To Create a Volume Milling Cut
1. When creating a Volume Milling sequence, select Volume Milling Cut on the Tool Motions tab. The Volume Milling Cut dialog box opens.
2. Select one of the following options in the Cut Type list.
◦ Full Depth Cut—Creates slices across all selected surfaces.
◦ From-To Depth Cut—Creates slices in a specified range of depths. The following mandatory options are available with this type:
▪ Start Height—Select the reference plane or surface that defines the start of the volume milling cut.
▪ Height—Select a reference plane or surface that determines the depth of the volume milling cut.
Alternatively, select Start Height and Height from the shortcut menu in the graphics window.
◦ To Depth Cut—Create slices up to a specified depth. The following mandatory option is available with this type:
Height—Select a reference plane or surface that determines the depth of the volume milling cut.
◦ One Slice Cut—Create a single slice of a specified depth. The following mandatory option is available with this type:
Height—Select a reference plane or surface that determines the depth of the volume milling slice.
Alternatively, select Height from the shortcut menu in the graphics window.
3. Specify Volume approach and exit motions if required:
◦ Approach Axis—Select an axis to be used by the tool as an approach to the surface being machined.
◦ Exit Axis—Select an axis to be used by the tool as an exit to the surface being machined.
Alternatively, select Approach Axis and Exit Axis from the shortcut menu in the graphics window.
4. Clear the By Region check box if required. By default, you the tool moves from region to region. If you clear the check box, the tool moves from slice to slice.
5. In the Regions section, perform the following steps to specify separate approach and exit paths for each region:
◦ Click Show Regions to display the volume regions in the graphics window. Alternatively, right-click the graphics window and select Volume Milling Region on the shortcut menu.
◦ Click in the Approach and Exit cells and select approach and exit paths for a region. You can select a datum point or a datum axis for a single region or for multiple regions. The selected regions appear in the Region box. Alternatively, right-click the graphics window and select Approach Reference and Exit Reference on the shortcut menu.
◦ To change the order of machining, select a region in the table and click the Up Arrow or Down Arrow icons to move a region up or down the list.
◦ Select a region in the list and click Remove to delete a region selected for machining or click Restore to include a deleted region in the list.
6. In the Slices section, perform these optional steps to add or delete slices.
a. Click
to add a new corner or row. A new corner or row indicates an addition or removal of a slice. The
Add option is selected by default in the
Type column.
b. Click Add, and then select Delete from the drop-down list to delete a slice to be selected.
c. Click in the Dummy Collector column, and then select a datum plane on the graphics window as a reference.
d. In the Value column, type the exact location of the slice from the datum plane that you selected. You can search for the exact location of the slice in the CL data.
e. Click Update to update the toolpath. Until you update the toolpath, the modifications do not reflect on the graphics window.
f. Click the Previous Slice, Show All, or Next Slice buttons to view the respective slices on the toolpath, if required.
7. Click OK to close the dialog box.