In the mould and die industry, Open Mind says that its hyperMILL CADCAM suite is regarded as a complete end-to-end solution as it can cover aspects such as electrode manufacturing and wire EDM. Now, it is the introduction of the five-axis radial machining function that takes centre stage.

The new function is suitable for the process-optimised production of round moulds, where surfaces cannot undergo hand finishing or polishing operations. For components such as blow moulds that are applied in vehicle bumper production or consumer goods bottles, high-quality machined surfaces are critical as secondary hand finishing can introduce optical facets and surface inconsistencies that may appear in downstream processing.

According to Open Mind, improvements to the current version of hyperMILL – combined with five-axis radial machining – are setting standards in blow-mould machining. Thanks to a new radial projection method, it is possible to calculate tool paths extremely quickly, and the user can apply various machining strategies to respond flexibly to the component conditions.

The new ‘Flow Equidistant’ infeed strategy is the first of its kind that supports the generation of tool paths with a constant infeed for vertical and challenging surfaces. This capability means that surfaces can integrate into the overall machining sequence, with processing taking place in a single step. Seamless machining with a very high surface quality is guaranteed, reports the company. Every machining sequence needs to produce sharp corners at the junction of the upper and lower halves of the mould to avoid problems during the moulding process. An automatic tangent extension feature eliminates the manual CAD steps needed to extend the numerous surface elements found in complex designs.
For further information www.openmind-tech.com