Can I create post and toolpath on the machines I share with Inventor CAM?

[EmreYucel34]

Hello, we have an idea to switch from Sıemen NX's CAM to Inventor CAM, I share the machines we have, I wonder if the capabilities of Inventor CAM meet the capabilities of Inventor CAM, considering the capabilities of these machines. Another question is, can we find suitable posts for these machines in Inventor CAM?

I would like to thank you for your help and support in advance and wish you a good day,

OUR POSTS AND BENCHES ADJUSTED ACCORDING TO NX

MAZAK - VARIX 630-5X (5 AXIS)
MAZAK - VTC 300 (3 AXIS)
MAZAK - INTEGREX 300 (C AND Y AXIS)
MAZAK - INT 30Y ( C AND Y AXIS )

SORALUCE TA25D - (HEAD INDEXES 2.5 DEGREES AND TABLE ROTATES)
SORALUCE FR8000 - (THE HEAD INDEXES 1 DEGREE AND THE TABLE ROTATES, THERE IS ALSO A FIXED HEAD)
FERMAT WFT 13 - NO ANGLE ON THE HEAD, THE SPINDLE CAN EXTEND AND THE TABLE ROTATES, ALSO THE VERTICAL HEAD CAN BE CONNECTED)

[seth.madore]

Inventor CAM or Fusion CAM?

All post processors are compatible between the two software packages, but Fusion does have access to better toolpaths and Machine Simulation.

You can find all of our post processors HERE

If you have a machine/control that is not supported by our post library, you would be better served in working with one of our partners to get one crafted to your specifications  (I've heard great things of both NexGen and DSI)

[DarthBane55]

I don't know if you'll find the posts for these machines, probably.  However, you need to know that Inventor CAM has stopped ALL development 4-5 years ago, I know, we use it still, every day, and it is extremely frustrating to have gone from NX (just like you), being promised that all 3 platform (Fusion, HSMworks (for SolidWorks), and Inventor CAM) would be moved to some common platform in the background so that updates would propagate equally to all 3 platforms at the same time.  Of course Autodesk has completely changed their minds after we went to their subscription model with this promise in mind.  We cannot go to Fusion because it sits in the cloud (we use it for some less critical stuff), but know what ALL development for CAM (not CAD, just CAM) is ONLY on Fusion 360. 

So if you are ok to go with a software that has stopped dev 4-5 years ago and will never move forward again, sure, it does the job, but if you do 5-axis milling or multi-turret/spindle turning, stay away from Inventor CAM, it is lightyears inferior to NX in those features.  If you mainly do 3+2 milling, it still does the job really, not bad.  Just that it won't move forward with your needs as your shop evolves, if not already beyond what Inventor CAM can do.

You can try Fusion though if the cloud is ok for your shop.  You can still model all your stuff in Inventor if you want to, there is a connection function between Inventor CAD to Fusion 360.  If you make a change to your model, you can click the button in Inventor to update it in Fusion.  Or you can model everything in Fusion, it is a decent CAD package and evolves fast.

[EmreYucel34]

Hello, thank you for your explanations and support, but I think I made the explanation wrong, we use NX CAM, but we want to switch to Inventor CAM, we have the machines I have shared, I wonder if they are available in the post library, if any, I want to find out which ones they are, and I also wonder if the capabilities of Inventor CAM meet the capabilities of NX CAM.

[EmreYucel34]

Hello, my requests are for Inventor CAM, can I easily perform the operations performed in NX CAM in Inventor CAM and are there ready-made post suitable for the above machines, I am in search of answers to these questions.

[DarthBane55]

I don't know how you interpreted my answer, but this is actually EXACTLY what I explained.  There is no comparison between NX CAM and Inventor CAM.  Read my explanation again.

[emre_sahin9PU3F]

Emre selam,
NX'ten İnventor Cam'e geçişte zorluklarla karşılaşma ihtimalin çok fazla. Mümkünse Fusion'a yönlendirmeye çalış. Mazakla ilgili de sistemde çok post var. Makine kinematiği ile birlikte postu Fusion'da denemelisin. İnventor Cam'de makine kinematiğine göre post basma olayı yok malesef. Makine ile simulasyonla seyretme de yok. Fusion'da makine kinematiğini indir ve mazak postunu dene derim. O zaman sana verilen kodlarla karşılaştırmayı daha net yapabilirsin.

-EDIT; translation provided by DeepL-
Hello Emre, you are very likely to encounter difficulties in the transition from NX to Inventor Cam. Try to direct it to Fusion if possible. There are many posts about Mazak in the system. You should try the post with machine kinematics in Fusion. Unfortunately, there is no post printing according to machine kinematics in Inventor Cam. There is also no simulation with the machine. I suggest you download the machine kinematics in Fusion and try the mazak post. Then you can make a clearer comparison with the codes given to you.

[AdamKunzo]

@EmreYucel34 

Have you considered switching to Fusion? Inventor CAM is no longer being developed, and Fusion is more cost-effective, offering advanced manufacturing extensions for complex 5-axis machining.

To answer your question regarding post processors, the main limitation is the machine simulation, which is not available in Inventor CAM, unlike Fusion. You can use the same post processors for both systems, though some might need minor adjustments (e.g., Mazak), while others will need to be tailored to the machine.

If you decide to move from NX to Autodesk, feel free to reach out. I offer post processor services and I'd be happy to help with the post processors.

[EmreYucel34]

Selam Emre, Desteğin için teşekkürler, aydınlatıcı bilgilerin ve desteğin için teşekkürlerimi sunarım makine kinemetiği ile kurulum yapmayı öğrendim, şimdi bunlar üzerinden çalışmalar yapacağım, iyi günler, iyi çalışmalar dilerim

Hi Emre, Thank you for your support, thank you for your enlightening information and support, I learned to set up with machine kinematics, now I will work on these, good day, I wish you good work

[EmreYucel34]

[emre_sahin9PU3F]

Hi Emre,

Its true. You can use this method.