Engraving V 8 Truonglana

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Truonglana@yahoo Mastercam Engraving 2008
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Introduction to Mastercam Engraving Welcome to Mastercam Engraving. Engraving gives you the effect of classic hard-carved art using your CNC machine. On parts with sharp inside corners, the tool climbs to produce harp corners that are unattainable with conventional machining. Engraving lets you achieve many different carved and embossed effects. This tutorial and extensive online help accompany the product to help you learn Mastercam Engraving. - Use this tutorial as a self-training aid to orient yourself to the Engraving program and interface. After completing the tutorial, you will have a good introduction to accomplishing common engraving operations in Mastercam. The tutorial does not try to cover every Engraving feature. - Use the online help as a reference for specific. How to . or Whats this questions, like How are chains sorted for an engraving toolpath, or Whats a remachining toolpath ?. This tutorial shows you how to use online help. If you need more help Online help contains the latest and most up-to-date information about Mastercam. The following pictures show how to use the online help.
Mastercam Engraving 2008
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Deaters If you have a question about Mastercam and have not been able to locate the answer in this tutoriar or the online help, contact your local Mastercam dealer. 2. Engraving Carved Letters In this chapter, you will create part geometry that consists of text surrounded by an ellipse-shaped border. This geometry will be used to define engraving toolpaths in this chapter and in the following chapter. The engraving toolpath that you create in this chapter will machine the letters as cavities, thus producing a carved effect. This toolpath will utilize one tool, thereby avoiding a tool change. Programming a toolpath with one tool is useful for machines that do not have an automatic tool changer because manual tool changes increase production time significantly. You will perform the following tasks in this chapter: Starting Mastercam Creating part geometry Defining the stock boundary Saving the file Creating an engraving toolpath Simulating machining (Verify) Editing toolpath parameters Saving the file.
Starting Mastercam 1. Choose the Start button from the Windows Taskbar 2. Choose Programs, Mastercam then select the program that you added Engraving onto (Router or Mill). The main Mastercam screen displays. The following picture shows you some of the main features of the Mastercam workspace.
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Creating part geometry
In this exercise, you will create simple letter and shape geometry. You will use the geometry in this chapter and in Chapter 3 to create engraving toolpaths. Note: In Chapter 5, you will learn how to use the Raster to Vector and EPS file converters to read artwork into Mastercam. Turning on the AutoCursor and AutoHighlight features The AutoCursor feature aids the process of entering points in Mastercam by automatically detecting entity positions, such as midpoints and endpoints. AutoHighlight makes it easier to identify entities by automatically highlighting an entity when the cursor is over it. 1. Right-click in the graphics window. Mastercam display the following menu.
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2. If the AutoCursor and AutoHighlight options do not have check marks next to them, choose each option to enable it. Mastercam closes the menu after each choice, so right-click again if you need to. If the option already has a check mark next to it, the feature is already turned on, so click in the graphics window to close the menu. Creating TrueType letters In Mastercam, you can create geometric text based on Mastercams drafting parameters, TrueType fonts, and pre-defined letter files. In this exercise, you will create text based on Times New Roman, a TrueType font. 1. From the Main Menu, choose Create, Next menu, Letters, TrueType Tip: A quick way to navigate the menus in Mastercam is to type the underlined character of each menu option. 2. Set the font to Times New Roman.
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3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Choose OK. In the prompt area, type the word Engraving, and press [Enter]. Type 37.5 for the letter height, and press [Enter] Choose Horizontal from the menu containing directions to write the letters. Press [Enter] to accept the default letter spacing shown in the prompt area. Choose Origin from the Point Entry menu for the starting location of the letters. Mastercam positions the lower-left corner of the letter geometry at the origin of the coordinate axes. 9. Press [F9] to display the coordinate axes. 10. Choose the Screen-Fit toolbar button. Your part should look like the following picture.
Creating a reference point at the center of letters In this exercise, you will use the Create-Bounding Box function to create a point entity at the center of the letter geometry. This point will serve as a reference point when positioning another entity in a later exercise. The Create-Bounding Box function calculates a box around the letters, then calculates a point based on the center of the box. 1. Choose Main Menu, Create, Next menu, Bound box 2. Choose All 3. Choose Entities from the All menu. Mastercam highlights all of the entities in the word Engraving 4. Choose Done
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5. On the Bounding Box menu, specify the type of geometry to create by toggling Points and Lines to N and Center pt to Y, as shown in the following picture.
Note: Be sure the Points option is set to N. This option creates points at the corners of the bounding box. For this exercise, you need a point only at the center of the bounding box. 6. Choose Do it. Mastercam creates a point at the center of the letters. The point is located near the letter a, as indicated by white circle in the following picture.
Creating an ellipse In this exercise, you will create an ellipse around the letter geometry. You will use the reference point that you just created to center the ellipse on the letters. The ellipse will serve as a machinable boundary in a later exercise. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Choose Main Menu, Create, Next menu, Ellipse. On the Ellipse menu, choose A radius to set the size of the ellipse in the X direction. In the prompt area, type 150, then press [Enter]. Choose B radius to set the size of the ellipse in the Y direction. In the prompt area, type 75, then press [Enter] Choose Do it. Mastercam prompts you to enter in the center point of the ellipse. Position the cursor over the point that you created in the previous exercise. When the cursor changes to an open square and Mastercam highlights the Point option on the Point Entry menu, click to set the ellipses position.
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8. Press [Esc] to return to the Ellipse menu. Deleting the reference point You no longer need the reference point, so you will delete it.
1. Choose the Delete toolbar button. 2. Choose All, Points. Mastercam deletes the reference point. 3. Press [Alt + F1] to fit the geometry to the screen. Your part should look like the following picture.
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Creating a bounding box
In this exercise, you will again use the Create-Bounding Box function. This time, you will create lines around the ellipse. You will use these lines in a later exercise to define the XY values of the stock boundary. 1. Choose Main Menu, Create, Next menu, Bound box 2. Select the ellipse and choose Done 3. To specify the type of geometry to create, toggle Points and Center pt to N and Lines to Y, as shown in the following picture.
4. To prevent the part form being cut directly at the edges of the stock you will expand the bounding box by a 50mm margin in the X and Y directions. Choose Expand X. 5. In the prompt area, type 5, then press [Enter] 6. Choose Expand Y. 7. In the prompt area, type 50, then press [Enter]. 8. Choose Do it. 9. Fit the geometry to the screen Your part should look like the following picture.
