GibbsNews - GibbsCAM

GibbsNews
FALL 2013
GibbsCAM Solutions for Industry
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AEROSPACE | AUTOMOTIVE | DEFENSE | ENERGY | MEDICAL
Greetings from Bill by Bill Gibbs, Founder and President, Gibbs & Associates
Greetings everyone.
Let’s talk about GibbsCAM 2013. Were you able to attend one of our numerous rollout
sessions? There were many worldwide, and they provided a great way of seeing all of the
new software capabilities in GibbsCAM 2013. If you were unable to attend one, we have
videos and datasheets about GibbsCAM 2013 and the
new features posted for you on our website.
Have you had a chance to decide on your favorite new capability? I’m
fond of the new geometry capability for loops and shapes. Geometry is
now easy to extract from solids. Adding, subtracting, and intersecting
solids is so much faster and easier than detailed geometry editing to
create desired new shapes. Give GibbsCAM 2013 a try, and let us know
what your favorite new feature is.
As a leader in supporting complex, multi-axis machines, we have been
working on the next generation of GibbsCAM software to support
these ever increasingly complex machines. We call this technology
UKM which stands for Universal Kinematic Machine. This technology is
extremely important to allow us to support your future requirements
for programming machines like this as well as significantly simplifying
generating GibbsCAM post processors. We have started early testing of
post processor creation and associated machine simulation. You will be
hearing much more about UKM in the upcoming year.
Good luck with the rest of the year,
Online Resources »
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Customer Showcase »
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Video Showcase »
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Customer Spotlight »
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Tech Tip »
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Events & Training »
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GibbsCAM.com »
Valuable GibbsCAM Resources
Available Online
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Over the last few months we have been holding GibbsCAM 2013 roll-out sessions around the world.
One of the important presentations during many of the roll out sessions was on the value of GibbsCAM
Maintenance and the many online tools available for GibbsCAM Maintenance customers. It was a
huge surprise to see how many customers were unaware of these valuable resources.
As you may already know, GibbsCAM Maintenance is a critical component in making sure that you’re
getting the most out of your investment in GibbsCAM. It provides you with optimal performance and
productivity, whether through adding the latest industry-related technologies, post processor
modification and creation compatibility, CAD
interoperability, latest Windows operating
system support, bug fixes, compatibility with
new GibbsCAM options, and much more.
You may be aware Maintenance helps provide
not only further software development, and other
critical services such as Tech Support and Post
Processor Support, but it also provides you with
much more than just updated software and support.
Another critical service is providing our many
online resources. In recent years, Gibbs has made
a significant investment improving existing online
resources at (www.GibbsCAM.com) and adding
more content to better support our customers.
Online.GibbsCAM.com serves as a central hub for communication with and tools for our Maintenance
customers. It’s there we provide a simple way to contact Customer Support, a library of training videos,
interim software update downloads, information on the latest release version, and sign-ups for our
release update newsletter, GC News.
Maintenance customers only: GibbsCAM support, training videos, interim software updates, and GC
newsletter sign-ups.
Our main website, www.GibbsCAM.com, also
houses content that may be of interest to you,
even though it isn’t restricted to Maintenance
Customers. We feature video webinars on
popular topics such as 5-axis, MTM, and shop
productivity, and we have forums and social
media platforms where our users can connect
with us and one another. We also publish this
newsletter, GibbsNews, as a courtesy to our
customers.
If you haven’t explored the GibbsCAM website
recently, you should. You’ll be surprised at
what is available to you.
Customer Showcase
COMPANY:
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Cerritos College
LOCATION: Norwalk, California
www.cerritos.edu
USER SINCE: December, 2009
WEBSITE:
COMPANY DESCRIPTION:
Cerritos College’s Machine Tool Technology (MTT)
program aims to provide students with the
practical, working knowledge required for careers
in manufacturing.
PART DESCRIPTION:
Students were guided through the modeling, NC programming, and machining of a guitar body, and then
instructed on finishing and assembling the guitar. The GibbsCAM educational version is identical to the
industrial, so that students employed by industry see no difference from their learning platform, with the
same functions, capabilities and features, such as Cut Part Rendering, the GibbsCAM toolpath verification
feature, which enabled students to test the toolpath programmed for a K2CNC 3-axis router.
Are you doing some really cool programming with GibbsCAM?
Would you like to show off your stuff in front of other GibbsCAM customers?
