the new view.
Click OK to close the View Manager.
GENERAL SYSTEM ENHANCEMENTS 13
Spin Controls
Spin controls have been added to geometry creation and Xform functions to make it
easier to enter values. Click on a spin control to incrementally increase or decrease a
parameter value. Set spin control increments from the Spin Control property page in
the System Configuration dialog box.
In addition, when you roll the mouse over the Only button, a tooltip lists your masking
selections. You no longer have to open the Only dialog box to see your settings.
Resizing Dialogs
This additional functionality has been applied to many Mastercam dialog boxes and
improves their usability. Resizable dialogs have a gripper at the lower right corner of the
dialog box.
Toolbar Highlight
When you activate a toolbar (either using the Toolbar States dialog or the right-click
Toolbars menu), the system momentarily highlights the new toolbar by displaying a
flashing rectangle around the toolbar.
reduce part size and complexity, this option is now off by default. To turn this option
on, choose Settings, Configuration from the Mastercam menu, and select the Edge
curves check box on the Converters page.
Note: You can turn this option on or off for individual files using the Options
button in the File Open dialog box.
The selected areas now display with an orange face color applied over the
green solid color.
13 Click on Drill holes 1 through 8 in the Solids Manager. The part display
updates as you click on each feature.
14 Click End Selection in the General Selection ribbon bar to complete the
feature selection.
1 From the Mastercam menu, choose Machine Type, Mill, Default to select the
default mill machine definition.
2 Choose Toolpaths, Surface High Speed to create a new surface toolpath.
Note: Mastercam may display two prompts - one regarding Advanced 3D Toolpath
Refinement and one to set the NC file name for your toolpath. Click OK on both
dialogs to proceed.
20 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
3 Click Activate solid selection on the General Selection ribbon bar to pick
solids for the toolpath.
6 Select color 138 and click OK. Both of the orange solid areas are selected.
DESIGN ENHANCEMENTS 21
7 Click End Selection in the General Selection ribbon bar to complete the
feature selection.
8 Click OK on the Toolpath/surface selection dialog box to confirm the surfaces
you want to machine.
9 (Optional) Complete the surface toolpath by selecting a tool and entering the
toolpath parameters.
Solid Patterns
In Mastercam X5, you can create a pattern of solid features by selecting source
geometry and producing multiple copies of it on a part in a grid (rectangular pattern)
or around a center point (circular pattern). You can also click in the graphics window to
place copies (manual pattern).
8 In the Parameters group box, increase the number of instances to 7 and select
the Full circle check box. The part dynamically updates as you change the
number.
10 Click Regen all in the Solid Manager. The original boss and all the copies from
the circular pattern are updated.
11 Press [F1] and zoom in on any of the bosses to inspect the changes.
DESIGN ENHANCEMENTS 25
The part displays with color coding to indicate different draft angle
conditions.
Remainder (what
is not marked by
another color)
Horizontal
Positive angle
less than 3 Vertical
degrees
7 Type 1.0 for the Positive angle less than field and press [Enter].
The vertical area reduces based on the tighter criteria.
The part displays with color coding to indicate different types of curves.
Remainder (what
is not marked by
another color)
11 Type 1.0 for the Radius less than field and press [Enter].
12 Select the Display only internal radii check box. This option shades all fillets
that are internal from the perspective of the reference plane and less than the
value entered in the Radius less than setting.
13 Deselect the Flat check box to make it easier to see the internal curves.
14 Change the Remainder color to 159 by entering the number or by selecting it
from the Color dialog box.
DESIGN ENHANCEMENTS 29
15 Press [F1] and draw a zoom window around the area shown in the following
picture.
The red areas show where material could be left behind when your toolpath
uses a tool with a corner radius larger than the internal, or concave, radii in
your part geometry.
Notes:
You can also type # and a drill number from 1-97, or type # and a drill letter
from A-Z in a calculable field to automatically enter the correct diameter
(English units only).
You can choose Solid hole diameter from the right-click menu to have
Mastercam return the diameter of a selected solid hole.
