Astro将WorkNC应用于机器定制和精密零件制造

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公司简介

公司名字：

Astro Machine Works

业务：

定制机器制造、精密零件加工和零件逆向工程

主要应用领域：

航空航天、电子与半导体、电信、食品加工、政府设施和军事设施、医疗制药设备等

数控设备：

Hurco 、Mazak等

所在地：

美国

WorkNC给Astro带来的价值：

1、WorkNC的易用性，使Astro有更多的人能做编程工作，且在分配工作时，不再受限于编程复杂性，使得工作分配更加均匀；

2、WorkNC改变了编程人员原有的工作方式，缩短了模型到制造生产的周期，提升了整体效率；
3、实现3 + 2轴到全5轴加工，并使编程简单化，提高了工厂的加工能力；

4、动态3D毛坯管理提高了切削效率和刀具的使用寿命；

5、WorkNC的刀柄干涉检测功能使得Astro能轻松得到最适刀型和刀长的刀具，减少振刀，提高加工表面品质。

用户反馈：

“WorkNC allows jobs to go through the shop a lot quicker because they have the ability to use the software and get it done. It changed who I was able to give complicated jobs to. We went from having a model to making the parts in a lot less time. It was easier for people to learn.”

“我们公司的编程人员能够很好地利用WorKNC编程，所以WorkNC提高了我们整个工厂的工作效率。” Wise 说，“WorkNC的易用性使Astro有更多的人能做编程工作，且在分配工作时，不再受限于编程复杂性，使得工作分配更加均匀，改变了编程人员原有的工作方式，缩短了模型到制造生产的周期，提升了整体效率。”

——Wayne Wise, CNC Manager

As a one-stop custom and precision manufacturing shop, Astro Machine Works fulfills a wide range of needs under one roof.

Astro Machine Works的一站式定制和精密制造车间能够同时满足多种加工需要。

While the 31-year-old company, based in Ephrata, Pennsylvania, specializes in the manufacturing of custom machinery and precision parts, its diverse abilities make it an ideal candidate for a much wider range of projects.

Astro Machine Works是一家拥有31年历史的公司，地址位于美国宾夕法尼亚的Ephrata，专门从事定制机器和精密零件的制造，其多样化的能力使其成为众多项目的理想候选者。

“We build custom machinery, but we also make a lot of parts that have to do with basically any industry,” says Wayne Wise, Astro’s CNC manager. “In addition to precision machinery and an array of other parts, we make a lot of assembly-line equipment for various industries.”

“我们不仅制造定制机器，而且也制造了很多其他行业的零部件，” Astro的CNC经理Wayne Wise说，“除了精密机器和一系列其他行业的零件外，我们还为各个行业制作了许多装配线设备。”

Among customers served by Astro are those in the pharmaceutical, energy, military, food-processing and aerospace industries. From pill sorters to aerospace components,  Astro has built custom parts and machinery designed to help others improve both efficiency and product quality.

Astro服务的客户来自制药、能源、军工、食品加工和航空航天行业。Astro已建立从药丸分拣机到航空零部件所需的定制零部件和机器，旨在帮助其他公司提高效率和产品质量。

The reverse engineering of equipment components is all in a day’s work at Astro, which machines in primarily stainless steel, carbon steel, aluminum and titanium.

在Astro，一天的工作就是机器零件的逆向工程，主要对象为不锈钢、碳钢、铝和钛材质的机器。

“We have a design department, so we work with engineers on design in addition to the actual manufacturing,” Wise says of Astro’s comprehensive services. “A typical job could be anything from a fixture to a component on an airplane — and everything in between.”

“我们有一个设计部门，所以除了参与实际制造外，我们还参与工程师的设计工作，”Wise谈到Astro的综合服务。 “一个典型的工作可能是从固定装置到飞机上的部件的任何东西 - 以及介于两者之间的一切。”

Wise, who has been at the company for 15 years, has seen it grow from 30 to 85 employees. Also among its workforce are 65 pieces of manufacturing equipment, including mill-turn machine tools, 5-axis mills, 3-axis mills, and lathes with live tooling.

Wise已在该公司工作了15年，见证了其员工人数从30人增加到85人，以及加工实力提高至65台制造设备，包括铣车床、5轴铣床、3轴铣床和带有活动刀具的车床。

In 2012, Wise attended the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago, where he was given a demonstration of the WorkNC computer-aided-manufacturing (CAM) solution, by Vero Software.

2012年，Wise参加了美国芝加哥国际机械制造技术展览会(IMTS) ，并观看了WorkNC演示。

Having already invested in a CAM system that Astro had utilized for several years, Wise didn’t anticipate that he would see anything revolutionary within WorkNC.

此前， Astro已经有用了好几年的CAM系统。但是出乎Wise预料的是，WorkNC让他看到了CAM软件的革命性改变。

In fact, he had no plans to acquire a new CAM system, but opted to see what WorkNC had to offer based upon the recommendation of a machine-tool manufacturer.

事实上，Wise没有采购新CAM软件的计划，但是在机床设备制造商的推荐下，他选择去了解WorkNC。

“We honestly didn’t think there would be anything very different — and were blown away by the ease of use of WorkNC,” says Wise, who adds that the software has changed the way jobs can be distributed at Astro.