If your answer is “Yes!” then forward your VNC files to us, along with pictures and other interesting information about the job. A panel of qualified
experts will select winners to be published in the next customer newsletter. Entries that get published will receive free GibbsCAM swag. But here’s
the best part: all submissions will be reviewed for potential selection as a case study story that may be published in a national manufacturing trade
publication. Interested? Then e-mail Marketing@GibbsCAM.com or call us at (805) 523-0004.
GibbsCAM Video Showcase
Our GibbsCAM Video Library includes an assortment of videos from our customers and partners
sharing their GibbsCAM successes.
“5-Axis Technology – Does It Make Sense for
Your Shop?” Webinar
The advantages of 5-axis machining can be significant, including
both cost and time savings, with a direct impact to a shop’s bottom
line. This webinar demonstrates many of the advantages of 5-axis
machining including various application examples and how
participants can benefit from the use of this technology.
Watch Video Online »
Introducing GibbsCAM 2013
Listen in as Bill covers the improved functionality, quality, reliability
and performance of GibbsCAM 2013 in addition to new specialized
options for turbomachinery and porting applications.
Watch Video Online »
Do you have GibbsCAM video footage and/or plan to prepare video footage that you would like GibbsCAM to
consider for the new video library? If your answer is “Yes!” then please contact us at Marketing@GibbsCAM.com.
Customer Spotlight
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Far from Progressive Tool’s beginnings, these parts represent a
new specialization: tiny components for strategic and tactical
defense. Pictured left to right are a machined adjustment clamp
for a satellite, a detent for optical adjustment of a night-vision
goggle and a part for a satellite circuit board.
A Big Move to Small-Parts Manufacturing
PROGRESSIVE TOOL
* PROBLEM Needed a CAM system for small-
parts manufacturing
* SOLUTION GibbsCAM from Gibbs and Associates
* RESULTS Ability to machine small, hidden features, improved product quality, reduced reduced machining time
While riding the ebb and flow of larger-part
manufacturing for military contractors, Ron
Markoff, president of Progressive Tool, began to
notice a trend of parts becoming smaller and
lighter. To ensure survival and success, Mr. Markoff
decided to change Progressive’s direction and
gradually replace its machines with those geared
for smaller, more precise work. To complete this
shift, Progressive integrated GibbsCAM software
from Gibbs and Associates (Moorpark, California).
Now, the shop is able to supply a different niche of
military parts that are smaller in size and weight.
The Binghamton, New York, shop was founded in
1956. For decades, most of the shop’s work
consisted of removing massive amounts of
material to reduce weight in larger parts and
creating pockets to house electronic components.
However, in the early 2000s, RFQs for these
traditional parts began to fade. New composites
were making lighter parts possible through lay-up
and vacuum forming, and other parts were getting
smaller through miniaturization of electronic and
electro-mechanical assemblies, which could use
much smaller enclosures. It licensed a new CAM
GibbsCAM VoluMill saves the shop 15 to 20 percent of machining
time in production runs of small, pocketed parts. Here, a VoluMill
toolpath for stepping down a corner cleans out the bottom of a
deep pocket with a 0.125-inch end mill.
Continued on pg. 5 »
Customer Spotlight
CONTINUED FROM PG. 4
system in 2004, but it ultimately failed due to lack
of support and bug fixes, among other issues. After
a two-year struggle with the software, Progressive
cut its losses and licensed GibbsCAM software.
Programming the machines is now quick and
simple, says Pat Crowley, plant manager. Unlike
the previous system, GibbsCAM is able to open
CAD models, including solids as well as IGES and
STEP files from CATIA and PTC® Creo Customers.
The software can be used on variety of machines,
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difficult to discern, reliance on solid CAD models
and GibbsCAM increased. Mr. Crowley explains
that GibbsCAM enables machinists and
programmers to inspect customer models and
add or subtract features for machining. Often, he
found that making tooling and fixtures as he
programmed parts didn’t take much work because
the software picked up geometry from part
features. “I can model anything I need, right here.
We don’t need any other CAD,” he says.
The CAM software’s associativity became more
important as it transitioned to small parts with
many pockets and tiny features. For instance,
Mr. Crowley can select CAD model geometry
and link part features to tools, operations and
GibbsCAM VoluMill optimizes tool paths for fast material
removal while compensating for changes in cutting direction.
Here is a close-up of a 9-by-11-inch instrumentation cover.