Select Create, Bolt Circle from the Mastercam menu to access the function.
34 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
General Mill Enhancements
New Tool Library Format
Mastercam X5 supports two different tool library database formats. Tool libraries with
the .TOOLS-5 extension use the traditional Mastercam proprietary database format.
This is the same file format used in prior versions and continues to be the native file
format for MCX-5 files. Libraries with a .TOOLDB extension will use a new SQL-style
database format.
The new TOOLDB database format not only supports libraries of tools, but also has the
ability to store materials, tool holders, tool assemblies and cutting parameters. This
new format makes it easier for tool manufacturers and other third-party developers to
interface with Mastercam. This new database is just the first step in an effort to improve
tool support in Mastercam.
Tool Assemblies
Associating a tool with a holder is now possible in Mastercam X5. Prior to this
modification, if you assigned a holder to a tool in an operation and recalled that tool
later, the holder would be lost and have to be reconfigured for each subsequent
operation. Also, if you changed the holder, you would have to remember to go back and
change every operation that referenced it individually.
Once a holder is added to a tool, the resulting tool assembly can be used in subsequent
operations without further user interaction beyond normal tool selection. The only
interaction change occurs when you need to modify a holder and the tool assembly is
referenced in more than one operation. When this happens, the following dialog box
displays:
If you select the Iscar HEM check box on the Tool page, you can set the HEM factor to
maximize speed and efficiency by entering a value or by using the slider bar. The feed
rate and spindle speed are automatically set based on this value.
In addition, the Stepover field on the Cut Parameters page changes to a drop-down
list. You can only select a 5%, 7%, or 10% stepover.
TIP: Similar controls are available on the Simulation tab for the Fixture setting.
For example, you can move all your fixture geometry to a specific level and turn
the display on or off.
11 When the simulation ends, move the slider on the progress bar at the bottom
of the screen back to the beginning of the toolpath.
12 Click Machine focus to display the
machine and the workpiece again.
Unselect - unselects the last drill point you selected. You can click it more
than once to remove drill points one at a time.
Unselect all - unselects all points you selected during the current drill point
selection function. This does not exit you from the point selection function,
but allows you to start your selection over. Choose Yes to unselect all selected
points or No, which cancels your unselect request.
When you use the single point selection mode (default), the Unselect and Unselect all
buttons only become active when you choose the points to unselect and press the [Esc]
key as prompted. These buttons may become active upon other actions that complete
the single selection method, such as clicking another button in the Drill Point Selection
dialog box.
If you access an existing drill toolpath in the Drill Point Manager to add more points,
the Unselect and Unselect all buttons:
Only work on new points. Those already included in the toolpath are not
affected.
Are inactive until you add points that can be unselected.
Become inactive again once all newly added points have been unselected.
GENERAL MILL ENHANCEMENTS 43
You can now define default templates for all ActiveReports reports on the
Reports property page in the System Configuration dialog box.
44 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Note: Mastercam applies the setup sheet default defined in this dialog box if there is
no template defined in the Control Definition Manager (Files page).
Customize General Information for a setup sheet from the Setup Sheet dialog
box. You can change the order of existing labels or create new ones.
Add custom XML tags for additional user-defined information. Edit the
template with the ActiveReports Designer to call on the custom tags. When
creating a setup sheet, you can enter the information in the Additional
Parameters dialog box.
GENERAL MILL ENHANCEMENTS 45
A new XML data source enhances access to operation, tool, and offset
information.
New tags have been added to the XML data source. For more information on
these new tags, please see Mastercam Help.
A new set of subreports for Manual Entry Operations is included with the
default templates.
Note: Manual entry operations are not included in the sample files.
46 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
These feeds and speeds values do not change until you re-enter them or choose the
Re-initialize speeds & feeds option from the Tools page right-click menu.
Note: This functionality is now also available for Lathe. In Lathe, the affected fields
are on the Toolpath Parameters page and include Feed Rate, Plunge Feed Rate,
Spindle Speed, and Finish Spindle Speed. For more information about other Lathe
enhancements in Mastercam X5, see Lathe Enhancements on page 105.
