Design Cutter Paths Cost

Design Cutter Paths Cost includes the costs for cutter path designs for mold, side actions, and plug (if required).

Design Cutter Paths Cost = (Design Cutter Paths Cost-Mold + Design Cutter Paths Cost-Actions + Design Cutter Paths Cost-Plug)

Design Cutter Paths Cost-Mold

Design Cutter Paths Cost-Mold is the sum of Mold Plate Cutter Path Design Cost and Vacuum Lines Cutter Path Design Cost.

Mold Plate Cutter Path Design Cost

Mold Plate Cutter Path Design Cost is the product of Mold Plate Cutter Path Design Time and Design Rate.

  • Mold Plate Cutter Path Design Time is the product of Mold Plate CNC Machining Time and Cutter Path Complexity Factor.

    • For Mold Plate CNC Machining Time, see Mold Plate CNC Machining Time. When the Parting Line GCD property Type = FLAT, Cutter Path Complexity Factor is specified by the cost model variable cutterPathComplexityFactorSimple (0.1 in starting point Digital Factories). When the Parting Line GCD property Type = NON_FLAT, Cutter Path Complexity Factor is specified by the cost model variable cutterPathComplexityFactorComplex (0.18 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Design Rate is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop.

Vacuum Lines Cutter Path Design Cost

Vacuum Lines Cutter Path Design Cost is the product of Vacuum Lines Cutter Path Design Time and Design Rate.

  • Vacuum Lines Cutter Path Design Time is given by the formula: (Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time + Water Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time) * Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple.

  • Design Rate is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop.

Mold Plate CNC Machining Time

Mold Plate CNC Machining Time is the sum of Mold Plate Roughing CNC Time + Mold Plate Finishing Time + Mold Plate Core Pull Pockets CNC Time.

  • Mold Plate Roughing CNC Time is specified by the formula: ((max(Mold Plate Volume Removed, 0) / Mold Plate Roughing Material Removal Rate) * Mold Plate Machinability Index) + Mold Plate CNC Setup Time:

    • Mold Plate Volume Removed: see Mold Plate Volume Removed.

    • Mold Plate Roughing Material Removal Rate is specified by the Mold Plate Roughing value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

    • Mold Plate Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

    • Mold Plate CNC Setup Time is specified by the Mold Plate CNC Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

  • Mold Plate Finishing Time: see Mold Plate Finishing Time.

  • Mold Plate Core Pull Pockets CNC Time is given by the formula: ((max(Core Pull Pockets Volume, 0) / Core Pull Pocket Material Removal Rate) * Mold Plate Machinability Index) + (Core Pull Pocket Setup Time * Total Number Of Core Pulls):

Mold Plate Volume Removed

If Mold Type is negative, this is the product of Number of Parts per Sheet, Part Projected Area, and Part Height. Part Projected Area and Part Height are extracted from geometry.

If Mold Type is positive, this if given by the formula: Mold Plate Starting Volume - Mold Plate Base Volume - ((Mold Base Area - Projected Area) * Part Height) - (Number of Parts per Sheet * Total Formed Part Volume)

  • Mold Plate Starting Volume is the product of Mold Base Size - Length, Mold Base Size - Width, and Mold Plate Size - Height.

  • Mold Plate Base Volume is the product of Mold Base Size - Length, Mold Base Size - Width and whichever is greater: Minimum Mold Plate Thickness or Vacuum Channel Allowance. Minimum Mold Plate Thickness is specified by the cost model variable minMoldPlateThickness (50.8mm in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Allowance is the product of Vacuum Channel Allowance Factor and Vacuum Channel Depth. Vacuum Channel Allowance Factor is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelAllowanceFactor (4 in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Depth is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelDepth (5.08mm in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Mold Base Area is the product of Mold Base Size - Length and Mold Base Size - Width.

  • Projected Area and Part Height are extracted from geometry.

