FLOW

INTERNATIONAL

FlowMaster Control Training

V6.04

Introduction

• Sign in
• Introductions: name, company,
application
• Facility
- Non-smoking
- Lunch, drinks, cans
- Emergency exits
• Objectives

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 Objectives

• Understand abrasive waterjet theory and

operation
• Learn basic FlowMaster programming
• Cut different materials using FlowMaster
knowledge
• Introduce optional software packages

Schedule

- Abrasive Jet Technology

- FlowMaster
• FlowPATH
- FlowPATH exercises

• FlowCUT
- FlowCUT exercises

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 Schedule

- Introduction to the cutting machine

- Initial cuts
- Advanced/Optional software familiarization
• Vectorization
• FlowNEST
• FlowTranslate
- Additional programming and cutting
- Course Review

PASER ECL SYSTEM

• Abrasive Bulk Transfer

• Metering Valve
• Performance Monitor
• Mixing Chamber
• On/Off Valve
• Pierce Shield

(Refer to the M-359 Paser ECL+ manual)

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 Abrasive Bulk Transfer
• Delivers a bulk supply of abrasive to
the metering valve close to
the cutting head
• Holds 500 pounds of 120
grit abrasive
• Operates on 40 PSI air
pressure. Air source
must be dry and not oiled!
• Drain the moisture separator
at least once per week

Metering Valve Assembly

• Transparent body allows viewing

of abrasive flow
• Abrasive flow turned on and off
with air pressure
• The closing pressure is controlled
by a regulator
- Set between 15 – 17 PSI initially

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 Metering Valve Assembly

• Volume of abrasive flow is

controlled by an abrasive
metering disc
• Disc sizes range from .154
to .302
• A diverter directs any back flow
of water away from the valve

Re com m e nde d Abra sive Flow Ra te s Lbs/M in

Orifice/Tube 4 0 0 00 PS I 5 5 0 0 0 PS I 60 0 0 0 PS I
.007" /.020" 0.30 0.40 0.40
.010" /.030" 0.60 0.80 0.80
.013" /.040" 1.00 1.20 1.20
.014" /.040" 1.10 1.20 1.30
.016" /.040" 1.20 1.40 1.50
.018" /.050" N/A 2.10 2.40
Locate orifice/tube
size AB RAS IV E F L O W RAT E F O R P AS E R P L US
Select pressure used M e te ring 1 00 M e s h 80 M e s h 60 M e s h
(this indicates the D is k LB p/min LB p/min LB p/min
recommended flow) 0.154" 0.40 0.40 0.35
0.168" 0.55 0.50 0.45
Under mesh size
0.184" 0.65 0.65 0.60
used, locate closest
0.196" 0.80 0.80 0.75
flow rate to step
0.206" 0.90 0.90 0.85
above (this will be
0.215" 1.00 1.00 0.95
the value used in
0.222" 1.15 1.05 1.00
FlowCut Jet Setup)
0.229" 1.20 1.15 1.10
Insert metering disk 0.237" 1.30 1.30 1.25
indicated 0.246" 1.45 1.40 1.35
0.255" 1.60 1.55 1.45
NOTE: These are 0.263" 1.70 1.65 1.55
just recommended 0.269" 1.80 1.80 1.70
values 0.275" 2.00 1.95 1.85
0.281" 2.15 2.05 1.95
0.288" 2.20 2.15 2.05
0.295" 2.30 2.25 2.15
0.302" 2.40 2.35 2.25

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 Performance Monitor
• A vacuum gauge that gives
relative performance information
• Teed into the abrasive feed line
• A scale on the gauge indicates if
the Paser ECL is operating in
the optimum range
• Example: If the needle is high in the scale
the system has increased in vacuum
- Failed orifice
- Clogged abrasive line

Mixing Chamber

• Retains the orifice onto the

nozzle body
• The enclosed chamber creates
an area for a venturi as the
water stream passes through it
• Introduces the abrasive into the
water stream
• Retains the mixing tube by using a metal
collet
• The only cause for damage would be
operating with a failed orifice

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 Pierce Shield

• Reduces the spray produced

during piercing and protects
cutting head components
• Replaceable polyurethane blast
disk helps extend the life of the
Pierce Shield by absorbing most of the
jet’s energy
• Skirt MUST be in place on DWJ to
prevent contamination of A and B
motors.