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Defining the stock boundary
In this exercise, you will define the boundary of the stock from which the part will be cut. Mastercam will use this information in a later exercise when you simulate machining of the engraving toolpath. 1. Choose Main Menu, Toolpaths, Job setup Tip: You can also open the Job Setup dialog box by pressing [Alt + J] on your keyboard. 2. Choose the Select corners button. Mastercam returns you to the graphics window and prompts you to enter a point for one corner of the stock. 3. Position the cursor over the upper left corner of the bounding box rectangle. When the cursor changes to an open square and Mastercam highlights the Endpoint option on the Point Entry menu, click to select this position. 4. Select the lower right corner of the bounding box rectangle. The Job Setup dialog box reopens. The Stock Origin and the X and Y fields contain values based on the selected rectangle. 5. Enter 25.0 for the stocks Z value, or stock thickness. 6. Select Display stock and Fit screen to stock. These options display the stock boundary in the graphics window and include the stock boundary lines when you fit the part to the screen. 7. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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8. Choose OK to close the Job Setup dialog box. 9. Right-click in the graphics window and choose Isometric. 10. Right-click again and choose Fit screen. Your part should look like the following picture. Note: The red dashed lines mark the stock boundary.
11. Right-click in the graphics window and choose Top. Saving the file The file now contains geometry and job setup information. In this exercise, youll save the file for use in this chapter and in future. 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Save 2. Navigate to your working folder. 3. Type engraving geometry-mm.mc8 for File name and choose Save. Creating an engraving toolpath The work that you have done to this point has defined your part geometry and the stock boundary. In this exercise, you will create an engraving toolpath to cut the part from the stock. Chaining the geometry In order to define an engraving toolpath, the chains of curves that you select must form closed boundaries. For this exercise, you will select the letter geometry.
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1. Access the Engrave function by taking one of the following actions, according to the product that you are running. In Router, choose Main Menu, Toolpath, Engraving In Mill, choose Main Menu, Toolpaths, Next menu, Engraving
Note: If you have a single-user license and you are accessing the Engraving function for the first time, Mastercam will prompt you to enter the access code that you were provided when you purchased the product. 2. Choose Window from the Chaining Methods menu. 3. Toggle the Rectangle and Inside options to +, as shown in the following picture.
4. Draw a rectangle around the work Engraving by clicking in opposite corners (for example, upper left and lower right).
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5. The prompt area instructs you to enter a search point. Mastercam uses the search point to set the toolpath start point and the sort order of the chains. Click on the upper left corner of the letter E, as shown in the following picture. Mastercam highlights all of the entities in the word Engraving.
Note: The sort order affects the order in which chains are cut for contour and finish passes. Tip: If you accidentally left some of the letters out of the rectangle, choose Backup and repeat the selection (step 1 through 5) before you go on. 6. Choose Done. The Engraving dialog box opens. Selecting a tool library The exercises in this tutorial use the Rtoolsmm.tl8 tool library. This library was installed in your system when you installed the Engraving product. The Rtoolsmm.tl8 library is the default tool library for Router users. It is a secondary library for Mill users, whose default tool library is Toolsmm.tl8. In this exercise, you will set Rtoolsmm.tl8 as your working library. Note: The Rtoolsmm.tl8 tool library contains tools with wood-oriented names and several V-groove cutters not available in Toolsmm.tl8 1. Right-click in the white area at the top of the Tool parameters dialog box tab and select Get tool from library. The Tools Manager dialog box opens. 2. The title bar of the Tools Manager dialog box reflects your working library. If it is set to Rtoolsmm.tl8 you are using the correct tool library; skip to the next section, Selecting a tool. If it is set to Toolsmm.tl8, continue with the remaining steps in this section. 3. Right-click in the white area containing the list of tools and select Change library. The Select tool library dialog box opens. 4. Select Rtoolsmm.tl8 and choose Save. The title of the Tools Manager should now reflect the correct library. Selecting a tool Engraving toolpaths require the use of V-groove cutters (known as chamfer mills in the Mill product). These cutters produce sharp inside corners by climbing in the corners to create a 3D hand-carved effect. For this exercise, you will select a small-tipped V-groove cutter. - 13 -
1. To narrow the selection of tools to V-groove cutters, choose the Filter button. The Tool List Filter dialog box opens. 2. Set Unit masking to No unit masking 3. Choose None to clear the selection of tool types then choose the V-Groove (Chamfer mill) button, as shown in the following picture.
4. Choose OK. The Tool List Filter dialog box closes. The tool list now shows only the V-groove cutters contained in the tool library. 5. Select the 19 mm cutter with 0.1 mm tip, as shown in the following picture.
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Note: This picture shows the Tools Manager in the Router product. In Mill, the Tool Type will be set to Chamfer mill. 6. Choose OK to close the Tools Manager dialog box. The selected tool displays on the Tool parameters dialog box tab.
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Note: This picture shows in the Tool parameters dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, this dialog box tab will have a very different appearance. As long as you have selected the correct tool (the tool is described as a chamfer mill in Mill), the exercise will work correctly.
Setting engraving parameters You will now set engraving parameters, such as toll depth. When you set a tool depth, you are setting the maximum depth that you want the tool to reach. The tool depth cannot exceed the tools point length, as shown in the following picture.
1. Select the Engraving parameters dialog box tab. 2. Clear the check box the Retract plane. 3. Set Feed plane to 6.25 and select Absolute. Note: When the retract plane is turned off, the feed plane sets the height that the tool moves to between contours. 4. Set Depth to -1.5 and select Absolute. Note: The tool depth must be a lower value than the top of stock. 5. Select the Filter check box to turn on filtering, and choose the Filter button. The Filter settings dialog box opens. Note: Filtering the toolpath reduces the size of the resulting NCI file. 6. Check your settings against the default values shown in the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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7. Choose OK to return to the Engraving parameters dialog box tab. 8. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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Setting roughing/finishing parameters
For this exercise, you want to produce v-shaped cavities that come to a point. Therefore, you will not a set a roughing pass for this toolpath, which would pocket the inner boundaries of the letters in an attempt to leave a flat floor. With no roughing pass set, the tool will complete a finish pass by following the contours defined by the letter geometry. 1.Select the Roughing/Finishing dialog box tab. 2. Set Sorting to Left to right. This option sets the sets the order in which Mastercam cuts the selected closed boundaries. It overrides the sort order that was set during chaining. 3. Set Tolerance to 0.025 4. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
5. Choose OK. Your part should look like the following picture. Note: If the toolpath does not display on your systems, press [Alt + T] (or just [T] when in Operations Manager).
