By developing on a 3-D CAD mainstream platform, a CAM supplier can focus its resources 100 percent to support advanced manufacturing technologies. A good example is high-speed machining (HSM),

which is becoming more widely adopted in many mold, tool and die shops to machine hardened steel cavities.

HSM machines enable the use of higher axis feedrates and also higher spindle speeds up to 60,000 rpm. Much less heat is transferred into the cutter tool and the working mold, which results in significantly higher material removal rates without degrading of part accuracy or quality. Finally, HSM reduces the leadtime of a mold and reduces expenses through greater reliability.

To support high-speed machining of complex 3-D shapes, the CAM engine must generate optimal roughing and finishing CNC toolpaths. You should look for software that includes several enhancements to its CAM technology that will make HSM operations possible, such as the following:

Avoiding Sharp Angles in the Toolpath
Each time there is a sharp angle or a sudden change of direction, the controller reduces the feedrate. This increases the machining time, marks the piece and wears out the tool. An enhanced HSM module will smooth the paths of cutting maneuvers and retract wherever possible to keep a more continuous machine tool motion.

Ensuring that the Tool Stays in Contact With the Part as Much as Possible
Each time the cutter lifts off the part and then returns to it, time is wasted. In addition, the actions increase wear on the tool because of the thermal shock caused by the repeated cooling and heating of the cutter. There also is an increased risk of tool breakage because of the changing load on the tool when it stops and starts cutting.

Optimizing Non-Machining Moves
Non-machining moves are not productive and should be eliminated wherever possible—or their lengths reduced. Transitions between manual and automated cutting should always match with an automatic collision check.

Generating Smooth and Tangential In/Out Leads
First approach on a part is a delicate operation that should avoid thermal shocks so that the part is not marked and the tool is not damaged. By using lead-in arcs, the machine can keep a high feedrate during approach. This avoids any deceleration due to sharp angles.
The result is a high quality, gouge-free toolpath, which translates to increased surface quality, less wear on your cutters and a longer life for your machine tools.

Although designed for high-speed machining, many of the HSM strategies in today’s enhanced CAM software also can improve the productivity of older CNC machines—following these same procedures dramatically reduce air cutting time, and smooth arcs help to maintain continuous machine tool motion and increased surface finish levels.