Mill/Router tree-style toolpaths. These parameters are now located in the Corner
rounding group box (previously the Smoothing group box).
48 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Mill Level 1 Enhancements
New 2D HST Toolpaths
The original Dynamic Mill toolpath is now split into two application-specific
toolpaths: Dynamic Area Mill and Dynamic Core Mill. Mastercam X5 also adds two new
dynamic milling toolpaths to the 2D high speed toolpath group: Dynamic Rest Mill and
Dynamic Contour.
To access the dynamic milling toolpaths, choose Toolpaths, 2D High Speed from the
Mastercam menu. After selecting the entities to machine, choose one of the dynamic
milling toolpaths from the Toolpath Type list.
4 Select the green chain on the floor of the pocket in the upper right corner as
the toolpath chain.
7 On the Tool page, click the Select library tool button and select the 12mm flat
endmill from the tool library.
8 Click OK on the Tool Selection dialog box to return to the toolpath parameters.
9 On the Cut Parameters page, make the following adjustments:
Set the Toolpath radius to 10% to reduce sharp corner motion between the
cut passes. This parameter controls the size of the arc on and off each pass.
52 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Set the Micro lift distance to 0.5mm. This is the distance the tool lifts off
the part on back moves to help clear chips and minimize excessive tool
heating.
Set the Stock to leave on walls and Stock to leave on floors to 0.5mm to
leave material for a future finish toolpath.
10 On the Depth Cuts page, deselect the Depth cuts check box to turn this option
off.
11 On the Entry Motion page, make the following changes:
Enter 5.0mm for the Helix radius to control the size of the entry helix.
Enter 0.5mm for the Z clearance to add some extra height before the entry
moves.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 53
Enter 10.0 for the Plunge angle to set the angle of descent and pitch for the
entry move.
12 On the Linking Parameters page, enter 40.0 for the retract height to make sure
you have enough clearance between pockets.
54 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
13 On the Arc Filter/Tolerance page, set the Filter ratio to 3:1. This sets the ratio
of the filter tolerance to the cut tolerance, both of which add up to the total
tolerance. For more information on filters and tolerances in Mastercam, see
Mastercam Help.
TIP: If you copy this toolpath to the other two closed pockets and rechain, the
toolpath automatically adjusts to each new boundary shape.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 55
4 Select the purple edge around the top of the part as the second chain.
5 Click OK on the Chaining dialog box to complete the chain.
56 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
7 Mastercam remembers all the other settings you made for the area mill
toolpath, so you do not have to re-enter them. Click OK to complete the
toolpath.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 57
In addition, the existing Rest Mill and the new Dynamic Rest Mill toolpaths include a
new Rest Material page, expanding your ability to specify the targeted rest material.
Dynamic Contour
New in Mastercam X5, Dynamic Contour - also based on the dynamic milling
algorithm - uses an intelligent, efficient high speed contouring strategy to remove
material along walls. The Dynamic Contour toolpath supports multiple passes and can
optionally include finishing passes.
4 Select the top orange curve as the toolpath chain. Make sure that your chain
points in a clockwise direction.
7 On the Tool page, click the Select library tool button and select the 6mm flat
endmill from the tool library.
8 Click OK on the Tool Selection dialog box to return to the toolpath parameters.
9 On the Cut Parameters page, make the following adjustments:
Set the Stepover to 1.0mm to control the distance between cutting passes
in the X and Y axes.
Set the Toolpath radius to 10% reduce sharp corner motion between the
cut passes. This parameter controls the size of the arc on and off each pass.
For the Gap size parameter, select Distance and enter 200.0mm. If the
distance from the end of one pass to the start of the next pass is less than
this distance, Mastercam does not create a retract move as defined on the
Linking parameters page.
Set the Micro lift distance to 0.5mm. This is the distance the tool lifts off
the part on back moves to help clear chips and minimize excessive tool
heating.
For the Motion>Gap size, retract parameter, select When exceeding a
distance from the drop-down list. This option adds retracts when the next
cut pass begins at a distance that is greater than the gap size.
