PROMiCA - CNCKits

Process Outline

For those customers who are new to the world of CNC we thought we’d give a brief run down on the processes and steps involved in creating or ‘machining’ an object on a CNC Machine.

The entire process of ‘making something’ goes like this…

1 - Think of what it is you need to make

2 - Design the object

3 - Convert the design into G-Code

4 - Mount the stock in the machine

5 - Set up the machine with the appropriate tooling

6 - Fire up the PC and Controller

7 - Make the object

8 - Relish in the thought that you’ve done a good job (or wonder what went wrong!!)

CNC Process Overview

We often get asked about the end to end process.

Here it is in a nutshell ...

G0 Z3.
   Y24.75
G1 Z0. F100
G3 X21. Y24.75 I0. J-2.75 F800
G1 Y28.25
G3 X21. Y28.25 I0. J-6.25
G1 Y31.75
G3 X21. Y31.75 I0. J-9.75
G1 Y35.25
G3 X21. Y35.25 I0. J-13.25
G1 Y35.5 F400
G3 X21. Y35.5 I0. J-13.5
G0 Z20.
   X121.504 Y53.922 Z20.
   Z12.
G1 Z8.5 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z10.5
G1 Z7. F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z9.
G1 Z5.5 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z7.5
G1 Z4. F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z6.
G1 Z2.5 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z4.5
G1 Z1.1 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893

G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z4.5
G1 Z1.1 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893

G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828

F800
G1 X113.893

G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z4.5
G1 Z1.1 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893

G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
F800
G1 X113.893

G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z4.5
G1 Z1.1 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828

G0 Z3.
   Y24.75
G1 Z0. F100
G3 X21. Y24.75 I0. J-2.75 F800
G1 Y28.25
G3 X21. Y28.25 I0. J-6.25
G1 Y31.75
G3 X21. Y31.75 I0. J-9.75
G1 Y35.25
G3 X21. Y35.25 I0. J-13.25
G1 Y35.5 F400
G3 X21. Y35.5 I0. J-13.5
G0 Z20.
   X121.504 Y53.922 Z20.
   Z12.
G1 Z8.5 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z10.5
G1 Z7. F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z9.
G1 Z5.5 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z7.5
G1 Z4. F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9
G1 X118.676 Y51.094
G3 X121.504 Y53.922 R2.828
G0 Z6.
G1 Z2.5 F100
G3 X118.676 Y56.75 R2.828 F800
G1 X113.893
G3 X113.895 Y51.093 R2.9

G0 Z3.
Y24.75
G1 Z0. F100
G3 X21. Y24.75 I0. J-2.75 F800
G1 Y28.25
G3 X21. Y28.25 I0. J-6.25
G1 Y31.75
G3 X21. Y31.75 I0. J-9.75

The design phase may be as simple as a two dimensional scribble on a scrap of paper or as complicated as a complete assembly of objects designed in AutoCAD, Rhino, Solidworks, TurboCAD etc.

One of the beauties of it all though is that you can make multiple objects all the same or change them slightly … you can change them massively or have multiple variations – but once the code is written then with all things being equal you can repeat the process as often as you like.

With our kit fitted to your machine you are ready to roll …’just add G-Code’

Controller Software

Software for ‘driving’ the PROMiCA CNC kit is available on the internet from several sources however we have two packages that we recommend. These packages read the G-Code files and send the data to the controller which then ‘steers’ the machine.

The primary software we use and recommend is Mach3 and is published by Artsoft. This software has a brilliant interface which is highly configurable, is easy to use, and has a stack of features … the down side is that it can be a bit fussy about the machine it runs on and it can also be heavy on the processor …you need a decent PC to handle it’s power. A demo copy is supplied on the PROMiCA CD and will run unhindered for up to 500 lines of gcode per job. Please register it via the Mach3 web site if you wish to keep using it.

Standard CNC Mill Movement

Converting to G-Code …again this could be a manually written set of instructions planned and developed by scouring through G-Code manuals or it could be as involved as your CAD package files being piped through one of the $$$ software tools that converts your design to G-Code files ready for use. It’s relatively simple to write basic G-Code files once you get the hang of it – and there’s plenty of software around that can assist you by making the task simpler with onscreen help and editing. Some G-Code software allows you to design the object within the package and then creates the G-Code file for you … it all comes down to the $$$’s you can put into it… some software can do the lot – design, create G-Code and talk to the controller!!!

Think

Design

Code

Machine

Smile

Z +ve

Z -ve

Y -ve

Y +ve

X -ve

X +ve

Head Moves

X +ve moves the table to the LEFT

Y +ve moves the table out or forward

It may be easiest to 'see' the relative movement if you imagine the tool tip as being a pen and the stock as a piece of paper... but in this case we move the paper to draw. So to draw a line going to the right we pull the paper to the left.... don't worry - you'll get used to it!!