PM22224

Mold Making Using PowerMill

Aaron Williford
Autodesk

Learning Objectives
• See how PowerMill can create Collision-free, reliable, cutter path
• Learn about Stock Model Management throughout the machining process
• See why non cutting segments being separate from cutting toolpath segments
makes PowerMill more flexible
• Learn about PowerMill’s powerful toolpath editing capabilities

Description
This class will give you the chance to experience firsthand the advanced toolpath control that
Autodesk, Inc.’s PowerMill software enable you to have as a user.

Your AU Expert(s)
I am a Technical Consulting Manager for North America, I currently look after all training and
support for North America for PowerMill, FeatureCAM, PartMaker, PowerShape, PowerInspect,
and ArtCAM. I joined Autodesk through the Delcam acquisition in 2014 having joined Delcam as
an Applications Engineer in 2012. I have a history that includes work in manufacturing as a
machinist, programmer, and a technical instructor, as well as a business management
background. My product expertise is FeatureCAM and PowerMill with practical experience
programing Aerospace and industrial application products for CNC machining.

Page 1
Creating Collision-free reliable toolpaths in PowerMill

General programming overview

PowerMill’s user interface is set up in a way that enhances the usability of it, making it an easy
to use CAM software. While it is easy to use, you will see that it is packed full of functionality to
ensure that you are able to program the most difficult parts easily.

Setting up for Machining

1. Import a solid or surface model

a. Select file Import Model

Or
b. Drag and drop a solid model into the PowerMill graphics window

2. The Main toolbar (on by default) contains a few key dialogs that we need to set
up before we can continue with toolpath creation.

We will work from left to right in the buttons highlighted in red

a. Block

Page 2
 i. Define the block and block size as the following image

b. Feeds and Speeds

i. This dialog allows you to set some initial feeds and speeds for this
project. If you are setting up feeds and speeds on a per tool basis
and saving those tools in your tool database, you can use the
feeds and speeds for that tool during the creation of toolpaths. As
such we will not enter any specific data into the Speeds and
Feeds Dialog
c. Rapid Move Heights
i. Set the parameters as shown, and enter a value of 6.0 in the
Normal dialog Z box (as shown). Select the Calculate button, then
apply, and Accept.

Page 3
d. Start and End Point – determines where your toolpaths will start and end.
Set as the following dialog

Page 4
e. Leads and links
i. Leads and links are how the toolpath enters the material, leaves
the material and how PowerMill links toolpath sections together.
Set the following, click Apply and Accept.

Page 5
Those are the only setting we are going to worry about for now as the rest of them are
advanced functionality that we will modify as we get further in.

Workplanes

Workplanes are a critical part of generating accurate NC code. While they are not
necessary for the creation of toolpaths, they do ensure that you are creating toolpath on
the part of the model that you want to work on. Take for instance the part that we have in
the graphics window now. We can see that the part has two sides, the side that is facing
us is simply used for chucking, or holding the part in a specialized 5 axis vise.

For the purpose of this demonstration, we will assume that we have already cut this side
and are just interested in cutting the contoured side (the back side). To do this, we will
need to create a workplane that defines +Z axis coming from that side. Follow these
steps:

1. In the PowerMill explorer, right click on Workplanes and select Create Workplane…

Page 6
2. This will create a workplane and load up the Workplane Editor.
Note the new dialog toolbar that showed up on the top of the graphics window.

Page 7
There are many tools in the Workplane Editor that can aid us in aligning the
workplane properly. We are going to use the option Swap Workplane Axis
highlighted below

a. Select the button Swap Workplane Axis

b. Select the Z axis as shown below

c. Select the X axis as show below

d. Press the green check on the Workplane Editor

e. Right click on the new workplane in the graphics window and select Activate

Page 8
Viewing Options

There are many viewing options available in PowerMill, I am going to hit on just a few of
the key model viewing options that are useful in PowerMill. Before you begin you will
need to ensure that you have the Viewing toolbar turned on, to do this:

