IMTS 2022: Controls and CAD-CAM
Examine advances in automation and software that connect islands of digital data into a fully integrated solution to optimize machine efficiencies.
Posted: July 19, 2022
The Collaborative Manufacturing Platform™ Will Premier at IMTS
As the concept of the connected and smart factory becomes ever more real and a feasible goal for many manufacturers, Excellerant Inc. (Somers, CT) will present its recently trademarked Excellerant Collaborative Manufacturing Platform. The company will be in Booth E-133354.
“In a nutshell, the platform is designed to measure and improve a shop’s performance by automatically collecting shop data and providing tools to visualize and optimize production,” said Excellerant’s Founder and President John Carpenter.
The essential pillars of the Excellerant Collaborative Manufacturing Platform include real-time machine data and contextualized operator data. It unifies all manufacturing devices in a secure network that is compliant to most cybersecurity standards, such as the DoD’s CMMC mandate. The company’s proven hardware automatically captures uptime, part counts, cycle times, and more from both modern and legacy machine tools. Because there are so many variants that can affect manufacturing productivity, context is required to fully understand what’s happening on the shop floor. That kind of downtime information is relayed quickly and easily by the operators using simple reason codes on a tablet-optimized software interface.
Synchronization with a shop’s ERP system is a key component of the platform’s collaborative power, keeping both the shop floor and the front office current with the latest production information. There’s also a well-designed visual dashboard that delivers important insights at a glance to keep production on track. For example, built-in OEE monitoring makes it simple to see a shop’s true performance.
“It’s all about continuous improvement towards increasing profitability,” Carpenter said. “Objective, contextualized data reports focus on the main areas to do just that — machine downtime, performance, and part quality. Shop owners and managers can measure the largest causes of downtime so that those can be eliminated, or at least minimized. Once the corrective actions are in place, the continuous data collection shows how they are working.
“With this platform,” Carpenter continued, “we’ve taken the whole topic of shop connectivity from something that curious computer geeks like to something that anyone with business sensibilities loves.”
Booth E-133354
Logopress ProgSim 2022 Automates Blank Development with AutoForm Technology
Logopress ProgSim acts as a virtual tryout press that runs inside of SOLIDWORKS. This user-friendly yet affordable software sold by Accurate Die Design Software, Inc. (Brookfield, WI) quickly performs accurate simulations of forming processes using incremental simulation technology powered by the industry proven AutoForm solver. The company will be in Booth E-133151. ProgSim allows the user to determine formability and spring back at the strip layout stage of a die design using user-defined form punch and pad geometry. Some of the results provided include thinning, wrinkling, splitting, stress, strain, etc.
ProgSim 2022 eliminates the trial-and-error part of developing a die using physical tooling. ProgSim simulates the cutting and forming of the strip repeatedly, adjusting the cutting punches that create the blank with each iteration, and then re-simulating the forming process. It continues to iterate using this process until the blank produced matches the target part maximum deviation that had been initially input by the user.
Adding ProgSim to Logopress DieDesign software gives the designer the full suite of tools needed to quickly and efficiently design progressive dies, transfer dies, fineblank dies, stage tooling, and other fixtures and machines within SOLIDWORKS. The part flattening and strip layout process is streamlined, many portions of the tedious die design process are automated, and the cutting and forming results can now be proven and optimized with ProgSim before steel is ever cut.
All Logopress products are SOLIDWORKS Certified Gold and run inside of SOLIDWORKS Standard and above. Unlimited email, phone, and web meeting support continue to be offered by Accurate Die Design Software, Inc., the North American sales, support and training center for Logopress Software.
Booth E-133151
Mastercam 2023: Industry Input Drives Multiaxis, Mill-Turn Advancements
Attendees at IMTS will experience the most powerful machining software from CNC Software, LLC (Tolland, CT) to date, Mastercam 2023. IMTS visitors can investigate the latest functionality of Mastercam at Booth E-133222 and at the Student Summit in Booth N-215200.
Stas Mylek, partnerships program manager at Mastercam, will be presenting “Digitalization of the Manufacturing Floor: Are SMEs Ready for the Next Wave?” on Monday, Sept. 12 from 3:15 – 4:10 p.m. in room W192-C. He will cover how emerging digitalization will impact small and medium machine shops, and how best to prepare for change.
