Processing cost estimation method and processing cost estimation system

Abstract

To provide a technique that can change, if processing costs for processing materials into a product in an initial design shape exceed target costs, the initial design shape so that the target costs are met, and then present a plurality of shapes after the change.SOLUTION: Estimation processing for processing costs includes: calculation processing (S20) to calculate processing costs for cutting materials of initial design material quality based upon three-dimensional data representing an initial design shape of a product to produce the product in the initial design shape; comparison processing (S22) to compare the calculated processing costs with target costs; change processing (S24) to change the initial design shape when the processing costs exceed the target costs; repetition processing (S22: NO) to calculate processing costs for producing a product in the shape after the change and repeating change processing until the calculated processing costs meet the target costs; and display processing (S26, S28) to display a plurality of shapes after the change when the processing costs meet the target costs on a display 20 together with the processing costs.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technique for estimating processing costs when processing materials to produce products with a designed shape.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes an automatic quotation method that brings the quotation result closer to the range of the user's desired price or desired delivery date with a small number of trial times. More specifically, in the automatic quotation method described in Patent Document 1, after the price or delivery date of the item group is determined in the item group price / delivery date determination step, the manufacturing conditions for at least one of the plurality of items are notified in the notification step. The notified manufacturing conditions are such that when the manufacturing conditions are changed, the price or delivery date of the item group determined is closer to the desired price or desired delivery date than the price or delivery date of the item group determined before the manufacturing conditions are changed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the automatic quotation method described in Patent Document 1, the notified manufacturing conditions are for determining an item group with a price closer to the user's desired price, and changing the designed shape to a lower-cost shape is not considered.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a technique that enables, when the processing cost exceeds the target cost when processing materials to produce a product with an initial designed shape, changing the initial designed shape so as to fall within the target cost and presenting a plurality of changed shapes.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To achieve the above object, the processing cost estimation method of the present disclosure processes a material made of an initial design material based on initial design data indicating an initial design shape of a product, and calculates a processing cost when generating a product having the initial design shape. A calculation step; a comparison step of comparing the processing cost calculated by the calculation step with a target cost; a change step of changing the initial design shape when the processing cost exceeds the target cost by the comparison step; and a product having the shape after the change by the change step A repetition step of calculating the processing cost when generating the product by the calculation step and repeating the change step until the calculated processing cost falls within the target cost; and a plurality of shapes after the change when the processing cost falls within the target cost by the repetition step And a presentation step of presenting together with the processing cost.

Advantages of the Invention

[0007] According to the present disclosure, when the processing cost for processing a material and generating a product having an initial design shape exceeds the target cost, the initial design shape can be changed so as to fall within the target cost, and a plurality of shapes after the change can be presented.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a control configuration of a PC1 that realizes a processing cost estimation method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0010] The PC1 includes a user IF10, a display 20, a CPU 30, a memory 40, and a communication IF50. The user IF10, the display 20, the CPU 30, the memory 40, and the communication IF50 are interconnected via a bus 60. Note that IF is an abbreviation for interface.

[0011] The user IF10 typically includes a keyboard and a mouse.

[0012] The display 20 includes a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display, a drive circuit for driving the display device, and the like. When a touch panel type is used as the display 20, the user can perform an input operation by touching an input button on the screen. Therefore, in this case, the display 20 also serves as the user IF10.

[0013] The CPU 30 executes various application programs (hereinafter abbreviated as "apps") including a program for machining cost estimation processing described later with reference to FIG. 2, firmware, and the like.

[0014] The memory 40 includes a ROM, a RAM, an HDD, an SSD, an optical disk drive, and the like. The data storage area 40a of the memory 40 is an area for storing data necessary when the CPU 30 executes a program for machining cost estimation processing and the like. Further, the control program area 40b of the memory 40 is an area for storing an OS, an information processing program, various other apps, firmware, and the like.

