Delcam has added a video showing the machining of a complex cycle helmet on a Mazak Variaxis to its Delcam.TV online TV channel at www.delcam.tv/rudyhelmet.  The demonstration, which was programmed with Delcam’s PowerMILL CAM system for high-speed and five-axis machining, was first shown to large crowds on the Mazak stand at the recent BIMU exhibition held in Milan from 30th September to 4th October. 

A second video showing the complete project – reverse engineering with PowerSHAPE Pro, machining with PowerMILL and inspection with PowerINSPECT – is available at www.delcam.tv/rudyhelmet-re. 

Franco Calloni, General Manager of Delcam Italia, chose the helmet for the demonstrations at BIMU after seeing it used by a cycling team that is sponsored by his company. "I was looking for a single object to demonstrate the complete Delcam solution,” he explained. "I needed something that would be recognised instantly by visitors and that would show how easily Delcam’s software can model and machine complex shapes.”

The project began by using PowerSHAPE Pro to convert a sample helmet into a CAD model.  By offering a combination of solid, surface and direct modelling, together with reverse engineering functionality, PowerSHAPE Pro provides the most comprehensive range of design techniques available in a single CAD program.  Having all the different technologies in the same package reduces the need to transfer data between multiple programs and so streamlines the whole product development process.

The machining demonstration then shows how the five-axis capabilities of PowerMILL allow even a part as challenging as the helmet to be machined quickly and efficiently in a single set-up.

PowerMILL 2015, which was demonstrated in Italy for the first time at BIMU, offers new options for positional or continuous five-axis machining, including improvements to the collision checking within the software.  Firstly, collision checking has been changed so that warnings can also be flagged for near misses.  Secondly, the display showing the list of collisions has been updated to be easier to read, making it simpler to extrapolate the coordinates at these points.

Finally, the machined helmet was measured with PowerINSPECT, to confirm that the shape of the original helmet had been reproduced successfully.