Posted February 22, 2002 New Products Mastercam Announces New Version 9 CAD/CAM Software Mastercam (Tolland, Conn.; www.mastercam.com) has added a long list of enhancements to its CAD/CAM software. Mastrercam Mill Version 9 delivers full trochoidal machining: moving the tool in small circles that can nibble out the entire pocket so the tool is never buried. To save runtime, the trochoidal machining feature allows users to set percentage of tool contact, speeding successive passes because nibbles are only taken when the tool would be buried in left material. When combined with Mastercam Solids, Mastercam Mill can automatically detect and program drill holes on solid models. The Finish Project Toolpath function of Mastercam Mill follows the natural curves of unlimited surfaces or solids. Toolpathing with Custom Plunge Roughing lets users machine in any pattern and new Hybrid Remachining changes cutting strategies with model slope changes in a single toolpath. Mastercam Lathe and Mastercam Wire Version 9 both deliver new features and programming enhancements, and Mastercam Solids Version 9 has made the line between solids and machining even more seamless for NC programmers. Users can now saw an unlimited number of surfaces into a single solid model; create sheet solids that can be thickened, shelled, etc.; trim solids to multiple surfaces using sheet solids; create disjoint bodies; and more. Its Solid Feature Recognition component identifies entities such as fillets or holes on imported solids and adds them to the history tree as fully editable features. The Manufacturing Report © Copyright 2002 by Lionheart Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. E-mail Editorial Dept: tmr-editorial@lionhrtpub.com Lionheart Publishing, Inc. 2555 Cumberland Parkway, Suite 299, Atlanta, GA 30339 USA Phone: 770-431-0867 | Fax: 770-432-6969 E-mail: lpi@lionhrtpub.com