[0015] The communication IF 50 connects the PC 1 to a communication network (not shown). Examples of the communication network include a wired or wireless LAN, a WAN, a USB, a Bluetooth (registered trademark), and an NFC network. Therefore, when the program for machining cost estimation processing is not stored in the memory 40, it can be downloaded via the communication IF 50 from, for example, an external server (not shown).

[0016] FIG. 2 shows the procedure of the machining cost estimation processing executed by the PC 1, particularly the CPU 30. The machining cost estimation processing calculates the machining cost when machining a material made of an initial design material using a machine tool to produce a product having an initial design shape, and when the calculated machining cost exceeds the target cost, changes the initial design shape so that the machining cost falls within the target cost, and displays a plurality of changed design shapes. The machining cost estimation processing is started in response to, for example, the user of the PC 1 instructing the start of the machining cost estimation processing from the user IF 10. Hereinafter, in the description of the procedure of each process, the step will be denoted as "S". That is, it is started in response to, for example, the user instructing the start of the machining cost estimation processing from the user IF 10.

[0017] In FIG. 2, first, the CPU 30 reads the initial design data of the product (S10). The initial design data is three-dimensional data indicating the initial design shape of the product. For example, when a plurality of readable initial design data is stored in the server, the names of the plurality of initial design data are displayed on the display 20, and when any name is selected via the user IF 10 from among them, the CPU 30 may download the initial design data of that name from the server and read it into the memory 40. The read initial design data is stored, for example, in a work area (not shown) of the memory 40.

[0018] FIG. 3 shows the read three-dimensional initial design data represented in a two-dimensional drawing, and FIGS. 3(a) to 3(c) show a front view, a plan view, and a side view, respectively. This initial design data shows the initial design shape of the metal block 100 which is the product, and shows the initial design shape of a product generated by cutting a material made of the initial design material, for example, an aluminum square bar. In the case of referring to directions in FIG. 3, the directions of the arrows shown in the figure are used. The same applies to FIGS. 4 and 5.

[0019] The metal block 100 is generated by milling a workpiece produced by cutting a square bar. The shapes constituting the metal block 100 mainly include a notch 100d, a groove 100c, a drill hole 100b, and screw holes 100a and 100e.

[0020] The notch 100d is generated using a square end mill. FIG. 4 shows how the notch 100d is generated using the square end mill 200. FIG. 4(a) shows a plan view thereof, FIG. 4(b) shows a perspective view thereof, and FIG. 4(c) shows a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 4(a). Since the notch 100d is U-shaped in plan view, it is necessary to use a square end mill 200 with an outer diameter φa corresponding to the size of the corner radius R of the two corners 100d1. The groove 100c is also generated using a square end mill, and a square end mill with an outer diameter corresponding to the width of the groove 100c, which is the vertical width in FIG. 3(c), is used.

[0021] The drill hole 100b is generated using a drill with a diameter corresponding to its diameter. The threaded holes 100a and 100e are generated using a tap with an outer diameter corresponding to their diameters.

[0022] Returning to FIG. 2, the CPU 30 receives machining information (S12). Specifically, the machining information is information indicating which tool to use and how to machine each shape constituting the metal block 100. The input of this information can be performed, for example, by displaying the three-dimensional shape of the metal block 100 on the display 20 based on the read initial design data, and while the user designates each shape constituting the metal block 100 one by one, determining the tool and process to be used for machining that shape. In addition to this, for each shape, the tool and process to be used for machining that shape may be determined in advance, and as table data, it may be read and received in association with the initial design data and stored, for example, in the memory 40 or an external server. The received machining information is stored in the work area of the memory 40 in the same manner as the initial design data read in S10 above.

[0023] Next, the CPU 30 receives the constrained shape (S14). The constrained shape is a shape for which the shape change in S24 described later is not performed. Each shape constituting the metal block 100 can be designated as to whether it may be shape-changed by the shape change in S24. That is, the constrained shape means a shape for which the prohibition of shape change by the shape change in S24 is specified. The specification of permission / prohibition of shape change can be performed in the same manner as the input of the above machining information, that is, the user designates each shape one by one and designates the permission / prohibition of shape change for each shape, or the permission / prohibition of shape change for each shape may be specified in advance for each shape, and as table data, it may be stored in the memory 40 or an external server in association with the initial design data. The received constrained shape is stored in the work area of the memory 40.