• Nozzle body length develops laminar

flow of HP water
• Orifice creates coherent water stream
• Mixing chamber introduces
abrasive into water stream
• Mixing tube creates a
coherent stream of
water and abrasive
producing the finished
cutting stream

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 Abrasive Jet Setup

• The setup of your Paser ECL depends on

the material you are cutting and the
quality of cut required
• Basic setup parameters
- Orifice size
- Mixing tube size
- Abrasive Flow rate
- Cut speed/edge quality
- Water pressure

Abrasive Jet Setup

• Typical Paser ECL Setup Parameters

- 10/30 with 100 mesh abrasive
- 13/40 with 80 mesh abrasive
- 16/40 with 60 mesh abrasive
• Orifice and mixing tube size are
generally determined by the thickness of
the material you are cutting
• Abrasive mesh size is determined first by
the mixing tube diameter and then by
edge quality required

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 Cutting Machine Care

• Abuse and dirt are the chief enemies of

any piece of equipment
• Any system that maintains accuracies up
to +/-
+/- .003” requires attention
• The quality of parts will highly depend on
how well the X-Y machine is maintained
• Setup a maintenance schedule as part of
the installation of the system

FlowMaster

• PC based CAD/CAM/Controller
• Intelligent
- Slows on corners
- Knows how to cut different materials
- Designed specifically for waterjet

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 FlowMaster

• Machine PC can be networked with office

PC’s
- If the cutting machine is on a network,
ENSURE THE MACHINE IS NOT ON THE
NETWORK WHILE CUTTING
• Standard PC, but it’s purpose is to be a
machine controller
- Intel processor
- 3.5” floppy and CD-ROM/DVD-ROM
- Warranty through computer manufacturer

FlowMaster

• TAKE CARE! when altering the

FlowMaster system files!

• Improper editing of these files could cause

improper operation of the cutting machine

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 FlowMaster

• FlowPATH
- Entire CAD program
- Portion of CAM program
• Define feedrate
• Draw lead in/out
• Toolpathing

FlowPath User Interface

• Window Layout
• Drawing Tools
• Snap Tools
• Selection Tools
• Modify Tools
• Pathing Tools

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 Window Layout
Menu bar
File Toolbar
View Toolbar
Selection Toolbar
3D View and Plane Toolbars
Path Toolbar
Modify Toolbar
Command History
Command Line
Style Toolbar
Drawing Toolbar
Snap Toolbar

FlowPath Drawing Tools

Lines
Arcs
Rectangles
Circles
Arcs made of Lines
Elipses
Splines
Text Outlines
Lead Ins & Lead Outs
Tabs

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 Snap Tools
No Snap
Grid point
Orthogonal
Endpoint
Perpendicular
Nearest
Center
1/3 length
Midpoint
Quadrant
Tangent
Intersection

Snap Tools

• Multiple Snaps
• Snap Sensitivity Setting
• Temporary Snap

• Live Demo

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 Selection Tools
• Hover Highlight
• Group Select
• Selection Choice
• Contour Select
• Select Traverse/Cutting/All/None
• Selection Hotkeys
- Toggle / All / None
• Live Demo

Modify Tools

Fillet F1
Break F2
Split/Extend F3
Rect Array F4
Circular Array F5
Mirror F6
Rotate F8
Move F9
Scale by Factor
Scale
Offset
Rubber band

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 Modify Tools

• Auto Repeat – based on number of entities

Repeats Tool Repeats Selection

Fillet (2) Move (Any)
Break (2) Rotate (Any)
Split/Extend (1) Scale (Any)
Offset (1) Mirror (Any)
Rubber band (1) Array (Any)

Path Ordering Tools

Tape Measure
Examine Drawing
Purge
Avoid Cutting Area
Draw Traverse Lines
Auto Order Path
Manual Order Path
Back up
Remove Current Path

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 FlowPath Workflow

• Add new and/or import existing geometry

• “Examine Drawing”
• Fix bad geometry
• Choose LILO style
• Select Pathing Method (Manual/Auto)
• Path Geometry
• Export .ord file

Hands On Exercises

• FlowPATH Exercises
- Introduce different tools
- Increase in difficulty building on previous

• Please turn on your computers at this time

- Select “Student”
- Insert disk from manual
- Open FlowPATH

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 Exercise 1
In this example, these features of FlowPATH will be presented:

Rectangle
Circle
Zoom
Lead in/out
Saving files
Manual path ordering

R1.00
2.00

6.00

R.50

1.50

2.00 1.50

6.00

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 Start by drawing the geometry.

