CNC machining


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SOFTWARE

Autodesk Fusion 360: 3D CAD, CAM and CAE tool.

Inkscape: Vector image application.

CNC MACHINING DESIGN

Fusion 360 is the tool of choice for CNC machining. It is unfortunately only available for Windows and Mac. It took me a while to get used to the program and shortcuts. Shortly after, it was very straightforward.

The following steps describe the design of a 'shark' design for CNC machining using Fusion 360 and Inkspace.

  1. Firstly, sketch a 100mmx70mm rectangle in the top view of the workspace. Shortcut keys R and D, for rectangle and dimensions respectively, can be used.
  2. The cube is then extruded 40mm using the E shortcut.
  3. A shark image is drawn on inkscape, using the freehand tool.
  4. Fusion 360 has an import utility which allows to insert .SVG files, use that tool to import the shark design from Inkscape.
  5. Shark filling is selected and extruded with a negative value to pocket inside the cube.

CNC MACHINING SETTINGS

The CNC machine used for this project is the Roland MDX40A.

Fusion 360 has a CAM tool which can simulate CNC machining process to detect costly manufacturing errors.

The following steps can be taken to simulate and get a job ready for CNC machining on Fusion 360:

  1. Firstly, the workspace for the machining process must be set by clicking on the set-up icon on the top-left corner. There it can be tricky to set the right coordinate-system. The coordinates must match as depicted on the image. After coordinate system is set correctly, we go onto select the 3D adaptive clearing option.
  2. In the option panel I selected a spindle speed of 10,000rpm with coolant flood.
  3. As the tool, a flat end mill with cutting edge diameter of 3mm is appropriate.
  4. As for the passes: 0.1mm tolerance, 1.2mm optimal load, 0.3mm cutting radius, 10mm max. rough stepdown and 0.3mm fine stepdown is selected.
  5. Picture below depicts the settings for the linking settings.
  6. Then next step is to simulate the milling process. In the tools bar, under actions, the milling can be simulated. It can be seen that there is not any type of collisions and that the machining will complete successfully without any inconveniences.
  7. I proceed to post the job, which practically sends the code to the machine software. I made sure to select the right program settings, here MDX40 in blue must be turned to 'yes'
  8. Roland Panel dialog will pop-up. Here it is necessary to move the tool tip as close to the block origin.
  9. After coordinate system is set, the job is ran.
  10. Picture below illustrates the dialog while running, speed is displayed live, as well as coordinates.

The final piece:

Lessons: The upper space between the eye and body wasn't milled as intended. In the design, I did not double-check the necessary space between objects (must not be smaller than the tool diameter in use).

FILES

3D shark design

Shark vector design on inkscape