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The blue lines represent the tool feed moves. The yellow lines mark the rapid moves between points in the toolpath. Simulating machining (Verify) Now that you have created the engraving toolpath, you will check it in the stock that you define in a previous exercise (Job Setup). To do this, you will use the Verify function in the Operations Manager. This utility simulates the machining operation in a three-dimensional shaped display. Configurating the simulation Before you run simulation, you will set parameters that will enhance the toolpath display. 1. Press [Alt + O] to open the Operations Manager. Tip: You can also access the Operations Manager by choosing Operations from the first page of the Toolpath menu. 2. Choose Verify. The Verify toolbar opens. 3. Choose the Configure button. 4. Choose Use Job Setup values to use the stock boundary information from the Job Setup dialog box. 5. Select Use TrueSolid to create a solid model for toolpath simulation. 6. Select Display coordinates to display the tools XYZ coordinates in the prompt area during the simulation. 7. Set the Speed/Quality scale to the midpoint to balance the verification speed and image quality. 8. Select Wireframe tool. In TrueSolid mode, this option displays a solid tool without a holder. 9. Select Auto (Profile) to use the default tool shape for the simulation display. 10. Select Stop on gouge. This option causes the verification to pause if there is a gouge in the toolpath. 11. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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12. Choose OK to close the dialog box. Running the simulation on the Verify toolbar. The tool begins cutting the letter 1. Choose the Machine (play) button E. The prompt area reports the toolpath progress and tool position. You can see the tool climb by watching progress and tool position. You can see the tool climp by watching it in the graphics window and looking at the Z coordinate in the prompt area.
to get a 2. When the simulation is 100% complete, choose the Screen-Zoom toolbar button closer look at the results. 3. Click at opposite corners of a rectangle around the letter E, as shown in the following picture.
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Your screen should now look like the following picture.
Notice that in narrow sections of the letter the tool climbed to avoid violating the letter boundary. Also notice that the tool left ridges of material, rather than producing a V-shaped cavity. To solve this problem, you will edit the toolpath parameters to increase the tool depth. 4. Close the Verify toolbax.
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Editing toolpath parameters
In this exercise, you will change the depth to be more than double its current value. To avoid possible problems with tool load at the new depth, you will also program two constant volume depths cuts. The tool will remove the material in two passes and will bear the same load with each cut. 1. Select the Parameters icon to open the Engraving dialog box.
2. Select the Engraving parameters dialog box tab. 3. Set Depth to -3.75 (Absolute). Then select the Depth cuts check box, as shown in the following picture.
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4. Choose the Depth cuts button. 5. Set # of cuts to 2 and select constant volume depth cuts.
6. Choose OK to return to the Engraving dialog box. 7. Choose OK to return to the Operations Manager. The operation is marked with a red X, which indicates that changes have been made to it. Saving the file In addition to the geometry and job setup information, this file now contains your engraving toolpath. To avoid overwriting the file that contains only the geometry and job setup information, which you will use in the next chapter, you will save this file with a new name. 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Save 2. Navigate to your working folder: Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric. 3. Type carved letters-mm.mc8 for File name and choose Save. Engraving Embossed Letters In the previous chapter, you created an engraving toolpath using one tool, a small-tipped V-groove cutter. This approach worked well because you were removing small amounts of material. However, there are times when you may want to use more than one tool, such as when your part requires engraved edges and a flat floor. In this chapter, you will create two engraving toolpaths, one for roughing and one for remachining the areas that the roughing tool cant reach. These toolpaths will be based on the same letter geometry that you used in the previous chapter. This time, however, you will machine the letters in a raised position, thus creating an embossed effect. You will perform the following tasks in this chapter: - Opening the part file - Creating an engrave roughing toolpath - Backplotting the roughing toolpath - 23 -
Creating an engrave remachining toolpath Backplotting the remaching toolpath Simulating machining (Verify) Saving the file
Opening the part file In this chapter, you will use the part file that you created in past. This files contains geometry and job setup information. 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Get 2. Navigate to your working folder : Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric 3. Select engraving geometry-mm.mc8 and choose Open. Creating an engrave roughing toolpath In this exercise, you will create a roughing toolpath. This toolpath will use a large V-groove cutter to remove material within a closed boundary, or pocket, in order to produce a flat floor. Chaining the geometry In the previous chapter, you created a toolpath on the letter geometry in the word Engraving. The tool followed the boundaries defined by the letters, and the letters were cut as cavities. In this exercise, you will select the ellipse in addition to the letters. Since the letters will now be nested within a closed boundary (the ellipse), Mastercam will handle them as islands, which will be embossed (raised). 1. Access the Engrave function by taking one of the following actions. According to the product that you are running. - In Router, choose Main Menu, Toolpaths, Engraving - In Mill choose Main Menu, Toolpaths, Next menu, Engraving 2. Choose Window from the Chaining Methods menu. 3. Toggle the Rectangle and Inside options to +. 4. Draw a rectangle around the ellipse by clicking in opposite corners (for example, upper left and lower right).
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5. The prompt are instructs you to enter a search point. Mastercam uses the search point to set the toolpath start point and the sort order of the chains. Click on the upper left corner of the letter E, as shown in the following picture.
Note: The sort order affects the cutting order for contour and finish passes. 6. Mastercam highlights all of the entities in the word Engraving and the ellipse. Choose Done. The Engraving dialog box opens. Selecting a tool For the roughing toolpath, you will use a 45-degree V-groove cutter that has an outside, or major, diameter of 40mm and an inside, or minor, diameter of 13 mm. The tool library does not currently contain a tool of this size, so you will define a new tool and add it to the library. 1. Right-click in the larger white area at the top of the Tool parameters dialog box tab and select Create new tool. The Define Tool dialog box opens. - 25 -
2. On the Tool Type dialog box tab, select the V-groove tool button.
Note: This picture shows the Tool Type dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, the name of the button will be Chfr Mill. 3. On the Tool V-groove dialog box tab, set the following parameters: Tool # = 20 Overall = 50.0 Shoulder = 30.0 Flute=25.0 Outside diameter=40.0 Diameter (tip) = 13.0
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Note: This picture shows the Tool V-Groove dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, the name of this tab will be Tool Chfr Mill 4. 5. Select the Parameters dialog box tab. Set the following parameters. Feed rate=60.0 Plunge rate = 30.0 Retract rate=30.0 Spindle speed = 5000 Number of flutes =2 Tool name = 40 MM 45 DEGREE 13 TIP
Note: When setting these parameters for your own parts, you will draw on your expertise with the machines and tools you are working with.
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6. 7. 8. 9.
Choose the Save to library button on the right side of the dialog box. Select Rtoolsmm.tl8 for File name and choose Save. Mastercam displays a message regarding the successful updating of the library. Choose OK Choose OK to close the Define Tool dialog box. The new tool appears on the Tool parameters dialog box tab.