First, create a rectangle using the “Box(PP)”

icon (this will draw a rectangle in absolute coordinates
using two opposite corner points.) Enter the
coordinates: (numbers only) X1=0, Y1=0 using a
comma to separate the coordinates i.e. 0,0 (when the
number keys are depressed, the numbers will appear
in the text box on the bottom of the drawing field.)
When the enter key is pushed a small white square will
appear at 0,0 indicating the first corner. Enter the
second set of coordinates: 6,6.

Now select the “Zoom Extents” tool. This will

frame the screen to the extents of the geometry.

Select the “Circle drawing functions” tool, it will

default to the “Circle(CR)” option. Use 2,4 for the
center value and 1 for the radius. With the “Circle
drawing functions” tool still enabled, create a .5” circle
at the 4.5, 1.5 coordinates.

Now that the geometry is finished, the file needs to be

saved. Using the left mouse button, click the “File”
menu and select “Save as ...” option. When the Save
File window pops up, select the file save location (for
all the exercises the location will be on the floppy disk
“A:”) and enter “EXERCISE1” as the file name. Click
“OK“ when finished. The file is now saved in a “.dxf”
format as indicated in the bar at the top of the window.

The next step is to add in the lead in/out entities. Select

the “Properties setting for lead-in/out” icon.

Under the “Choose Type” option, enable the Leadin
and leadout option. Then enable the “Arc” properties
and enter a radius of 0.200 with an angle of 90
degrees. NOTE: Use the TAB key to move from
field to field. Click on “Save as default”.

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 Click the “Show/hide nodes” icon to show the
nodes. Be sure when adding a lead in/out to choose
“Snap nearest”. (The “Snap” features can be accessed
by clicking the right mouse button with the cursor
positioned on the work grid or by selecting the “Snap”
pull down menu. The “Snap” feature allows positioning
of entity endpoints to exact specifications). Next select

the “Draw lead-in/out” icon. With the crosshair

cursor snapped to an entity on the large circle and the
mouse cursor inside the circle, click the left mouse
button. Repeat this process inside the smaller circle

and outside the square. Now click on the “Draw

traverse lines” icon. This will automatically draw all
traverse lines (Note add traverse lines in sequence
without interruptions or the program cannot link them

properly with this feature). Click the “Save” icon

to save the file.

The final step is to order the path. Select the

“Manual order path” icon. Notice in the bottom left
corner of the screen it states to select an open entity.
Move the cursor to the lead-in entity on the big circle
and click the left mouse button (the first lead-in when
toolpathing can only be connected at one end (i.e. one
end connects to a line and the other end is in open
space.) A window will pop up for the Path Properties
and Kerf Offset. Select “Right offset” and “Offset valid
for all entities.” Click OK.

Now the circle and lead-in/out will be highlighted in bold

red. Click the left mouse button on the appropriate
bold red line to maintain the same direction of jet travel.
Continue to do so for the next circle and finally the
square. When you are done, a window will appear
asking if you want to complete the manual path
process. Select “Yes”.
When the “Path ordering complete” window pops up,
the path is finished. Click “OK”.

To export the part as an “.ord” file, left click the “File”

pull down menu and select the “Export path as” option.
Save the file as an “.ord” file by choosing the “Save”
option.

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 Exercise 2
In this next example more drawing and editing features will be presented.

Fillet
Array
Snap
Create Intersection
Offset
Select
Automatic path ordering
Purge

1.500
R .375 X

R.375

3.000 1.500 1.687

.500 .375

1.933

1.000
R.188

.500 .625

6.000

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 Create two rectangles using the “Box(PWH)”
option with these coordinates: first: 0,0; W=6, H=1 and
second: 0,0; W=1.5, H=3 (this will draw the rectangles
in incremental co-ordinates using a corner point, X

width and Y height). Select the “Zoom extents”

icon. Ensure the nodes are visible (use the Show/hide
nodes tool if necessary.) Select the “Find
intersection” tool and select the top line of the large
rectangle and the right vertical line of the smaller one.
Both lines will be selected momentarily and a node will
appear where they intersect. After the intersection has

been defined, select the “Select” tool (this

disables the “Find intersection” tool), select unwanted
entities and press the delete key. Be sure to also
select the overlapping “line over line” entities in the
lower left hand corner as indicated by their nodes.

