Beam Cutting Path Planning Around Tilting Sheet-Metal Parts
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing beam cutting machines face issues with components tilting due to support bars, leading to potential collisions with the cutting head, machine damage, and the need for manual intervention, which reduces productivity and increases downtime.
Innovation Solution
A method for cutting components from a sheet-metal plate using a beam cutting machine with support bars arranged at predetermined grid positions, involving a nesting plan, machining program, and tolerance fields to calculate and avoid interference contours, adjusting the machining program to maintain a safe distance from potential tilting components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If support bars are arranged at predetermined grid positions for cutting components from sheet-metal plate, then manufacturing precision and support stability are improved, but components may tilt due to point or line-like support, causing collision risk with cutting head
Solution Approach 1:
The system calculates interference contours in advance based on the nesting plan and support bar positions, determining potential collision zones before cutting begins. The machining program is then adjusted to avoid these pre-calculated zones, preventing collisions before they occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution introduces a new spatial dimension by calculating interference contours that extend above the sheet-metal plate surface. These contours represent the three-dimensional space occupied by potentially tilting components, allowing the cutting head to navigate around them in the vertical dimension while maintaining precise cutting in the horizontal plane.
2Ease of operation
If support bars are spaced apart to allow component cutting, then ease of operation and cutting access are improved, but components may tilt and raise, creating harmful interference with cutting head movement
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculations to determine interference contours caused by component tilting before the cutting process begins. The machining program is then modified in advance to route the cutting head around these predicted interference zones, eliminating collisions before they occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The interference contours act as an intermediary representation of the physical interference problem. By calculating and visualizing these contours, the system creates a virtual model of potential collisions that guides the cutting head's path planning, allowing the system to navigate around actual physical obstacles without direct contact.
3Reliability
If manual intervention is implemented to prevent collisions, then reliability is improved, but productivity decreases due to increased downtime and reduced automation
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs self-service by automatically calculating interference contours and adjusting its own machining program without human intervention. The control system modifies the cutting path autonomously based on pre-calculated interference data, eliminating the need for manual programming adjustments while maintaining high reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution replaces manual mechanical intervention with automated computational methods. Instead of operators physically adjusting machines or monitoring for collisions, the system uses computer-based interference contour calculations and automated path planning to prevent collisions, thereby maintaining productivity while improving reliability.
4Manufacturing precision
If interference contours are calculated for multiple grid positions within tolerance fields, then manufacturing precision is improved, but device complexity and calculation requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system calculates interference contours for multiple grid positions within tolerance fields, performing more calculations than the absolute minimum required. This excessive action ensures that all potential collision scenarios within manufacturing tolerances are covered, providing comprehensive protection against collisions while maintaining precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution changes the parameter of support bar position by calculating interference contours across multiple grid positions within tolerance fields. By varying the position parameters within acceptable ranges and recalculating contours for each variation, the system determines the worst-case interference scenarios and plans cutting paths that avoid all of them.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for cutting out components from a sheet-metal plate using a beam cutting machine that includes a workpiece support with support bars. The method includes specifying a nesting plan of the components, a machining program for controlling a cutting head, and tolerance fields of a width for grid positions of the support bars, acquiring the grid positions of the support bars and a position of the sheet-metal plate, determining where the support bars are located relative to the sheet-metal plate, calculating sets of interference contours which result from the components tilting on the support bars, determining a set of effective interference contours from the sets of interference contours, changing the machining program so that a distance between the cutting head and the interference contours of the components already cut free does not fall below a predetermined minimum distance, and cutting out the components according to the changed machining program.