No cost evals for our STEP-NC technology

[Martin Hardwick]

STEP Tools is pleased to announce that its STEP-NC technology
is available for free evaluation on its web site. The
technology includes:

* ST-Plan for converting STEP data into STEP-NC data
  using advanced feature recognition technology.
  http://www.steptools.com/products/stplan/obtaining.html
* ST-Machine for converting STEP-NC data into CNC codes
  using a CAM system.
  http://www.steptools.com/products/stmachine/obtaining.html
* STEP-NC Explorer for browsing STEP-NC data.
  http://www.steptools.com/products/stncexplorer/obtaining.html

You can find on-line documentation and virtual tours for all
the products on our web site as well as free evaluation keys
good until March 1st. After March 1st we will probably ask you
to register with us before becoming a user, but it is our intent
to make these tools free for evaluation and research purposes
for an extended period of time.

We recommend you try the tools with our example data sets before
applying them to your own. You will find that they work well
for rectilinear parts on conventional CNC machines. Please
contact us if you want to try them on advanced machines or on
parts with more challenging geometry. STEP-NC can make any
kind of part and you can help us set our implementation
priorities for the tools.

With ST-Plan you can convert AP-203 geometry into AP-238 manufacturing
plans that includes tolerance, feature, process, tool and
strategy data. After reading the geometry you will see a 3D image
of the product that can be scaled, rotated and measured. You must
now define the stock. It can be a block, a cylinder or other AP-203
geometry. 

After the stock has been defined you can use the advanced feature
recognition to identify and classify all the volumes that must
be removed from the stock to make the part. If you do not like
some of the classifications then you can change them where appropriate
using interactive feature recognition. 

Now you can define a manufacturing process. You can choose between an
outline process that describes the major steps, or a detailed process
that includes roughing and finishing operations. After the process
has been defined you can eliminate operations, change the operation
sequence and fine tune the various tooling and strategy selections.
Finally after evaluating all the removal volumes, the result can be
exported as an AP-238 data set for viewing by the STEP-NC Explorer
or processing by an ST-Machine.

ST-Machine reads AP-238 data into a CAM system. When fully configured,
ST-Machine converts STEP-NC AP-238 data into CNC codes with a minimum
of operator intervention (hence in the long term a product like
ST-Machine will be included on every CNC). Until it has been so
configured however, you can use ST-Machine as a rapid way to
create a manufacturing plan in your favorite CAM. 

First you must define the type of machine (number of axes). Next
you can view the geometry and features to be manufactured and
delete any that you do not want included in this operation.
Next you must pick the cutting tools. ST-Machine will make a best
fit selection based on a database of the available tools. A default
database is included with the product. If you want to maximize your
productivity then you should develop your own database either by
following the rules in the documentation or by contacting us.

Finally, the data is ready for transfer into the CAM. You can now
use the CAM to verify the operations and fine tune the plan,
and when you are ready you can post it to your machine and
begin the manufacturing process.

If you have any questions or would like to make some observations
we will be glad to hear from you. This is exciting new technology
as our recent award from Industry Week demonstrates. Right now it
works well for simple parts but with the right sponsorship we can
make it work well for every part and achieve significant productivity
benefits for the whole of society.


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