I thought it was just me! Between the repeats & the viruses, I may be about
through with this list.
C Farrish
Precision Metalsmits, Inc.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ana García Romero" <AnGarcia@inasmet.es>
To: <rp-ml@bart.lpt.fi>
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2000 3:47 AM
Subject: RE: Inexpensive alternative to other RP processes???
> Does anybody else receive copies and copies and copies of every mail sent
to
> this forum, or it happens only to me?
>
> -----Mensaje original-----
> De: Glen Young [mailto:Glen.Young@lakelandmold.com]
> Enviado el: jueves, 14 de septiembre de 2000 14:27
> Para: rp-ml@bart.lpt.fi
> Asunto: Re: Inexpensive alternative to other RP processes???
>
>
> We use one and have replaced using an LOM to create models for our casting
> process. Our working range is a bit larger than the one mentioned in the
> article. When we run our twin 5' x 5' tables in tandem we get an effective
> 5' x 10' x 42" working envelope. Considering you can run larger parts for
a
> longer "unattended" period of time, it becomes quite cost effective.
> Although our machine is quite a bit larger, the concept is the same, plus
we
> enjoy being able to run a wider variety of material in our machine,
> including aluminum.
> To see the machine, check out Quintax's website and look under their "HD"
> router. http://www.quintax.com Ours was outfitted with a 40hp Colombo
> spindle - and is a 5 axis machine, rather than a 3 axis. Can't say enough
> about their products.
>
> Although the programming time is lengthier compared to using STL files in
an
> RP machine, the actual runtime can be considerably shorter. This is also
> reduced considering you don't have to piece everything together. We
> currently use Delcam's Powermill for most of the programming of our
models.
> It still uses the STL format, and we can automate a large portion of the
> programming through the use of macros.
>
>
> Cheers,
> Glen Young
> Lakeland Mold Co.
>
> >>> "SiderWhite" <siderwhite@worldnet.att.net> 09/13/00 10:59PM >>>
> Anybody tried this equipment (gantry router) as an inexpensive alternative
> to other RP options and if so, how did it work out for them?
> Check out the article below or at:
> http://www.rapidproducts.net/Sept00/gantry900.html
>
> Best Regards,
> Glenn Whiteside
>
> September 2000 A Gantry Router Helps
> Reduce Prototype Costs
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
-- > ----- > > An industrial design firm used out-of-the-box thinking and found a way to > produce prototypes at about half the cost of conventional SLA and CNC > methods. > > Introduction > Choosing a Prototyping System > Implementing the Gantry Router > Gantry Router Becomes Coordinate Measuring Machine > > > Anderson Design found that this gantry router from Techno-Isel cuts > prototyping costs in half. > > Anderson Design Associates, Plainville, CT, is a general-purpose industrial > design house with clients in a variety of industries, including toys, tools, > appliances, heavy machinery, and medical equipment. The company's services > include conceptual design, focus-group research, engineering, purchasing, > and manufacturing support. Preparing prototype models for client review is a > critical part of the product development process at Anderson Design. Until > recently, this was done by hand using urethane foam. The company had no way > of generating models from its Pro/ENGINEER CAD data unless it went to an > outside service. When Anderson Design decided to bring this capability > in-house, management investigated a variety of options. > > Company officials found that the initial purchase price of a gantry router > was less than one-fourth that of stereolithography apparatus (SLA) or a CNC > milling machine, and that its day-to-day operating expenses are > significantly less as well. The router's working area is larger than that of > conventional milling machines, and it delivers more aesthetically pleasing > surfaces than SLA. Anderson Design also uses the router as a coordinate > measuring machine. Benefits to clients include a shorter design cycle, > faster turnaround, the ability to evaluate more design options, and lower > costs. > > Choosing a Prototyping System > > Anderson Design first considered SLA, a commonly used method of producing > prototype models, but determined that it had several drawbacks. First, it > was not suitable for all parts. Aesthetically critical parts with complex > surfaces, for example, couldn't be produced with SLA since this technology > makes tiny steps or facets in a curved surface. Second, the least expensive > SLA system cost about $100,000. Third, that system had only a 12-inch by > 12-inch by 10-inch-high working area. Many of Anderson Design's projects > would require parts made in sections and bonded together. This is a > time-intensive and costly option. Finally, because operating expenses are > high, SLA models cost nearly twice as much to produce as foam models. > > The firm also considered a traditional CNC machine. These machines, made by > companies such as Bridgeport, start at $50,000, not including the CNC > programming software. To get a model with a large enough working area, > Anderson Design would have needed one of the larger machines costing at > least $100,000. > > A chance encounter led the company in a different direction: An > advertisement in an industrial directory described a new breed of gantry > router that interfaced with CAD systems, had a large cutting area, and was > offered at a relatively low price. Anderson Design decided to purchase that > machine: the Techno Series III from Techno-Isel, New Hyde Park, NY. The > price was less than $19,000 and the machine operated from Mastercam CNC > programming software (CNC Software, Tolland, CT). Its working area of 24 > inches by 36 inches with a Z-axis height of 6 inches was large enough for > most of the firm's projects. The gantry router could also handle all the > materials Anderson Design needed to cut. > > > The gantry router's accuracy ensures that the models are faithful > representations of the designs created on the computer. > > Implementing the Gantry Router > > After purchasing the Techno machine and related equipment such as clamps, > tools for installing clamps, lighting, vacuum systems, cutting tools, and > software, the total cost of bringing automated model production in-house was > approximately $40,000. Within three days of installing the Techno system, > Anderson Design was billing clients for work done on the gantry router. This > was largely because the Mastercam software was easy to learn. Although > originally designed for metal working, Mastercam is also well suited for > industrial design models because of its ability to generate the most complex > contours with little programming effort. Mastercam includes IGES, DXF, and > CADL converters so that geometry can be uploaded from many CAD systems, > including Anderson Design's Pro/ENGINEER. > > Although the Techno machine was designed for production routing and drilling > on a wide variety of materials -- including wood, plastic, MDF, solid > surfacing materials, and nonferrous metals -- Anderson Design has used it > mostly for cutting models from 7- or 15-pound density polyurethane foam, or > #35 or #65 Ren Shape. Typically, 4-inch-thick sheets of 4-foot by 8-foot > foam are used, although a few polycarbonate parts have also been made. > > The machine's 0.0020-inch resolution and repeatability and 0.003-inch > absolute accuracy ensure that the foam models are faithful representations > of the designs created on the computer. This is critical in an industrial > design application because the models must give the client an accurate > likeness of the eventual end product. The Techno machine's accuracy is the > result of several features inherent to the table, such as the use of ball > screws and servo motors. For example, anti-backlash ball screws permit > play-free motion that makes it possible to produce accurate circles and > inlays. The ball screws have excellent power transmission due to the rolling > ball contact between the nut and screw. This rolling contact also ensures > longer life and greater rigidity during the life of the system because of > the reduced wear as compared to ACME screws and nuts, which have a sliding > friction contact. > > Gantry Router Becomes Coordinate Measuring Machine > > The resolution of the Techno machine has allowed Anderson Design to use the > system in unanticipated ways. Many of the firm's projects involve new > products that must interface with products already on the market. The > existing product may not be made by Anderson Design's client, which means > that the industrial design team doesn't have access to the product's > documentation or CAD files. In these situations, the designers go out and > buy the product and then figure out how to design an interface to it. 3D > digitizing offers one method of capturing the surfaces of the product for > use in the CAD system, but Anderson Design has found most digitizing > techniques to be impractical. Laser reflective scanning, for instance, > generates too much information for the designer to work with since it > captures thousands of x, y, and z coordinates. It is impossible to fit a > surface through all these points, so much of the data is eventually > discarded. > > Anderson Design found a better way to get surface data into its CAD > system -- by modifying the Techno machine to function as a coordinate > measuring machine (CMM). After securing an object to the machine's table, > just as if it were going to be milled or routed, an operator manually moves > the machine's crosshead until a flexible touch probe positioned in the tool > holder touches the object. The machine's display shows the x, y, and z > position of the probe at that point. This value is recorded manually. After > the designer has captured a number of points, they are entered into the CAD > system. > > The benefit of this technique is that a designer has complete control over > the number of coordinates that are recorded. Anderson Design has found that > between 70 and 80 planned points give a better indication of the surface > than the thousands of points that are captured with a laser scanner. Once > the 70 or 80 points are indicated in the CAD system, the designer uses them > to guide the creation of the existing object's surfaces. This use of the > Techno machine once saved Anderson Design six months -- the time normally > required to go through the legal process of obtaining drawings for a > particular product. They simply bought the product and captured its > coordinates in three days. > > In approximately 300 hours of operation, Anderson has had no problems with > the Techno machine. This is partly due to the strength and rigidity of the > table, which is constructed from extruded aluminum profiles that provide > easy clamping capability. The machine also has four ground and hardened > steel shafts and eight recirculating bearings in each axis. This shaft and > bearing system produces very smooth, play-free motion and an extremely rigid > system that produces high-quality cuts. For Anderson Design, PC-based CNC > has proved to be an affordable, practical, and accurate option for the > production of industrial design prototypes, as well as a good coordinate > measuring machine from time to time. To the firm's clients this means > shorter lead-times, lower costs and -- most important -- better designs. > > This article was prepared by Tim Van Leeuwen, Engineering Manager, Anderson > Design Associates, Plainville, CT. > > For More Information > Contact Techno-Isel, 2101 Jericho Turnpike, New Hyde Park, NY 11040. Phone: > 516-328-3970 Fax: 516-326-8827 E-mail: techquestions@techno-isel.com > > > > > For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/ > > For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/ > > For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/ > > For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/ > >For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/
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