topic Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question in Fusion Manufacture Forum

Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

richardsalzman — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 19:53:56 GMT

Two quick questions. I finished the CAM for this soft jaw but got stuck at the end. I was trying to move the original part into the cavity of the soft jaw so I could create the tool paths to finish the back side. I tried using the joint command but was unable to pick a position between the faces of the soft jaws for the joint origin? Any suggestions as to how to make this work?

Here the Fusion file: https://www.dropbox.com/s/5m1sloxbx71a1s1/Titan%209M%20Softjaw%20II%20v20.f3z?dl=0

Lastly, the 2d contour tool path leaves a bit of unfinished material (see circled area in the attached image). I tried experimenting with the lead out distance etc. but could not get it to machine off this material. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks... Richard

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

seth.madore — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 21:39:35 GMT

Give this a try:

(view in My Videos)

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

richardsalzman — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 22:02:37 GMT

Thanks so much. I spent over an hour trying to figure this out. You really made my day!

Thanks... Richard

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

richardsalzman — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 22:20:38 GMT

Oops. I think there is a problem. When I ran the simulation, I notice that the tool path appears shifted in the positive Y and negative X direction. See red areas on attached.

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

seth.madore — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 22:45:59 GMT

Where are you setting your WCS for your jaw; on the part that's going to be held? That's a "no-no", the jaws should have their own origin. Typically, I use center of X/Y

-EDIT- applying a joint should not have changed anything for your jaw program. Double check your steps 🙂

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

richardsalzman — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 23:42:51 GMT

So sorry to bother you Seth. The jaws do have their own WCS. I think the problem is that I created a shape (Plug) to create the cavity of the soft jaws. This plug has the same profile as the part that I will be holding in the soft jaws (just simpler geometry). I believe the problem has something to do with the way the plug and the actual part are located between the soft jaws. Take V attached shows the Plug and the actual part.

Prior to you sharing your nice video on applying the joint, I manually moved the plug to the appropriate position between the soft jaws, then used the combine function to create the soft jaws. I then manually moved the part into the soft jaws. When I simulated the tool paths, everything looked good. See Version II attached.

In both scenarios (where I manually positioned the parts and when I applied the joint), the WCS is exactly the same. I am struggling to place the plug and part in correct position. When I applied the joint as opposed to manual positioning... the tool path was no longer correct.

Thanks for your patience.... Richard

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

richardsalzman — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 03:32:45 GMT

OK. I solved most of the problem. In the heights tab, the bottom height was not identified consistently. I fixed this and the simulation looks almost perfect now. I don't understand how the incorrect height value made the simulation look like the tool path had been offset a bit (considering that the part has parallel sides), but it certainly solved the problem.

One last question. In attached image there are a few areas that are not machined by the last 2D contour tool path. The tool path does not extend far enough. I tried to extend the lead out parameters but no luck. Is there a way to extend the tool path in these areas?

Thanks... Richard.

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

seth.madore — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 09:31:37 GMT

Could you share your most recent file here?

Re: Almost There - Soft Jaw Question

richardsalzman — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 13:56:36 GMT

Here is the most recent file. I am still dumfounded as to how correcting the heights in the tool path heights tab fixed what appeared to be a lateral shift of the tool path. Some of the heights were referenced as a hard number and others as "selection". I used "selection" for all three tool paths, and it solved the previous problem.

Fusion File: https://www.dropbox.com/s/k5gteow2swcnqch/Titan%209M%20Softjaw%20III%20v3.f3z?dl=0

Thanks for your time.

Richard