[0024] Next, the CPU 30 assigns priorities to the change items (S16). The priority information is also stored in the work area of the memory 40. In the shape change of S24, as will be described later, change items are selected one by one from a plurality of change items, and shape changes are made for the selected change items. Assigning priorities to change items means assigning priorities for selection to each change item. Similar to the specification of permission / forbidden for the shape change and the input of the processing information, the user may assign priorities to each change item while designating each change item one by one, or priorities may be determined in advance for each of the change items and stored in the memory 40 or an external server in association with the initial design data as table data.

[0025] Next, the CPU 30 receives the target cost (S18). The reception of the target cost may be simply accepting what the user inputs from the user IF 10. The received target cost is stored in the work area of the memory 40.

[0026] Next, the CPU 30 calculates the processing cost (S20). The processing cost is calculated by adding up the cost according to the time of cutting the work, the material cost of the work, and the cost for surface treatment and heat treatment of the metal block 100. When the shape change of S24 has not been made even once, the CPU 30 calculates the processing cost based on the initial design data read in S10 and the processing information received in S12.

[0027] Next, the CPU 30 compares the target cost received in S18 above with the machining cost calculated in S20 above (S22). When the machining cost exceeds the target cost (S22: NO), the CPU 30 performs a shape change (S24). In this embodiment, the change items for performing the shape change include seven change items: corner R, number of holes, material, tolerance, surface treatment, heat treatment, and surface roughness. And as described above, each change item is assigned a priority. Now, assuming that the priorities from 1 to 7 are assigned in this order, first, the CPU 30 selects the corner R as the change item. The corner R refers to the corner part included in the shape of the product, that is, in the metal block 100, the corner R of the two corners 100d1 (see FIG. 3). Then, the CPU 30 changes the size of the corner R to be larger.

[0028] FIG. 5 shows how a notch 110d is generated when the size of the corner R of the two corners 100d1 (see FIG. 4) is changed to be larger. FIG. 5(a) shows a plan view thereof, FIG. 5(b) shows a perspective view thereof, and FIG. 5(c) shows a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 5(a). As shown in FIG. 5, the size of the corner R of the two corners 110d1 constituting the notch 110d is larger than the size of the corner R of the two corners 100d1. Changing the size of the corner R in this way is for changing the square end mill 210 to be used to a larger outer diameter, which is the outer diameter φb in FIG. 5. For square end mills of the same type, the larger the outer diameter, the higher the rigidity as a tool, so the cutting length into the workpiece can be increased. As can be seen by comparing FIG. 4(c) and FIG. 5(c), the cutting length of the square end mill 210 is longer than the cutting length of the square end mill 200. By increasing the cutting length in this way, the time required to generate the notch 110d becomes shorter than the time required to generate the notch 100d. As a result, the cutting time of the workpiece is shortened, and the machining cost can be reduced.

[0029] Next, the CPU 30 selects the number of holes as the change item. The holes are the holes included in the product, that is, In the metal block 100, there are the above-mentioned drill holes 100b and screw holes 100a, 100e. And the CPU 30 changes to the one with fewer holes. As described above, the drill hole 100b is generated using a drill, and the screw holes 100a, 100e are generated using a tap. Since both the drill hole 100b and the screw holes 100a, 100e take time for hole machining, if the number of holes is reduced, the machining time for that much is shortened, and the machining cost can be reduced. Note that, as a change item, instead of the number of holes, the size of the hole diameter may be used. Also, both the number of holes and the diameter may be changeable.

[0030] Figure 8 shows an example of the hole machining time according to the tap standard. In Figure 8, "n" of the tap standard Mn (n = 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10) indicates the outer diameter (mm) of the screw. As shown in Figure 8, in the same machining range, the machining time is shortened when using a tap for opening a screw hole with a larger outer diameter of the screwed screw. Therefore, by changing the size of the diameter of the screw hole, the machining cost can be reduced. This situation is the same for the drill hole.

