Machining support device and machining support method

Abstract

To predict processing time in which a cutting step and a build-up step are added up, optimize a substrate shape before being built-up and derive a step where processing time becomes shortest.SOLUTION: A system for supporting processing calculates a substrate shape before build-up, a deformation amount at the time of build-up, cutting time before build-up, and cutting time after build-up using material property, a material original shape, a product shape, a build-up part shape, a build-up condition and the like, calculates whole processing time on the basis of those, and selects a processing step to employ on the basis of this.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for identifying a processing step. The processing step includes a production step, a manufacturing step, and a fabrication step. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, various processing methods are being used for workpiece materials. For example, one type of processing technology, which is an additive manufacturing technology, is directed energy deposition (sometimes written as DED). This DED will be explained using Figures 1 and 2. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of the method for manufacturing laminated objects using DED. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing a laminated object manufactured using DED.

[0003] Here, DED is sometimes called laser metal deposition, laser powder build-up, etc. In the DED method, the surface of the substrate 1 is scanned, and a laser head 2 irradiates the target location with a laser beam 3 while supplying powder metal material 5 (sometimes referred to as powder, metal, etc.) and substances such as gas to the target location. In the location irradiated with the laser beam 3, the substrate 1 or powder metal, etc. 5 melts and a melt pool 4 is formed. The molten pool 4 solidifies to form a bead 6. By repeating this processing for each layer, the bead 6 is accumulated on the surface of the substrate 1, and an object 7 is additively manufactured as a laminate.

[0004] In such DED, deformation may occur in the workpiece or the object. Technologies for dealing with such deformation have been proposed in Patent Documents 1 and 2.

[0005] Patent Document 1 describes a "welding deformation estimation method and welding deformation estimation device that can reduce the manual input work of various conditions required for estimating welding deformation, and further takes into account the effects of forced displacement loads that occur in actual work."

[0006] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 describes a "method for setting the amount of excess material for an additively molded object, and a manufacturing method and device for an additively molded object, which can improve the accuracy of molding and machining and reduce manufacturing costs and time." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-80393 A [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2021-16988 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] However, Patent Documents 1 and 2 may not be able to adequately deal with deformations that occur during the processing steps. In other words, if you try to improve the processing accuracy to prevent deformations or try to restore the deformations by reprocessing after deformations, the processing will take time and effort.

[0009] For example, when additive manufacturing is performed on a recess in a cylindrical base material using the above-mentioned DED method, the object deforms due to thermal contraction when cooled, and the central axis of rotation of the cylinder changes from a straight line to a curved one. As a result, the processing time after build-up may increase due to the need for reprocessing (correction), etc.

[0010] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to prevent the lengthening of the processing time in the processing steps including the cladding processing step. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] In order to achieve the above-mentioned objective, in the present invention, candidate processing processes for a processing process consisting of multiple sub-processes are derived, the candidate processing processes including the shape of the substrate, and a processing process is selected from the multiple candidate processing processes based on the processing time of each sub-process.

[0012] More specifically, in a processing support device for supporting processing of a workpiece into a final product, the device includes an input unit for receiving a processing step specification instruction, a candidate deriving unit for deriving a plurality of processing step candidates that are candidates for processing the final product in response to the processing step specification instruction, a processing time calculation unit for calculating a partial processing time for each of a plurality of partial processes constituting the processing steps of the plurality of processing step candidates, adding up the calculated partial processing times, and a processing step selection unit for selecting a processing step from the plurality of processing step candidates in response to the total processing time. and an interference determination unit that determines whether interference with other devices occurs in the environment in which the final product is used. It is a processing support device having the above structure.

