Re: VisualMill (was BobCAD/CAM)

2b. Re: VisualMill (was BobCAD/CAM)
Posted by: "Peter Reilley" micrio@... cnc_joker
Date: Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:57 pm ((PDT))

Perhaps I missed something, but I did not see any true 4 axis milling in
their videos. In every case the rotational axis of the tool went
through the
A rotational axis. In other words you did not need to move the X axis
in any example they showed. Isn't this just 3 axis machining with one
linear
axis replaced by a rotary axis?

Pete.

[Usually, the 4th axis routines involve the X,Z, and A (rotary) axes
moving while Y remains fixed at the center point, although there's also
4-axis indexing, in which X, Y, and Z move, then A increments (typically
90 degrees) and another pass is run on the rotated part. Yes, I suppose
you could say that this is not "true" 4 axis milling, if you define that
as all 4 axes moving simultaneously. But it's substantially different
from regular 3-axis milling as far as the CAM system is concerned.]

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com