CNC control system

Each CNC machine is equipped with a control system which determines the capabilities of the machine. Basic systems offer only the possibility of loading a toolpath file and activating the machining. More advanced systems allow such action as a simulation prior to treatment, or changing the tool path parameters and settings. The control systems offered by our company give many more possibilities.The input format of work does not always have to be a ready tool path which takes into account the diameter correction of the tool, because a built-in CAM module can generate it directly on the basis of the contours and outlines using any software like AutoCad vector, Corel Designer, etc. The following are available: tool diameter corrections (outer, inner), concurrent or backward treatment, multi-step cutting, pocketing operations with auto island detection, cutting corners with engraving cutters, handling the different shapes of tools, setting the start and the order of processing, vertical immersing, through a ramp, helical and lateral. The system is also equipped with an editor that allows drawing and improving projects being performed. In the editor there are single-line fonts with Polish characters integrated with TTF font support for Windows and the module of automatic assigning sequence numbers (e.g. name plates, etc.). The unusual feature is the ability of modelling the curvature of the material surface, which allows engraving on convex or crooked materials at constant depth. Our system also supports the interpolated and subscripted fourth axis of rotation in the simultaneous mode, which allows the machining of cylindrical surfaces. The Kimla control system supports up to 16 interpolated axes, including the active knife, the 4th axis on the spindle, the double drive of the gate, the control of the active knife and the saw, the operation of 5-axis machines. In case of machining complex 3D shapes we can also use CNC ISO files which are generated by any CAM system, including circular interpolation, helical and circular 3D, as well as the operation of 5-axis machines with dynamic translation the path to the length of the tool. In addition, the full visualization of the machining on the computer screen during operation in real time allows to avoid many mistakes and errors. What is more, it gives information about the progress of work and allows to estimate the time of its completion.

CNC machine rigidity

A very important parameter of cutting machines is their rigidity. Unfortunately, there are not any infinitely rigid machines because there are not any infinitely rigid construction materials. However, you should always give priority to the problem of rigidity. Why would you increase the resolution of drives and apply precision roller screws, if under low load the head deviates up to the value that significantly exceeds the resolution of drives. Nowadays they are aluminum profiles which are quite often used for the construction of light CNC machines. Admittedly, if you want to perform a simple unprofessional plotter, all you need is a saw for aluminum, a few screwdrivers and a drill, but such a machine does not represent much itself. The straightline motion of the feeds depends on the accuracy of the profile pressing and the accuracy of the angles depends on the cutting saw. What is more, such structures are jointed with hundreds of bolts and thus they are vulnerable to loss of stability of the geometry.

Durability of CNC machines

Our machines are designed for professional use and therefore we have eliminated all the sliding elements in their design, starting with linear motion bearings and ending with brushless drives and a brushless spindle.

All elements moving each other reciprocally are mounted on rolling bearings and there is no need for their scheduled periodic replacement (such as brake pads in the car). Thanks to this the working life of our machines is impressive. For seven years of production and implementation of hundreds of CNC machines we have not recorded a case in which a customer would request a general overhaul of the equipment produced by our company. However, in order to meet the growing demands of our customers we offer upgrades of our older machines mainly by exchanging control systems on newer versions at preferential prices. This is possible through the use of components of only well-known and reputable international companies such as Bosch Rexroth, IKO, NB, ISEL, ELTE, HSD, IGUS. With this approach, the client has a lot of solid and reliable sources of supply of all the components applied in our machines, which ensures continuous and long-term operating.

CNC milling machine or plotter?