[0013] The present invention also includes a processing support method using the processing support device. It also includes a program for causing the processing support device to function as a computer and a storage medium for storing the program. Furthermore, a processing support system including the processing support device is also included in one aspect of the present invention. Effect of the Invention

[0014] According to a representative embodiment of the present invention, the processing time including the cladding step and the cutting step can be reduced. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of a method for forming a laminate in DED, which is the background technology of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a laminate shaped by DED according to the background art of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the original shape of a material in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the shape of a base material that has been subjected to a cutting process in a pre-process in one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the shape of a substrate subjected to build-up processing in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6]FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the shape of a base material (final product) that has been subjected to a post-processing cutting process in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional shape of a base material (shaft portion) that has been subjected to a post-processing cutting process, for illustrating a problem in one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 1 is a perspective view showing the shape of a base material 1' that has been subjected to a cutting process in a pre-process in Example 1. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing functional blocks of a processing support system in first to third embodiments. [Figure 10] 1 is a flowchart showing a processing flow in the first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing processing step information used in Examples 1 to 3. [Figure 12] 11 is a flowchart showing a processing flow in the second embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing nozzle shape information used in the second embodiment. [Figure 14] 13 is a flowchart showing a processing flow in the third embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing design information used in the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition, in all the drawings for explaining the embodiment, the same parts are basically given the same reference numerals, and the repeated description will be omitted.

[0017] First, the material, base material, and additive manufacturing method to which this embodiment is directed will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0018] First, Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the original shape of a material 8 to be processed in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the material 8 is subjected to cutting and cladding, and is finally processed into a final product shown in Fig. 7. In other words, the material 8 indicates the workpiece before these processes are performed. In this embodiment, a round bar is used as the material 8, but other square pieces of material may also be used.

[0019] Here, the process of machining the blank 8 into the final product shown in FIG. 7 will be described. First, in this embodiment, the blank 8 is subjected to a removal process such as a cutting process to form a key groove 9. This cutting process is referred to as a pre-process cutting process. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the shape of the base material subjected to the pre-process cutting process. As shown in FIG. 4, the base material 1 is composed of a head 1-1 and a shaft portion 1-2. The shaft portion 1-2 is also provided with a key groove 9. For this purpose, the shaft portion 1-2 is provided in the blank 8 by turning or the like. Then, the key groove 9 is provided in the shaft portion 1-2 by groove processing or the like. In this manner, the blank 8 is subjected to the pre-process cutting process to create the base material 1.

[0020] Next, build-up processing is performed on the base material 1 of Fig. 4. Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the shape of the base material after build-up processing. For example, build-up processing by the above-mentioned DED method is performed. For this purpose, a laminate is supplied to the key groove 9, and a build-up portion 10 is formed.

[0021] Here, in the substrate 1 after the build-up process shown in FIG. 5, excess build-up (laminate) may be formed. For this reason, it is necessary to remove a part of the build-up portion 10. Therefore, in this embodiment, a post-process cutting process is performed. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the shape of the substrate 1 after the post-process cutting process in this embodiment, that is, the final product. As a result of such a post-process cutting process, the substrate 1 has build-up portion 10 formed on the surface of the key groove 9 as shown in FIG. 6, and becomes the final product.

[0022] Problems with the above-described processing of this embodiment will be described below. <Issues (1) - Increase in deformation> In the above-mentioned processing, a problem occurs in that the amount of deformation of the base material 1 increases. This point will be explained below with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional shape of the base material 1 (shank portion 1-2) that has been subjected to post-process cutting processing in order to explain the problem in this embodiment. Here, the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction are shown as directions for explanation. The X direction is a direction parallel to the cylindrical rotation axis, and the Y direction is two directions that are perpendicular to the X direction and form a horizontal plane. The Z direction is a vertical direction.

[0023] As described above, when the additive manufacturing by the DED method is performed on the shaft part 1-2 of the cylindrical substrate 1, the cross-sectional shape shown in FIG. 7 is obtained. FIG. 7(a) is a cross-sectional view of the molded shaft part 1-2 cut in a plane including the X direction and the Z direction. FIG. 7(b) is a cross-sectional view of the molded shaft part 1-2 cut in a plane including the Y direction and the Z direction. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, since the buildup part 10 exists only on one side of the rotation center axis 11, the heat shrinkage that occurs during cooling after the buildup part 10 is molded causes bending deformation in the substrate 1 (especially the shaft part 1-2), resulting in a decrease in shape accuracy. Due to the increase in the amount of deformation, there are places where the substrate is insufficient when cutting into the product shape. <Issues (2) - Increase in processing time> Furthermore, due to the decrease in processing accuracy mentioned in the above problem (1), the dimensional accuracy of the base material 1 shown in Fig. 5 decreases. Therefore, the dimensional difference between the shape of the final product and the shape of the base material 1 increases, and the processing time after cladding increases.