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Note: This picture shows the Tool parameters dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, this dialog box tab will have a very different appearance. As long as you have selected the correct tool (the tool is described as a chamfer mill in Mill), the exercise will work correctly. Setting engraving parameters In this exercise, you will set many parameters that you learned about in the previous chapter. In addition, you will also set an amount of stock to be left by cutter around the chained boundaries in the X and Y directions. This stock prevents the tool from violating the boundaries due to the cutting tolerance. It also protects the boundaries from chipping that may occur when you are cutting wood. Note: You will set the cutting tolerance on the Roughing/Finishing dialog box tab in the next exercise. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Select the Engraving parameters dialog box tab. Clear the Retract plane check box. Set Feed plane to 2.5 and select Absolute. Set Depth to -6.25 and select Absolute. Set XY Stock to leave to 0.5.
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6. Select the Filter check box to turn on filtering, and choose the Filter button. The Filter Settings dialog box opens. Note: Filtering the toolpath reduces the size of the resulting NCI file. 7. Check your filter settings against the default values shown in the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
8. Choose OK to close the Filter settings dialog box. 9. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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Setting roughing/finishing parameters
In order to remove material quickly, you will program the toolpath with a loose tolerance, which produces less NCI code and a faster cutting time. The tolerance sets the distance that the tool can violate the chained boundaries. By setting a stock to leave amount greater than the tolerance, as you did in the previous exercise, you move the tool away from the boundaries and eliminate the risk of boundary violation. 1. Select the Roughing/Finishing dialog box tab. 2. Select the Rough check box. 3. Select the Parallel Spiral cutting method. This option cuts the pocket in a spiral motion that offset the outer boundary by the stepover amount each time. 4. Set Sorting to Left to right. This option overrides the sort order that was set by the search point you entered during chaining. Note: The sort order of the chains does not affect the roughing pass. However, it does affect the finish pass. 5. To give the tool a smoother entry into the part, you will set a plunge angle. Select the Entryramp check box then choose the Entry-ramp button. The Ramp dialog box opens. 6. Set Plunge angle to 20 (degrees) and choose OK. The tool will enter the part at an angle of 20 degrees rathan than plunging directly into the part.
7. Set Tolerance to 0.25 8. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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9. Choose OK to generate the toolpath. Your part should look like the following picture. Note: If the toolpath does not display on your system, press [Alt + T] (or just [T] when in the Operations Manager).
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Backplotting the roughing toolpath
In this exercise, you will check the roughing toolpath using Mastercams backplotting feature before creating the remachining toolpath. 1. Press [Alt + O] to open the Operations Manager. 2. Choose Backplot. The Operations Manager closes, and the Backplot menu displays. 3. Toggle the Yes/No options on the Backplot menu to match the settings shown on the following picture. Based on these settings, the plotted image will show the toolpath and tool as wireframe (vs. shaded) images.
4. Choose Run from the Backplot menu. Mastercam plots the toolpath. 5. To examine the toolpath more slowly, choose Step from the menu or press [S] on the keyboard repeatedly until the toolpath is complete. The tool simulates the cutting motion by moving from point to point in the toolpath. Tip: To speed up the display, press both the left and right mouse buttons at the same time or hold down the [S] key. You can also choose Run at any time to finish the display quickly. 6. You will know that backplotting has finished stepping through the toolpath when the following message displays. Choose OK.
The tool removed large amounts of material but was not able to fit around the letters. You will create another toolpath to remove material in these areas.
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Creating an engrave remachining toolpath
In order to remove the material around the letters, you will create a remachining toolpath using a smaller V-groove cutter. A remachining toolpath calculates the remaining material and cuts only these areas, which is more efficient than passing the tool over the entire part. Copying an operation You will create the remachining toolpath on the same geometry that you cut with the roughing toolpath. Instead of re-chaining the geometry, you will copy the roughing operation and edit the parameters. 1. Choose BACKUP or press the [Esc] key to return to the Operations Manager. 2. Right-click on 1-Engraving Operation. With the right mouse button still depressed, drag the cursor down to a black area of the operation list and release the mouse button. Mastercam displays the following menu.
3. Choose Copy after. Mastercam creates a copy of the first operation. Editing the tool selection In order to cut the areas where the roughing tool could not fit, you will select a smaller V-groove cutter for the remachining toolpath. 1. Select the Parameters icon for the second engraving operation. The Engraving dialog box opens.
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2. Right-click in the tool list area of the Tool parameters dialog box tab and select Get tool from library. The Tools Manager dialog box opens. 3. Choose the Filter button. The Tool List Filter dialog box opens. 4. Set Unit masking to No unit masking 5. Choose None to clear the selection of tool types then choose the V-groove (Chamfer mill) button. 6. Choose OK to close the Tool List Filter dialog box. 7. From the Rtoolsmm.tl8 tool library, select the 19 mm cutter with 1.5 mm tip, as shown in the following picture. Tip: For information on switching to a different tool library, see Selecting a tool library in Exercise 5.
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Note: This picture shows the Tools Manager in the Router product. In Mill, the Tool Type will be set to Chamfer mill. 8. Choose OK. The Tool parameters dialog box tab now shows both of the tools associated with this part, the roughing tool and the remachining tool. Check to be sure the 19 mm tool is selected for this operation, as shown in the following picture.
Note: This picture shows the Tool parameters dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, this dialog box tab will have a very different appearance. As long as you have selected the correct tool ( the tool is described as a chamfer mill in Mill), the exercise will work correctly. Editing engraving parameters A remachining toolpath calculates the remaining stock based on the previous operation or the dimensions of the roughing tool. For this operation, you will program the remachining toolpath based on the dimensions of the roughing tool. Also, you will clear the stock to leave option since the purpose of the remachining toolpath is to remove the remaining material and you no longer need to leave stock around the boundaries. 1. Select the Engraving parameters dialog box tab. 2. Set XY Stock to leave to 0. 3. Select the Remachining check box then choose the Remachining button. The Engrave remachining dialog box opens.
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4. Select Roughing tool and set the following values, which match the dimensions of the roughing tool - Major diameter=40.0 - Angle=45 - Tip diameter =13.0
5. Choose OK to close the Engrave remachining dialog box. 6. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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Edinting roughing/finishing parameters Remachining toolpaths use the Zigzag cutting method; therefore, the other roughing methods are disabled. You will turn off the entry ramp because you are using a smaller-tipped V-groove cutter and there is less material to plunge into. Also, you are no longer leaving any stock around the boundaries, so you will tighten the cutting tolerance, which results in more machining code and a more accurate toolpath. 1. Select the Roughing/Finishing dialog box tab. 2. Set Sorting to Left to right. This option overrides the sort order that was set by the search point that you entered during chaining. Note: The sort order of the chains does not affect the remachining pass. However, it does affect the finish pass. 3. Clear the Entry-ramp check box. 4. Set Tolerance to 0.025 5. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
6. Choose OK to return to the Operations Manager. 7. Choose Regen Path to incorporate the changes to the second operation. Mastercam recalculates the toolpaths.
