Where do I find the block drill/ gang drill function in fusion 360

Where do I find the block drill/ gang drill function in fusion 360

Anonymous
Not applicable
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Message 1 of 18

Where do I find the block drill/ gang drill function in fusion 360

Anonymous
Not applicable

I am new to Fusion 360 and I have been enjoying my learning curve with this amazing software, until I tried to find the gang drill/ block drill function on this software to no avail. I have a CNC machine with a 5+4 Gang drilling block installed. I would be glad to know if Fusion 360 does have this feature and also how to use it effectively.

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Replies (17)
Message 2 of 18

cj.abraham
Alumni
Alumni

@Anonymous Fusion 360 does not have explicit gang tooling support, but it is possible to assign different offset numbers to each tool.

 

Could you please explain the functionality you are expecting to see within Fusion 360?

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Message 3 of 18

Anonymous
Not applicable
Hello cj.abraham,

Thank you for your reply. I am a furniture maker and build cabinets mostly. I bought the gang drill so I can drill shelf pins on my cabinets faster to save production time.

I would like to know how to assign this task to my gang drill to drill 5 shelf holes at a time. I would really appreciate your prompt feedback.

Best Regards
David
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Message 4 of 18

cj.abraham
Alumni
Alumni

@Anonymous do you have a picture of what this tool looks like?

 

If the gang tool operates all drills at the same time, it would be possible to just program the tool as if there were only one drill, and the other 4 would follow.

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Message 5 of 18

Anonymous
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Here is the photo of the gang drill. It is a 5+4 gang drill arranged in an L - Formation. You can drill 9 holes at once in an L fashion but to get a straight line, you can do only 5 drills at once. I would be glad to know how to use this tool with Fusion 360

Regards
David
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Message 6 of 18

cj.abraham
Alumni
Alumni

@Anonymous I don't see an attached picture.

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Message 7 of 18

Anonymous
Not applicable
Let me have your email address, so i can forward the picture to you.
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Message 8 of 18

Anonymous
Not applicable

Please find attached picture for clarification. I need an urgent feedback please.

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Message 9 of 18

cj.abraham
Alumni
Alumni

@Anonymous There is not any "official" definition for a multiple headed tool like this. The recommendation I have is to program the part in fusion as if there is only 1 drill, and just know that there will be 4 more holes on the physical part.

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Message 10 of 18

Anonymous
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Thank you very much. but how do I select this tool in fusion360?
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Message 11 of 18

Anonymous
Not applicable

Hello,

 

Please how do I select this tool on fusion as all functions for tools points to the spindle head. There is only one button on the panel that operates the gang drills down and up and thats it. I would like to know how to include the operation in my program. I will appreciate your prompt feedback.

 

Best Regards

David

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Message 12 of 18

cj.abraham
Alumni
Alumni

@Anonymous As I pointed out before, this type of tooling block is not officially supported by Fusion 360. You can program the head as if it were 1 drill head, and assume the that other 4 positions will follow. If you need a custom-tailored post processor that is not part of the standard library,  we have a network of HSM and Fusion CAM value-added resellers who can help you with a custom solution.

 

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/hsm-post-processor-forum/hsm-post-adjustments-needed-find-your-right-...

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Message 13 of 18

Anonymous
Not applicable

Hello,

You seem not to get my point. Now I know I have to program the drill as if it were one drill. Can you please show me how to program this head to act as if it were one drill on Fusion360? This is the problem. Or do I contact re-sellers to write a program for that drill head function? This has been my question.

 

Regards

David

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Message 14 of 18

FusionManufacturingMublio
Contributor
Contributor

Did anyone ever resolve this? Struggling with the same problem. You can't just model it as 1 drill, since the orientation of the other holes in regard to the first one  is important. The orientation of parts is randomised after nesting.

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Message 15 of 18

emre_sahin9PU3F
Advocate
Advocate

Hello,
I had a similar problem: I could not define the tool for aggregate drilling in the Alphacam program. I solved the problem like this: I looked at how many pieces there were in the x and y alignment of the drill. For example, the aggregate is 5 pieces on the x-axis and the axis spacing is 20mm, and the aggregate is 3 pieces on the y-axis and the axis spacing is 10mm. I drew the holes in these features. Then, I made that hole a different color depending on the exact center of this hole, or whichever drill I wanted to start drilling. Then, I reproduced my aggregate drawing group by group on my plate. I programmed only the colored holes. This way I solved the problem temporarily.

 

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Message 16 of 18

FusionManufacturingMublio
Contributor
Contributor

Hi Emre, thanks for sharing. How did you fix the alignment issue? As in: many parts will be rotated after nesting, so a line of holes in the X direction can become a row of holes in the Y direction. Also, a part can be flipped 180 degrees, which means the 'starting hole' is on the wrong side.

 

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Message 17 of 18

emre_sahin9PU3F
Advocate
Advocate

Hi @FusionManufacturingMublio ,

The binding direction of the aggregate holes on the machine is important. If I am going to drill holes on the x-axis, I have the operator adjust the head of the machine accordingly. The same goes for the Y axis.

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Message 18 of 18

FusionManufacturingMublio
Contributor
Contributor

Ok Thanks! I'm afraid that the complexity, variety and amount of parts on a sheet would me too much for us to do that.

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