“说实话，我们开始不认为WorkNC会有任何不同，但是看到WorkNC的易用性后，我们改变了想法，”Wise说到，并补充道WorkNC改变了Astro工作分配的方式。

“Basically, what did it for me was that we had two or three guys who could use our former software. With WorkNC, we have 10 to 12 guys who can use it — and two or three more who can fight their way through it,” Wise explains.

Wise 解释道，“对我而言，最根本的改变就是-以前的CAM软件只能允许2-3个人使用，引进WorkNC之后，能够允许10-12个人使用，同时2-3个甚至更多人能够通过WorkNC解决问题。”

The ease of use inherent to WorkNC enabled Astro to broaden its capabilities by expanding from 3+2 machining to full 5-axis machining.

通过从3 + 2轴增加到全5轴加工，WorkNC固有的易用性使Astro能够扩大加工能力。

Designed to take the complexity out of 5-axis machining, the software includes integrated collision avoidance and strategies for special applications. Among those strategies are cycles for trimming, pocketing, and laser cutting, as well as blade, tube, and impeller machining. Jason West, machinist, takes advantage of the WorkNC Dynamic 3D Stock Management feature to increase toolpath efficiency and tool life.

WorkNC旨在消除5轴加工的复杂性，包括综合防碰撞功能和特殊应用策略。这些策略能够重复应用于去毛边、腔体加工和激光切割，以及叶片、管道和叶轮加工。Jason West，该公司的机械加工人员，利用WorkNC3D动态毛坯管理提高了刀路切削效率和刀具寿命。

The dynamic 3D stock management feature enables programmers to keep track of the state of the stock model throughout the programming process, as opposed to only at the beginning and the end — as is the case with static stock models.

WorkNC3D动态毛坯管理能够使编程人员追踪整个编程过程，这与仅能追踪开头和结尾的静态管理完全不同。

“The 3d stock model feature is a very useful option for us,” West says. “Being able to rough the part out, and then go back in with smaller tools, helps us to remove as much material as possible before finishing.”

“WorkNC3D动态毛坯管理对于我们特别有用，”West说,“开粗后支持更小刀具操作，帮助我们在精加工之前尽可能把余料清除干净。”

Being able to identify the state of the stock model throughout the process empowers programmers in the creation of much more productive toolpath. In WorkNC, dynamic stock model management allows the programmer to closely inspect the part between the roughing and finishing cycles. This makes it easier to select and apply cutters of multiple sizes for differing material-removal needs.

WorkNC 3D动态毛坯管理能够识别整个编程过程中的模型状态，使编程人员创建更高效的刀路。同时它允许编程人员随时检查工件在粗加工和精加工环节中的状态。这使更加简单去选择应用于不同材料的刀具尺寸。

“Being able to change views and rotate around the part, while still knowing what has been roughed out in other views is especially helpful,” West says. “This feature helps to remove time consuming air cuts and increases life of our finishing tools, since there’s less material remaining that they need to remove.”

“WorkNC 3D动态毛坯管理能够在改变视角和旋转工件后，仍然能在其他视角中知道哪些区域已被开粗。” West说。“因为他们需要去除的余料更少，所以这一功能有助于消除空刀切削时间，并提高我们的刀具寿命。”

West also utilizes the tool-holder collision feature in WorkNC to check for collisions between tool holders and part geometries, as well as to maximize tool usage.

West也利用WorkNC自带的刀柄碰撞检测功能去检查夹具和工件形状之间可能存在的碰撞危险，同时提高刀具使用率。

“The tool-holder collision is another feature we find beneficial, whether it’s something as simple as suggesting the minimum length of the tool, or as complex as only machining areas the tool can reach,” West says. “Tool holder collision removes the guesswork for us and ensures that we’re never using tools longer then we need to. This increases surface finish quality and reduces chatter by using the shortest tools possible.”

“WorkNC刀柄碰撞检测功能也让我们受益甚多，无论是轻松推荐合理刀长，还是检查只有特定刀具能够到达的复杂的加工区域，” West 表示，“利用WorkNC刀柄碰撞检测，避免了我们凭空猜测，并确保我们不再使用过长的刀具。最短的刀具帮助我们减少了振刀，提供了表面光洁度。”

Programmers are able to dynamically create tool-holder libraries within WorkNC, and then use defined tool holders to check for collisions.

编程人员能够用WorkNC创建动态刀柄库，然后使用定义好的刀柄用于碰撞检测。

The system also allows the programmer to select tool holders to obtain required tool lengths based upon the parameters of the operation. Optionally, WorkNC allows programmers to enter a known tool length so that the system can automatically split cutter paths into logical portions for any number of available cutters.

同时，WorkNC也使编程人员能够根据操作参数选择刀柄，获得所需刀长。除此之外，WorkNC允许程序员输入已知刀长，以便软件能够自动把切削刀路合理分段，并由任意编号的可用刀具完成切削。

“WorkNC allows jobs to go through the shop a lot quicker because they have the ability to use the software and get it done,” Wise says. “It changed who I was able to give complicated jobs to. We went from having a model to making the parts in a lot less time. It was easier for people to learn.”

“我们公司的编程人员能够很好地利用WorKNC编程，所以WorkNC提高了我们整个工厂的工作效率。” Wise 说，“WorkNC的易用性使Astro有更多的人能做编程工作，且在分配工作时，不再受限于编程复杂性，使得工作分配更加均匀，改变了编程人员原有的工作方式，缩短了模型到制造生产的周期，提升了整体效率。”