Set the Stock to leave on floors to 0.5mm to leave material for a future
finish toolpath.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 61
11 On the Depth Cuts page, deselect the Depth cuts check box to turn this option
off.
12 On the Linking Parameters page, enter -9.525 for the depth.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 63
14 Press [F1] and draw a zoom window around the toolpath on the right side of
the part to see it in closer detail. The consistent tool motion ensures you do
not overload your tool when machining just the walls of the part.
64 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
You can also turn on Island facing independent of Depth cut settings. When activated,
Mastercam faces the top of all islands selected for the toolpath at their defined depth.
Facing quickly cleans the stock from the top of the islands, qualifies them, and creates
an even surface for future operations. After each depth cut is made, the islands
between the last depth cut and the current depth cut are faced. Mastercam orders the
islands from lowest to highest to ensure the most efficient material removal.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 65
New high speed transitions also reduce tool motion outside the cutting passes.
1 Delta - an incremental move of the source operation from its current position.
Works the same as Rectangular, except that you specify delta XYZ coordinates
instead of X and Y distances.
2 Instances - determines the number of copies Mastercam creates and the
spacing between these copies. These options are the same as geometry
transform.
Note: The Copy source operations option on the Type and Methods page affects
the total numbers of instances created.
Reverse order - maintains the same start point for the mirror transform
toolpath as the source toolpath but reverses the order of the mirror transform
toolpath's geometric entities, including chain direction, point order, and, for
surface toolpaths, selection order. This also reverses cut direction and cutter
compensation settings in the mirror transformed operation.
Deselect to apply the same cut direction and cutter compensation settings
from the source toolpath to the mirror transformed operation. You can choose
whether to maintain the same start point, or maintain the same start entity for
the mirror transform toolpath as the source toolpath.
Maintain start point - makes the mirrored transform operation use the same
start point as the source operation. The cutting direction may differ however,
based on whether you also selected Reverse order. In the following examples,
the source operation displays on the left, and the mirrored transform
operation on the right.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 71
Note: If you select the Reverse order check box, Mastercam automatically chooses
the Maintain start point option.
The following picture shows the cutting direction that results when you mirror
a source contour operation configured with a clockwise cut direction and
choose to Reverse order and Maintain start point for the mirrored transform
operation.
The following picture shows the results when you deselect Reverse order and
select Maintain start point:
Mastercam maintains the source operation's start point and the clockwise
cutting direction in the mirror transform operation. However, the first entity
in the chained geometry changes accordingly.
Maintain start entity - available only when Reverse order is deselected.
Choose this option when you want the mirrored transform operation to use
the same entity in the chained geometry as the source operation and the same
cutting direction.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 73
The following picture shows the results of choosing this option Mastercam
changes the start point of the mirrored operation to maintain the start entity.
FBM Mill
Drafted Wall Machining
FBM Mill now recognizes and cuts tapered walls when you select the Recognize
tapered features check box on the Setup page.
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 75
On the Finish tools page, you can match the wall draft angle on finish passes using a
tapered tool.
76 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
You can also specify a stepdown value for tapered walls on the Roughing, Restmill, and
Wall finish pages.
FBM Drill
Note: For information about FBM Drill changes in Mastercam Router, see Block
Drill Support in FBM Drill on page 101.
When your active machine definition is configured with a rotary axis, you can select
this check box, then use the dropdown to define the axis of rotation. When the Machine
Definition option is selected (default), Mastercam generates tool planes based on the
MILL LEVEL 1 ENHANCEMENTS 79
machine definition's rotary axis configuration. You can override this assignment by
selecting another axis of rotation.
80 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
OptiRough
The new 3D surface high speed OptiRough toolpath supports cutters capable of
machining very large depths of cut. It uses an aggressive, fast, intelligent roughing
algorithm based on Mastercams 2D high speed dynamic milling motion. Access this
new toolpath by choosing Toolpaths, Surface High Speed. After selecting the surfaces
to machine, choose Roughing as the Toolpath Type, and then select OptiRough.
