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Mill on a Rotary Axis

ESPRIT’s 4-axis wrap milling is used for cung while the NC Cut Along a Contour .................... 86
machine axis rotates. Wrap milling is designed to be used
with a barrel stock rotang about an axis. For a standard Rough and Finish the Pocket ..91
milling machine, the rotaon axis can be parallel to the
Copy and Rotate Operations ...94
x-axis (A-axis), y-axis (B-axis) or z-axis (C-axis). For a mill/turn
machine, the rotaon axis is typically the C-axis.
Wrap milling should not be confused with index milling.
Indexing, or 4/5-axis milling, refers to the situaon where the
NC machine axis (or axes) rotates to a new orientaon, then
cuts aer the NC machine stops rotang.
This project will show you how to set up rotary axes in
ESPRIT and create rotary milling operaons to contour and
pocket the OD of a part. Wrap milling operaons can also be
performed on the ID and the face of a part.

The files for this project are available for download from
ESPRITWeb » File Library » ESPRIT 2009 and from the ESPRIT
CD.
All dimensions in this tutorial are in millimeters. Make sure
System Unit on the Tools menu is set to Metric.
Before you start this lesson, you can review and simulate the
cung operaons in the following file:
Milling - Rotary\rotary_milling_complete.esp.

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Cut Along a Contour
You will begin this project by creang a contouring pass on the OD of the part.

Wrap Contouring
The Wrap Contouring command lets you easily cut solids and 3-dimensional geometry while the
stock rotates on the NC machine. You can create as many contouring passes as needed — a single
finishing pass along the outline of the feature or mulple roughing passes offset incrementally
from the feature. You can also define separate stock allowance values for the walls and floors.
Entry and exit moves can be created while the stock is rotang or the tool can approach and exit
the part without rotary moon.
Wrap Contouring is used for milling on the OD or the ID of a part. To cut on the face, Rotary Face
Contouring is used.

Machine Setup for Rotar y Milling

To enable rotary milling, you need to define at least one rotary axis and set the angle limits for
the NC machine. Wrap milling operaons can be defined on any rotary axis or combinaon of two
rotary axes. If available, the secondary axis will be used as the rotary axis. Otherwise, the primary
axis is used.
Creang a new rotary axis in ESPRIT is quite simple using the Machine Setup command on the
Common Machining menu.
Machine Setup lets you configure any type of 2-axis through 5-axis milling machine. You can define
separate linear moon in X, Y, and Z for your machine components as well as rotary movement in
A, B, and C. This allows you to customize the configuraon of the machine in ESPRIT to match your
milling machine exactly and provide an accurate display of all machine moon, including rotary
and index milling, during simulaon.

Open t he Par t File

1. On the File menu, click Open.
2. Locate and open the following file: Milling - Rotary\rotary_milling.esp
This file contains all the features, cung tools and machine parameters needed for this
project.
3. On the Smart toolbar, click Common Machining to display the toolbar.

86 | Get Started with ESPRIT 2009

Define Rot ar y A xes in Machine Setup
The NC machine for this project uses standard X, Y, and Z linear moon on the machine head.
The table has a rotary C-axis mounted on the A-axis.

Let’s take a look at the machine parameters in ESPRIT.

1. On the Common Machining toolbar, click Machine Setup.
2. Click the Assembly tab.

Project 3: Mill on a Rotary Axis | 87

3. Open the assembly tree for Head and then open the tree for Axes. (Click the plus sign to open
a tree)

If you click on the X, Y, or Z axis you will see that they all have linear moon and that each has
its own axis vector that defines the direcon of the axis.
4. Open the assembly tree for Table and then open Axes.

The order of the axes listed in Machine Setup is important. The first axis in the list is the
primary axis. The second axis is the secondary axis and so on. In this case, the C-axis is
mounted on the A-axis. Movement will first occur on the A-axis, followed by movement on the
C-axis.
Noce that the maximum rotaon allowed for the A-axis is 90 degrees.

The maximum rotaon allowed for the C-axis is a full 360 degrees.
5. Click OK to close the Machine Setup dialog.

88 | Get Started with ESPRIT 2009

Create a Wrap Contouring Operat ion
This operaon will cut the contoured shoulder on the OD of the part with a single pass using a
25mm end mill. The diameter of the stock is 25mm. The entry and exit moves are performed
while the part is staonary. The lead-in and lead-out distances are both set to 20mm.
The Move Type seng on the Wrap Contouring technology page controls the posion of the
tool during the cung moves. In this case, the tool axis is posioned on the radial axis. Since the
wall you are cung is parallel to the radial axis, you do not need to use the Preserve Radial Wall
opon to prevent any possible gouging.

Step 1
Select the chain feature
around the contoured
shoulder

Step 2 Step 3
Click SolidMill Click Wrap
Tradional - Contouring
SolidMill Producon

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 Step 4
Right-click inside the technology
page and click Open

Step 5
Open the file:
Milling - Rotary\Technology\1-WrapContouring.prc

Step 6
Click OK to create the
operaon

90 | Get Started with ESPRIT 2009

Rough and Finish the Pocket
This part has four pockets on the OD. To save me, you will create operaons to rough and finish
one of the pockets then simply copy those operaons to the other three pockets.

Wrap Pocket ing

Wrap Pockeng lets you easily cut solids and 3-dimensional geometry while the stock rotates on
the NC machine. Roughing passes, wall finish passes and floor finish passes can be combined in a
single operaon and each type of cung pass allows the selecon of a different tool. Tool path can
be produced on the OD or the ID of cylindrical stock and all tool paths are drawn in 3D for be$er
visualizaon.
With the excepon of specific rotary opons, the sengs for Wrap Pockeng are idencal to the
SolidMill Pockeng technology pages.
Wrap Pockeng is used for milling on the OD or the ID of a part. To cut on the face, Rotary Face
Pockeng is used.

Rough t he Pocket
You will first create an operaon to rough the pocket using concentric cung passes that start in
the middle of the pocket and move outward. A rough stock of 0.20 mm will remain on the walls
only. A second Wrap Pockeng operaon will be used to finish the walls.
The roughing tool is defined in the General technology page and the cung strategy is defined
on the Rough page.

Step 1 Step 2
Select the chain feature Click Wrap
around the pocket Pockeng

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 Step 3
Open the file:
2-WrapPockeng_Rough.prc

Step 4
Click OK

Finish t he Pocket Walls

Next, you will create an operaon that only outputs a single wall finish pass using a 10mm
finishing tool. The tool and cung strategy are defined on the Wall Finish technology page.

Step 1
With the chain feature
sll selected, click Wrap
Pockeng

92 | Get Started with ESPRIT 2009

 Step 2
Open the file:
3-WrapPockeng_Finish.prc

Step 3
Click OK

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Copy and Rotate Operations
You now have rough and finish operaons for one pocket. You will quickly copy those operaons to
the other three pockets. In this case, the default UVW axis will be used as the rotaon axis.

Step 1 Step 2
Hold down the Ctrl key On the Edit menu,
and select the two Wrap click Copy
Pockeng operaons

Step 3
Set Transformaon Type to
Rotate and click Copy

Step 4
Set Number of Copies to 3
and press the Tab key

Step 5
Check Use Origin for
Rotaon Axis

Step 6
Click OK

94 | Get Started with ESPRIT 2009

S imulate

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