[0024] In this manner, in this embodiment, a final product is formed by a cutting process and a deposition process. Therefore, in this embodiment, a plurality of candidate machining processes including a cutting process and a deposition process are derived, and a machining process is selected from the plurality of candidate machining processes based on the processing time of each cutting process or deposition process. Below, Examples 1 to 3 showing more specific aspects of this embodiment will be described. EXAMPLES

[0025] First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described, which performs the most basic processing. The first embodiment will be described in the order of overview, configuration, and processing flow. <Summary> As described above, in the laser additive manufacturing method of the comparative example, bending deformation of the substrate 1 due to thermal contraction of the buildup portion 10 may occur. Such deformation naturally depends on the rigidity of the substrate. Therefore, the higher the rigidity, the more the deformation is suppressed. In other words, by optimizing the shape of the substrate, the rigidity can be increased. In this case, the deformation of the substrate is more suppressed. In this way, a substrate 1' having a shape that can suppress deformation is shown in FIG. 8. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the shape of the substrate 1' that has been subjected to a pre-process cutting process and has a higher rigidity than the substrate 1 shown in FIGS. 4 to 6. The substrate 1' has a head 1'-1 and a shaft portion 1'-2. Here, the shaft portion 1-2 is formed by so-called outer round cutting or end face cutting, while the upper half of the shaft portion 1'-2 in the drawing is cut off. A key groove 9' is formed in the shaft portion 1'-2.

[0026] However, even if the deformation amount is suppressed, the time for the deposition process may increase along with the volume of the deposition portion. Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate the efficiency of the processing process simply based on the rigidity of the base material. Therefore, in this embodiment, multiple processing process candidates are assumed, the time for the deposition process and the cutting process are estimated for each, and a processing process is selected from the processing process candidates using the processing time, which is the sum of these values. <Configuration> Next, the configuration of the processing support system for selecting a processing step in this embodiment will be described. Fig. 9 is a configuration diagram showing the functional blocks of the processing support system in this embodiment and in embodiments 2 and 3 described later. This processing support system is composed of a processing support device 20, a storage device 30, and an associated device 50. The processing support device 20 and the associated device 50 are connected via a network 40. The network 40 can be realized by an intranet, the Internet, or the like. The connection between the processing support device 20 and the associated device 50 is not limited to a network.

[0027] Each device will be described below. First, the machining support device 20 executes the main processing in this embodiment and is realized by a computer such as a server. The machining support device 20 has an input / output unit 21, a candidate derivation unit 22, a front-stage cutting processing time calculation unit 23, a build-up process time calculation unit 24, a back-stage cutting processing time calculation unit 25, a total machining time calculation unit 26, a machining process selection unit 27, an interference determination unit 28, and a pass / fail determination unit 29.

[0028] Here, the input / output unit 21 can be realized by a network interface or the like, and can input and output various information and data via the network 40. When the processing support device 20 is realized as a so-called stand-alone device or a PC, the input / output unit 21 can be realized by an input device such as a keyboard or a display device such as a display monitor. In this way, the input / output unit 21 can be configured separately into an input unit and an output unit.

[0029] Next, the candidate derivation unit 22, the front-stage cutting time calculation unit 23, the build-up process time calculation unit 24, the back-stage cutting time calculation unit 25, the total machining time calculation unit 26, the machining process selection unit 27, the interference determination unit 28, and the pass / fail determination unit 29 execute the processes shown in the flowcharts described below. Below, an overview of the functions of each of these units will be described, and the details of the functions will be described later using the flowcharts.

[0030] First, the candidate derivation unit 22 derives a plurality of candidate machining processes from machining process information 301 stored in the storage device 30. The machining process information 301 is information that includes the shape of the base material and indicates the content of the machining process. The details will be described later.

[0031] Further, each of the front-end cutting time calculation unit 23, the build-up process time calculation unit 24, and the back-end cutting time calculation unit 25 calculates the partial process time of each partial process constituting the derived machining process candidate. In this embodiment, the partial processes include front-end cutting, build-up, and back-end cutting, so these units are used. Therefore, the configuration for calculating each partial processing time is not limited to these units. Note that the front-end cutting time calculation unit 23, the build-up process time calculation unit 24, and the back-end cutting time calculation unit 25 can be referred to as partial process time calculation units.