A single OptiRough toolpath can cut material in two directions: on step downs (-Z) and
step ups (+Z). This highly efficient bi-directional cutting strategy removes the
maximum amount of material with the minimum of step downs, significantly reducing
cycle times.
82 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
As step downs are calculated, the dynamic roughing motion clears the material in the
-Z direction, avoiding any islands. The numbers in the following picture indicate the
cut order.
If you activate step up cuts in the toolpaths Cut Parameters, Mastercam calculates
additional slices in the +Z direction to remove any material left behind between the
step downs - for example, islands or large scallops on angled walls.The step up cuts use
a 2D high speed dynamic rest motion to clear leftover material. Step up cuts are
ordered between step downs.
TIP: Because step up cutting is optional, you can use this toolpath for aggressive
roughing without calculating the rest portion of the toolpath, which can be time-
intensive.
MILL LEVEL 3 ENHANCEMENTS 83
Hybrid Finish
Hybrid machining is the latest addition to the list of finishing toolpaths and is designed
to address both steep and shallow regions of your models. This powerful toolpath
benefits from newly developed technology comparable to Waterline and Scallop
motion. Access this new toolpath by choosing Toolpaths, Surface High Speed. After
selecting the surfaces to machine, choose Finishing as the Toolpath Type, and then
select Hybrid.
Hybrid finish supports a user-defined limiting angle to distinguish the steep regions
from the shallow regions, and also includes a separate steep stepdown and shallow
stepover.
The Steep stepdown value in this section defines the constant Z distance between
adjacent stepdowns. Mastercam uses these stepdowns in combination with the
Limiting angle and Shallow stepover to calculate cut passes for the hybrid toolpath.
Mastercam first slices the entire model into sections defined by the Steep stepdown
distance. It then analyzes the drive surface's slope transition between each stepdown
along the specified Limiting angle.
84 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Note: If a combination of steep and shallow areas exist within a single stepdown,
the entire stepdown is considered shallow
Hybrid machining generates the steep and shallow motion in one seamless toolpath,
maintaining a logical cutting order based on a top-down approach.
MILL LEVEL 3 ENHANCEMENTS 85
Existing 3D HST linking is used to ensure all entry, exit, and transition motion is
smooth and free-flowing.
These new toolpaths support surface, solid and STL input. The strategies are very
similar to Mastercams 3-axis strategies, including roughing, parallel finishing, constant
Z finishing, constant cusp (similar to scallop machining), flat, pencil, and projection
machining.
MILL LEVEL 3 ENHANCEMENTS 87
What makes these toolpaths different is that they benefit from multiaxis options such
as tool axis control, collision checking, and linking. For example, they can be locked to
3 axis output while still supporting undercut machining with lollipop cutters.
88 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
The Toolpath Type page has been organized to make it easier to access the
desired toolpath.
The classic Mastercam toolpaths are located under the Classic button.
Multiaxis toolpaths that machine wireframe geometry are grouped
together under the Wireframe button.
If you need to mill or drill holes, select toolpaths from the Drill/Circle Mill
button.
5 Select the Msurf toolpath type from the Classic toolpath family.
5 Select the 12mm ball endmill and click OK to return to the toolpath
parameters.
TIP: The green check mark next to the Tool page in the tree control indicates
that you made changes on this page.
Note: For more information about tool assemblies in Mastercam X5, see Tool
Assemblies on page 35.
Enter 5.0mm for the Along stepover to limit tool motion. The value
specified is the distance between generated vectors along the selected
geometry.
Notice that as you select different options, the images on the right update to
give you a clearer picture of what each parameter does.
3 The Sphere Options dialog box establish the dimensions and location of the
sphere used as the cut pattern for the toolpath. Enter the sphere dimensions
shown on the following picture and click OK.
8 On the Collision Control page, enter 1.5mm for the Stock to leave for
compensation surfaces.
15 On the Home/Ref. Points page (under the Linking page), enter 250.0 for the X,
Y, and Z home position values.
You can watch the entire toolpath as it might appear on a machine tool.
If the active machine definition contains one or more block drills, the FBM Drill Tools
page displays a Machine Definition group box and Use Block Drill check box.