Next create a circle with these coordinates: X=1.5,

Y=1.933; R=.375. Use the “Find intersection” tool
to define the intersections of the circle and vertical line,
and then use the “Select” to select the unwanted
entities and delete them. Save the drawing as
“Exercise 2.”

Create another circle using the “Circle(CD)”

option with these coordinates and diameter: X=0.625,
Y=0.500; D=0.375. Click the “Select” tool and drag a

window around the circle. Now select the “Array”

icon. In the window enter 5 for the # of rows, 1 for the
# of columns, 1 for the depth, 0 for the distance X, 0.5
for the distance Y, and 0 for the Z distance. Click “OK”.

Then click the “Deselect” icon to deselect the

circle.

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 Now add the channel in the bottom of the L-block.
Click the “Offset” icon then select the far right
vertical line of the part. Enter the value 1.687 in the
data entry field then push the enter key. Now move the
cursor to the left of the selected line and click the left
mouse button. This will create a line for the right side
of the channel.

Next, select the line just created and repeat the offset
process using a value of 1.5 inches. Now use the
offset process again to create a line 0.375 inches
below the top line of the bottom rectangle. Last, use
the “Find intersection” tool to create intersections for
the channel. Click the “Select” tool to highlight and
delete excess lines.

Ensure no entities are selected and click the

“Fillet” icon. Select two entities that make up one of
the corners requiring a radius. Upon selecting the
second entity you will be prompted for the radius, enter
a value of 0.375, click “OK”. Select the next set of
corner entities, when the prompt appears, it will contain
the last value (0.375) entered, just click “OK” to accept
it. Repeat this operation for the required remaining
radii.

Pick the “Select” icon and drag a window around

the 0.375D circles. They should all be red. Now select
the 60% speed icon to change the cut quality. Now,
purge the file of any extra or duplicate entities by

clicking on the “Purge” icon. (It is never a bad

idea to purge.)

Select the “Properties setting for lead-in/out” icon. In

this window, under the arc properties, use 0.100 for the
radius in and out. Save as default.

This exercise will use the auto path feature. (It is

usually a good idea to save the drawing before using
the AP feature.) To execute auto path, first select all

entities by clicking on the “Select all” icon. Click

the “Auto order path” icon. The path is complete

when the path arrows and traverse lines appear. Save
the completed drawing and export as an “.ord” file.

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 Exercise 3
In this example the following topics will be presented:

Import
Move
Examine drawings
Determining entity properties
Lead-in/out at a corner

Using the “File” pull down menu select the “Import”

option; from the import window, select
“EXAMPLE3.dxf” (make sure to get a new drawing

table using the “New document” icon before

performing this operation). Click the “Zoom Extents”

tool, and then click the “Zoom out“ icon to see the
part and the 0,0 coordinate of the table. Re-Click the

“Zoom Extents” tool. Select the “Move” icon.

With the cursor, click on the lower left area of the
drawing. This will be the reference move point. Now
type in the table coordinate 0,0 and hit the “ENTER”
key. Re-select “Zoom Extents”. If necessary, use the
move tool to reposition the part within the table limits.
Purge the file by clicking on the “Purge” icon.
Next save the file using the “Save as ...” selection in
the “File” pull down menu.

The next step is to determine the continuity of the part.

To do this, click the “Examine drawing” icon. The

drawing will now turn different colors. If the entities are
continuous (i.e. they all join at endpoints and do not
have duplicates) inside dimensions will be dark blue
with possible toolpath on the inside. The exterior
dimensions will be light blue with a possible toolpath on
the outside. If the examine drawing function shows a
bold red line, this means that the specified outline is
not continuous and may need to be fixed. It will also
have red boxes showing the source of the break.

Ask instructor for assistance if needed.

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 With all geometry corrected, your drawing should look
similar to the image on the right.

