eCabinet Systems software generates a CNC output file that sends information about every part needed for the job to a Thermwood CNC control system. It does not generate standard CNC code but instead generates a file that informs the control what it needs to produce. The control system then performs whatever functions are necessary to actually make the parts.
For nested sheet parts, the control performs the nesting process rather than nesting with the software in the office. Why do this at the machine instead of in eCabinet Systems?
There are actually several good reasons but they are all centered around the fact that you will know more about the production process and what you actually want to do at the machine then you will in the office. For example, you may have some partial sheets of material left from a previous job that you would like to use. You can scan these into the control and it will nest on them first. At the end of each job, the control prints a label for any material left over that is large enough to reuse so scanning the piece in is easy.
This makes using left over material easy and over a year amounts to a lot of money saved. Trying to do this from measurements in the office is clumsy at best and for most shops it just doesn’t work. For example, what if you nest a job on a scrap piece and then can’t find it? Nesting at the machine is just plain better.
Another plus is that the control can accept DXF output files from almost every cabinet design and CAD program and nest them with your ecabinet Systems job. This adds huge flexibility that is even better when done at the machine.
If some of your eCabinet System parts have edge profiles, the control asks if you have a custom tool that matches the profile. If you do, it uses it. If you don’t, it creates a modeling program using a ball nose and flat bottom tool to model the profile.
This is a great feature when you only need a part or two and can save huge amounts of tooling money over time. It is even nice as a backup when your one and only profile tool breaks with only two parts to go in the job.
The other major advantage to creating the actual CNC programs in the control is that you can send the same eCabinet Systems CNC output file to any Thermwood CNC router and you will get the same parts even if the machines are configured quite differently.
With standard CNC programs, the program will literally run only one machine. If you need to run the same program on a second machine, even if it is supposed to be exactly the same, you need to adjust it using a post processor software package. It is not easy to exchange programs between different CNC machines.
CNC Routers are like fingerprints. They all look sort of the same but they are all really different. The approach we take eliminates the effect of machines being different and allows ecabinet Systems Members to freely send jobs to Thermwood machine owners and have them run with no hassles.
This approach is the key to Thermwood’s Production Sharing program. Hundreds of eCabinet Systems Members who do not own a Thermwood CNC router send jobs to other Members with machines for processing. For more information on this program, see our web site.