1. Right mouse click in the empty grey space next to any existing toolbar

2. Ensure there is a check next to Viewing, if not select the option Viewing

Page 9
• Note: Alternatively, you can press Alt + V to toggle the Viewing toolbar

On the Viewing toolbar there is a Shading fly out. To activate the fly out, simply hover
your mouse over the visible icon

Page 10
The four options on the right side of the fly out are (from right to left):

• Plane Shade

Plane Shade allows you to simply shade the model

• Multicolor Shade

Multicolor shade will use the coloring that the modeler used in the
modeling software. This can be useful if the designer was trying to
highlight a certain area of the model, maybe like features. It can also be
useful in PowerMill because we can easily select all like colored surfaces.

• Minimum Radius Shade

Minimum Radius Shading will show all radii in Red that are below the
radius threshold that you set in the Model Drawing Options dialog which
can be accessed in the Draw Model menu.

• Draft Angle Shade

Draft Angle shading is a quick viewing tool that will allow you to see any
undercut areas on the model. This allows you to know the areas that you
cannot machine when working in a selected workplane before you begin

Page 11
 creating toolpath. Again the settings for Draft Angle Shade can be found
in the Draw Model menu.

• Shading can be toggled on and off by selecting the shading option that is already
selected or by pressing F3
• Wireframe view is another handy viewing option.
o This can be toggled on and off by selecting the Wireframe button on the
Viewing toolbar (just below the shading fly out) or by pressing F4
o Wireframe can be used in conjunction with or separate from shaded view

Toolpath Strategies
Now that we have set the part up for Machining, we are ready to proceed with creating
toolpath. We will break this section into three main topics, Roughing, Rest Roughing,
and Finishing.

Roughing
Roughing is the process or removing the bulk of the material. In most cases, we
try to remove it as quickly, safely, and efficiently as possible. The most common
roughing strategy across the machining industry is known as waterline roughing,
or z level roughing.

1. Open the Toolpath Strategies from the main toolbar

The dialog is broken into 7 main categories with the individual toolpath in each
category:
• 3D area Clearance – roughing
• Curve Machining
• Feature Machining – 2.5D machining
• Finishing
• Drilling and Drilling Methods – Hole Making
• Port, Blisk, and Rib – Specialized strategies
• Turning – for 5 axis mill turn machines

Page 12
2. Select 3D Area Clearance and Model Area Clearance
3. Select OK
4. In the toolpath form, name the toolpath Rough
5. Select the Tool tag in the Toolpath Explorer
6. Select the tool as shown below from the dropdown

Page 13
7. Select the Model Area clearance tag from the toolpath explorer
8. Fill it out as shown below

Page 14
9. Select Calculate

When PowerMill has finished calculating the toolpath it should look like this

Page 15
Rest Roughing
Now that the bulk of the material is off, we need to come in with a smaller tool to
remove the remaining rough stock and get our part closer to finished profile
before we apply a small finishing tool to the part surfaces.

1. Open the Toolpath Strategies from the main toolbar

2. Select 3D Area Clearance and Model Rest Area Clearance then select OK

3. Name the toolpath Rest Rough

4. Select the Tool tag in the Toolpath Explorer
5. Select the tool as shown below from the dropdown

Page 16
6. Select the Model rest area clearance tag from the toolpath explorer
7. Fill out the form as shown

Page 17
8. Select Rest from the toolpath explorer
9. From the dropdown shown, select the Rough toolpath
PowerMill uses this toolpath to learn where the rest material is, what material
was left behind by the roughing toolpath

Page 18
10. Fill the remaining sections out as shown

Page 19
11. Click Calculate

Page 20
Finishing
Finishing surfaces often requires the use of one or more toolpaths, in this
example we will use two finishing toolpaths, a flat finishing toolpath and a steep
and shallow finishing strategy