Now before defining lead-in/out properties for the

circles, you must establish an appropriate lead in/out
size based on the size of the small circles. So, you
must first determine the size of the circles. To do this,

click the “Select” icon and then select one of the

arcs on a small circle. From the “Options” pull down
menu select “Properties.” (NOTE: This option will only
work with one entity selected, if more than one is
selected, the properties feature will be grayed out!)

The properties window contains all the dimensions of

the selected entity (NOTE: It is not possible to change
any information in this window.) Using this information,
assign an appropriate value to the lead-in/out arc which
will fit inside the small circles.

Now select ONLY the small circles on the inside of the

part and click on the “Auto order path” icon. This
will define a toolpath for the small circles. Your
instructor will now explain some of the other pathing
options for the remaining two circles.

Next, the exterior needs a lead-in/out before pathing.

To accomplish this, select the “Properties setting for
lead-in/out” icon and change the lead-in/out properties
to “At corner/on the line” and make the corner lead-
in/out length 0.200”. Now click on the “DRAW
LEAD-IN/OUT” icon and then choose the corner close

to the last circle which was pathed and use the

“Snap Endpoint” feature to place the corner lead-in/out
on the corner repaired earlier.

The drawing is ready for the final toolpath. Do this by

clicking on the “Select all” icon and then clicking on

the “AUTO ORDER PATH” icon. The path is
complete when the path arrows and traverse lines
appear. Save the completed drawing and export as an
“.ord”.

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 Exercise 4
In this example the following topics will be learned:

Import (different program)

Contour entity select
Tabbing a part
Advanced Lead-in/out selections
Rubber Banding
Moving Lead-in/out with traverse
Part Measurement

Import the file “EXAMPLE9.dxf” from the “A” drive

using the “File” pull down menu and the “IMPORT”
option. Click on the “Zoom Extents” tool. Use the
“deselect” tool to deselect the highlighted entities.

You will notice that all of the entities in the drawing are
Traverse or Scribe Lines. To better introduce you to
some of the advanced tools in FlowPath 6.0, we will
use two different steps to separate the part from the
layers and convert the traverse lines to cutting lines.

First, choose the “select contour entities” tool and

place the crosshairs over the inside geometry lines of
the part and left click one time. Repeat for the outside
geometry.

Chose “Save selected entities as …” from the “File” pull

down. Name the file “Exercise 4”. Then use the “File”
pull down menu to open “Exercise 4”. Select “No”
when prompted to save file. You will notice that the
main part is all that is on the screen – but is still defined
as traverse lines.

Use the “select contour entities” tool, and select the

inside geometry. Then select 40% on the speed
selection bar. With the “select contour entities” still
enabled, select the outside geometry and click the 20%
separation speed.

Next we will discuss rubber-banding and tab setting.

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 Select the “rubber banding” tool. Move your
mouse over the long entity on the right hand side, once
it’s highlighted, click to select it. With the entity
selected, stretch the entity slightly by moving the
mouse to the right. Depress the left mouse button
when you have completed the rubber-banding process.
Save the file.

Let’s check the width of our modified part by using the

“Tape measure” tool (The instructor will provide
guidance on using the “Tape Measure” tool effectively).

Now we will insert a tab. In the “Draw” pulldown

menu, select “Tab properties”. In the Tab properties
dialog window, ensure that your settings are set to .050
for the tab Length and .075 for the space Width.
(NOTE: Tab length and width will be dependant upon
the material being cut and jet on/off cycle).

Click on OK once selections have been made.

To insert a tab, choose the “draw tab lines” tool

from the draw menu. Activate the show nodes

feature, and then choose the “snap middle point”

function. Using your mouse, snap the tab at the mid
point of the entity at the top of the part.

Now we can install our lead in and lead outs. Click on

the Lead-in/Lead-out Properties icon.

Select “Line lead in and arc lead out”. Make the Line
length in 0.1 and the Angle in 0.0 and the Arc radius
out 0.1 and Angle out 90.0.

We are now ready to draw the lead in and lead outs,

and path the part.

Use the “Select all” and then choose “Auto

order path” to path the part.

Notice a lead-in/out was not added to the outside

geometry, but instead the tab becomes the lead-in/out
because the jet must cycle on and off at the tab
anyway.

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 Thus far, we have always exported after pathing the
part; this is because normally any changes to the part
would cancel the path. However, what if we don’t like
where AutoPath placed a lead-in/out? Is our only
option to cancel the path and place the lead-in/outs
manually? No, there is a tool that allows us some
control over the path once it has been applied.

