Latest Alphacam release focuses on automation

Automation Manager includes enhancements to simplify the workflow, including multi-drill control, new styles functionality, and further support for additional CAD file formats.

The introduction of Automation Manager Plus across all levels of Alphacam allows advanced automation to support the processing of Constrained Drawings and Parametric Sketches, and Part Grain Direction through sheet Grain Direction and Alignment Vector options. It also includes the Cabinet Door Manufacture (CDM) module.

Alphacam 2017 R2 also sees the first release of its integration with robot simulation software, meaning that output toolpaths generated within Alphacam can be passed directly to RoboDK’s offline programming (OLP) to simulate robot kinematics, along with a range of applications and activities such as robot milling. RoboDK then outputs the OLP to the robot controller.

As part of the Vero customer experience improvement program, Alphacam integrates Microsoft Analytics to gather software usage statistics.

A new Reverse Cut Direction option has been added to rough/finish, creating toolpaths in the opposite direction to the tool direction on the geometry. Alphacam brand manager Simon Mathias says this is particularly useful when creating multiple passes around a shape which need to go in alternate directions, such as polishing and sanding profiled edges.

Sawing has been enhanced by controlling how the foul avoidance is applied. It can be applied to none or all of the selected machining geometries, but alternatively, a separate selection can be made for the avoidance geometries. Foul avoidance geometries appear in a new branch of the operation tree, where geometries can be added or removed, and the selection remade.

The new release also continues Alphacam’s theme of improving user experience, by updating many dialog boxes, including profiling, 3D machining, lathe turning cycles and stone, providing a more intuitive and consistent approach across the modules, to include new images, tooltips and help links.

Lathe turning cycles benefits from these new style dialogs, for facing, diameter roughing, face roughing, contour roughing and twin turret balance roughing – again, to include new images, tooltips and help links.

Support for 4K monitors has been improved with the addition of scaling options, to make the icons larger for higher 4K dpi settings – accessed from the appearance section in the ribbon bar configuration.

The Input CAD Extensions add-in now supports all imported file types. Mr Mathias explains: “The dialog will only be displayed if the CAD file imported something that can be processed – for example, at least one instance of geometry, text or spline. Otherwise the dialog won’t be shown.”

There is also a new tool which he says is useful for tidying up imported geometry from CAD formats such as DXF and DWG, where the designer may have created several overlaying entities which are used in design, but are not required for manufacturing via CNC.

“This is the Common Line Removal option which has been added to the dialog, enabling it to run automatically on CAD import. It will be particularly valuable when batch processing CAD data through Automation Manager.”

Mr Mathias concludes: “The automation enhancements in Alphacam 2017 R2 assist manufacturers to improve productivity and profitability by speeding up their manufacturing processes.”

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