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Backplotting the remachining toolpath
You will use Mastercams backplotting feature to check the remachining toolpath first, then both toolpaths together. Setting Backplot parameters Before you plot the toolpath, you will set parameters that will enhance the toolpath display. 1. Choose Backplot from the Operations Manager. 2. Choose Display from the Backplot menu. The Backplot Display Parameters dialog box opens. 3. Choose the Tool Appearance button.
4. Set the following options on the Tool Appearance Parameters dialog box, as shown in the following picture. Select Auto to use the default tool shape in the plotted display Select Color Loop to plot each toolpath in a different color Select Show coordinates to display each tools coordinates in the prompt area when you plot the toolpath. The Z coordinate reflects the tools depth.
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5. Choose OK twice to return to the Backplot menu. Plotting the toolpaths 1. Choose Run. Mastercam plots the remachining toolpath. Your part should look like the following picture.
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2. Choose BACKUP or press [Esc] to return to the Operations Manager. 3. In order to plot both toolpaths, choose the Select All button. Both operations are now selected, as indicated by the check marks, shown circled in the following picture.
4. Choose Backplot 5. Step through the toolpaths. The display changes color when the plotted image moves from the roughing toolpath to the remachining toolpath. 6. When you have finished stepping through the toolpaths, choose OK at the prompt. 7. Choose BACKUP or press [Esc] to return to the Operations Manager Simulating machining (Verify) You will now simulate machining of this part using Mastercams Verify feature. First, you will verify the remachining toolpath. Second, you will verify both toolpaths, as you did for backplotting. 1. Select 2-Engraving Operation. Mastercam deselects the first operation.
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2. Choose Verify on the Verify toolbar. The tool zigzags across the 3. Choose the Machine (play) button remaining material then completes a finish pass on each chained boundary. Your part should look like the following picture.
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4. Close the Verify toolbar. 5. Select both engraving operations in the Operations Manager then run the verification again. Your part should now look like the following picture. Tip: Choose the Select All button or hold the [Ctrl] key and click both operations in the list.
6. Close the Verify toolbar and the Operations Manager. Saving the file 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Save 2. Navigate to your working folder. 3. Type embossed letters-mm.mc8 for File name and choose Save. Using Pocket Roughing With Engrave Remachining In the previous chapter, you created an engraving toolpath using two engraving tools: a large V-groove cutter for roughing and a smaller one for remachining the areas that the roughing tool could not reach. In this chapter, you will also use two tools. However, instead of roughing the part with an engraving toolpath and a V-groove cutter, you will use a pocket toolpath and a straight bit (knows as a flat endmill in Mill). You will finish cutting the part with an engrave remachining toolpath and a small V-groove cutter. You would program a part this way if you did not have a V-groove cutter large enough to rough the part efficiently. Straight bits are more common and less expensive than V-groove cutters. Also, your part may require non-engraving pocket work in addition to engraving work. In this case, using the straight bit for all of the pocket work saves you from having an additional tool change, which also saves machining time. - 43 -
You will perform the following tasks in this chapter: Opening the part file Defining the stock boundary Creating a pocket toolpath Backplotting the pocket toolpath Creating an engrave remachining toolpath Backplotting the remachining toolpath Simulating machining (Verify) Saving the file.
Opening the part file The part that you will use in this chapter is Mastercams Version 8 logo. You will open an existing file that contains the part geometry. 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Get 2. Navigate to your working folder. 3. Select V8logo geometry-mm.mc8 and choose Open. The part displays in the graphics window.
Defining the stock boundary In a previous exercise, you defined a parts stock boundary by defining opposite corners of a rectangle. In this exercise, you will define the stock boundary using the Bounding Box feature, which calculates a rectangle based on the extents of the part geometry. Mastercam will use this information in a later exercise when you simulate machining of the engraving toolpath. 1. Press [Alt +J] to open the Job Setup dialog box. 2. Choose the Bounding box button.
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3. From the selection menu, choose All, Entities. Mastercam highlights all of the entities in the V8 logo. 4. Choose Done. The Job Setup dialog box reopens. The X and Y fields now contain values that reflect the size of the part. 5. Enter 25.0 for the Z value, or stock tickness. 6. Select Display stock and Fit screen to stock 7. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
8. Choose OK to close the Job Setup dialog box. 9. Right-click in the graphics window and choose Isometric. Your part should look like the following picture.
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10. Right-click in the graphics window and choose Top. Creating a pocket toolpath In this exercise, you will create a pocket toolpath to rough out material and produce a flat floor. Chaining the geometry The V8 logo contains nested boundaries, or islands, which Mastercam will machine in a raised position. 1. 2. 3. 4. Choose Main Menu, Toolpaths, Pocket Choose Window from the Chaining Methods menu. Toggle the Rectangle and Inside options to + Draw a rectangle around the V8 logo by clicking in opposite corners (for example, upper left and lower right). 5. The prompt area instructs you to enter a search point. Mastercam uses the search point to set the toolpath start point and the sort order of the chains. Click in the approximate location shown by the X in the following picture.
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Note: The sort order affects the cutting order for contour and finish passes. 6. Mastercam highlights the geometry in the V8 logo. Choose Done, For Router users, the Router Pocket dialog box opens. For Mill users, the Pocket dialog box opens. Note: There are slight differences between these dialog boxes, which will not affect the results of this chapter.
Selecting a tool For the pocket toolpath, you will use a 3 mm straight bit (known as a flat endmill in Mill). 1. Right-click in the large white area at the top of the Tool parameters dialog box tab and select Get tool from library. The Tools Manager opens. Make sure you are using the Rtoolsmm.tl8 tool library. Tip: For information on checking and changing a tool library, see Selecting a tool library. 2. Choose the Filter button. The Tool List Filter dialog box opens. 3. Set Unit masking to No unit masking. 4. Choose None to clear the selection of tool types the choose the I-Straight (Endmill Flat) button. This button is located in the top left corner of the dialog box. 5. Choose OK to close the Tool List Filter dialog box. 6. Select the 3 mm straight bit, as shown in the following picture.
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Note: This picture shows the Tools Manager in the Router product. In Mill, the Tool Type will be set to Endmill Flat. 7. Choose OK. The selected tool appears on the Tool parameters dialog box tab.
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Note: This picture shows the Tool parameters dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, this dialog box tab will have a very different appearance. As long as you have selected the correct tool ( the tool is described as endmill flat in Mill) the exercise will work correctly. The tool list area may contain additional tools used in previous operations. Check to be sure the 3 mm tool is selected. Setting pocketing parameters You will program the pocketing toolpath with a 45-degree tapered wall along the outer boundary and islands. The angle of this wall matches that of the V-groove cutter that you will use for the engrave remachining toolpath. By programming a tapered wall for the pocketing toolpath, you offset the tip of the straight bit to the same position as the tip of the V-groove cutter, which prevents it from violating the engraved edge. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Select the Pocketing parameters dialog box tab. Clear the Retract check box. Set Feed plane to 2.5 (Absolute). Set Depth to 4.375 (Absolute). Set Linearization tolerance to 0.125. By loosening the cutting tolerance, you reduce the accuracy of the toolpath but speed the toolpath results.
