HELP – HILFE – AIUTO – AYUDA . . .
IN ANY LANGUAGE, YOUR CNC CAN FIND ANSWERS

With help screens, full instruction manuals and troubleshooting advice, embedded in various languages at the touch of a button, today’s CNC can help machine tool operators identify and overcome most in-cycle problems quickly, so they can make more parts.

The reason most of us got into the machine tool business was our fascination with a piece of mechanical equipment and its ability to turn a blank of material into some functional part. That really hasn’t changed at all since this industry began. What has changed, for the improvement of all our work days, is the machine’s ability to help us do our jobs better and faster with measurable results and (our topic in this column) the built-in ability to help us identify problems, effect corrections and keep on cutting.

On the most modern CNC today, you can find not only help screens but also full instruction manuals to rectify most any problem encountered. Better yet, when a problem does occur, the CNC should be able to capture the off-normal condition on-screen with an alarm log for later analysis by maintenance or operations personnel. The icing on the cake is that the CNC should have real-time diagnostic capability to help you fix the problem and safely restart the machine in the minimum time possible.

No surprise, of course, that day is here. With a program editor function, a modern CNC can identify the out-of-tolerance or missing tool condition, suggest how to most efficiently resolve the situation and then assist the operator with the restart on the machine. All the support data should be in a complete user manual, easily found and easily indexed for quick access on-screen. Suggested parameter settings are usually found here as well that can help with operator troubleshooting on the spot.

After a problem is resolved and the machine is up and running again, the alarm log can be copied and saved to a file or uploaded immediately to a network for instant analysis and overall equipment efficiency (OEE) data filing. This is especially useful when a number of identical machines are running the same or similarly dimensioned parts or materials. A collateral benefit might also be the monitoring of incoming supplier material batches or in-house blanking department output, for example.

Other practical features on today’s CNC that benefit operators most directly include the virus-proof safeguards built into the logic, as well as the “goof proof” function that will not allow the downloading of bad programs. On the alarm logs, simple language identifies most problems:  “Feed too large” or “Hydraulic pressure too low” will appear, rather than numbers and letters calling out the off-normal condition. This allows the operator to enter the manual embedded in the CNC and quickly look up the problem for suggested action.

A good CNC will also have shortcut keys and even an undo key for what we called a do-over as kids. However, unlike our pals on the playground, today’s CNC has the ability to track all operator actions for instant or subsequent logging. On a functional and very practical note, to keep the alarms within a reasonable frequency, the hi/lo limits and the tool wear offset values can be pre-programmed for tripping an alarm. This reduces the nuisance alarm signals without compromising the work product output or quality.

As a final advantage, all of the text in the CNC memory can be instantly converted into various languages to assist operators in their native languages. In our melting pot workplace, it might be very beneficial to have the screens reading English on one shift and Spanish on the next. Today’s CNC has this ability, with no loss of data or alarm integrity.

One last word of advice to operators – and this is true in any language – keep an open mind and learn all you can about your shop’s machines. The market is more global now than ever and you can make yourself and your shop more valuable by having more knowledge about the various machines and the controls that run them.