[0032] Moreover, the total machining time calculation unit 26 calculates the total machining time of the entire machining process in the machining candidate from the partial process times calculated by each partial process time calculation unit. For this purpose, it is preferable that the total machining time calculation unit 26 adds up the partial process times and calculates the total value. Note that each partial process time calculation unit and the total machining time calculation unit 26 may be configured as one unit.

[0033] Further, the machining process selection unit 27 selects a machining process from among the machining process candidates based on the total machining time. The result is output to the related device 50 via the input / output unit 21.

[0034] Furthermore, interference determination unit 28 determines whether the final product formed by the selected machining process will interfere with other devices, etc., in the situation in which it is used. Note that interference determination unit 28 is a component used in Example 2, and may be omitted in this embodiment and Example 3. Further, pass / fail determination unit 29 determines whether the final product formed by the selected machining process satisfies what is called an allowable error. Note that pass / fail determination unit 29 is a component used in Example 3, and may be omitted in this embodiment and Example 2.

[0035] The candidate derivation unit 22, the front-end cutting time calculation unit 23, the build-up process time calculation unit 24, the back-end cutting time calculation unit 25, the total machining time calculation unit 26, the machining process selection unit 27, the interference determination unit 28 and the pass / fail determination unit 29 can be realized by so-called programs. In other words, the machining support device 20 has a calculation unit such as a processor as hardware, and executes the processes shown in the flowcharts according to the programs stored in a memory or a storage medium.

[0036] Next, the storage device 30 stores information, and can be realized by storage such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). In this embodiment, the storage device 30 is configured in a separate housing from the machining support device 20, but they may be configured as one unit. The storage device 30 stores machining process information 301, nozzle shape information 302, and design information 303, the contents of which will be described later.

[0037] Next, the related device 50 includes a terminal device and a CAD system used by a user. The terminal device receives input from a user, outputs the input to the processing support device 20, and outputs the processing result of the processing support device 20.

[0038] The machining support system may include an NC machine that performs machining. In this case, it is preferable that the NC machine is connected to the machining support device 20, receives the selected machining process, and performs machining according to the selected machining process. <Processing flow> Next, the process flow of this embodiment will be described. Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing the process flow in this embodiment. First, in step S1, the input / output unit 21 accepts a processing step specification instruction input by a user via the related device 50. This processing step specification instruction includes shape data that specifies the specifications of the final product. This specification includes the dimensions and rigidity of the final product.

[0039] Next, in step S2, the candidate derivation unit 22 derives a plurality of machining process candidates corresponding to the machining process specification instruction from the machining process information 301 in the storage device 30. Here, the machining process information 301 is shown in Fig. 11. Note that the machining process information 301 is used in Examples 2 and 3 in addition to this embodiment.

[0040] Machining process information 301 is information indicating the characteristics of each machining process. In addition, in the machining process information 301, for each machining process name that identifies the machining process, the original material shape, base material shape, key groove shape, material properties, and partial processes that indicate the characteristics are associated. The original material shape is information indicating the shape and dimensions of the material before machining. The base material shape is information indicating the shape and dimensions of the base material before the previous cutting process. The key groove shape is information indicating the shape and dimensions of the key groove. Note that the base material shape and key groove can be omitted if they can be identified by the previous cutting process described later.

[0041] The material characteristics include material characteristics that indicate the characteristics of the material and cladding material characteristics that indicate the characteristics of the cladding material. The material quality and rigidity can be used for each of these characteristics.

[0042] Furthermore, the partial processes include information for identifying each partial process. In this embodiment, a pre-process cutting, a cladding process, and a post-process cutting are used as the partial processes, and information indicating the contents of these processes is recorded.

[0043] Here, in step S2, the candidate derivation unit 22 derives machining process information that satisfies the shape data as machining process candidates. To this end, the candidate derivation unit 22 identifies machining process information that has a material original shape that is equal to or larger than the dimensions of the shape data and has material properties that satisfy the rigidity.