1. Open the Toolpath Strategies from the main toolbar

2. Select Finishing and Raster Flat Finishing then select OK

3. Name the toolpath Finish Flats

4. Fill out the dialog as shown, be sure to uncheck the Rest Machining option

Page 21
5. Click Calculate

6. Open the Toolpath Strategies from the main toolbar

7. Select Finishing and Steep and Shallow Finishing then select OK

Page 22
8. Name the toolpath Steep and Shallow
9. Select the 3/8 Ball Nose tool

10. Select Limit from the toolpath explorer

11. Select the boundary as shown, this will keep the tool from re-cutting the flat
area that we already machined with the tip radius tool in the previous toolpath

Page 23
12. Select Steep and shallow finishing from the toolpath explorer
13. Fill out the form as shown

Page 24
14. Click Calculate

Page 25
Safety of Toolpaths
PowerMill has a long standing history of making safe, reliable cutting toolpath. PowerMill is
always checking toolpaths for gouges. There are some safety status indicators in PowerMill that
you can use as a quick visual reference to ensure that your toolpaths are safe before you post
the code and take it to the machine. In addition, PowerMill has the ability to check toolpaths for
collisions with the shank of the tool, the tool holder, and even machine components.

Safety status of toolpaths

There are several visual safety status icons available in PowerMill. The visual check shows up
next to the toolpath and the NC program so you can insure that both your toolpaths and your
NC program are free of gouges and collisions before you send the program to the machine. The
status’ are as follows:

- toolpath is free of gouges but the status of collisions is unknown

- toolplath is free of gouges and collisions against the shank and holder
- NC program is free of gouges, collisions, and the machine tool has been checked for
collision
- collisions/ gouges found with the tool, shank, or holder

Always on gouge checking

PowerMill is always dynamically checking toolpaths for gouges, this can be seen by
doing something a bit off the wall that you would not normally do.

1. Activate the toolpath Rough that we created earlier

a. Right click on the toolpath name and select Activate

Page 26
2. Open the Rapid Move heights dialog that we learned about when we were preparing
for machining
3. Change the value 6.0 to -3.0 as shown below

4. Click Calculate and Apply. As soon as PowerMill calculates the new rapid move
height you will get this pop up telling you that you are gouging the part (with the
active toolpath).

5. In addition you will see that the safety status of the toolpath is updated to reflect the
new gouge.

Page 27
6. Select OK and set the value back to 6.0 and re-calculate and apply the setting to the
toolpath to remove the gouge.

Collision checking toolpaths

You can easily collision check your toolpath in PowerMill before you generate NC code
and send the program out to the machine. To collision check a toolpath:

1. Select the Toolpath Verification icon on the Main Toolbar

2. Fill out the form as shown, click Apply

Page 28
3. PowerMill will pop up with one of two messages that either tell you that the toolpath
is free of collisions or that there are collisions and if those collision involve just cutting
moves, non-cutting moves, or both

Page 29
4. You can also check you full NC program for collisions and gouges
a. Right click on the NC program Safety from the PowerMill explorer and select
Activate

b. Select the NC Program Verification icon from the Main toolbar

c. Fill out the dialog as shown

Page 30
 d. Select Verify
e. Any issues will be populated in the box and the safety status of the NC
program will be updated.

Verifying programs with a machine model during simulation

In addition to all of the Automated checking methods mentioned above, you can also
simulate the NC program or individual toolpaths with the Machine tool Model visible to
see if/where you have any collisions.

Page 31
1. Expand Machine Tools in the PowerMill explorer
2. double click on the machine icon just to the left of the machine tool name
Mikron_HPM800U to activate and draw it in the graphics window.

3. Right click on the NC program name Safety and select Simulate from Start

4. Turn on the Simulation Toolbar by right clicking in the empty grey space next to the
main toolbar and selecting Simulation

Page 32
5. Select the icon Display the Simulation Issue and press the light bulb icon to always
draw the tool when simulation is playing

6. Check the box Check for collisions and ensure the box is check for Check the tool
and holder fill out the clearance as you desire.

Page 33
 7. Press the Play button. As the simulation plays, any issues will populate in the
window

Stock Model Management

Knowing what stock you have removed and where you have stock remaining to remove is a key
part of Stock Model Management. Another part of Stock Model Management is being able to
use the data to create more accurate rest roughing toolpaths so that you can remove material
only where there is material to be removed. PowerMill makes use of Stock Models for stock

Page 34
model management and does so in a simple easy to use way. In addition, PowerMill allows you
to view the Stock Model in useful ways, to help you determine if you have any additional
material to remove.

