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creating a mold/part nest for CNC machining

Question asked by Mike Young on May 30, 2012
Latest reply on May 31, 2012 by Deepak Gupta

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Guys,

I have tried this in the past and been unsuccessful, we've had customers send us the "nest" files per say and would build up anything around it that we required but I am looking to stray away from that and be able to do it myself. Before I go further I must note I'm pretty amateur when it comes to solidworks, most of what I do is machine and panel layout... a lot of holes and cut-out patterns on 2D surfaces usually so apologies for my ignorance! Now on to the question at hand...

I've attached a picture. But basically what I have is a part (for this we'll say a smoke detector ) so you can visualize the surfaces, empty spacing, etc that type of part might have. I can set the part in the block, and remove what I need for a nest there's just one thing... it leaves material where the part is hollow. I am assuming I need to either A) fill the part to a solid or B) tell mold tools (or use a different function all together) to remove that as well. I dont know how to do either, and maybe I'm not even thinking correctly. For what it's worth, with some searching I was able to find and use the "shut off surfaces" function, but only to an extent, the part has a lot of uneven and off surfaces and again... I really dont know exactly what I'm doing, or what I should be doing. Thanks for any and all help!

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Deepak Gupta May 30, 2012 6:09 AM

Welcome to SolidWorks forums Mike.

Using Combine feature might be help. Check here for some example and explanation.

Please use "advanced editor" in case you want to attach any files.

You might also find this post helpful for your future reference.

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Mike Young @ Deepak Gupta on May 31, 2012 7:06 AM

This more or less gave me the exact same result. But I appreciate the help!

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Deepak Gupta @ Mike Young on May 31, 2012 7:20 AM

There can be several ways to do what you need but if you can put in the actual files, one can suggest the optimum method for it.

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Jerry Steiger May 30, 2012 3:35 PM

Mike,

The Cavity feature in an assembly is a good tool to use for this, but you have discovered that you often have to put some more work in to make it work correctly for you. Sometimes it is easier to add material to a new configuration of the part you are trying to nest. Sometimes it is easier to remove the "extra" material that is left in your nest. Sometimes it is easier to use another tool like Cut with Surface. to make your nest. Using Cut with Surface requires you to Offset Surfaces (0 or some clearance amount) from the part you are trying to nest, then fill in any holes. Sometimes you can fill holes by just deleting their edge(s), sometimes you can Untrim the surface, sometimes you can use Fill Surface.

Jerry Steiger

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Mike Young @ Jerry Steiger on May 31, 2012 7:09 AM

I am thinking surfacing/surface cut is the way to go, the customer part I spoke of was done in this fashion but I have been unable to work backwards through what they did to be able to apply it to what I'm working on now. Unfortunetly this is probably way out of my area, as I said I mostly do rack and panel layouts so I've never had to try to make a mold or any type of part countoured to another, more complex part. I will continue to work through and see what I can come up with. Thanks for your help.

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5 Replies

Deepak Gupta May 30, 2012 6:09 AM
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Welcome to SolidWorks forums Mike.

Using Combine feature might be help. Check here for some example and explanation.

Please use "advanced editor" in case you want to attach any files.

You might also find this post helpful for your future reference.
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- Mike Young @ Deepak Gupta on May 31, 2012 7:06 AM
  Mark Correct
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  This more or less gave me the exact same result. But I appreciate the help!
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  - Deepak Gupta @ Mike Young on May 31, 2012 7:20 AM
    Mark Correct
    Correct Answer
    There can be several ways to do what you need but if you can put in the actual files, one can suggest the optimum method for it.
    Like • Show 0 Likes0
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Jerry Steiger May 30, 2012 3:35 PM
Mark Correct
Correct Answer
Mike,

The Cavity feature in an assembly is a good tool to use for this, but you have discovered that you often have to put some more work in to make it work correctly for you. Sometimes it is easier to add material to a new configuration of the part you are trying to nest. Sometimes it is easier to remove the "extra" material that is left in your nest. Sometimes it is easier to use another tool like Cut with Surface. to make your nest. Using Cut with Surface requires you to Offset Surfaces (0 or some clearance amount) from the part you are trying to nest, then fill in any holes. Sometimes you can fill holes by just deleting their edge(s), sometimes you can Untrim the surface, sometimes you can use Fill Surface.

Jerry Steiger
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- Mike Young @ Jerry Steiger on May 31, 2012 7:09 AM
  Mark Correct
  Correct Answer
  I am thinking surfacing/surface cut is the way to go, the customer part I spoke of was done in this fashion but I have been unable to work backwards through what they did to be able to apply it to what I'm working on now. Unfortunetly this is probably way out of my area, as I said I mostly do rack and panel layouts so I've never had to try to make a mold or any type of part countoured to another, more complex part. I will continue to work through and see what I can come up with. Thanks for your help.
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creating a mold/part nest for CNC machining

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