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The Cad/Cam Department Post Processes The Tool Path
The Problems:
- Scheduling
Having cad/cam programmers post process the tool path in the cad room means that the programmer must determine ahead of time which machine the part will be cut on.
- Wrong Machine
If the programmer posted the tool path for a machine that is overbooked, broken or for any reason no longer available to cut the desired part, the shop floor must wait for the Cad/Cam
department to re-post the tool path.
- Wrong Data
If the nc data needs to be scaled, mirrored, interchanged, or have the speeds and feeds modified, the shop floor must again wait for the Cad/Cam department to re-post the tool path.
- Different Shifts
If the shop floor works 2 or 3 shifts but the cad/cam department only works 1 shift, the shop floor can come to a stop waiting for a tool path to be posted for a particular machine.
The Solution:
By moving the NC Post Processing function to the shop floor, the machine operator has the ability to post process the tool path for the desired machine when which machine has been selected.This allows for more
flexibility in scheduling. It also eliminates waiting for the cad/cam department to re-post a tool path if the feeds, speeds, or machine is incorrect. This can be particularly important if the shop floor works 2 or
3 shifts but the cad/cam department only works 1 shift. Also, most post processors have the ability to mirror, scale or interchange data, so if the tool path setup needs to be changed, the operator can easily
accomplish this. Shop floor post processing can be easily accomplished by having a PC and DNC system on the shop floor.
New CAD/CAM systems provide faster and easier programming. However, if you don't have a good post processor which outputs the correct data, the goals of faster and easier programming are easily lost because
programmers and operators are spending their time modifying programs instead of making parts.
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