Abstract:

Numerical control is a technique of providing a machine tool with instructions in the form of codes consisting of numbers, letters, punctuation marks and other symbols. The machine tool responds to these instructions in a precise and orderly manner to activate its various functions.  CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machines, now widespread in many branches of industry, are machines characterised by the fact that a computer sends sets of data to the drive systems of motors, telling them where, how fast and how far to move. CNC machines can be presses, milling machines, lathes, laser or plasma cutting machines, etc. The simplest types of drawings for a CNC machine may contain simple curves such as circles, squares or characters. Thanks to today's technology the construction of this machine is not a very big problem. A CNC machine generally consists of the computer, motor driver, drive motors and the mechanical part, the mechanical part being the machine itself. The computer is the part that contains the machine management software and can be more or less powerful, depending on the software used.  The machine management program is designed to convert the commands contained in the G-code file into a series of electrical signals (steps, direction) which will be sent to the CNC stepper motors. The CNC management program generally contains various buttons (start, stop, etc.) as well as a window for viewing coordinates and possibly a graphical representation of what is being done. As described above the G-code file is generated by a special CAM program and contains a series of blocks, commands and coordinates. The blocks are composed of a series of commands and coordinates that must be executed before moving on to the next block.