Moving the lead-in/out on the inside geometry will be

the final step in this exercise before exporting.

From the “Edit” menu, choose the “Drag Lead-in/out”

tool. Use the mouse to select the lead-in/lead-out on
the inside geometry by left clicking on it one time.

Once selected, move the lead-in/out by dragging the

mouse around, and left click when the lead-in/out is
where you want it. Once placed, export the pathed
part.

The next few exercises will teach how to set up

materials and geometry in FlowCUT. FlowCUT is the
controller portion of FlowMaster.

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 FlowMaster

• FlowCUT
- Remaining portion of CAM program.
• Allows you to define:
- Water pressure - Feedrate/edge
Feedrate/edge quality
- Mixing tube size - Water orifice size
- Material type - Material thickness
- Abrasive mesh size - Abrasive flow rate
• Used to calculate machine control
- Complete controller portion of FlowMaster

Hands On Exercises

• FlowCUT: finishing the examples created

in FlowPATH
• Please turn your computers on at this time
• Initial cutting exercises

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 Exercise 5
Start the FlowCut program and open “exercise1.ord.” Click

the “Jet Setup” icon; the Setup dialog window

will appear and default to the “Jet” tab. This menu sets jet
parameters. For this part, enter these values:

Orifice diameter: 0.010

Mixing tube diameter: 0.030
Water pressure: 60000
Abrasive flow rate: 0.8
Abrasive type: Garnet 100

For the delay times use these values:

On Procedure -- Jet on 1.5, Abrasive on 1.5

Off Procedure -- Abrasive off 2, Jet off 1
Select “Pierce-on-the-fly”, save the configuration as
default and click “OK”.

Next specify the material type and thickness. Use these

values:

Thickness: 0.5
Material: 304 Stainless Steel
Tool radius: 0.017

(NOTE: The tool radius is determined by dividing the mixing tube

diameter by two and then adding 10% to 15% to account for the
expansion of the jet after it leaves the mixing tube.)

Click the “Preview” icon to run a model based on the settings. The software will
create the machine control code and update the values on the right with the current part
parameters.
Next click on the “Run Machine” icon to go to the machine controls.

The Run Machine screen is the control center for the water jet. The pump, jet, vacuum assist
and abrasive on or off controls are on this screen. There is also a feedrate override slide bar for
on-the-fly speed changes along with a coordinate display that allows viewing either relative or
absolute cutting head position.

When ready, click on the “Previous Screen” icon to set up for the next part.

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 Exercise 6
This exercise will change jet, material and speed/surface
quality parameters.

Open EXERCISE2.ord. Enter the following values for the jet

parameters:

Orifice diameter: 0.013

Mixing tube diameter: 0.040
Water pressure: 60000
Abrasive flow rate: 1.2
Abrasive type: Garnet 80

Change the material to:

Thickness: 2.0
Material type: Aluminum (5052)
Tool radius: set for 0.040 mixing tube

Now click on the “Select same speed” icon. In the

speed window type 60 and click OK. Now all the light blue
or 60% entities should be red. Click on the 80% icon to
change the speed value. The edge quality was changed from 60% to 80%.

Click the “Preview” icon to

preview the part.

Once the model is run, a

preview will be displayed with
a control window to allow you
to preview the entire cutting
cycle. Click the “X” to close
the preview window.

If everything is satisfactory,
click the “Run Machine” icon.

Upon clicking the Run Machine, the machine control window

will appear. Here you have control over cutting head
movement, manual manipulation of the pump, jet, abrasive
and vacuum and the ability to start the cutting cycle. More
features will be presented by your instructor at the machine.

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 Exercise 7
Open “Exercise3.ord”. In this exercise some of the
advanced features of FlowCUT will be used. Some of these
features can only be shown on the machine tool itself.
Others may be shown on the PC. Here is a list of the
features to be changed with the parameters to be modified:

Edit material list

In the material list, create a material called
“Fiberglass Laminate” with a machinability
of 23.5 using the “EDIT MATERIAL LIST”
function. Click the “ADD” icon after the
material is named and has the proper index.