Creating Stock Models

Creating Stock Models is Easy in PowerMill:

1. Right Click on Stock Models in the PowerMill explorer

2. Select Create Stock Model

3. Name the Stock Model SM1

4. Set the tolerance to .001, the Stepover to .05, and the Rest thickness to 0.0 as
shown, then press Accept

5. Expand Stock Models in the PowerMill Explorer

Page 35
6. Drag the toolpath Rough into the stock model SM1
7. Right Click on SM1 and select Calculate

8. PowerMill automatically added the Block to the Stock Model and will calculate the
stock model

Using Stock Models for better and more accurate rest roughing
The ability to use a stock model as a reference for a rest roughing toolpath greatly
enhances the effectiveness of the toolpath and reduces air cutting over traditional rest
roughing techniques.

1. Activate the Rest Rough toolpath that we created earlier

2. Right Click on the toolpath and select Settings

Page 36
 a. If you wish to modify the existing toolpath press the Recycle button at
the top of the toolpath dialog
b. If you wish to clone this toolpath to create a toolpath with the exact same

setting and modify it press the DNA icon at the top of the toolpath dialog
3. Select Rest from the toolpath explorer
4. Fill out the dialog as shown

5. Press Calculate
PowerMill will use the stock model to determine where there is material remaining to
remove thicker than .05 and expand the toolpath by .1 to ensure we overlap into an area
that there is material remaining of .05 or less

Page 37
Viewing options for stock models
There are several viewing options available for viewing Stock Models in PowerMill. To
Access these viewing options:

• Ensure that the light bulb is illuminated next to the Stock Model, if it is not simply
click on the light bulb to turn it on

• Right Click on the Stock Model and hover over Drawing Options

Page 38
• Select Shaded
PowerMill will shade the Stock Model giving you a clearer three dimensional idea of
the current stock state

• Showing Rest material will show you material that you still have remaining
• Showing removed material will show you material that you have already taken off
• Stock Models in PowerMill can be exported for use in other PowerMill projects

Page 39
Flexibility of having non-cutting and cutting segments of toolpath separate
(Leads and Links)

Why have leads and links separate

Having leads and links (non-cutting portions of the toolpath) separate from cutting portions of
the toolpath allows PowerMill to necessitate calculating the toolpath only once. Once the
toolpath is calculate, if you wish to change the way the toolpath engages or disengages the
material you can do so without the need to re-calculate the toolpath, speeding up your
programing time while giving you the flexibility needed.

Having toolpath linking moves separate from the cutting, lead ins, and lead outs of the toolpath
makes PowerMill all that much more flexible. We will discuss some of this flexibility in the next
section Toolpath Editing.

Setting default lead and link behavior

The default lead and links for the project can be set by:

1. With no toolpath active, select the Leads and links icon on the main toolbar

2. Select the appropriate tab and choose the desired default behavior
Note: if you have a toolpath active, you will change the settings for that toolpath,
not for the project

Modifying leads and links in non-calculated toolpath

1. Right click on the Rough toolpath in the PowerMill Explorer and select Activate
2. Right click again on the Rough toolpath and select Settings

3. Select the Recycle Icon

4. Expand Leads and Links in the toolpath explorer

Page 40
5. Select Lead In
6. Change the 1st choice to None as shown

Page 41
7. Press Calculate
8. You will get a warning, Press OK

Modifying leads and links in calculated toolpath

Page 42
1. Right click on the toolpath Steep and Shallow in the PowerMill explorer and
select Activate.
2. Examining the toolpath shows that the blue segments are lead-ins and lead-outs.
We can see that the method of Ramp on this finishing toolpath is not the best
approach.