When Use Block Drill is selected (default), Mastercam adds the block drill to the tools it
selects for the FBM Drill-generated drill cycles.
102 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
You can create new operations from the Strategy Explorer. Choose File, New
Operation and select an operation from the submenu, or click the Add a new
operation button and choose an operation from the drop-down menu.
Three new options have been added in the Options dialog box for cutlist
configurations:
Filter level 0
Combine views
Ignore blanked levels option - also applies to Single Part Processing.
104 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Note: The first time you select the Plunge Turn toolpath during a Mastercam
session, you may see the following message reminding you that only specific tools
are appropriate for this toolpath:
To disable this message, select Dont display this message again and click OK.
106 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
4 Select Chain in the Grooving Options dialog box and click OK to define the
groove.
5 Select the chain shown in the following picture. The green arrow indicates the
start of the chain and the red arrow indicates the end of the chain.
Note: The selection color was changed from yellow to blue to make the chain easier
to see. To change the selection color, choose Settings, Configuration from the
Mastercam menu and use the options on the Colors tab.
7 On the Toolpath parameters tab, select T0202 from the library as the tool for
the toolpath.
8 On the Plunge turn shape parameters tab, make sure Use stock for outer
boundary is selected. This option is required for the Plunge Turn toolpath.
9 On the Plunge turn rough parameters tab, set the following options:
Set the Stock to leave in X and Stock to leave in Z to 0.5mm to leave
material for a future finish toolpath.
108 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Set the Depth of cut to 3.0mm, which equals 60% of the tool width. This
percentage is the maximum cut depth recommended by ISCAR for their
tools in this toolpath.
TIP: If you enter a cut depth larger than 60% of the tool width, Mastercam
displays a warning.
In the Wide step cleanup group box, select the Cleanup steps check box
and enter 60% for the Maximum width. This option removes steps that are
too large to remove on a finish cut. Such large steps can remain when the
wall is angled. The toolpath adds one or more passes if the extra width is
more than the specified maximum percent of tool width.
10 On the Plunge turn finish parameters tab, select Negative in the Prevent
hanging ring group box. A hanging ring occurs when the tool pushes off,
rather than cuts, a small piece of material from the edge of the cut. With this
option enabled, the toolpath includes plunge moves in the negative direction
LATHE ENHANCEMENTS 109
(which matches the cut direction) to remove this extra material without
manual intervention.
110 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
14 Click Play on the backplot VCR bar to run the backplot. Notice the extra steps
added to handle the wide areas and the additional plunge moves to prevent
hanging ring burrs.
5 On the Toolpath parameters tab, make sure the T0202 tool is still selected and
click Tool Angle.
6 Enter -45 for the tool angle to rotate the tool to match the groove geometry.
11 On the Plunge turn finish parameters tab, notice the Tool deflection backoff
parameter. This parameter accommodates the unique ISCAR Groove/Turn
inserts which rock in the holder as they travel across material in either
direction. This value accounts for the tool deflection.
114 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
13 Select the second plunge turn toolpath in the Operations Manager and click
Backplot to review the toolpath motion.
14 Click Play on the backplot VCR bar to run the backplot.
In addition, on the Stock Update Parameters dialog box, you can now keep both pieces
of stock after the cutoff operation. You can access this dialog box by clicking the Stock
Update button on the Toolpath parameters tab.
LATHE ENHANCEMENTS 117
Exit Amount
Rough turn strategies can now accommodate for open space at the end of a toolpath.
The Exit amount parameter extends the cut beyond the stock by the specified amount.
Note: If you want to revert to the tool compensation available prior to X5, access the
Mastercam applet by choosing Start, Programs, Mastercam X5, MCAMX Control
Panel Applet. The options to change the lathe cutter compensation are on the
Toolpath support page.
parameters or custom tool. Collision checking is not done with the 3D model. It
continues to check for collisions as it previously did.
Choose Create, Turn Profile from the Mastercam menu to access this function.
Select Use solid properties to use Parasolids to directly compute the turned profile.
