Machining based on strategies selected based on prioritized aspects of manufacturing

Abstract

A method includes the steps of receiving user input indicative of prioritized aspects of manufacturing of an object, the prioritized aspects including tool life or surface quality or object manufacturing speed; obtaining a model of an object to be manufactured via subtractive manufacturing; identifying, based on the model, a geometric feature to be machined as part of manufacturing the object; obtaining a plurality of strategies for machining the geometric feature, by accessing a database, the plurality of strategies defining alternative ways of machining the geometric feature; selecting at least one strategy from the plurality of strategies by ranking the plurality of strategies using the prioritized aspects of manufacturing and selecting at least one strategy having the highest ranking, providing, based on the at least one selected strategy, instructions for causing the one or more machine tools to manufacture the object via subtractive manufacturing.

1 . A method comprising:
 receiving user input indicative of prioritized aspects of manufacturing of an object, the prioritized aspects being tool life surface quality or object manufacturing speed;   obtaining a model of an object to be manufactured via subtractive manufacturing;   identifying, based on the model, a geometric feature to be machined as part of manufacturing the object;   obtaining a plurality of strategies for machining the geometric feature, by accessing a database, the plurality of strategies defining alternative ways of machining the geometric feature;   selecting at least one strategy from said plurality of strategies by ranking the plurality of strategies using the prioritized aspects of manufacturing and selecting at least one strategy having the highest ranking; and   providing, based on the at least one selected strategy, instructions for causing the one or more machine tools to manufacture the object via subtractive manufacturing.   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein at least two strategies are selected, the method further comprising:
 receiving user instructions; and   selecting, based on the user instructions, one strategy from the at least two strategies, wherein the instructions are provided based on the selected one strategy.   
     
     
         3 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one selected strategy includes a proposed cutting tool, a proposed tool path pattern, and proposed cutting data, and the method further comprises arranging a selection of any of the proposed cutting tool, the proposed tool path pattern and the proposed cutting data based on the prioritized aspects. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 obtaining information including information about one or more machine tools available for manufacturing the object; and   obtaining the plurality of strategies only for the one or more machine tools.   
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 4 , further comprising receiving user input indicative of a machine tool of the one or more machine tools available for manufacturing the object, wherein the plurality of strategies are ranked further using the indicated machine tool. 
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 obtaining information including information about one or more cutting tools available for use by one or more machine tools to manufacture the object; and   obtaining the plurality of strategies only for the one or more cutting tools.   
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 6 , further comprising receiving user input indicative of a machining process, wherein the plurality of strategies are ranked further using the indicated machining process. 
     
     
         8 . An object manufacturing system configured to perform the method according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         9 . A computer program comprising computer-executable instructions for causing a system, when the computer-executable instructions are executed on a processing unit included in the system, to perform any of the method steps according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         10 . A system configured to:
 receive user input indicative of prioritized aspects of manufacturing of an object, the prioritized aspects including tool life or surface quality or object manufacturing speed;   obtain a model of an object to be manufactured via subtractive manufacturing;   identify, based on the model, a geometric feature to be machined as part of manufacturing the object;   obtain a plurality of strategies for machining the geometric feature, by accessing a database, the plurality of strategies defining alternative ways of machining the geometric feature; and   select at least one strategy from said plurality of strategies by ranking the plurality of strategies using the prioritized aspects of manufacturing and selecting at least one strategy having the highest ranking; and   provide, based on the at least one selected strategy, instructions for causing the one or more machine tools to manufacture the object via subtractive manufacturing.   
     
     
         11 . A machine tool comprising the object manufacturing system according to  claim 8 . 
     
     
         12 . The machine tool according to  claim 11 , wherein the machine tool is a numerically controlled machine tool, and wherein instructions provided to the machine tool is based on a selected strategy of a plurality of strategies and include machine code executable by the machine tool. 
     
     
         13 . A machine tool comprising the system according to  claim 10 . 
     
     
         14 . The machine tool according to  claim 13 , wherein the machine tool is a numerically controlled machine tool, and wherein instructions provided to the machine tool is based on a selected strategy of a plurality of strategies and include machine code executable by the machine tool.