The toolpath used a 5/16-inch end mill on pockets measuring
0.750 to 1.250 inches wide.
including the company’s wire EDM, lathes, 5-axis
machining centers and multi-tasking machines.
Mr. Markoff and Mr. Crowley quote jobs together as
they review parts with GibbsCAM. In fact, effective
visualization and quick and easy programming
enable Mr. Crowley to do some programming
while quoting. The machining process he creates
becomes part of the NC programming when the
shop gets the job. “With small parts, the time to
machine small and hidden features becomes
important, especially with tiny tools, deep
grooves, and shape pocket corners,” he says. By
programming some of those features ahead of
time, the company knows what it takes to machine
the part, and its quotes are more accurate. Plus,
some critical work gets done ahead of the job.
Using the new machines and GibbsCAM, the
company has been able to transition from the
common 24-by-24-by-4-inch work of previous
years to 2-by-2-by-0.500-inch work. As tiny
features and undercuts in drawings became more
Pat Crowley, plant manager and lead NC programmer, and Jeff
Garrett, quality control inspector, discuss a detent, which is part
of the optical-adjustment mechanism for a night-vision goggle.
layers. “The ability to isolate and associate features
by operations or sequences saves a lot of time,” he
says. “If you call up a tool or layer, everything linked
to it shows up.”
Another important benefit of the new CAM
software is ease of use, says 16-year machining
veteran and first-time CAM user, Brian Fish.
Production demands on his job as CNC lathe
supervisor, machinist and lathe programmer, left
him no time to learn GibbsCAM on his own, but he
learned the software quickly with occasional
in-house training sessions. “I would call our
GibbsCAM Reseller when I had questions, but
otherwise, I just turned on the software’s help
feature,” he says. “I could get on-screen
explanations for menu buttons. It was very
straightforward and useful.”
Continued on pg. 6 »
Customer Spotlight
CONTINUED FROM PG. 5
As Mr. Fish programmed two-axis lathes, he began
doing things the shop had never done on those
machines and reduced the number of operations
required to make several parts. After similar success
on a high-volume part for an electric bus, he started to
consider how more capable machines might provide
further efficiencies on that job. This led Progressive
to acquire its first multitasking machine, an eight-axis
Nakamura Tome WT-300, just to make that part.
Moving from two-axis
machining to eight was
difficult because he had no
experience with multitasking
machines. Yet, using
GibbsCAM, Mr. Fish was able to
reduce five operations on two
lathes to a single operation–
with total operations reduced
from eight to three. Time also
improved from 3 minutes for
each of the previous five
operations to 5 minutes for the
single operation. Reduced
handling and setups ultimately
improved part quality.
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tools, speeds and feeds are tiny by comparison.
“We might be hogging out a pocket with a .125inch tool, or cutting a .31-inch-wide, 0.5-inchdeepslot with a 0.025-inch cutter, and GibbsCAM
helps us drive them without breakage,” Mr. Crowley
says. “It lets us machine any way we want, with
any toolpath pattern. We know most of the alloys
really well, so we enter speeds and feeds on the fly,
but when we use a less-common alloy, the software’s
default values are right on the mark,” he says.
CNC lathe supervisor Brian Fish sets up an NC program generated with GibbsCAM, which he
uses to program various lathes, a dualspindle Takisawa, a Nakamura Tome 150 with live
tooling and this eight-axis Nakamura MTM.
A year ago, Progressive also
acquired its first five-axis
machine, a Brother TC-S2C-0 with Nikken rotarytilt table. To program it, the shop added the
GibbsCAM 5-Axis module, which Mr. Crowley was
able to learn on his own. “We don’t do much five-axis
work, so I don’t use it often, but it wasn’t difficult
to learn,” he says. “There’s always a way to find the
information you need, right in the software.”
Using GibbsCAM and its new machines,
Progressive Tool now makes small parts with
tighter tolerances than previously required. It
supplies small military parts, including those for
satellites and night-vision goggles, made from
titanium, stainless steel, aluminum alloys and
various Kovar alloys. Work has changed from
hogging out 2-footlong parts to parts as small as
0.500 by 0.500 by 1 inch. The relative percentage
of material removed is about the same, but he
As with large parts, toolpath efficiency makes a
difference in the profitability of a production run,
but tool life for fragile tools is even more important.
For both reasons, Progressive recently added VoluMill
for GibbsCAM. This software optimizes tool paths
for fast material removal while compensating for
changes in cutting direction. This ensures a constant
load on the cutting tool, or constant chip thickness,
to minimize tool deflection and extend tool life.
