When looking to justify investing in something as important as CAM, you might end up sitting with a long list of new functions you never knew was needed, ever existed, and possible maybe not even truly understand what really do. On top of that your brain is swirling with the daunting price you have to justify to make this new adventure possible.
A NC-code editor is most likely not on your list, however I know from myself that I use more time in my editor, than many of those new fancy toolpaths CAM companies are bragging about.
If you use Mastercam and find the following screen shot utterly familiar, its because HSMWorks Editor is actually the old Cimco Editor on steroids .
The intelligent layout…
HSMWorks Editor is sweet on the eyes. This is because they have made it totally customizable with text and background colors. Its easy to set up and adds a flare of intelligent. The intelligence is that it categories the colors with the different functions of the programs, what makes the code much more digestive compared most other NC-editors. It is very easy to have your code turn into a crazy blur of letters and numbers, this function really helps keeping some order in things.
Changes…
Most editors will have some kind of search function integrated. HSMWorks have spiced things up with handy tools that will let you change spindle and feedrates quickly without having to waste a lot of time searching through the code. My favorite search function is the customizable “Next Tool Change”. This button makes searching through the code sweet like honey.
Compare…
File compare probably do not need any explanation, however the set up in HSMWorks Editor makes is so easy to compare and bring code from one file to another on the fly, it even makes functions like Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V old fashion. With a quick Ctrl+ <- -> you will be sending the desired values from one side to another. File Compare is also great tool if you are bringing programs back from the shop floor, and want to make sure you get all operator changes back in your system.
Verify…
We have discussed verifying before, and I can not stress how important it is if you have to do offline programming on a daily basis. The verify we normally are talking about happens right inside our CAM, but there is one dangerous part about this. Verify inside your CAM is done before your toolpaths has actually traveled through your post processor, and since the post processor is the tool that actually creates the code, you are most defiantly running a risk for error. HSMWorks Editor gives you the possibility to verify you actually code. It does not have the fancy graphics, but it can protect a programmers biggest fear. A missed retract height.
Conclusion…
So maybe it would be silly to buy HSMWorks because of its editor, but it should most defiantly be part of the list of things you take into consideration when deciding which CAM package to buy.