[0031] Next, the CPU 30 selects the material as a change item. The material is the material of the workpiece. And the CPU 30 changes the material to the one with a lower price. Or, it may be changed to a softer material so that the machining time is shortened. Thereby, the machining cost can be reduced.

[0032] Similarly hereinafter, the CPU 30 sequentially selects each change item of tolerance, surface treatment, heat treatment, and surface roughness, and changes them so that the machining cost is reduced. Specific examples of the surface treatment can include painting, plating, anodizing, shot blasting, etc.

[0033] Figure 6(a) shows a state of pocket machining a part of the initial design shape shown by initial design data different from the initial design data read in S10 above. Figure 6(b) shows a state of changing a part of it to another shape and pocket machining the changed shape.

[0034] In the product 120 of FIG. 6(a), a hole 120a having a rectangular cross-section is formed in the initial design data. And, an end portion 120a1 of the bottom surface of the hole 120a is to be subjected to concave R machining. A tool used to form the hole 120a having such a shape is, for example, a ball end mill 300. The ball end mill 300 is an end mill in which a tip 300b1 of a cutting edge portion 300b has a spherical shape. By using the ball end mill 300, R machining can be performed on the end portion 120a1, but the efficiency of pocket machining is poor.

[0035] On the other hand, as in the product 130 of FIG. 6(b), although the cross-section of the hole 130a is rectangular as in the hole 120a, if it is changed to a hole 130a in which R machining is not performed on the end portion of its bottom surface, the pocket machining can be performed using a square end mill 220 in which the tip of the cutting edge portion 220b is flat. The pocket machining by the square end mill 220 has better machining efficiency than the pocket machining by the ball end mill 300, so the machining time of the pocket machining is shortened, and thereby the machining cost is reduced.

[0036] FIG. 7(a) shows a part 140a of the initial design shape of a product 140 shown by initial design data different from the initial design data read in the above S10. This partial shape 140a is a convex R shape. As a tool used to machine the shape 140a, there is, for example, an end mill provided with a special-shaped cutting edge called a formed blade. However, since the R shape that can be machined is limited, when machining the R shape using this end mill, the R shape may be slightly different from the shape 140a. That is, an end mill that can perform machining close to the R shape of the shape 140a is selected and used.

[0037] Figures 7(b) and 7(c) show how the shape 140a is machined with the ball end mill 300 shown in FIG. 6(a) above. The difference between FIG. 7(b) and FIG. 7(c) is the difference in the surface roughness after machining. The rougher the surface roughness, the shorter the machining time by the ball end mill 300, and thus the machining cost is reduced.

[0038] In this way, the CPU 30 selects change items according to the priority. When the product includes a shape that can be changed among those belonging to the selected change item, the CPU 30 changes the shape to a shape that reduces the machining cost. However, the CPU 30 refers to the restricted shape stored in the work area of the memory 40 and does not change the shape for which shape change is prohibited. Also, the priority may be changed from the priority ranked in S16 above. For example, when the machining cost significantly exceeds the target cost by the comparison in S22 above, it is conceivable to increase the priority so that a change item with a large reduction width of the machining cost is selected earlier.

[0039] After changing the shape, the CPU 30 returns the process to S20 above and calculates the machining cost for the product after the shape change. Here, regarding the timing when the CPU 30 returns the process from S24 to S20, it may be every time one change item is selected and the shape is changed for that change item, or it may be every time the shape is changed for two or more change items among the selectable change items.

