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DDD MachineNC is the TTS software for the 3D simulation of machine tools that is can be directly interfaced with any numerical control.

The usage of complex machine tools often requires the execution of tests in order to verify that the part program is correct, that the workpiece that is going to be obtained corresponds to the expected one and that tool motions don’t cause collisions with the machine tool structures or with the workpiece itself. These kind of tests must be run at low speed for security reasons and when problems occur, as it often happens, the machine tool must be set up again with losses in terms of productivity of the machining centre and of the related personnel. With DDD MachineNC it is possible to substitute the real machine tool with the simulated one and to continue using the NC and its related programming tools as front-end. The obtained result is an integrated software tool that can be used to offline analyze the behavior of the machine in order to drastically reduce unproductive time due to tests, programming errors and setup. Verification of the tool motions and machining durations becomes easy thanks to the 3D visualization and the support to the management of auxiliary motions controlled by the PLC (as on-off and tool change) ensures the realism of the simulation. In this way DDD MachineNC becomes an unparalleled software tool for the debugging of the machine PLC logics, also thanks to the possibility to fully customize the response of the simulated machine tool to the I/O of the NC. Combined with the real machine tool, DDD MachineNC can represent a useful means for the visualization of the working volume whenever it is difficult to access it due to the presence of security barriers or protections from the coolant. Moreover, in this configuration it allows the control of the state of internal mechanisms whose inspection would require a disassembly of parts of the machine tool.

DDD MachineNC is based on the Technology Transfer System proprietary DDD simulation libraries which ensure a complete support to the modeling and simulation of complex kinematics, real-time collision detection and to the real-time simulation of machining operations without requiring any pre-calculation of the tool trajectories, even with complex cutting geometries.

DDD MachineNC works in client mode and can be interfaced to any numerical control supporting a remote communication protocol. In this way, DDD MachineNC is not forced to bear on the NC hardware and represents a remote supervising tool capable to noticeably reduce the costs related on-site maintenance.

The multi-platform support is a prerogative of the DDD libraries and of the majority of the Technology Transfer System products: therefore DDD MachineNC can be run on Windows (XP, Vista and 7), Linux and Mac systems.