What is the difference between a cutter, a plotter and an engraving machine? Different people use these terms interchangeably, frequently to the same machine. Indeed, the tasks of these machines often overlap, but this is not the rule. We usually define a milling machine as a heavy cast iron machine with a coordinate table and a spindle speed range from several dozen to several thousand revolutions per minute, which allows milling with milling heads of considerable size. The torques achieved through the gearing (usually toothed) are several hundred newton metres (N-m). These gear units are one of the reasons for the relatively low speed of maximum milling spindles. Milling machines and milling machining centers are used primarily for milling with multi flute heads with diameters up to 300 mm, milling with finger type milling cutters with diameters: 3-50mm, drilling with drills with diameters: 3-40mm, boring, dredging. They are used mainly for rough and semi accurate processing of bodies, moulds, dies, die boards, matrices. A milling-engraving machine is a lightweight milling machine with spindle speeds reaching 24,000 or 40,000 rpm. For engraving works there is a need to use tools with much smaller diameters (from 0.05mm) and which require much higher spindle speeds. A conventional spindle motor-spindle system with gear is not used here as a spindle, but there are electro-spindles integrated in one housing and there is a spindle and a drive motor, usually inductive one, on one axis. The advantage of this solution is smooth and quiet operation at high speeds and the lack of brushes, and the disadvantage is the relatively low torque, which is due to lack of gears. Therefore, the diameters of the tools used in milling-engraving machines do not exceed 16mm in metals and 100mm in other materials. The solution to the disadvantages associated with low torque of the electro-spindle is to use a considerable excess of its rated power (at least 7kW with the cutter 10 mm in steel), which may often cause a potential buyer's amazement. Still the matter must be thoroughly explained. Induction electro-spindles, in addition to many undeniable advantages, have one serious drawback - a constant torque. If we need to reduce speed (e.g. for a large head) in spindles with gear, we change a gear ratio to a lower one, which simultaneously increases the torque. In inductive electro-spindles the rotation is regulated by the inverter. The u/f characteristics of the engine shows that torque is almost independent of the rotation (there are inverters which allow to boost torque at low speeds, but not more than 200% of the nominal value). Therefore, the electro-spindle with the value of 7kW on its identification plate may achieve this power at a certain speed (not necessarily maximum speed noted on the plate) which is called the rated speed. Let us say that our rated speed is 18.000 rpm. The power is torque times speed, which means that if you set the speed to 9000 rpm, the power which is available equals 3.5kW, and at 1800rpm the power is only 700W. However, comforting is the fact that during operation the average power consumed by the sample electrospindle does not exceed a few hundred watts. Because high revolutions which allow giving high power are used only for tools with small diameters, they are not able to get such a power, whereas at low speeds and

large tools the power which is reached by the spindle is small, which results in low power consumption. Summarizing the above observations, you should always choose the electro-spindle with a rated power much greater than it results from the calculated power demand for a specific tool. Milling-engraving machines which are equipped with electro-spindles are increasingly applicable in the production of injection moulds, dies, die boards, matrices, punches, copper and graphite electrodes, thanks to the availability of a wide range of tools made of monolithic sintered carbide. These tools can machined at speeds many times greater than existing HSS tools, which combined with the possibility of obtaining high speeds on machines equipped with inductive electro-spindles, becomes the ideal tool for many applications in each workshop dealing with machining. Computer controlled engraving machines are even lighter than milling-engraving machines. They are used in particular to cope with very small tools, usually with conical geometry of the footer with a diameter of 0.02mm. Due to the very small diameter of the working part of the engraving tool the power of the spindle does not need to be high (up to 2.2kW). But stability, stiffness and the resolution of positioning and the properties of dynamic control system should be at the highest level. In this case the resolution of positioning is absolutely important because engraving involves works which are not visible with the naked eye. The smallest unitary increase of the position, which is called the resolution of positioning, should not exceed 0.001mm with the backlash of the entire drive system not exceeding 0.005mm. Otherwise, you will see the "teeth" which often disqualify the possibility of using such a machine for more precise works. In computer controlled engraving, there is also a function of the control system which is rather unavailable in other machines, but which is indispensable at work. It refers to the possibility of automatic cutting corners with an engraving cutter. This is of particular importance if we apply raised lettering which appears to be 'raised out' of the material, produced by the background surface being removed leaving the lettering that protrudes above the surface. If there is no such a function, each sharp internal corner will be cut only on the bottom, while the arc of the tool radius on the peak height of the sign will not be cut on the surface. Milling plotters often called routing tables probably owes its name to the first constructions that were built on ordinary tables. But that is history. Today milling plotters are modern and multi-urpose CNC machines which are most relevant in the advertising industry, for cutting, drilling, engraving plates in plastic, aluminum or composites, for cutting foil, cardboard or paper. In 3D versions plotters are used for modelling reliefs, making spatial mockups and three-dimensional presentations. These are the cheapest of computercontrolled machine tools on the market. They are produced mostly in the version with a mobile gateway, which is optimal in relation to the use of the surface with relatively large working areas (up to 3 x 8m). Milling plotters tables are usually covered with T-slots, which gives great versatility either by underpressure or vacuum system to keep the material, which reduces versatility but greatly facilitates the attachment of large and thin boards. There is also a hybrid version, a table covered with T-slots additionally equipped with underpressure system, depending on the treatment we can use one or the other mounting system. In milling plotters the 0.8k - 18 kW spindle is used. Optionally, you can equip them with basing system, a laser or touch scanner, the axis of rotation, additional cutting, drawing or pouring heads, anglular aggregates for cutters and circular saws, etc. Light gantry milling machines are devices similar to milling plotters, but are much more rigid, heavier and more accurate. They are primarily used in industrial environments, or where there is a need for processing large areas, with large tools and with high efficiency. The capacities of spindles installed in light gantry milling machines begin with 7 kW.

