While carrying out the process of solid modeling of castings various requirements with respect to software applications involved in the process are to be considered. Some to name in this direction are casting design and analysis, NC manufacture of tooling, manufacturing resource planning and web-based collaborative engineering. Let us see each of these in detail.
Casting Design and Analysis :For carrying out efficient solid modeling of casting process the software application would require the facetted model in stereolithography tessellated language format. This format would make the representation to be given as input in a simpler and efficient way. The stereolithography tessellated language format also helps in generation of mesh which further helps in the process of analysis if stress, filling of mold and during solidification of castings.
Proper care and steps must be taken to speed up the process of analysis. In this direction to name one could be to remove minute filets in model before transferring the stereolithography tessellated language file. The above steps help in reducing the file size and there by helps in achieving speed in analysis with efficiency in process by reducing the errors generated during analysis.
The file size could also be decreased before transferring by representing the stereolithography tessellated language format in binary format. The representation of stereolithography tessellated language in binary format reduces the size of the file nearly into half the amount and there by helps in achieving greater speed and process efficiency.
NC manufacture of tooling :The mandatory requirement for numerical controlled system is accuracy of data that is accuracy of casting surface to be modeled. The accuracy in presentation can be achieved in numerical controlled systems by making use of CAM software, which is otherwise called as computer aided manufacturing software. The file formats, which would be suited, the best in this scenario is initial graphics exchange specification since accuracy of representation is more in this format.
Thus having taken steps for representation of accuracy of casting surface to be modeled to a numerical controlled systems it fetches greater benefits. They are accurate manufactured product or mold using numerical controlled machine, which can be further sent to the process of inspection to be carried out by CMM called as coordinate measuring machine.
The associated problems one may likely to face in the process are the versions in initial graphics exchange specifications format differs and the generated files from CAD systems are also not the same always. This creates difference in generation and thereby compatibility problem results. Thus proper steps and care must be taken to avoid such data translation and compatibility errors. One such step in this direction is to use the CAD and CAM programs to be done by same person. This avoids such compatibility and data translation errors.
Manufacturing Resource Planning :The standard that could be best suited for the process would be standard for exchange of product data. This is because this can handle non-geometric data also along with geometric data, which is very much required in the process of planning materials and estimation of cast in the process of manufacturing resource planning.
Web-Based Collaborative Engineering :This method would be the future method which would make the process even simpler by which the information needed for solid modeling of casting by engineers would be exchanged over the web. There would be need for requirement of standards for handling such web friendly process casting process in future.