[0044] Next, in step S3, the pre-process cutting time calculation unit 23 calculates the pre-process cutting time for each machining process candidate derived in step S2 based on the original material shape. To this end, the pre-process cutting time calculation unit 23 uses the original material shape and the base material original shape of the derived machining process candidate, that is, the shape before the build-up processing and the pre-process cutting processing. In other words, the pre-process cutting time calculation unit 23 calculates how much processing time is required using the pre-process cutting processing to cut the original material shape to the base material original shape.

[0045] In step S4, the deposition process time calculation unit 24 calculates the deposition process time for each of the processing process candidates derived in step S2. For this purpose, the deposition process time calculation unit 24 uses the shape of the deposition part of the final product included in the shape data, the key groove shape of the derived processing process candidate, and the deposition process.

[0046] Furthermore, in step S5, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 calculates the post-process cutting time for each machining process candidate derived in step S2. For this purpose, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 first estimates the deformation amount of the material due to the overlay processing. More specifically, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 uses the shape of the overlay part of the final product, the key groove shape of the derived machining process candidate, and the overlay process, as in step S4.

[0047] Next, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 estimates the shape of the material after the build-up process by using the estimated deformation amount. That is, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 adds the deformation amount to the shape before the build-up process to estimate the shape of the material after the build-up process.

[0048] Next, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 calculates the post-process cutting time from the estimated shape of the material after the build-up and the shape of the final product included in the shape data. For this purpose, the post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 uses the difference between the shape of the material after the build-up and the shape of the final product included in the shape data, and the post-process cutting of the derived candidate processing process. The post-process cutting time calculation unit 25 is a process for reducing the amount of deformation caused by the build-up.

[0049] Although the description of step S5 is finished above, steps S3 to S5 may be performed in any order, and may be performed in parallel. Furthermore, steps S3 to S5 calculate a partial process time indicating the time for each partial process.

[0050] Next, in step S6, the total machining time calculation unit 26 calculates the total machining time using the front-stage cutting time, the cladding time, and the back-stage cutting time calculated in steps S3 to S5. To this end, the total machining time calculation unit 26 adds these together to calculate the total value. Note that this total value itself may be used as the total machining time, or a value obtained by converting the total value may be used as the total machining time. Note that the converted value includes adding the transition time of each partial process to the total value.

[0051] Next, in step S7, the total machining time calculation unit 26 judges whether steps S3 to S6 have been completed for each machining candidate derived in step S2. As a result, if it has been completed (Y), the process proceeds to step S8. If it has not been completed (N), the process proceeds to step S3, where processing is performed for the remaining machining candidates. Note that steps S3 to S7 may be realized by a single component such as the machining time calculation unit.

[0052] Next, in step S8, the machining process selection unit 27 selects a machining process from the machining process candidates based on the total machining time calculated in step S7. For this purpose, it is preferable that the machining process selection unit 27 selects the machining process candidate with the shortest total machining time. Note that a plurality of machining processes may be selected. Also, a machining process with a machining time equal to or less than a predetermined reference value may be selected.

[0053] Then, the processing step selection unit 27 outputs the selected processing step using the input / output unit 21. For example, the processing step selection unit 27 outputs the processing step to the related device 50 via the input / output unit 21, or the input / output unit 21 itself outputs the processing step.

[0054] In this embodiment, the processing time is used to select and specify the processing step, but other conditions may be used. For example, the cost of the processing step may be used. In this case, the processing step with the minimum cost or the cost equal to or less than a predetermined value may be selected. This concludes the explanation of the first embodiment. EXAMPLES

[0055] Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, in addition to the processing in the first embodiment, it is determined whether interference occurs in the environment and situation in which the final product is used. The configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. Therefore, the description of the outline and configuration will be omitted, and the processing flow will be described below. Note that this embodiment will be described taking as an example a case in which the final product is installed near the nozzle and interference with this is determined. Therefore, the present invention also includes determining interference with devices other than the nozzle. <Processing flow> 12 is a flowchart showing the process flow in this embodiment. Steps S1 and S2 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0056] Next, in step S9, interference determination unit 28 determines whether interference will occur using the shape data indicating the dimensions of the final product and nozzle shape information 302. Nozzle shape information 302 is shown in FIG. 13. Nozzle shape information 302 records the nozzle name, nozzle shape, and required clearance for each nozzle. Here, the nozzle name is information that identifies the nozzle that is the subject of interference determination. The nozzle shape is information that indicates the dimensions and shape of the nozzle. The required clearance is information that indicates the clearance required for the nozzle, in other words, how much gap is required.