Note: A higher value results in a looser tolerance; a lower value results in a tighter tolerance. 6. Set XY stock to leave to 0.25. The remaining stock protects the boundaries since the linearization tolerance has been increased. 7. Select the Depth cuts check box then select the Depth cuts button. The Depth cuts dialog box opens. 8. Set Max rough step and Finish step to 0,0. 9. Select the Tapered walls check box. 10. Set Outer wall taper angle and Island taper angle to 45.0 degrees. 11. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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Note: Based in these settings, the pocketing toolpath will not actually cut a tapered wall. These settings serve only to calculate the necessary tool offset position. 12. Choose OK to close the Depth cuts dialog box. 13. Check your settings against the picture that matches the product you are using (Router or Mill). Make any necessary adjustments. The following picture shows the Pocketing parameters in Router.
The following picture shows the Pocket parameters in Mill.
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Setting roughing/finishing parameters 1. Select the Roughing/Finishing parameters dialog box tab. 2. Select the Rough check box. 3. Select the Parallel Spiral, Clean Corners cutting method. This option cuts the pocket in a spiral motion that offsets the outer boundary by the stepover amount each time. With each direction change, the tool also does a small move to remove any slivers of material that result from a large stepover (relative to the tool diameter). 4. Set the Stepover percentage to 50.0. This option sets the distance between roughing passes in the X and Y axes as a percentage of the tool diameter. 5. Select Spiral inside to outside. 6. Clear the Finish check box to turn off the finish pass. 7. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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8. Choose OK to generate the toolpath. Your part should look like the following picture.
Backplotting the pocket toolpath In this exercise, you will use Mastercams backplotting feature to check the roughing toolpath before creating the remachining toolpath. 1. Press [Alt + O] to open the Operations Manager
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2. Choose Backplot. The Operations Manager closes, and the Backplot menu displays. 3. Toggle the Yes/No options on the Backplot menu to match the settings shown on the following picture. Based on these settings the plotted image will show the toolpath and tool as wireframe (vs shaded) images.
4. Choose Run from the Backplot menu. Mastercam plots the toolpath. 5. To examine the toolpath more slowly, choose Step from the menu or press [S] on the keyboard repeatedly until the toolpath is complete. The tool simulates the cutting motion by moving from point to point in the toolpath. Tip: To speed up the display, press both the left and right mouse buttons at the same time or hold down the [S] key. You can also choose Run at any time to quickly finish the display. 6. When prompted , choose OK to acknowledge the completion of backplotting. The tool removed material in sections of the letter V but, because of its size and the tapered wall, it was not able to fit in other sections of the part. You will create another toolpath to remove material in these areas. Creating an engrave remachining toolpath In order to remove the remaining material and produce the engraved edges, you will create and engrave remachining toolpath using a small-tipped V-groove cutter. Chaining the geometry You will create the remachining toolpath on the same geometry that you cut with the pocket roughing toolpath. 1. Choose BACKUP or press the [Esc] key to return to the Operations Manager 2. Take the following steps, according to the product that you are running:
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Router - Right-click in the white operation list area. Mastercam displays a right-click menu. - Select Toolpaths, Engraving, as shown in the following picture.
Mill Close the Operations Manager Choose Main Menu, Toolpaths, Next menu, Engraving
3. Choose Last from the Chaining Methods menu. Mastercam selects the previously chained entities in the V8 logo. 4. Choose Done. The Engraving dialog box opens. Selecting a tool In order to cut the material in areas where the roughing tool could not fit, you will select a smalltipped V-groove cutter for the remachining toolpath. 1. Right-click in the tool list area of the Tool parameters dialog box tab and select Get tool from library. The Tools Manager dialog box opens. 2. Use the Filter option to narrow the tool list to V-groove cutters (Chamfer mills). Tip: For information on filtering the tool list, see Selecting a tool. - 54 -
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3. From the Rtoolsmm.tl8 tool library, select the 19 mm cutter with 0.1 mm tip, as shown in the following picture.
Note: This picture shows the Tools Manager in the Router product. In Mill, the Tool Type will be set to Chamfer mill. 4. Choose OK. The selected tool appears on the Tool parameters dialog box tab.
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Note: This picture shows the Tool parameters dialog box tab in the Router product. In Mill, this dialog box tab will have a very different appearance. As long as you have selected the correct tool (the tool is described as chamfer mill in Mill) the exercise will work correctly. The tool list area may contain additional tools used in previous operations. Check to be sure the 19 mm tool is selected.
Setting engraving parameters In the previous chapter, you programmed the engrave remachining toolpath to calculate the remaining stock based on the dimensions of the engrave roughing tool, a V-groove cutter. In this chapter, you used a straight bit as the roughing tool. This tool type does not contain the necessary information (major diameter, tip, or minor, diameter; and angle) to be used to calculate the remaining stock. Therefore , you will program this engrave remachining toolpath to calculate the remaining stock based on the previous operation. 1. 2. 3. 4. Select the Engraving parameters dialog box tab. Clear the check box for Retract plane. Set Feed plane to 2.5 (Absolute) Set Depth to -4.375 (Absolute)
Note: This setting should match the depth used in the pocket roughing toolpath. 5. Set XY Stock to leave to ). 6. Select the Filter check box to turn on filtering, and choose the Filter button. The Filter Settings dialog box opens. Note: Filtering the toolpath reduces the size of the resulting NCI file. 7. Check your filter settings against the default values shown in the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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8. Choose OK to close the Filter settings dialog box. 9. Select the Remachining check box then choose the Remachining button. 10. Select Previous operation.
11. Choose OK to close the Engrave remachining dialog box. 12. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
Setting roughing/finishing parameters 1. Select the Roughing/Finishing dialog box tab. 2. Set Sorting to Top to bottom. This option overrides the sort order that was set by search point you entered during chaining. - 57 -
Note: The sort order of the chains does not affect the remachining pass. However, it does affect the finish pass. 3. Set Stepover % to 80. 4. Set Tolarance to 0.025. 5. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
6. Choose OK to generate the toolpath. 7. (Mill users) Press [Alt +O] to open the Operations Manager. There are now two operations reflected in the list. 8. Make sure only the second operation is selected, as shown in the following
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Backplotting the remachining toolpath
You will use Mastercams backplotting feature to check the remachining toolpath. 1. Choose the Backplot button. 2. Choose Run. Mastercam plots the remachining toolpath. Your part should look like the following picture.