CNC machines accuracy

The accuracy of the machine is often the primary criterion for the selection of a machine tool. Everyone would like to have the most accurate machine. However, the accuracy of the machine is often misunderstood, which sometimes may lead to confusion. The accuracy of the machine is a general concept and to make it more specific the following terms should be used: straightness of feed rates, perpendicularity

of the axis, pitch error, backlash, perpendicularity of the spindle, resolution of positioning, resolution of drives, resolution of the interpolator, positioning repeatability, rigidity. straightness of feed rates is a parameter indicating the maximum deviation of the tool path from the straight line on the specified distance of a given axis perpendicularity of the axis is a parameter indicating the maximum deviation of the track which is perpendicular to the axis of reference on the specified distance pitch error is a deviation of the displacement value of the ball screw nut from the theoretical displacement resulting from the nominal pitch backlash is the distance on which a given axis begins to move when changing the direction of movement perpendicularity of the spindle is a parameter specifying the error of the spindle perpendicularity in relation to the X-Y plane resolution of positioning is the product of resolution of the pitch and drives (the smallest value by which a given axis may move due to the possibilities of the drive) resolution of the interpolator is the minimum displacement which can be imposed on the drives by the position set-point adjuster (interpolator) positioning repeatability is the maximum deviation of the absolute position of the tool during multiple approaching to the selected point from different directions rigidity is a parameter specifying the value by which the machine will unbend when applying the setpoint force in the least favourable position of the axis As you can see the total tool positioning error is the sum of all the errors mentioned. Of course, it may happen that individual errors in given circumstances will be neutralised, but you cannot count on that. Additionally, the matter is complicated by the phenomenon of thermal expansion. For steel it is about 0.01mm/m for each degree Celsius, therefore with the temperature jump from 10 to 30 degrees, the screw will expand by 0.2mm/m! It is not that bad if steel is being machined, because it has a similar expandability as the feed screw, but if we want to treat aluminum, which has a thermal expansion of about three times higher than steel, some serious problems of tolerance preservation begin to appear, especially with long details. Most of the mentioned factors affect the so-called static error that is measured at a given point when the machine is stopped. There is also a dynamic error which appears only during operation and is associated with the imperfection of the interpolator and drives. Servo drives work in the so-called closed loop of the position control (the position feedback). The controller in the servo drive is constantly trying to control the motor so that the position error (the difference between the setpoint and current position) was as small as possible. The servo drive cannot respond to the offset position immediately. For this it needs as much time as the period of the positioner is. In most servo drives the position controller frequency is only 400 Hz. If the deviation increases immediately after measuring the position, the servo drive will not know about it for the next 2.5ms, and at a speed of 0.5m/s the machine will run 1.25mm at this time! This is the error which repeatedly exceeds the sum of all static errors of the geometry of the machine. Unfortunately, manufacturers frequently do not even mention the dynamic parameters of their machines because they usually have nothing to be proud of. Keeping this problem in mind our company has been improving digital servodrives made in Direct Position Control technology for many years. The frequency of

these servo drives positioning controller reaches 20.000Hz which is the value 50 times higher than in most servo drives. This technology greatly reduced the dynamic error of our machines, which allowed the use of higher speeds and acceleration which are closely related to the efficiency of machine tools made in our company. It should also be noted that the quality of setting the position, that is interpolation, is equally important. The interpolator is a part of the control system, which is responsible for providing to the servodrives the information on how fast each axis should move and what position should be reached. The most important task of the interpolator is the synchronization of the moves of each axes, that the shape plotted by the tool in the space was consistent with the program set by the operator. This is a very complex process which requires a very fast CPU to achieve a satisfactory resolution. For many years our company has been developing the Dynamic Vector Analysis technology which relates to shaping the interpolation velocity profile and which has been elaborated by our engineers. The result of the performance of this technology is, in extreme cases, even twenty times shorter treatment parts with complex shapes.

How to test CNC machines?