3. Select the Leads and links button again from the Main toolbar

4. Select the Lead ins tab and fill it out as shown

Page 43
5. Click the option Make the lead outs the same as the lead ins

Page 44
6. Click Apply and Accept
The lead ins, lead outs, and link moves will be updated, but PowerMill will not re-
calculate the toolpath.

Page 45
Toolpath Editing

How to edit toolpaths

Toolpath editing is one of the most powerful tools in PowerMill, it is one of the features that truly
separates PowerMill from other CAM systems. In most CAM systems, you get about 90% of
your desired toolpath quickly and easily, but getting that last 10% can often times be very time
consuming. In some cases it might be ideal just to remove that 10% you do not like and use a
different toolpath altogether to finish those sections not finished by the 90%. PowerMill gives
you this ability. We will look at several ways that you can manipulate toolpath both pre and post
calculation. Technically, toolpath editing is done post calculation and done without the need to
re-calculate the toolpath.

Toolpath editing is made possible by the flexibility of having the cutting and non-cutting
segments of toolpath separate from one another.

Limit pre-calculated toolpaths

We have already created a toolpath using a boundary pre-calculation, but we will run
through the process of creating the boundary and using.

1. Creating the Boundary

a. Deactivate all active toolpaths (if you have one) by right clicking on the
toolpath and selecting Activate
b. Change your shading to multi color shade (shown previously)
c. Hold down the Ctrl + Alt keys and at the same time left click on one of the
amber colored surfaces
d. Holding the Shift key, select the two green surfaces that are among the
amber colored ones

Page 46
e. Right Click on Boundaries in the PowerMill explorer
f. Hover over Create Boundary and select Selected Surface

g. Fill in the Dialog as shown

h. Click Apply and Accept once the boundary is calculated

Page 47
i. Open Toolpath Strategies from the Main toolbar
j. Select Finishing and Steep and Shallow Finishing

k. Select OK
l. Name the toolpath Steep and Shallow 2
m. Select Limit from the toolpath explorer
Limit section is used for any type of limit.
• You can limit the toolpath to a boundary and keep it either inside or
outside
• You define how you want the toolpath to interact with the Block either
allowing the tool completely outside of the block limits or constraining it to
just the center of the tool
• You can set upper and lower limits for the toolpath using Z limits

Page 48
n. In this case we are going to limit the toolpath using a boundary. In the
Boundary dropdown, select the boundary we just created Selected-
_srf_boundary
o. Click Calculate then OK once the toolpath has calculated

Page 49
 p. The toolpath generated will keep inside of the boundary that we created

Limit toolpaths Post-Calculation

1. Activate the toolpath Rest Rough

Notice that the toolpath is cutting in the holes around the outside. For this toolpath
we really only want it to concentrate on the rest material that is left on the amber
colored surfaces

2. Ensure the toolpath toolbar is turned on, if it is not turn it on

3. From the toolpath toolbar, select limit toolpath

4. You can limit toolpaths post-calculation to

• A plane in either X, Y, or Z axis

Page 50
 • A plane in an arbitrary axis that you define using mouse click on the graphics
window
• A polygon you create by selecting points on the graphics window
• A boundary you have already created
5. Select the option to limit the toolpath to a boundary
6. In the dropdown next to Boundary select the selected_srf_boundary we just created

7. Click Apply
PowerMill will create a copy of the original toolpath and apply the new limits to it –
removing the undesired toolpath in the holes

Select and delete unwanted segments post calculation

The ability to select and delete unwanted segments of toolpath is one of the most useful
toolpath editing options PowerMill has

1. Active the Finish Flats toolpath

2. Toggle shading of the model so it is not visible (F3)
3. On the View cube, select the Front view
Notice that the finish flat toolpath finishes more flat surfaces than we intended it to. We
just want this toolpath to finish the large flat surface

Page 51
4. Left click and hold the mouse button in the graphics window to select one of the
sections of toolpath that finishes the flat surface of the socket head cap screw seats

5. Open the Reorder Toolpaths dialog

6. Select the Delete “X”

Page 52
7. Repeat the steps for the remaining two holes on the other side of the part, when you
are finished it should look like this