3. Choose BACKUP or press [Esc] to return to the Operations Manager 4. Select both operations. Tip: Choose the Select All button or hold the [Ctrl] key and click both operations in the list. 5. Choose Backplot 6. Step through the toolpaths. The display changes color when the plotted image moves from the pocket roughing toolpath to the engrave remachining toolpath. Tip: For information on the Color Loop feature. 7. When the system has finished backplotting the toolpaths, choose OK. 8. Choose BACKUP or press [Esc] to return to the Operations Manager. Simulating machining (Verify) You will now simulate machining of the part using Mastercams Verify feature. You will pause the verification between the pocket roughing and the engrave remachining toolpaths.
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Configuring the simulation Based on the stock boundary that you defined in a previous exercise, the edges of the stock are located at the extents of the part. To obtain a better simulation, you will set a half-inch margin of stock around the part. You will also program the simulation to stop between tool changes so that you can examine the roughing toolpath before running the remachining toolpath. 1. Choose Verify. The Verify toolbar opens. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Choose the Configure button Choose the Use Job Setup values button. In the Margins column, set X and Y values of 12.5 Select Stop on tool change. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
7. Choose OK to close the Verify configuration dialog box. Running the simulation 1. Choose the Machine (play) button on the Verify toolbar. The roughing toolpath removes some of the material, as shown in the following picture.
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2. Choose the Machine (play) button again. The remachining toolpath removes the remaining material, as shown in the following picture.
3. Close the Verify toolbar and Operations Manager. Saving the file 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Save 2. Navigate to your working folder Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric 3. Type V8logo toolpaths-mm.mc9 for File name and choose Save. In Chapters 2 through 4, you learned how to program engraving toolpaths on geometry that you created in Mastercam and on a pre-existing part file.
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Reading Artwork Into Mastercam This chapter teaches you how to use the Raster to Vector (Rast2Vec) and EPS file converters to read artwork into Mastercam. The Rast2Vec file converter translates raster graphics, which treat an image as a collection of dots, into vector graphics, which treat an image as a collection of dots, into vector graphics, which treat an image as a collection of lines and arcs. The EPS file converter translates the vector data contained in encapsulated PostScript (EPS) graphics and Adobe Illustrator files into Mastercam lines and arcs or splines. With both converters, the resulting Mastercam geometry can be used in toolpath for machining purposes. Note: EPS and AI are vector file formats developed by Adobe Systems Incorporated. You will perform the following tasks in this chapter: - Selecting a raster image to convert - Converting the image to black and white - Generating Mastercam entities - Fine-tuning the results - Manually creating and editing entities - Exiting the Rast2Vec converter and saving the file - Using the EPS file converter Selecting a raster image to convert The Rast2Vec converter reads all bitmap formats (BMP, GIP, JPG or JPEG, PCD, PCX, TIF or TIFF), as well as images that have been digitized with a scanner or digital camera. You can convert one file at a time. To obtain good results, use an image that has clearly recognizable outline contours. Black and white images produce the best results. However, photocopied images may have blurred outlines. 1. Choose Main Menu, File, New to clear the graphics window, then choose Yes at the prompt to initialize geometry and operations. 2. From the File menu, choose Converters, Next menu, Rast2Vec 3. Navigate to your working folder Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric Tip: The Mcam8\Data folder contains sample bitmap files for your use. 4. Select butterfly.bmp. The preview window contains the butterfly image.
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5. Choose Open. Mastercam opens the butterfly image in the Black/White conversion dialog box. Converting the image to black and white The Rast2Vec converter requires that an image the black and white in order to convert it from bitmap to vector format. When the file that you select to convert contains colors or gray tones, the converter provides a utility for changing the image to monochrome. Note: You can also use graphics software or the Paint program included with Microsoft Windows to convert color or grayscale pictures to monochrome prior to converting them in Mastercam. The butterfly image contains gray tones. The squares at the bottom of the dialog box represent the different shades of gray in the image. The picture on the left represents the original image. (Only a small percentage of the image has gray tones, which may be difficult to detect by looking at the image on the left). The picture on the right changes depending on how the threshold scale is set. This scale adjusts the amount of black and white that is used to replace the gray tones.
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1. Select Linear Black/White conversion. 2. Click and drag the Threshold slider to the midpoint of the scale.
3. Release the slider and watch the butterfly image on the right. Some of the gray tones changes from white to black. Note: The change is very subtle. 4. Drag the slider all the way to the right then release it. The gray tones in the original images are now all black. 5. Return the slider to the left, then release it and choose OK. The butterfly image appears in the Rast2Vec dialog box.
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Generating Mastercam entities The options on the Rast2Vec dialog box determine the size of the coverted image, the type of geometry that will be created, and how fine the results will be. The converter can generate geometry along the outline of the image or at the center lines of the shaded regions. In addition, you can manually trace the image by creating and editing geometry. For this exercise, you will create outline geometry and will manually edit the results in a later exercise. 1. Choose Create outlines. 2. Set Resolution DPI to 300. At the resolution, the size of the butterfly geometry will measure approximately 86.4 by 53.8 mm 3. Clear the Background bitmap check box. Note: You will learn about this option in a later exercise. 4. Set source bitmap contains to Mostly arcs. This option determines the type of geometry that best represents the image, which affects the geometry that the converter outputs. 5. Set Accuracy to Fine. This option determines how closely the converter looks at each pixel in the image. 6. Check your settings against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
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7. Choose OK. Mastercam converts the bitmap image to lines and arcs in the graphics window. The prompt area at the bottom of the screen reports the number of resulting entities. Screen statistics: Lines 757 Arcs : 3841 Note: The lower left corner of the image is positioned at the origin of the coordinate axes. Press [F9] to display the axes. Fine-tuning the results At this point, the file is in an intermediate state where you can check the results and return to the Rast2Vec dialog box to adjust parameters, if necessary.
Editing Rast2Vec parameters 1. Press [F1] to access the Zoom function. 2. Click at opposite corners of a rectangle in the section of the butterflys wing shown highlighted in the following picture.
The enlarged area shows a scalloped effect due to to the creation of arcs between many pixels in the drawing.
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This geometry does not best represent the original image, however, and you will now change it. 3. Press [Esc] to return to the Rast2Vec dialog box. 4. Set Source bitmap contains to Lines, corners and arcs and choose OK. 5. Choose the Screen-Zoom toolbar button. 6. Draw a rectangle around the same region as in step 2. The combination of lines, arcs, and sharp conrners better represents the original image.
The prompt area reports the new total of lines and arcs. Screen statistics: Lines: 1467 Arcs : 2177 Smoothing the geometry Another intermediate editing step that you can take is to smooth the geometry. This step reduces the number of lines of lines and arcs and results in a smoother outline of the image. - 67 -

Note: Too much smoothing reduces the accuracy of the original image. 1. Choose Smooth more from the R2V Smooth Geometry menu. The Smooth dialog box opens.