CNC machine tools have been created primarily in order to increase the efficiency and accuracy of processing by reducing or eliminating physical human work. In times when labour costs are getting more expensive, the natural purpose becomes the production of as many of goods as possible by one worker. Company owners who want to improve their capabilities of producing goods begin to analyze the possibility of buying a CNC machine tool. Frequently, they choose the price of the machine as a basic criterion. They do not realize that CNC machines are divided into professional and unprofessional ones. Professional machines are the machines that allow generating income, that is they can produce a product that can be sold for an amount exceeding the cost of producing it. The production cost consists of the price of the material (together with waste and defective products), the amortisation cost of the machine tool, the cost of electricity, the operator's labour cost, the cost of providing technology and machining programs, the cost of cutting tools. Unprofessional machines are the machines which are not able to generate profits due to their design, the materials of which they are made, the possibilities of the control system and widely understood performance. These machines are usually a group of machines which are often much cheaper than the professional ones. These machines are perfect for fun, e.g. for a modeller who makes model airplanes, ships, etc. as a hobby and where the processing time is not essential. It is worth emphasizing that usually the times of processing the same workpiece on a professional machine and on an unprofessional one differ by not tens of percent but processing on a professional machine is dozens times faster, which allows to generate a considerable profit. While processing the same workpiece on an unprofessional machine, we may suffer big losses. This is due to the fact that almost all the factors responsible for the production cost of a given workpiece depends on the time of machining and intermediate times, that is on the efficiency of the machine. So how to distinguish a professional machine from an unprofessional one? The price is not always the determining factor, because some of the companies, especially those with a brand name, produce unprofessional machines which are not cheap at all and the user pays primarily for the known logo on the housing of the machine. There are also machines that are offered as professional ones but they only seem professional, which is to encourage potential customers to make a purchase. To avoid a situation where you have made the purchase and the machine appears not meet your expectations, you should carefully examine the real possibilities of the machine you are interested in.

First of all, the fundamental issue is to visit the company which offers such a machine. It is best to go to the manufacturer, because in addition to the demonstration of the machine, we will be able to evaluate how and on what hardware these machines are made, and what are the conditions for the production. Trading companies usually offer to see the machine in operation at the premises of another customer, which can make requests for the demonstration of all machine capabilities quite embarrassing. Most frequently it causes the presumption that the machine performs the treatment correctly, which does not mean that it really will. During the demonstration at the producer's you can usually be more fussy, because then the both sides do care about the transaction. When we look at the machine, we should pay attention to following details. A professional machine should be made on the basis of steel construction containing as few connecting elements (bolts, clamps, screws, etc) as possible. It should be a closed spatial structure providing high rigidity of the machine. Aluminium profiles connected through twisted elements are often unstable, prone to deformations during transport and may lose the geometry of the machine because all elements are held by means of friction. The situation in which machines are imported in parts and assembled at the customer's is a total misconception. It is ideal when the machine is composed of the minimum amount of parts, i.e. the machine frame is monolithic and the gate is not a removable part. Admittedly, it forces the manufacturer to have huge machines which allow machining such large elements in one clamping, but only then the user has the guarantee that he will have a machine with the correct geometry for many years. All elements which move one another should be free from sliding elements in favour of rolling bearings. This provides many years of work without replacing components that wear out in a natural way. The bearing of each axis should be on at least two guides and four carriages. Converting rotary drive into linear drive should be done by means of ball screws. In the case of the drive of a mobile gate, the mobile gate must be powered by two ball screws which are synchronized in order to maintain the correct perpendicularity of axes! It is very important because otherwise the gate will have very low torsional rigidity. Ball screws are precision rolling gears and therefore they must be protected from dust and chips occurring during processing. The ball screws which are exposed to direct contact with contaminants should be obligatorily protected by safety covers. The machine must weigh sufficiently. If we are able to lift up the machine from its either side by human power, it must be a toy, except for CNC desktop machines. The weights of industrial machines are measured in tons. As for the drives which are used in such machines, the best solutions are digital servo drives which work in the DPC (Direct Position Control) system and which are characterised by high precision movement in dynamic states. It is very important because the accuracy of machines are usually given in static states, which does not allow to estimate the real machining accuracy. The machines which are driven by servo motors should reach speeds from 300 mm/s and and higher. Step motors should not be used for professional applications, but this is acceptable in cae of lighter machines provided the use of well-matched engines with drivers and the application of resonances damping system. They should reach a speed of 100-150 mm/s. A good control system is half the battle. The rate of growth of this market segment makes several-year-old machines of well-known brands not suitable to use because of the outdated control system, although they are still in perfect condition. Therefore, it is very important that the control system would allow subsequent upgrades to make it adjusting to future standards. Another aspect concerning the control system is its speed. The speed of the control system of a CNC machine tool is the ability to process a certain number of blocks of a program in a unit of time. The speed of