This method quickly generates accurate line/arc geometry in most cases. If the
Parasolid function fails, the polygon mesh method is used. This check box is only
enabled if Spin is selected and you have not selected any surfaces.
124 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Wire Enhancements
New Power Library Format
In addition to Mastercam Wire's current POWER libraries, Mastercam X5 adds TECH
power libraries. These new database files make it easier than ever to select the correct
power settings based on your machining needs. A TECH library is machine control
specific. For example, when you load an EDM machine definition such as the
Mitsubishi or Makino supplied with Mastercam X5, it loads the control-specific TECH-
based library. You can see this in the following two control definition areas:
126 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
When you are creating a wirepath using a TECH-based machine/control definition, the
power library settings can be accessed through the Wire/Power page of the wirepath
dialog boxes.
Notes:
TECH power libraries are not associated to wirepaths. When first creating a
wirepath, Mastercam Wire reads the power settings from the library, but allows
them to be changed for the current operation. When editing the wirepath,
Mastercam Wire retains the power settings that you set.
All wirepaths based on the TECH power libraries have up to 9 passes, except for
tapered contour wirepaths with a land, which can have up to 18 passes; 9 for the
primary cut, and 9 for the tapered cut.
WIRE ENHANCEMENTS 127
Default TECH power library settings can be modified per operation by clicking
the Tech buttons on the Wire/Power page to get to the Technology Database
dialog box.
128 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Art Enhancements
New Art Toolpaths
Mastercam X5 includes four new Art toolpaths. All of these toolpaths restrict the
toolpath to a closed geometry chain and support nested chains. Additionally, the new
spiral toolpaths can cut from the inside out or from the outside in. They are especially
useful to the coining, engraving, and paper embossing industries.
From the Art menu, select Export Active Art Base Surface and save the Art Base
Surface to one of the following graphic formats:
BMP
JPG
TIFF
Post Enhancements
NCI Lines for Transform Custom Parameters
One of the new features in Mastercam X5 is the ability to define custom parameters for
transform operations. You can define up to four integer parameters and four real
(decimal) parameters.
These values work in much the same way as other custom parameters for drill
operations and miscellaneous operations. The following sections describe how to take
advantage of this feature.
132 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
The new predefined variables retain their values until the next 1031/1032 is output.
This means that the post writer needs to reset them between transform operations.
Note: The Mastercam generic posts do not contain any default implementation of
the new postblocks. Post writers who want to use this feature in X5 need to declare
and initialize the new postblocks from scratch.
134 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
When you select this option, clmp_op$ is set to 3. This value is output as the second
parameter on the 903 NCI line.
POST ENHANCEMENTS 135
This value is output on a new 20800 NCI line and is available to your post.
This new NCI line is output for Mill, Lathe, and Router toolpaths, except for Lathe misc
ops. It is output for tool changes and for null tool changes where the operation
changes. It is output following the 20009 line for mill tool changes, and the 20112 line
for lathe tool changes. If the operation is not a multiaxis operation, the value is zero.
136 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Like the Agievision interface, the control definitions for the TECH machines are keyed
to the Machine model selected on the Control Model page. Unless you select either
Mitsubishi or Makino, Mastercam does not enable the new features
Note: For the Makino and Mitsubishi machines, the Control version option is
disabled. This option is always output as 0 on the 22002 line.
Technology Database dialog box is read from the XML data in the .TECH file; not all of it
is visible in the dialog box.
Use the picture on the previous page, the following picture, and the table below as a
guide to the NCI output. See the online help for Mastercam X5 to learn to use the
different options when programming Mastercam.
Note: Not all parts will have different values for maximum
and minimum thickness. In these cases, a single thickness
value will be output in both places.
Note: The Makino and Mitsubishi machine definitions supplied with Mastercam
X5 include posts that already implement these features. If you use these machine
definitions and posts, you need no additional programming to support the new
libraries.
140 WHATS NEW IN MASTERCAM X5
Attention! Updates may be available.
Go to Mastercam.com/Support for the latest downloads.
X5-WhatsNew