“After you select pockets and your cutting tool, a
single mouse click is the only interaction you need
to activate VoluMill for your tool path,” Mr. Crowley
says. GibbsCAM VoluMill cuts 15 to 20 percent off
cycle times for the company’s small parts.
Reprinted from the June 2013 MODERN MACHINE SHOP Magazine and
Copyright © 2013 by Gardner Business Media, Inc.
Tech Tip
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Tech Highlights
In our continuing efforts to improve on the quality of GibbsCAM, we are providing this brief summary of
some of the exciting new developments in the GibbsCAM product. Additional information can be found
online in the “Gibbs Online” secure website as a documentation download. This will explain these and
additional features in detail. This Tech Tip is for the purpose of highlighting a few of these newly
implemented options:
Geometry
Geometry from Solids > Outline:
GibbsCAM 2013 is Windows® 8 Compatible.
Keyboard shortcuts: Frequently accessed commands Do It and Redo have now been
assigned CTRL+.(period) and CTRL+,(comma) as keyboard shortcuts.
Contour options to replace plug-ins: Contour processes now allow you to specify “Ramp Down”
(replacing the Z-Ramp Contour plug-in) or “Extra Offsets” (replacing and improving upon the Offset
Contour plug-in).
Pocketing improvements: You can now specify Outermost Shape As Boss rather than as a pocket,
without creating additional geometry. Mixed-shape pocketing has been further improved, with smarter
entry and exit behavior. And a new plug-in, Bottom Up Hit Flats, allows the deepest parts of a pocket to
be cut first (at full depth), while hitting every flat surface; this is useful for parts made of soft materials with
many shallow flats to be cut.
5-Axis Machining CS selection: 5-axis processes can now be specified relative to machining CS’s, not just
the primary CS on each spindle.
Lathe threading / Thread Whirling definable from shape: You can now define lathe threads from any
valid shape, including shapes that contain arcs or splines. The Thread Whirling plug-in can handle arcs and
splines as input, with threaded arcs as output. Pre-existing (pre-v10.5) posts will output arc threads as line
thread segments.
Rendering for Lathe Rough Auto Finish: Lathe Rough processes that use Auto Finish now render the
finish pass in both CPR and Machine Simulation.
Form Tool image for Reporter: Reporter now supports output of the Form Tool profile as an image for
Lathe as well as for Mill.
Plug-Ins and Operation Modifiers: New plug-ins have been added to support Autodesk Vault for
dependency update checking and other capabilities, and ISCAR Tool Advisor (ITA), to recommend and
load appropriate tools from the ISCAR catalog. The functionality of the two most commonly used Mill
plug-ins and operation modifiers, Offset Contour and Z Ramp Contour, has been incorporated into the
Contour process dialog. The Transform Toolpath has been renamed (to Transform Ops) to reflect its
modified approach. Reporter has been enhanced to support output of Form Tool profiles for Lathe.
Macros: New macro capabilities are continuously documented in the Macros wiki:
http://macros.GibbsCAM.com. In addition, two new instruction videos have been placed on our secure
website for viewing by maintenance users.
Continued on pg. 8 »
Tech Tip
CONTINUED FROM PG. 7
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Profiler: The Profiler now offers four modes directly from the main toolbar. Clicking the button toggles
the Profiler on or off. To change modes, click and hold the button and choose from the drop-down list.
In Slice Plane mode, the Profiler is planar to the current CS. To dynamically display the part’s
cross-section geometry, drag the slicing plane up or down along the depth axis.
In Slice Spun Body mode, the Profiler is planar to CS1, the primary CS (which might not be the
current CS), and slices the outline of the body that would result from spinning all elements
around the rotary axis.
In Slice Silhouette mode, the Profiler is planar to the current CS, and displays the outline of the
“shadow” cast by all bodies from rays of light normal to the plane and shining down on it. Each
body (even a multi-lump body) casts a single shadow with a single outline. Multiple bodies cast
separate shadows with possibly overlapping outlines.
In Slice Cylinder mode, the Profiler is cylindrical perpendicular to the current CS. To radially
expand or contract, drag the slicing cylinder outwards or inwards.
Mill Contouring
In addition to the Mill Feature tab that now appears
on all mill-type process dialogs, Contouring has been
enhanced in the following ways.
