Delcam, Fidia present collision-free machining

DELCAM and Fidia have conducted an open house event on February 25 and 26 at Paragon D&E in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The event, with the theme “Tomorrow’s Manufacturing Today”, saw the debut of the Fidia GTFM gantry CNC machine, the first machine from Fidia to be built in the USA by Paragon, and demonstrations of Delcam’s PowerMILL CAM software and its new interface with Fidia’s ViMill anti-collision technology.  

“The Paragon event was very enjoyable and informative,” commented Scott Halterman from Anderson Express Inc.  “The corporate partnership that has been formed with Paragon, Delcam and Fidia is truly impressive and shows how such partnerships could benefit all of us.” 

The relationship between Delcam and Paragon started when the team at Paragon realized that they needed to reduce the number of CAM packages they were using in order to be more efficient on the shop floor.  The decision to go with Delcam wasn’t only about the strength of the software but, according to President and CEO, David Muir, was also based on Delcam’s “willingness to listen to what our company needed and to provide what our users needed.” 

Through what Paragon learned from Delcam on the CADCAM side, a new partnership was developed with Fidia to produce a CNC machine specific to Paragon’s needs.  The drive for a better, more efficient workflow lead to the creation of the Fidia GTFM gantry.  The machine uses innovative technology to integrate the programming process to the machining floor.  The Fidia ViMill control interfaces with PowerMILL to create a real-time virtual collision checker.  ViMill uses all the information produced in PowerMILL as the part is programmed to run in look-ahead mode in virtual 3D and so to detect and avoid any machine collisions.  

Commenting on the integration Mark Cadogan, VP Sales at Delcam North America, said, “To a degree there has always been a leap of faith when it comes to hitting the ‘GO’ button on a machine tool.  The software obviously has to be gouge free for starters, otherwise there no point in using it, but the post-processors for the CAM software also must translate the toolpaths accurately and then the machine must follow the code without any collisions.”  The problem is that, without real-time checking, the multitude of possible CNC parameter settings can produce unexpected machine movements, even when the part program has been verified with off-line simulation. 

Other problems can occur because of the shortage of skilled labour.  Every customer wants 100% protection and utilization of their multi-million dollar investment no matter who is running the machine.  Managers want to rely on a certain skill set that comes with a lot of experience when it comes to programming and running a multi-million dollar CNC machine tool.  However, due to the labour shortage, shops may need to implement a fail-safe system for newer employees with less experience, or even for apprentices, so they can run any machine with confidence.  In addition, companies need reliable CAM software that is powerful enough to run efficiently but easy enough to use so that beginners can become productive as quickly as possible. 

The ViMill interface provides a link between PowerMILL and the Fidia machine tool.  It simulates machining based on the CAM programs generated, and detects and avoids possible collisions or unexpected movements between the part, the tool head or machine.  It looks ahead of the machine’s motion to provide virtual milling in real time as the job progresses. 

This development emphasises Delcam’s key philosophy that, in order to improve workflow and throughput for their customers, solutions providers must work together to provide solutions for tomorrow’s manufacturing today.