CNC Programming Cycles or CNC Canned Cycles Pros and Cons
CNC programming cycles or cnc canned cycles makes cnc programmer life easy here is how.
o cnc programming cycles make our life easy
o cnc programming cycles make program management easy
o repetitive cnc program block are summed up in just one or two cnc programming block
o Increase productivity
o Shortens component machining time
o Makes our cnc programs clutter free (without cnc canned cycle our program will be much longer)
o cnc programming cycles give better control over tool feed and depth of cut (you can vary depth of cut by just changing one parameter)
o Less memory usage ( cnc programming cycles shortens cnc program length )
o Better component Finish and Increase in Tool Insert life ( threading cycles on most cnc controls uses a technique in which cnc controls gradually decreases the depth of cut when they are near the required dimension)
o Makes cnc program debugging easy ( short programs are easier to debug)
Although cnc canned cycles makes cnc programmer life lot easier but here are some of the cons of the cnc programming cycles.
o Cnc programming cycle are cnc machine control dependent
o Even cnc programming cycle are not same on the same cnc control with different version numbers.
o Not every programmer can understand cnc programming cycle
o Makes cnc program alteration difficult (You need a cnc programmer which understands a cycle.)
o CAD/CAM problems.
o Cycle behaviors are cnc control specific ( on Fanuc if you are using G71 or G72 and cutting a longer contour and at the contour end you don’t take the tool back to a safe point it might collide with component during last run )
o Sometimes the management guys understand the use of cnc cycle parameters and might ask to increase the depth of cut to decrease the overall time cycle for the component.