the control system is primarily important in the work in which there are complex shapes consisting of a large number of vectors (and such ones are processed mostly on CNC machines). In this situation, another parameter of the control system, which is the possibility to analyze more than one block of a program at a time, becomes very important. When analyzing several thousand vectors forward within a second, we are able to adjust the speed in knots between vectors so that in case of small angles between them it is possible to cover them with a speed greater than zero. This way of the interpolator performance is called "Dynamic Analysis of Vectors". Another aspect of the control system also applies to the interpolator performance. First of all, the PC is not suitable for a direct interpolation of movements for CNC machines. The hardware resources of a PC are not equipped with a precise timer that could be the basis of time for the interpolator. In addition, most operating systems like Windows and Linux are not real-time systems, which means that impulses generated directly by the PC, e.g. to the printer port, may be delayed of an unspecified value. This causes that the movements generated in this way will always have a very poor quality (vibration, oscillations, jerks), which is caused by irregular generating impulses. The solution to this problem is to use a hardware interpolator operating on an entirely different processor. They are usually very fast DSP processors. In this case, the PC is used only as a user interface rather than an interpolator. To ensure the communication between these two parts of the system in the real time, they must be connected to a very fast data bus. Solutions like serial port, parallel port or USB are not suitable for that. The only possible option is Ethernet, usually on a modified transport layer. A good control system should also allow for the smooth regulation of the machine feed rate from zero to the preset speed. It should allow generating the toolpath based on drawings in dxf format, etc. automatically, including the correction of the tool diameter, extracting pockets, detecting islands and drilling holes. It is recommended that the system can display all the data concerning the machining with the visualization of the work progress on the screen in the real time. To find out the possibilities of the machine, it is essential to perform test treatments, whose results will help to answer most of the questions about the reasonableness of the purchase of a given machine. We should ask for the realization of several geometric figures, that is: a square, a triangle, a circle and an ellipse, of the size of 100mm and the thickness of 5-8mm, with the speed of at least 50mm/s, in materials at least as hard as those which we want to process on this machine. Firstly, we cut out a square and then we examine its corners in particular. They should be straight and sharp, and should not be rounded. Any undulations should not be visible near the corners. Examining waste material we have to pay attention if the cutter did not move in the corners too far. If we notice the effects mentioned, it means that the machine has rather small rigidity. We measure the dimension in both directions using an electronic caliper. If the deviation is within 0.03mm in case of milling machines or engraving machines and 0.05mm in case of milling plotters, the result is satisfactory. But the difference between the two dimensions should not exceed 0.02mm and 0.04mm respectively. Looking against the light between the angle bar and the square, we should not see any clearance. We can also cut out two squares and place them together after turning one of them upside down. They should ideally coincide with each other. If they do not coincide, it means that there is no perpendicularity of axes XY in the machine. Then we cut out a triangle. Here, apart from corners we draw our attention to sloping walls which require the simultaneous movement of two axes. Now we assess the quality of interpolation. The rougher the surface is, the worse the interpolator and the drives operate.

Now we cut out a circle. While machining the circle we have to pay special attention to operating speed and possible vibrations, jams and other incidents that may cause e.g. significant decreasing the feed rate in comparison to cutting a square. If we notice that the circle is performed more slowly than the square, despite the fact that the preset speed is the same, this means that the system cannot keep up with processing large quantities of vectors, or emulates a circular interpolation with low resolution. This can be recognized on flat surfaces which form this circle and which are visible on the side of the circle. The circle should be round. We measure it using an electronic caliper at various angles and check the dimensions as well as in case of the square. Now it is the time for an ellipse. Here, most common problems occur with the processing speed in the control system, and therefore during the treatment of an ellipse, we have to pay attention primarily to the speed and smoothness of the movement of the machine. Then we "plan" the surface with dimensions of approximately 100x100mm vertically, and horizontally nearby, with a 10mm dia milling cutter so that the distance between the successive paths was 9mm. After treatment we check the smoothness of the machined surface. If we can feel "stairs" with your finger on any of the planned surfaces, it means that the spindle of the machine is not perpendicular to the table. Another important test is to perform machining of the stamp. We mill the stamp in the shape of a cube with dimensions of 40x40x40mm, so that the cutter performed subsequent squares by lowering layers every 1mm down. Then we measure the dimensions using an electronic caliper in both directions near the surface and near the base. If the upper and lower dimensions differ by more than 0.03mm, it means the Z axis is not perpendicular to the axes X and Y. If the machine passes all these tests successfully, it means that we are dealing with a perfect machine which is definitely worth to buy it.