Pierce First setup (In Jet Setup, select the Pierce First Tab)

After jet on dwell: 1.0

After abrasive on dwell: 0.5
Abrasive on first
Pierce routine: hole to hole
After jet off dwell: 1.0
After abrasive off dwell: 3.0
Pierce time: (instructor will explain)

Cost parameters setup

Make a new setting: 13/40

Spares: 1.20 Orifice life: 100
Abrasive: .25 Power: .10
Mixing tube: 265 Water: 12
Mixing tube life: 120 Floor space: 1.0
Orifice: 25 Operator: 17.5

FLOW TRAINING SERVICES FM-31

 To cut multiples of the part, use the following procedure:

First, preview the part by clicking the

“Preview” icon. The part must be previewed before the
duplication function will be available.

Next, click the “Duplication” icon and enter the data

for the array. Select 5 rows and 5 columns with scrap
clearances of 0.100”.

FM-32 FLOW TRAINING SERVICES

 Exercise 8
Open “EXAMPLE4.ord”. In this exercise we will use the
custom dwell feature.

Click the “Custom Dwell” tool on the FlowCut Screen.

This will activate the nodes on the part. Custom dwells must
be assigned to nodes.

Choose the top node for traverse line at the top of the part

When you select this node, the Custom Dwell menu will be
displayed.

Choose the “Suspended Pause” feature.

In the Edit menu, select “Suspended dwell message…”.

This will bring up a dialog box where you can enter the
text to be displayed for the operator during the suspended
pause.

These next functions can only be performed at the

machine.

The following are found in the “Cutting” pull-down menu:

Jog to a point: Jogs to an exact defined point using a variety of methods.

Cut from a point: Directs the cutting head to go to a point on the part and begin cutting
from that point. The point is determined by a mouse click.

Pierce all holes first: Useful for piercing holes at low pressure and then cutting the part at
full pressure.

Pierce then cut: Does the same as “Pierce all holes first”, but automatically raises the
pressure and begins cutting after the low pressure pierce routine.

Resume piercing: Does the same as “Cut from a point”, but continues the “Pierce all
holes first” routine from that point.

Other items will be discussed at the cutting machine as well.

FLOW TRAINING SERVICES FM-33

 Exercise 9

Note: All circular dimension

are diameters.
1.500 typ

∅ 3.188

∅ 2.650 ∅ 3.625

R .125 Typ.

FM-34 FLOW TRAINING SERVICES

 Advanced/Optional Software

• Vectorization: raster to vector conversion

process used when scanning images
• FlowTranslate:
FlowTranslate: converts old CNC
standard G code into an .ORD file
• FlowNEST: nesting program used to
maximize material usage

Review

• Abrasive jet technology adds abrasive to the

stream to facilitate effective cutting of hard
materials
• Abuse and Dirt are the primary causes of part
inaccuracies and unnecessary maintenance;
setup a maintenance schedule for optimum
system operation
• FlowMaster
- FlowPath is a CAD/CAM program which allows the
creation or modification and tool pathing of parts
- FlowCut is a CAM/Controller program which
interfaces and controls the machine to produce the
desired part

FLOW TRAINING SERVICES FM-35

 Review

• Advanced/Optional software
- Vectorization is a raster to vector conversion
process for converting graphics to line drawings
- FlowTranslate converts CNC standard G code into
.ORD files
- FlowNest allows rotation and nesting of parts to
maximize material usage and minimize waste
• Questions?
• END OF COURSE

Notes

FM-36 FLOW TRAINING SERVICES

 Cutting Machine Operations

Startup:

1. Turn on main power at motor starter (if applicable).

2. Ensure all E-stops are pulled out.
3. Turn on machine power.
4. Turn on/reset computer.
5. After the computer has finished booting up:
a) If FlowCut is loaded into the Windows start-up menu, FlowCut will load automatically.
Otherwise, double-click on the FlowCut icon on the Windows desktop.
b) Enable the drives by pushing the “Control On” button (if applicable).
c) Access the controller portion of FlowCut by clicking the left mouse button on the “Run
Machine” icon located on the first screen of FlowCut (a program may be prepared and
loaded prior to clicking the “Run Machine” icon).
6. Home the machine when run machine screen is reached (the software will prompt you to
home the machine if power has previously been turned off.)
a) Clear the table of material and debris and then raise the “Z” axis. (With DWJ, home A/B/Z
first)
b) Move cursor to red “H” in the center of the four blue arrows and single click the left mouse
button.
c) Choose the “Got To Machine Home” option with a single mouse click.
d) The escape key will stop the homing function.
7. Commence normal operation after the machine has homed.
8. To stop a cut:
a) Press the escape (Esc) key. Pump will stop, motion will stop, and jet and abrasive will
shut off.
b) Press the space bar or click the Cycle Stop button. Motion will stop and jet and abrasive
will shut off (pump will continue to run).