[0057] Details of step S9 are explained below. The interference determination unit 28 identifies the shape data received in step S1 and the position where the corresponding final product will be placed. As a result, the interference determination unit 28 can identify the position closest to the nozzle when the final product is placed. The interference determination unit 28 also identifies the distance between the identified position and the nozzle position. Then, the interference determination unit 28 determines whether interference will occur depending on whether the distance is equal to or greater than the required clearance. The position where the final product will be placed and the nozzle position can be identified using design information (not shown) in a storage device or the like.

[0058] If it is determined in step S9 that interference will occur (Y), the process proceeds to step S2. In this case, it is preferable that the candidate derivation unit 22 newly derives a processing candidate that avoids the interference in step S2. Also, if it is determined in step S9 that interference will not occur (N), the process proceeds to step S3.

[0059] Note that step S9 may be executed between steps S1 and S2. In this case, if it is determined that interference will occur, the process proceeds to step S1. In this case, the interference determination unit 28 uses the input / output unit 21 to output information to the related device 50 to prompt the related device 50 to re-input a processing step specification instruction.

[0060] Furthermore, step S9 may be executed between steps S7 and S8. At this time, if it is determined in step S9 that interference will occur (Y), it is desirable to exclude the corresponding machining candidate from the candidates. Furthermore, step S9 may be executed for the final product in the selected machining process after step S8. At this time, if it is determined in step S9 that interference will occur (Y), it is desirable to transition to step S1 as described above.

[0061] Moreover, steps from step S3 onwards are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted. This concludes the description of the second embodiment. EXAMPLES

[0062] Next, a third embodiment will be described. In the third embodiment, in addition to the processing in the first embodiment, a pass / fail judgment is performed to see whether the final product satisfies the allowable error. The configuration of this embodiment is also the same as that of the first and second embodiments. Therefore, the description of the outline and configuration will be omitted, and the processing flow will be described below. <Processing flow> 14 is a flowchart showing the process flow in this embodiment. Steps S1 to S7 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0063] Next, in step S10, the pass / fail judgment unit 29 judges whether the final product for each processing candidate satisfies the design information 303. Here, the design information 303 is shown in FIG. In the design information 303, the final product name, shape information, and allowable error (tolerance) are recorded for each final product. Here, the final product name is information that identifies the final product. Also, the shape information is information that indicates the shape and dimensions of the designed final product. Furthermore, the allowable error (tolerance) indicates the error allowed for the final product.

[0064] Details of step S10 will be described below. The pass / fail determination unit 29 compares the shape data of the final product of each processing candidate derived in step S2 with the shape information of the design information 303. Then, the pass / fail determination unit 29 checks whether the difference resulting from the comparison is within the range of the allowable error (tolerance). As a result, if it is within the range, it is determined to be pass.

[0065] If the product is judged as passed in step S10 (Y), the process proceeds to step S8. If the product is judged as failed (N), the process of step S10 is repeated. In other words, the pass / fail judgment unit 29 repeats the process of step S10 for the final product that has not been judged.

[0066] Also, step S10 may be executed after step S8. Here, step S10 is executed for the final product in the selected processing step. At this time, if the product is judged as passing (Y), this processing flow is terminated. If the product is judged as failing (N), the process proceeds to step S1. In this case, the pass / fail judgment unit 29 uses the input / output unit 21 to output information to the related device 50 to prompt the related device 50 to re-input a processing step specification instruction.