[0040] Next, the CPU 30 compares the target cost with the calculated processing cost. If the processing cost is within the target cost (S22: YES), the CPU 30 displays the modified shape and the processing cost on the display 20. The modified shape may be displayed, for example, as a 3D image, but it may also be displayed as a 2D image. At this time, it is preferable to change the color of the modified shape or highlight it so that the modified shape can be understood. Also, the shape before the modification may be displayed in association with the modified shape. Furthermore, when displaying the processing cost, it is preferable to also display the amount reduced due to the shape modification. Additionally, for the knockout holes and screw holes, display the processing cost per location, and also display the amount reduced when the number or diameter of the holes is changed. Also, for the surface roughness and tolerance, display the amount reduced when the specified value is changed to a rougher or looser value. Furthermore, for the material, display the material cost when the product is manufactured using a less expensive material.

[0041] Next, the CPU 30 determines whether the process of S26 has been repeated a predetermined number of times (S28). If it has not been repeated the predetermined number of times yet (S28: NO), the CPU 30 advances the process to S24 above and performs the shape modification again. At this time, so that the same result as the previous shape modification cannot be obtained by the repeated shape modification, after changing the conditions for the shape modification, the CPU 30 returns the process to S24. Examples of the conditions for the shape modification include conditions such as not selecting the modification items that have already been selected, and when the same modification item is selected, excluding the shape of the area that has already been modified with that modification item and changing the shape of other areas.

[0042] And when the process of S26 has been repeated the predetermined number of times (S28: YES), the CPU 30 ends the processing cost estimation process.

[0043] As described above, the processing cost estimation process of the present embodiment performs cutting on a material made of the initial design material based on three-dimensional data indicating the initial design shape of the product, and calculates the processing cost when generating a product with the initial design shape (S20), compares the processing cost calculated by the calculation process with the target cost (S22), and when the processing cost exceeds the target cost by the comparison process, changes the initial design shape (S24), calculates the processing cost when generating a product with the shape after the change by the change process by the calculation process, and repeats the change process until the calculated processing cost falls within the target cost (S22 :NO), and a display process (S26, S28) of displaying a plurality of shapes after the change together with the processing cost on the display 20 when the processing cost falls within the target cost by the repetition process.

[0044] Thus, in the processing cost estimation process of the present embodiment, when the processing cost exceeds the target cost, the initial design shape is changed, the change of the design shape is repeated until the processing cost falls within the target cost, and a plurality of shapes after the change when the processing cost falls within the target cost are displayed on the display 20 together with the processing cost. Therefore, the user can select a shape after the change that meets the user's intention from among the plurality of displayed shapes after the change and the processing cost. As a result, conventionally, the user repeatedly changes the shape based on the user's feeling so that the processing cost falls within the target cost, and thus the shape change that has taken time can be performed quickly, and the shape change can be performed efficiently.

[0045] Incidentally, in the present embodiment, the three-dimensional data is an example of "initial design data". The cutting process is an example of "processing". The display on the display 20 is an example of "presentation".

[0046] Further, the initial design shape is composed of a plurality of partial shapes, and the shape to be changed by the change process is part or all of the plurality of partial shapes. Thereby, the shape change can be performed more finely.

[0047] Also, priorities can be assigned to a plurality of partial shapes. When priorities are assigned to the plurality of partial shapes, in the change process, some or all of the plurality of partial shapes that constitute the initial design shape are changed according to the priorities. As a result, shape changes according to the priorities are made, and a plurality of shapes that are changed to shapes closer to the user's intention of shape change are displayed.

[0048] Furthermore, it further includes an update process of updating the priorities assigned to a plurality of partial shapes according to the amount by which the processing cost exceeds the target cost. As a result, it is possible to display a plurality of shapes after change when the processing cost is within the target cost with a small number of repetitions.

[0049] Also, for each of the plurality of partial shapes, it is possible to associate whether or not a change is possible by the change process, and in the change process, the partial shapes associated with "no change" are not changed. As a result, since shape changes can be made excluding the partial shapes for which shape changes are not possible, flexible shape changes can be made.

[0050] Also, in the calculation process, the processing cost when changing the initial design material to another material is calculated, and in the display process, the processing costs before and after changing to another material are displayed. As a result, the user can know the degree of reduction in the processing cost when changing the material.