Shutdown:
1. Close-out FlowCut and FlowPath (if applicable) to reach the desktop.
2. Move the cursor to the "Start" button in the lower left hand corner and click the left mouse
button.
3. Go to "Shut Down" and click the left mouse button.
4. Click the left mouse button on "Shut down the computer."

In case of an emergency, push the red E-Stop button on

the front of the control cabinet.

FLOW TRAINING SERVICES FM-37

 Bulk Transfer Pressure Setting Procedure

This document is intended to provide a consistent method of adjusting the pressure on abrasive
hoppers and to train the customers should it be necessary to reset it at a later time due to
changes in abrasive, moisture, etc.

1. Place the largest metering disk that can or will be used into
the metering valve.
2. Remove the feedline between the metering valve and cutting
head and place a clean, dry container under the valve to collect the
abrasive during this setup.
3. After filling the abrasive bulk transfer, set the pressure
regulator to 25 psi and pressurize the bulk transfer.
4. Set the abrasive icon to the ON position.
5. If the abrasive does not begin to flow, increase the hopper
pressure in 2 to 5 psi increments until the abrasive begins to flow
continuously into the clean container.
6. The ideal pressure should be when the top half of the
metering valve is full, but the abrasive is flowing continuously and just
keeping up with the demand.

This procedure should be repeated any time you change the grit size,
garnet type, or have problems with abrasive flow.

FM-38 FLOW TRAINING SERVICES

FLOW TRAINING SERVICES FM-39
FILE EDIT VIEW

New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + N Copy . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + C Previous view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+[

Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + O
Save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + S
Import. . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + I
Export path as . . . . . . . . CTRL + E
Export 5.x path as . . . . . CTRL + 5
Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + P
Cut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + X
Select all entities. . . . . CTRL+A
Deselect . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+ ‘
Delete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEL
Paste . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + V
Redo . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + Y
Undo. . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + Z
Next view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+]
Show image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+D
Orbit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+right mouse button
Zoom in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL++
Zoom out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+-
Zoom dynamic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+\
(or ALT + middle mouse button)
Zoom pan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+left mouse button
Zoom window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+W
Cancel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ESC
Auto order path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+/

DRAWING TOOLS SNAP FUNCTION KEYS

Single line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+F1 Floating snap bar. . . . . . . Right mouse button F1 Fillet
Polyline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+F2 Snap center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+C F2 Find intersection
Start point, delta X, delta Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+F3 Snap end . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+E F3 Split/extend
Start point, length, angle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+F4 Snap grid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+G F4 Array rectangular
Snap middle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+M F5 Array circular
Arc center, start, angle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F7 Snap nearest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+N F6 Mirror
Arc center, start, end . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F6 Snap origin (0,0,0). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o F8 Rotate entities
Arc three points. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F5 Snap orthogonal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+O F9 Move entities
Snap perpendicular . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+P F11 Offset
Rectangle two points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SHIFT+F5 Snap tangent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+T
Rectangle first corner, X distance, Y distance. . SHIFT+F6
rectangle center point, width, height . . . . . . . SHIFT+F7

Circle center, radius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F1

Circle center, diameter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F2
Circle two points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F3
Circle three points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F4

Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + O Zoom in. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL++

Save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + S
Export offset path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + E
Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + P
Previous view. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+[
Next view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+]
Cancel program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ESC
Cut preview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+P
Cycle start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+F2
Deselect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+ ’
Zoom out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+-
Zoom dynamic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+\
(or ALT + middle mouse button)
Zoom pan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+left mouse button
Zoom window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL+WOrbit
ALT+right mouse button
Clear cutting plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F12
Apply model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ALT+M
Pause cutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . space bar

New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + N
Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + O
Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + P
Black background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + B
White background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTRL + W
Redraw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F12

© Flow International Corporation