NUM has launched a form compensation option for its NUMROTO tool grinding software. The new option enables tool manufacturers to ‘close the loop’ between CNC tool grinding and measurement, in order to further increase process accuracy and consistency.
The new system inherently compensates for process variables such as temperature fluctuations and grinding wheel wear. This will prove especially popular with manufacturers of the latest specialist precision tools. Operators seeking to maximise the accuracy of tools produced on CNC grinding machines generally use a CMM to obtain probed measurements of the machined part, using this information to influence the production process during subsequent machining operations. Until now, NUMROTO users processed the results from the CMM with proprietary third-party compensation software running on an external computer, before feeding a suitably corrected target profile back into the CNC machine.
Developed in conjunction with several key NUMROTO end users, NUM’s new form compensation facility forms a fully integrated part of the company’s form cutter package and completely dispenses with the need for any third-party software. The data exchange between the CMM and the CNC machine can be handled by XML interface or by export/import of the DXF file via a local