[0051] Note that the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various changes are possible without departing from the gist thereof.

[0052] (1) In the above embodiment, as an example of the initial design data, three-dimensional data is cited, but it is not limited to this, and two-dimensional data may be used, and the method of the present disclosure can be similarly applied.

[0053] (2) In the above embodiment, as an example of the processing, cutting processing is cited, but it is not limited to this, and the method of the present disclosure can be similarly applied to other processing modes such as sheet metal processing and grinding processing.

[0054] (3) In the above-described embodiment, as an example of presentation, it has been mentioned that it is displayed on the display 20. However, it is not limited to this, and it may be notified to the user by voice. Further, in addition to being displayed on the display 20, it may be notified by voice.

[0055] (4) In the above-described embodiment, the processing cost estimation process is executed by the PC 1. However, it is not limited to this, and it may be executed by a machine tool that produces a product. In that case, the user IF 10, the display 20, and the memory 40 may be provided separately.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0056] 1…PC, 10…user IF, 20…display, 30…CPU, 40…memory, 50…communication IF, 100…metal block, 100a, 100e…screw hole, 100b…drilled hole, 100c…groove, 100d…notch, 100d1…corner, 200…square end mill, 300…ball end mill.

Claims

An arithmetic step of calculating a processing cost when processing a material made of an initial design material based on initial design data indicating an initial design shape of a product and generating the product of the initial design shape; A comparison step of comparing the processing cost calculated in the arithmetic step with a target cost; A change step of changing the initial design shape when the processing cost exceeds the target cost in the comparison step; A repetition step of calculating, in the arithmetic step, the processing cost when generating a product having the shape after the change by the change step, and repeating the change step until the calculated processing cost falls within the target cost; A presentation step of presenting a plurality of the shapes after the change together with the processing cost when the processing cost falls within the target cost by the repetition step; A processing cost estimation method including: The initial design shape is composed of a plurality of partial shapes; The shape to be changed by the change step is part or all of the plurality of partial shapes; Priority can be assigned to the plurality of partial shapes; When the priority is assigned to the plurality of partial shapes, in the change step, part or all of the plurality of partial shapes constituting the initial design shape are changed according to the priority; The processing cost estimation method further includes: An update step of updating the priority assigned to the plurality of partial shapes according to the amount by which the processing cost exceeds the target cost; A processing cost estimation method.

2. For each of the plurality of partial shapes, it is possible to associate whether or not it can be changed by the change step; In the change step, the partial shape associated with "no" change is not changed; The processing cost estimation method according to claim 1.

3. The objects to be changed by the change step include the corner R of the product, the number of holes, the size of the holes, the material, the tolerance, the surface treatment, the heat treatment, and the surface roughness; The processing cost estimation method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. In the arithmetic step, the processing cost when changing the initial design material to another material is calculated; In the presentation step, the processing costs before and after the change to the other material are presented; The processing cost estimation method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. A memory for storing initial design data indicating an initial design shape of a product; A display; A calculation process for calculating the processing cost when processing a material made of the initial design material based on the initial design data stored in the memory to generate a product having the initial design shape; a comparison process for comparing the processing cost calculated by the calculation process with a target cost; a change process for changing the initial design shape when the processing cost exceeds the target cost by the comparison process; calculating the processing cost when generating a product having the shape after the change by the change process by the calculation process, and repeating the change process until the calculated processing cost falls within the target cost; a display process for displaying a plurality of the shapes after the change together with the processing cost on the display when the processing cost falls within the target cost by the repetition process; and a controller that executes the processes. comprising the initial design shape is composed of a plurality of partial shapes, the shape to be changed by the change process is part or all of the plurality of partial shapes, priority can be assigned to the plurality of partial shapes, when the priority is assigned to the plurality of partial shapes, in the change process, part or all of the plurality of partial shapes constituting the initial design shape are changed according to the priority, the controller further executes an update process for updating the priority assigned to the plurality of partial shapes according to the amount by which the processing cost exceeds the target cost. A processing cost estimation system.

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