FROM TRAINING TO PRODUCTION: NOW YOU SEE IT, NOW YOU DO IT

An offline personal computer can be used to train the operators, who then run the program on a virtual control to prove it out, all before running it on a costly machine tool . . . it’s the evolution of the quasi-CAM system that brings so many advantages to the shop.

For about a decade now, CNC operators have been trained on a personal computer, either in a tech school classroom, machine tool builder’s training center or by the CNC builder. While a great tool and certainly a comfort zone for the new generation of computer-savvy machinists that are entering the industry, the offline PC had its obvious limitations.

There was often a substantial disconnect between the screens used in the training program and the actual CNC on the machine tool. This situation resulted in the need for further training sessions on the machine control, following the classroom sessions.

Today that situation has taken a sharp turn in the direction of “virtual reality.” Using the power of the PC and the current ability of software to simulate the actual control on the machine tool, operators and students can literally run an identical CNC in the classroom to mirror the control they will use in the shop. Softkeys, screen orientation and customizing of screens on the offline PC all replicate the actual machine control.

Furthermore, this new technology enables operators and students alike to run through what I call a quasi-CAM system, because the part program can literally be simulated onscreen, with all tool paths and material removal represented in 3D and real time. This capability results from the CNC simulator’s archive of actual machine parameters, allowing the training software to help correct operator error in the classroom, rather than having it occur on the shop floor and potentially causing damage to an expensive machine or tool.

This advanced PC-based software thereby facilitates the training, program prove-out, post-processor function and part tests, all occurring on a virtual control panel that simulates the actual control panel to be used on the machine. In a classroom environment, the trainer can also monitor the entire class’ work onscreen from a central terminal.

OK, I can hear you saying, “That’s just great, but what does it mean to operators out in the shop?” Well, I’m glad you asked! This is where things really take a giant leap forward in a production environment. Just as these software systems and offline training PCs can be networked in a LAN for classroom use, they can also be employed for actual program validation and exporting to the CNC on the machine, via a network cable, USB stick or Compact Flash (CF) card.

An operator can, for example, be running a part on a machine, while also proving out the next part on an offline PC, then simply export or carry the file to the machine for the subsequent run. And, because the control panel an operator uses on the offline PC is a carbon copy (as we once called such things, long ago) of the CNC on the machine, there is far less chance of confusion or error entry.

As I’ve pointed out in previous columns, today’s advanced CNC has conversational language capability for quick commands, in addition to the G-code, further enhancing an operator’s ability to make faster yet precise adjustments to a program in use.

So, the next time a student you know says there’s no connection between what’s learned in the classroom and the real world, ask him or her if they’ve ever considered a career in machining! “Virtual reality” might just not be an oxymoron after all! In the CNC world, that is certainly the case today.