Gibbs and Associates, developer of GibbsCAM (www.gibbscam.com), software for programming CNC machine tools, demonstrated its next generation of GibbsCAM and SolidWorks interoperability.
GibbsCAM is a SolidWorks Certified CAM Product. Using GibbsCAM’s new macro capabilities, the information stored in SolidWorks’ design tables can be directly accessed and utilized to automate creating CNC programs. If one or more values in the design table are modified, GibbsCAM can automatically make adjustments to the process and update the corresponding toolpath. This enhanced SolidWorks – GibbsCAM Interoperability approach – is very effective for handling families of parts.
The new capability extends the existing ways GibbsCAM is currently able to work with SolidWorks. The SolidWorks-to- GibbsCAM transfer add-in allows models to be directly transferred with a single menu selection within a SolidWorks session to GibbsCAM for NC programming. GibbsCAM can also directly read native SolidWorks part or assembly files, including imported data, with the ability to select between various configurations. With these seamless capabilities, SolidWorks designs can be operated on without fear of losing valuable geometric information. And GibbsCAM’s associativity accommodates design revisions, an everyday occurrence in the design/ manufacturing process.