8. Open the Limit Toolpath dialog as shown before

9. Select Plane and Plane Z

Page 53
10. Select the Open the position input form button
11. Zoom in closer to the toolpath and select just below the toolpath section that we want
to keep

12. Select Apply

13. Select Outer in dropdown next to Save

Page 54
14. Click Apply
15. Select the remaining segments that are above the one we want to keep by box
selecting them as we did when selecting the toolpath segments in the holes
16. Open the Reorder Toolpaths dialog and delete the selected toolpath segments

Page 55
17. To ensure that the remaining toolpath segments are ordered properly, select the
option Automatic Reorder in this dialog

Page 56
 18. Close this dialog and your final toolpath should look like this

Editing Tool Axes

Using the tool axis applies specifically to multi-axis machining. All toolpaths in PowerMill are
three, four, and five axis capable which means that you do not have to learn different toolpaths
to utilize PowerMill’s multi axis capabilities. The ability to dynamically move machine
components around in 5 axis positional situations can greatly reduce the programming time and
the “guess and check” method often employed in determining the correct tool axis orientation to
be use when machining specific components on a part. PowerMill utilizes Dynamic Machine
Control in association with the Machine Model to graphically manipulate machine components
and decide on the best tool axis orientation prior to generating NC code and sending the
program to the machine.

As part of PowerMill’s safety of toolpaths, it offers the ability to keep a toolpath 3 axis where it
can then use the multi axis capabilities of the machine to avoid collisions with holder and
machine components.

Page 57
Switching from 3 axis to 5 axis

1. Open Toolpath Strategies from the Main toolbar

2. Select Finishing and Corner Finishing

3. Click OK
4. Name the toolpath Finish Corners
5. Select Tool from the toolpath explorer
6. From the dropdown select the ¼ Inch Ball Nose
If you recall we finished the part with a 3/8 Ball Nose

Page 58
7. Select Calculate and Close
8. Expand the Machine Tools section of the PowerMill Explorer
9. Double Click on the Machine Tool icon to active the machine tool
10. Right click on the toolpath we just created and select Simulate from Start

Page 59
11. Select Display the simulation issues button on the simulation toolbar

12. Press the Play button on the simulation toolbar

13. You will receive a gouge warning shortly into the simulation
In order to resolve this collision we will either need to increase the amount of the tool
that is extended from the holder or modify this toolpath to become a 5-axis toolpath

14. Select OK
15. Close the simulation Issues form
16. Open the settings of the Finish Corners toolpath
17. Recycle the toolpath for editing
18. Select Tool Axis from the toolpath explorer
19. Select Lead/Lean from the dropdown

Page 60
20. Input a lean angle of 20 degrees and set the mode to Vertical
a. A lean tips the tool axis off of toolpath direction
b. A lead tips the tool axis along the direction of the toolpath

Page 61
21. Select Calculate and Close
22. Right click on the toolpath and select Simulate from Start again
23. Select Display the simulation issues from the simulation toolbar
24. Select Clear

Page 62
25. Select the Play button from the simulation toolbar
26. Notice the toolpath now plays through without any gouges or collisions and the B
axis is rotated off from vertical by 20 degrees all the way around

Page 63
There are several other options for invoking full 5-axis machining, including:

• Towards Point
• From Point
• Towards Line
• From Line
• Towards Curve
• From Curve

Using multi-axis to avoid collisions

PowerMill can automatically avoid collisions by using multi axis machining

1. Open the settings of the Finish Corners toolpath

2. Select Tool Axis from the toolpath explorer
3. Set the tool axis back to Vertical
4. Check the box next to Automatic collision avoidance

Page 64
5. Expand the Tool axis section of the toolpath explorer
6. Select Collision Avoidance
7. Fill out the form as shown

Page 65
8. Click Calculate and Close
9. Simulate the toolpath to see that PowerMill keeps the tool axis along Z unless it
needs to tilt to avoid a collision
10. Save the project as we will open it a bit later