Mastercam will be on display throughout the IMTS show floor with more than 40 parts being programmed at partner booths such as MC Machinery (S-338129), Okuma (S-338500), Doosan (S-338900) and FANUC (S-338919). Meanwhile, in the main Mastercam booth, Mastercam partners, resellers, and employees will be giving presentations every hour Monday – Friday on many different topics and features.
Manufacturers from all over the world got the chance to test-drive Mastercam 2023 during the public beta program before it was released and provided valuable feedback to help shape the final 2023 product. Many of the improvements in Mastercam 2023 are directly driven by Mastercam users and shops. Feedback from public beta releases, shop visits, customer surveys, and consultation with expert industry partners create the practical, shop-driven focus that helps ensure Mastercam users’ success.
Consolidating Multiaxis Toolpaths – Morph, Parallel, Along Curve, and Project Curve are no longer individual toolpaths in Mastercam 2023. Instead, the Unified toolpath allows access to these cut patterns when you add the appropriate curves. For example, to create a toolpath that morphs between two surfaces, select Unified from the Multiaxis toolpaths, and then set the Cut Pattern to two surfaces with the Morph style.
Detecting Undercut Stock When Machining – The Dynamic OptiRough and Area Roughing toolpaths can now be aware of undercut stock conditions, resulting in improvement to the toolpath motion, including less air cutting.
New B-axis Contour Turning Toolpath. Mastercam 2023 introduces a new toolpath to the Turning suite for the Mill-Turn product. B-Axis Contour Turning is a finishing toolpath that allows for rotation of the B-axis while the tool is cutting. The toolpath features a top-down workflow and provides you with either automatic or manual motion control. Automatic mode produces safe toolpath motion that keeps the insert in contact with the contour. Manual mode offers full control over the B-axis angles along the contour. These are only a few of the new features and enhancements in Mastercam 2023.
www.mastercam.com/mastercam-2023
Booth E-133222 and Booth N-215200
View hyperMILL® CAD/CAM Software and the New hyperMILL® 2023.1 at IMTS
OPEN MIND Technologies (Needham, MA), a leading developer of CAD/CAM software solutions worldwide, will be highlighting the advanced capabilities of its latest hyperMILL CAD/CAM software suite at Booth E-133351. Efficient programming and machining strategies in high performance hyperMILL enable accurate, efficient 2.5D, 3D, 5-axis and mill/turn machining.
Developed with Industry 4.0 in mind, OPEN MIND will feature hyperMILL VIRTUAL Machining, which provides postprocessing, and G-code simulation including a VIRTUAL Machining Optimizer which offers innovative solutions to improve toolpaths that are traditionally calculated in the CAM engine. The Optimizer also incorporates knowledge of the part model, tooling, the toolpath calculation and collision check engine, and the machine tool model with its physical constraints. New, improved linking logic in hyperMILL VIRTUAL Machining Optimizer for 5-axis table-table machines will be highlighted at IMTS. The module links individual part programs with smooth and safe connections and an “Optimized Table-Table Logic” option automatically calculates smooth connections between a retract move and subsequent insert, including optimization of clearance planes.
Attendees can also see a new VIRTUAL Machining capability for additive manufacturing processes, where machines often have limited axis ranges. The hyperMILL VIRTUAL Machining Optimizer can be used during NC code generation to simulate and optimize additive toolpaths.
The powerful ADDITIVE Manufacturing process in hyperMILL CAM software supports both 3D printing/ and subtractive machining on one machine tool. hyperMILL ADDITIVE Manufacturing technology offers flexible strategies for additive material applications, including filling strategies for both planes and free-form shapes, and in 2D and 3D sections. Applications also include hybrid machining to fix damaged parts and additive machining of an existing component.
A new hyperMILL Automation Center allows users to automate the job list creation processes in hyperCAD-S, serving as both a development and runtime environment. New features also include the ability to select and position the clamping device, as well as define a uniform process for all programmers.
IMTS attendees can also get a sneak preview of the new version of hyperMILL 2023.1 that will include more efficient roughing toolpath layout capabilities, the next level of surface finish improvements from high precision surface mode, enhancements to hyperMILL Turning Solutions and additional improvements to the VIRTUAL Machining environment.