1. Ramp Down: Replaces and improves upon the
functionality of the former Z Ramp Contour
plug-in. For contours with vertical (not tapered)
walls, creates a continuous spiraling toolpath with
one finish pass at final depth. Unlike with the
plug-in, the resulting operation keeps the
parameter setting with Redo.
2. Back & Forth: Replaces the option buttons (One
Direction / Back and Forth) formerly in the Wall
Choices dialog. Allows you to specify how the tool
moves from the end of one pass to the start of the
next: either always cutting in the same direction (unselected), or else alternating between climb
cutting and conventional cutting (when Back and Forth is selected).
3. Extra Offsets: Replaces and improves upon the former Offset Contour plug-in and operation modifier.
You can set a positive number of extra offsets and set a stepover value to generate multiple
operations. Each operation’s toolpath corresponds to an additional stepover.
4. User Plunge: Provides the same behavior for Contour as for other Mill processes. Allows you to set the
(X,Y) of a plunge start point. The tool will feed from the Entry Clearance Plane to this point and then
plunge into the material.
Continued on pg. 9 »
Tech Tip
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Surface Flow Cut
In SolidSurfacer in GibbsCAM 2013, version 10.5, the Surface Flow Cut strategy provides new functionality
and a more powerful algorithm that better accommodates more kinds of blended faces. We have
enhanced the machining capabilities to provide a superior tool path between surface trims.
Spiral: A new option, Spiral, provides an alternative to Back and Forth.
Support for more kinds of blends: Now smoothly handles most non-planar fillets and other blended
faces. When a contour’s faces are not all “Long Edge” or all “Short Edge”, the algorithm now looks at the
contour as a whole rather than handling each face individually.
Pre GibbsCAM 2013
GibbsCAM 2013
Bottom-Up Hit Flats: Performs specialized machining on thin parts containing many
flat regions.
For pocketing operations on solid bodies, the Bottom-Up Hit Flats plug-in cuts the
deepest parts of a pocket first, at full depth, and then works upward, using material only,
to mill every flat surface at lesser depth. The operation tile has a modified appearance to let you know that
pocketing will proceed from the bottom up.
This machining approach is most useful for thin parts of soft material, with many shallow flats.
Best practice: First create a pocketing process with a single Z step, specifying Hit Flats and Material Only.
Generate the pocketing operation to verify results, and then apply the plug-in to reverse the sequence of depths.
For additional information or to report any usage issues, you are encouraged to contact our Technical
Support Department for assistance. We can be reached by phone at 800-654-9399 or 805-523-0004 and
by email at support@gibbscam.com.
Upcoming Events
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North and South America
A
2013 User Conference
Dec 4, 2013 • Mazak National Technology Center Florence, KY • Booth N/A
A
Okuma Demo Day
Dec 4, 2013 • 4727 S Pinemont Dr., Houston, Texas
Houston, TX • Booth N/A
A
Haas Demo Day: Richmond, BC, Canada
Dec 5, 2013 • Thomas Skinner Showroom: 13880 Vulcan Way, Richmond, BC, Canada • Booth N/A
Europe
A
MNE 2014
View a complete list of all upcoming events at
GibbsCAM.com »
Feb 5 - 6, 2014 • Kortrijk Xpo • Kortrijk, Belgium
Booth Stand B20 Event Website »
GibbsCAM Training Schedule
Standard Training
Intro Milling & Turning
Jan 29-31, 2014
(Geometry Creation, Milling, Turning)
A
Advanced CS Feb 3, 2014
A SolidSurfacer I
Feb 4-6, 2014
A
Advanced Training
SolidSurfacer II
Feb 7, 2014
A 5-AxisFeb 10-11, 2014
A MTMFeb 12-13, 2014
A
PLEASE NOTE: Dates and scheduling are subject to change. For additional information about
Training Classes, please visit the GibbsCAM Training Page at: www.GibbsCAM.com, or
contact the Sales Department at Sales@GibbsCAM.com or (805) 523-0004.
GibbsNews is published quarterly by Gibbs and Associates, a Cimatron Company, based in Moorpark, CA, and is distributed
free of charge to GibbsCAM customers and others interested in GibbsCAM.
©2013 Gibbs and Associates, a Cimatron Company. All rights reserved. The Gibbs and GibbsCAM logos, GibbsCAM, Virtual Gibbs and “Powerfully Simple. Simply
Powerful.” are either trademark(s) or registered trademark(s) of Gibbs and Associates in the United States and/or other countries. All other brand or product names are
trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. This document is for informational purposes only and is subject to change.