Using Dynamic Machine Control

1. Open the Project Dynamic Machine Control

Page 66
2. Right click on the toolpath Toolpath 1 and select Simulate from Start
3. Display the Machine tool Issues
4. Select the Play button on the simulation toolbar
5. About mid-way through the toolpath PowerMill will detect a collision and give a
warning. It will also populate the collision in the Simulation Issues dialog

6. Select OK and press the play button again. PowerMill will not pause for any further
collisions, but will continue to populate the dialog box.
7. We could avoid all of these collisions by modifying our tool axis from vertical to some
vector that we do not know. To aid in finding that vector we will use Dynamic
Machine Control
8. Clear the Simulation Issues dialog and Close it

Page 67
9. On the Tool toolbar select Dynamic Machine Control
Note: this button is available on the toolpath toolbar as well.

This will raise the Dynamic Machine Control toolbar, as well as attach some circles to
the end of the tool.

Dynamic Machine Control allows you to graphically manipulate the position of the tip of
the tool by dragging the tool around, as well as graphically manipulate the tool axis by
grabbing the circles and rotating them.

10. Position the Mouse at the tip of the tool, the curser will change to a hand
11. Left click and hold the mouse button and drag the tool around. Notice that as you
drag the tool into areas that collisions occur the tool, holder, or machine component
highlights in red to indicate that it is colliding with the part.
12. Position the tool in the corner of the surfaces we are trying to cut

13. Rotate Each Axis circle individually until you are happy with the tool axis direction

Page 68
14. Select the Update Toolpath button

15. Click the green check

16. Simulate the toolpath from the start again. The toolpath is now free of collisions

Modifying the tool axis in individual areas of toolpath

1. Open the project Advance Tool Axis Editing

2. Right click on the only toolpath in this project and select Simulate from Start
3. Display the Machine tool issues
4. Press the Play button
a. You should get a collision warning pop up
b. You should see the rotary axis of the machine moving a lot on the indented
surfaces of the part.

Page 69
 We will address each of these individually

5. Select OK and Close the Simulation Issues dialog

6. De-activate the Machine Tool by selecting the icon next to the Machine tool name in
the PowerMill explorer
7. Select Top from the View Cube
8. Select Edit Toolpath within region from the toolpath toolbar

9. Select Polygon
10. Pick 4 points in the graphics window to draw a polygon similar to the one shown

Page 70
11. Click Save Selection
12. Select the tab Specify Changes
13. Select Axis Interpolation from the Dropdown and fill in a Blend distance of 10

Page 71
14. Click Apply then Cancel
15. Simulate the toolpath from the start again

As the toolpath moves across the wavy area, notice that we are no longer changing the
tool axis drastically for each wave, rather we get a smooth inference of change between
the beginning and end of the section of toolpath we had selected.

You will still get a collision warning in the corner of the part, we will address that now.

16. Select OK to the collision warning

17. Clear the simulation issues and close the dialog
18. Rotate to a view similar to that shown

Page 72
19. Select Edit Toolpath within region from the toolpath toolbar

20. Select Polygon

21. Pick 4 points in the graphic window to draw a polygon similar to the one shown

Page 73
22. Click Save Selection
23. Select the Specify Changes tab
24. Select New Axis Definition

Page 74
25. Select the Tool Axis button next to Tool Axis in the Tool Axis area of the dialog

Page 75
26. Activate Dynamic Machine Control from the tools toolbar
27. Modify the tool axis so that it will be collision free in the corner

Page 76
28. Press the green check mark on the Dynamic Machine Control Toolbar
29. Check the box Tool axis Smoothing
30. Select Fixed Direction and select the IJK button

Page 77
31. Select Align with Tool

Page 78
 32. Click Accept
33. Click Accept
34. Click Apply then Cancel
35. Simulate the toolpath from start and notice that the tool now modifies the tool axis
when it enters the corner.