2. Choose OK to accept the recommended amount of smoothing. The drawing now shows two sets of geometry, the original in green and the smoothed in red. Also, the prompted area compares the number of lines and arcs in the original image to the smoothed image.
You can accept the smoothed geometry, continue to smooth the geometry, or undo the results of the smoothing. For this exercise, you will revert to the original geometry. 3. Choose Undo smooth. Note: If you have smoothed the geometry multiple times, you can only undo the results of the last smoothing.
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Generating the outline geometry
Before finalizing the creation of the outline geometry, you will turn on the background bitmap feature. This feature shades the bitmap image, which is useful for checking the resulting geometry against the original image. Note: This feature was previously deselected in order to better illustrate the resulting geometry and the smoothing effects. 1. Press [Esc] to return to the Rast2Vect dialog box. 2. Select Background bitmap. The default bitmap color, shown in the field to the right of the option, is gray.
3. Choose OK to close the dialog box. The background of the butterfly image is now shaded grey, as shown in the following picture.
4. Choose Create geo to finalize the creation of the outline geometry. The R2V Create/Modify Geometry menu displays. At this point, you will be able to modify the existing geometry and create new geometry. However, you will no longer be able to alter the Rast2Vec parameters or smoothness settings.
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Manually creating and editing entities
In this exercise, you will learn how to use a couple of Mastercams CAD functions to modify the resulting geometry. You can access these functions from the R2V Create/Modify Geometry menu while still in the R2V converter. You can also access these functions from the Main Menu in Mastercam. However, when you access these functions after exiting the R2V converter, the background bitmap no longer displays on your image. For more information on Mastercams design capabilities, use the online help. Note: Refer to Chapter 1 for instructions on how to access Mastercams help system. Creating a parametric spline
In this exercise, you will create a parametric spline based on some of the lines and arcs that were output by the Rast2Vec converter. The shape of a parametric spline is defined by a set of node points, which lie on the spline. You can easily move mode points, thereby changing the shape of the curve and still maintaining its smoothness. 1. Press [F1] and zoom in on the teardrop shape shown highlighted in white in the following picture.
2. From the R2V Create/Modify Geometry menu, choose Create Spline. 3. On the Spline menu, toggle Type to P for parametric. 4. Toggle Ends to N (No). This option affects the condition of the splines endpoints. Since this spline is a closed shape, you do not need to change its endpoints. 5. Choose Curves from the Spline menu. - 70 -

6. Select anywhere on the green line that marks the outer boundary of the teardrop shape. Mastercam selects the chain of entities indicated by the thick white line in the following picture.
Note: The direction of the selection arrow does not matter. 7. Choose Done. The From Curves menu displays. The D next to the Dispose option tells Mastercam to delete the selected lines and arcs after the spline is created.
8. Choose Do it to create the parametric spline. Editing a parametric spline Now that you have created a parametric spline in place of a selection of lines and arcs, you can edit the shape of the spline by moving its node points. The spline is a simple entity. Therefore, when you move one of its node points, it maintains its continuous shape.
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1. Choose Main Menu to return to the R2V Create/Modify Geometry menu, then choose Analyze. 2. Select the spline that you just created. In the prompt area, Mastercam displays information about the spline. For example, 28 node points define the spline.
3. On the Analyze Entity menu, toggle Edit to Y (Yes). The spline information now displays in a dialog box where some of the information is editable. 4. Choose the Move node button.
Mastercam closes the dialog box and returns you to the graphics window where the selected spline and its node points are highlighted. 5. Select the node point highlighted by the white circle in the following picture. Once selected, the node point turns red. Note: If you select the wrong node point, press [Esc] to deselect it.
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6. Move the cursor slightly to the left of the node point then click. The node position changes to the point you just entered. 7. Click a few more times in different places to practice repositioning the node point, the press [Esc] to set the node position. Your part will look something like the following picture, depending on where you set the node position.
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Note: It you clicked in the shaded region of the background bitmap, your image may show lines marking these positions, as shown in this picture. These lines will disappear once you set the splines position in the next step. 7. Press [Esc] again to return to the Analyze dialog box the choose OK to change the shape of the spline. Exiting the Rast2Vec converter and saving the file 1. Choose Main Menu to return to the R2V Create/Modify Geometry menu. 2. Choose Done. 3. At the prompt, choose Yes to exit the Rast2Vec converter. Note: At this point, you can continue to create and edit geometry using Mastercams Design functions (accessed from the Main Menu). However, the shaded bitmap image is no longer present on the screen. 4. 5. 6. 7. Unzoom by choosing the Screen-Unzoom buttom Choose Main Menu, File, Save Navigate to your working folder: Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric Type butterfly-mm.mc8 for the File name, the choose Save.
Using the EPS file converter With the EPS file converter, you can convert one EPS or AI file at a time or an entire directory of EPS or AI files. For this exercise, you will convert a single EPS file. Note: For more information on the EPS file converter, see the introduction to this chapter.
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Clearing the screen and accessing the EPS converter 1. Choose New from the File menu. 2. At the prompt, choose Yes to initialize geometry and operations 3. From the File menu, choose Converters, Next menu, EPS Setting EPS parameters Before you convert an EPS file, you can set parameters that determine the scale, composition, and position of the resulting geometry. For this exercise, you will enter coordinates for opposite corners of a 75 by 125-mm rectangle. Mastercam will scale the incoming part to the size of this rectangle as best it can while maintaining the aspect ratio of the incoming part. The coordinate that you enter will also set the position of the part in the graphics window. 1. Choose Settings from the EPS menu. The EPS reader settings dialog box opens. 2. Select Scale art into rectangle. 3. Set Start to X0 and Y0. The lower-left corner of the converted geometry will be positioned at the system origin (0.0). 4. Set End to X75 and Y125. These coordinates mark the upper-right corner of the geometry. 5. Check your setting against the following picture. Make any necessary adjustments.
6. Choose OK to close the EPS reader settings dialog box. Converting an EPS file 1. Choose Read file from the EPS menu 2. Navigate to your working folder: Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric Tip: The Mcam8\Data folder contains sample. All files for your use. The EPS folder (located within the Data folder) contains sample EPS files for your use.
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3. Select palmtree.eps. The preview window contains the palm tree image.
4. Choose Open. Mastercam converts the file. Your part should look like the following picture.
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Saving the file 1. Choose Main Menu, File, Save 2. Navigate to your working folder: Mcam8\Common\Tutorials\Engraving Tutorial\Metric 3. Type palmtree-mm.mc8 for the File name then those Save.
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Mastercam Engraving 2008

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Creating part geometry

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Your screen should now look like the following picture.

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The following picture shows the Pocket parameters in Mill.

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