Booth E-133351
Digital Ecosystem Supports Leaner Production with the Same Number of Employees
ProShop ERP (Vancouver, BC, Canada) will exhibit The ProShop ERP digital ecosystem in Booth E-133027 at IMTS. It is a combination ERP/MES/QMS solution developed to address the needs of job shops by people with first-hand knowledge of the shop environment. Integrating seamlessly with each other and nearly every other manufacturing software, this paperless digital operating platform (DOP) links every job shop department from those estimating projects to shipping. Engineered for small- to medium-sized manufacturing companies, ProShop can replace up to five software programs, simplifying project management from start to finish.
Customized ERP modules help get jobs off to a cohesive start. The integrated MES system picks things up by tracking time, tooling, fixtures, work cells, personnel, part programming information and more in real time. The QMS function features numerous modules that grab data from the ERP/MES systems and create reports reflecting preventative and corrective actions, generate audits, capturing every aspect of the manufacturing process for complete quality reporting. ProShop’s more than 25 dashboards provide shops with a big picture view of the entire operation, identifying waste and ineffective procedures in one smart digital ecosystem. The benefits are many. Customers report setup reductions of up to 50 percent and total labor savings of 25 percent or more. This means leaner production with the same number of employees, good news for those shops wishing to expand their capabilities and grow their shops without incurring extra costs and losing profits.
“The ProShop ERP/MES/QMS digital ecosystem helps shops grow their operation exponentially while remaining profitable,” said co-founder Paul Van Metre. “It’s unnecessary to add more machines and more workers when beginning the expansion process when you have one smart paperless system that captures all of the details of your manufacturing processes, creating a big picture snapshot of the operation illustrating the good and the bad, and creating an environment for improvement and growth without impulsive spending.”
Booth E-133027
The Digital Machine Shop: Siemens to Present Digital-native CNC and More
During IMTS, Siemens (Chicago, IL) will present its hardware automation and software technology portfolio, highlighted by the first-ever, digital-native CNC platform, SINUMERIK ONE, for machine tool applications. In addition, Siemens will present its solutions and services for the industrialization of additive manufacturing.
In Booths E-133346 and W-433028, the company will highlight how machine users can quickly and easily embark on their digitalization journeys — from part concept to design, digital twin to simulation, part and machine production, as well as total integration of these processes into the digital enterprise for job shops and production departments alike.
In the Controls & CAD-CAM Pavilion (East Hall) in Booth E-133346, Siemens will demonstrate the end-to-end production and installation of a transmission housing and bracket for the eRod, an autonomous electric vehicle that will be in the booth for visitor inspection. The parts are made by additive and subtractive machining processes. At every stage of the part’s development, including machining, display kiosks will take visitors through the digital process. From the popular Siemens NX CAM design software, which enables the use of 3D models, data and processes to seamlessly connect planning and shopfloor operations on a digital thread to the powerful SINUMERIK ONE, the digital-native CNC that permits a digital twin of the machine and its full operation in production, Siemens has streamlined machine shop operations as well as leading automotive, aerospace, off-highway and medical part production facilities worldwide.
In the Additive Manufacturing Pavilion (West Hall) in Booth W-433028, Siemens will demonstrate its CNC implementation into the additive and additive/subtractive production worlds, displaying part production processes from design to the finished part. Visitors can discuss their manufacturing challenges with Siemens to determine the optimum method of part design and manufacturing, whether one-off or full production runs, all performed with digitalization methods for validation and time/cost containment.
Additional highlights of the Siemens booths will include:
- Machine Tool Digitalization solutions that shorten the machine builder’s time-to-market, through digital twin technology, where all machine design and operational kinematics are simulated prior to any manufacturing. This development enables substantial savings for the builder and end-user, in the design, build, commissioning, startup and training phases of machine implementation.
- With SINUMERIK ONE, the first-ever, digital-native CNC, Siemens is driving forward digital transformation in the machine tool industry. The new controller works with software to create the machine controller and the associated digital twin from a single engineering system and thus contributes to the total integration of hardware and software. Thanks to its seamless interaction between the virtual and real worlds, including high-performance PLC, motor and drive hardware, SINUMERIK ONE is setting new standards in terms of productivity, performance and digitalization. It’s the future-proof machine controller in the increasingly digital world of manufacturing.
- With Create MyVirtual Machine for machine tool builders, and Run MyVirtual Machine for machine users, the new CNC platform is provided with software to create the universal concept of the digital twin, powerful hardware and integrated IT security, making SINUMERIK ONE a forward-looking CNC, which is driving digital transformation in the machine tool industry.
Booths E-133346 and W-433028
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