[0067] Although the description of the third embodiment is finished above, the interference determination of the second embodiment may be added to this embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0068] 1...base material, 2...laser head, 3...laser light, 4...molten pool, 5...powdered metal material, 6...bead, 7...molten object, 8...material, 9...key groove, 10...build-up portion, 11...rotation center axis, 20...machining support device, 21...input / output section, 22...candidate derivation section, 23...pre-process cutting time calculation section, 24...build-up process time calculation section, 25...post-process cutting time calculation section, 26...total machining time calculation section, 27...machining process selection section, 28...interference determination section, 29...pass / fail determination section, 30...storage device, 40...network, 50...associated device

Claims

1. In a processing support device for supporting the processing of a workpiece into a final product, An input unit that receives a processing step specification instruction; a candidate deriving unit that derives a plurality of candidate processing steps that are candidates for processing steps for the final product in response to the processing step identification instruction; a processing time calculation unit that calculates a partial processing time for each of a plurality of partial processes constituting the processing steps of the plurality of processing step candidates, and calculates a total processing time for each of the processing step candidates by adding up the calculated partial processing times; a machining process selection unit that selects a machining process from the plurality of machining process candidates according to the total machining time; The machining support device has an interference determination unit that determines whether interference with other equipment will occur in the environment in which the final product is used.

2. 2. The machining support device according to claim 1, The processing step includes: A cutting process step for forming a substrate from the workpiece; A cladding process for performing cladding on the base material; The method comprises a post-process cutting process for reducing deformation caused by the build-up process on the base material subjected to the build-up process, The processing time calculation unit is a front-end cutting process time calculation unit for calculating a front-end cutting process time of the front-end cutting process; A deposition process time calculation unit for calculating a deposition process time of the deposition process; a post-process cutting process time calculation unit for calculating a post-process cutting process time of the post-process cutting process; a machining support device having an overall machining time calculation unit that adds up the pre-process cutting process time, the cladding process time, and the post-process cutting process time to calculate the overall machining time.

3. 3. The machining support device according to claim 2, The post-process cutting process time calculation unit Estimating the deformation amount of the base material subjected to the build-up processing; A shape of the base material after the overlay processing is performed is estimated based on the deformation amount and the shape of the base material before the overlay processing is performed; A processing support device that calculates a time for the post-process cutting processing based on a shape of the base material on which the build-up processing has been performed and a shape of the final product.

4. 2. The machining support device according to claim 1, The processing support device further comprises a pass / fail determination unit that determines whether the final product is within a predetermined allowable error range.

5. A processing support method using a processing support device for supporting processing of a workpiece into a final product, comprising: The input unit receives instructions for specifying a processing step, A candidate derivation unit derives a plurality of candidate processing steps which are candidates for the processing steps for the final product in response to the processing step identification instruction; A processing time calculation unit calculates a partial processing time for each of a plurality of partial processes constituting the processing steps of the plurality of processing step candidates, and calculates a total processing time for each of the processing step candidates by adding up the calculated partial processing times; A machining process selection unit selects a machining process from the plurality of machining process candidates according to the total machining time; The machining support method further comprises: determining, by an interference determination unit, whether interference with another device will occur in the environment in which the final product is used.

6. The machining support method according to claim 5, The processing step includes: A cutting process step for forming a substrate from the workpiece; A cladding process for performing cladding on the base material; The method comprises a post-process cutting process for reducing deformation caused by the build-up process on the base material subjected to the build-up process, The processing time calculation unit has a front-end cutting processing time calculation unit, a cladding processing time calculation unit, a back-end cutting processing time calculation unit, and a total processing time calculation unit, The pre-process cutting process time calculation unit calculates a pre-process cutting process time of the pre-process cutting process, The overlay process time calculation unit calculates a overlay process time of the overlay process, The post-process cutting process time calculation unit calculates a post-process cutting process time of the post-process cutting process, The machining support method, wherein the total machining time calculation unit adds up the pre-process cutting process time, the cladding process time, and the post-process cutting process time to calculate the total machining time.

7. The machining support method according to claim 6, The post-process cutting process time calculation unit Estimating the deformation amount of the base material subjected to the build-up processing; A shape of the base material after the overlay processing is performed is estimated based on the deformation amount and the shape of the base material before the overlay processing is performed; The machining support method calculates a post-process cutting process time based on a shape of the base material on which the build-up process has been performed and a shape of the final product.

8. The machining support method according to claim 5, The processing support device further includes a pass / fail determination unit, The processing support method, in which the pass / fail determination unit determines whether the final product is within a predetermined allowable error range.

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