Should You Be Using Animated Simulation?

Imagine you’re setting up a new part program to do a production run for a first-time customer. You really want to impress them with your quality and efficiency, because you know they can send a lot of work your way. So you’re being extra careful to make sure everything is just right before hitting Start on their expensive material. But perhaps you’re a smaller shop, and haven’t been able to cost-justify that CAM software you’re wishing you had right about now.

If you’re an Okuma user, you’re in luck! With almost any Okuma OSP-P CNC control, you have the ability to simulate your program visually, before you actually run it. This function is called Animated Simulation and I’ve noticed many people aren’t aware of how handy this can be. So here’s your Quick Start guide to show you what it does and how to use it.

Animated Simulation: Program Preview, Right On Your CNC Control

Animated Simulation shows you a motion graphic preview of what your part program will do, and you can view this right on your CNC control. When you run it you’ll be able to detect any errors you may have made in programming, and see if the tools are going to crash into the part or cut the wrong shape. The animated picture actually shows the tool moving around and cutting the material off the part. You effectively get a “dry run” simulation that will predict the success or failure or your program.

I happen to have a CAM system, but sometimes I don’t use it. In these cases I definitely do a dry run using Animated Simulation to see if my program will run as I expect. It’s always good to see if I’m in the right ballpark or it I need to make an adjustment. In my opinion, the most useful aspect of this is getting to see a visual of the part before I run it. I also like to make sure I’m not going to have a surprise crash.

How to Use Animated Simulation

It’s pretty easy to use this function on your OSP CNC control. When you’re in the Editor setting up your material using the Blank Definition screen, you’ll see another screen option called Animated Simulation. Once you’ve completed your programming, simply go to this screen and run it.

By the way, with other controls on the market, this function might be an extra option. But Animated Simulation comes standard with most of Okuma’s CNC controls.

Have you used Animated Simulation in your shop? Comment below and let us know what you think. And feel free to contact us, or your local distributor, if we can help you use this handy function.

Paul Russell is Applications Engineer, Okuma America Corporation.