Surface Finish control

Page 79
How to control Surface Finish in PowerMill
Surface finish is effected in many ways on a machine tool. One of the most basic controls is the
radius of the ball end mill used to finish the surfaces. Between cuts when cutting contoured
surface, there will be a cusp; the size of the cusp depends largely on the stepover being used in
the toolpath as well as the radius size of the ball end mill being use. CAM software used to
program 3D contouring toolpaths triangulate the model during the process of producing
toolpath. In general, triangulation is determined by a combination of the stepover value and the
tolerance used in the toolpath. Once the model/surfaces are triangulated, the CAM software will
generally place a toolpath point at each intersection of triangles. The toolpath points that are
what the CAM software outputs to the machine controller. Naturally, the smaller the tolerance on
a toolpath, the more toolpath points you will get.

Some machine tools cannot handle a large number of toolpath points, so it is important that you
understand what your machine controller can handle before you begin adding toolpath points.
Some machines will produce jerky motion rather smooth motion when too many points are put
into a toolpath while other may just alarm out because they are not able to keep the axis motors
up to date with the amount of data the controller is processing.

To add to the complexity of retaining good surface finish, 5-axis machines throw another wrench
into the toolbox, that of rotary axis movement. When a 5- axis machine encounters an abrupt
change in direction on a full 5-axis toolpath, often times it will leave the tool in one place or close
to while it rotates the axis to the new orientation, thus leaving a witness mark or worse on your
part.

PowerMill can handle all aspects of helping you achieve better surface finishes from re-pointing
of toolpaths to smoothing axial motion in 5-axis toolpaths to aiding you in determining the proper
stepover to achieve the desired maximum cusp height.

Smoothing in 5-axis
On the project Advance Tool Axis Editing that we were working with before you will
notice that on the tight corner that we set our tool axis on the rotary axis abruptly
changes direction, swinging approximately 90 degrees in a very short distance. To
expand the distance that the rotary axis is allowed to move in, we will need to allow
smoothing on the toolpath.

1. With Toolpath 5 active select the Tool Axis button

2. Select the Smoothing tab and set the setting shown

Page 80
3. Click Accept
4. Simulate the toolpath from start with the machine model showing. Notice that the
toolpath now smoothly transitions from one rotary orientation to the next over a
longer distance than it was before.

Controlling Surface finish with points

PowerMill can show you the toolpath points before you produce the NC code for the
toolpath. In addition you have some options to ensure that your point spacing is
desirable before posting you NC code.

Page 81
1. Open the project Point Distribution
2. Select the Draw points button on the toolpath toolbar

3. Undraw links and lead ins from the toolpath toolbar

Note the uneven spacing of points across this toolpath, while this may not cause a bad
surface finish, there may be times in which you will want to redistribute the points on the
toolpath for even spacing. There may also be times in which you will want to set a
minimum point spacing to ensure that you have points along the toolpath every so often.

4. Right click on the Raster Finish toolpath and select Settings

5. Clone the toolpath

6. Select Point distribution from the toolpath explorer
7. There are many options in point distribution that give you control over the toolpath
points
a. Tolerance and keep arcs allows you to specify a different tolerance factor for
distribution of the points in the toolpath while keeping any arcs that were in
the original toolpath
i. The tolerance factor reduces the tolerance that was set in the toolpath
by that factor
b. Tolerance and replace arcs allows you to both specify a different tolerance
factor for point distribution and replaces arc points with linear points
c. Redistribute allows you to redistribute the points on the toolpath, while
specifying a differed tolerance factor, and maximum point separation angle
8. Select Tolerance and keep arcs, leave the tolerance factor at .3, check the box Point
separation distance, put in a maximum distance of 3 (mm), leave the mesh factor at
.5

Page 82
9. Calculate the toolpath. Notice the toolpath now has many more points.

Page 83
Conclusion
I hope you have enjoyed the presentation and I hope that you have been able to learn a bit
about how PowerMill can handle any programming. You have seen how PowerMill can create
collision-free, reliable toopath. We learned about stock model management and how it is useful
throughout the machining process. You saw that PowerMill keeps the cutting and non-cutting
segments of toolpath separate for greater flexibility and customizability of your toolpaths. One
last thought to leave you with is the powerfulness of PowerMill’s toolpath editing.

Page 84