CAM Lite is based on Expert Machinist, a Pro/ENGINEER feature based NC programming system for 2 1/2 axis production of discrete machining parts. 4 and 5 axis positioning are supported; although, each individual tool path is limited to 2 1/2 axis motions.
CAM Lite is structured to emulate the natural thought process of an NC programmer :
Create NC model to determine what part is to be machined and what material it will be machining from.
Set-up the complete operation including selection of the CNC machine (Workcell) and establishment of the program zero.
Create machining features based on the NC model and the operation setup.
Create toolpaths for these features, gather information from previous steps, and capture your machining preferences for each feature-type. Tool path creation requires little interaction and is virtually automatic.
Create CL data that can be used by a post-processor (not included) to generate the NC codes required to drive the CNC machine.
CAM Lite is based on shop floor machining and leverage processes, which is the information contained in the 3D Model to automate programming process for parts. The users maintain complete control over the machining process.
The key to success with CAM Lite lies in how the machining features are used. This tutorial will focus on the machining features and how to get the maximum benefit from them.
Before starting this tutorial. please unzip the data cam_lite_tutorial_data.zip
in a separate folder. Do not forget to use the config.pro included in this zip file.
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