  • Total Formed Part Volume is the sum of Part Volume (extracted from geometry) and Total Formed Hole Volume. Total Formed Hole Volume is the sum of Formed Hole Volume and Formed Multistep Volume. Formed Hole Volume is the sum of the volumes of all Simple Holes and Complex Holes. Formed Multistep Volume is the sum of the volumes of all Multistep Holes.

Mold Plate Finishing Time

If the Number of Surfaces on the part (extracted from geometry) is less than or equal to the value of the cost model variable moldSurfaceCountThresholdSimple (500 in starting point Digital Factories), Mold Plate Finishing Time is given by the following formula:

(Mold Plate Finishing Area * Hrs Per Sq MM Simple(Mold Plate Finishing Area) * Mold Plate Machinability Index)

  • Mold Plate Finishing Area is the product of Number of Parts per Sheet and Part Mold Plate Surface Area. Part Mold Plate Surface Area is the area of the tool-facing side of the part (extracted from geometry).

  • aPriori calculates the hours per square meter for Mold Plate Finishing Area by performing a lookup in the finishingHrsPerSqMeter table and returning the Hrs Per Sq Meter value corresponding to the calculated Surface Area and a mold complexity value of ‘Simple.’

  • Mold Plate Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

If the Number of Surfaces on the part (extracted from geometry) is less than or equal to the value of the cost model variable moldSurfaceCountThresholdAverage (2500 in starting point Digital Factories), Mold Plate Finishing Time is given by the following formula:

(Mold Plate Finishing Area * HrsPerSqMMAverage(Mold Plate Finishing Area) * Mold Plate Machinability Index)

  • Mold Plate Finishing Area and Mold Plate Machinability Index are described above.

  • aPriori calculates the hours per square meter for Mold Plate Finishing Area by performing a lookup in the finishingHrsPerSqMeter table and returning the Hrs Per Sq Meter value corresponding to the calculated Surface Area and a mold complexity value of ‘Average’.

In all other scenarios, Mold Plate Finishing Time is given by the following formula:

(Mold Plate Finishing Area * HrsPerSqMMComplex(Mold Plate Finishing Area) * Mold Plate Machinability Index)

  • Mold Plate Finishing Area and Mold Plate Machinability Index are described above.

  • aPriori calculates the hours per square meter for Mold Plate Finishing Area by performing a lookup in the finishingHrsPerSqMeter table and returning the Hrs Per Sq Meter value corresponding to the calculated Surface Area and a mold complexity value of ‘Complex.’

Core Pull Pockets Volume

Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time

Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time is the sum of Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Machining Time + Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Machining Time:

  • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Machining Time is given by the formula: ((max(Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Volume, 0) / Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Material Removal Rate) * Mold Plate Machinability Index) + Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Machining Setup Time

    • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Volume: see Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Volume.

    • Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Material Removal Rate is specified by the Vacuum Line High Tolerance Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

    • Mold Plate Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

    • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Machining Setup Time is specified by the Vacuum Line High Tolerance Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

  • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Machining Time is specified by the formula: ((max(Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Volume, 0) / Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Material Removal Rate) * Mold Plate Machinability Index) + Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Machining Setup Time:

    • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Volume: see Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Volume.

    • Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Material Removal Rate is specified by the Vacuum Line Low Tolerance Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

    • Mold Plate Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

    • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Machining Setup Time is specified by the Vacuum Line LowTolerance Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Volume

Mold Plate Vacuum Channel High Tolerance Volume is the product of Mold Plate Vacuum Holes Quantity* Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Volume:

  • Mold Plate Vacuum Holes Quantity is the product of Number of Parts per Sheet and Mold Plate Cavity Vacuum Holes Quantity

    • Mold Plate Cavity Vacuum Holes Quantity is given by the formula: Part Projected Perimeter / Vacuum Hole Spacing. Part Projected Perimeter is extracted from geometry. Vacuum Hole Spacing is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleSpacing (38.1mm in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Volume is given by the formula: Mold Plate Minimum Thickness * Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Factor * (PI * (Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Diameter / 2)^2)

    • Mold Plate Minimum Thickness whichever is greater: Minimum Mold Plate Thickness or Vacuum Channel Allowance. Minimum Mold Plate Thickness is specified by the cost model variable minMoldPlateThickness (50.8mm in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Allowance is the product of Vacuum Channel Allowance Factor and Vacuum Channel Depth. Vacuum Channel Allowance Factor is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelAllowanceFactor (4 in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Depth is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelDepth (5.08mm in starting point Digital Factories).

    • Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Factor is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleHighTolFactor (0.2 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Diameter is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleHighTolDiameter (1.5mm in starting point Digital Factories).

Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Volume

Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Volume is the product of Mold Plate Vacuum Holes Quantity, Vacuum Hole Low Tolerance Volume, and Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Volume:

  • Mold Plate Vacuum Holes Quantity is the product of Number of Parts per Sheet and Mold Plate Cavity Vacuum Holes Quantity

    • Mold Plate Cavity Vacuum Holes Quantity is given by the formula: Part Projected Perimeter / Vacuum Hole Spacing. Part Projected Perimeter is extracted from geometry. Vacuum Hole Spacing is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleSpacing (38.1mm in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Vacuum Hole Low Tolerance Volume is given by the formula: Mold Plate Minimum Thickness * (1 - Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Factor) * (PI * (Vacuum Hole Low Tolerance Diameter / 2)^2)

    • Mold Plate Minimum Thickness whichever is greater: Minimum Mold Plate Thickness or Vacuum Channel Allowance. Minimum Mold Plate Thickness is specified by the cost model variable minMoldPlateThickness (50.8mm in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Allowance is the product of Vacuum Channel Allowance Factor and Vacuum Channel Depth. Vacuum Channel Allowance Factor is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelAllowanceFactor (4 in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Depth is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelDepth (5.08mm in starting point Digital Factories).

    • Vacuum Hole High Tolerance Factor is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleHighTolFactor (0.2 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • Vacuum Hole Low Tolerance Diameter is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleLowTolDiameter (5mm in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Mold Plate Vacuum Channel Volume is the product of Number of Parts per Sheet and Mold Plate Cavity Vacuum Channel Volume:

    • Mold Plate Cavity Vacuum Channel Volume is the product of Vacuum Channel Depth, Vacuum Channel Width, and Part Projected Perimeter. Vacuum Channel Depth is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelDepth (5.08mm in starting point Digital Factories). Vacuum Channel Width is specified by the cost model variable vacuumHoleLowTolDiameter (5mm in starting point Digital Factories). Part Projected Perimeter is extracted from geometry.

Water Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time

Water Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time is given by the following formula:

Water Plate Vacuum Channel Machining Time = ((max((Water Plate Lengthwise Vacuum Channel Volume + Water Plate Widthwise Vacuum Channel Volume), 0) / Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Material Removal Rate) * Mold Plate Machinability Index) + Water Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Machining Setup Time

  • Water Plate Lengthwise Vacuum Channel Volume is specified by the formula: (Water Plate Length - (2 * Tool Run Off Margin)) * Vacuum Channel Depth * Vacuum Channel Feed Width

    • Water Plate Length is specified by the setup option Mold Base Size - Length.

    • Tool Run Off Margin is the sum of Part Spacing Margin and Add Tool Run Off Margin. Part Spacing Margin is given by the formula: (Part Spacing / 2). Add Tool Run Off Margin is toolRunOffMargin - Part Spacing Margin. toolRunOffMargin is a cost model variable (38.1mm in starting point Digital Factories)

    • Vacuum Channel Depth is specified by the cost model variable vacuumChannelDepth (5.08mm in starting point Digital Factories).

    • Vacuum Channel Feed Width is specified by the cost model variable vacuumFeedDiameter (38.1mm in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Water Plate Widthwise Vacuum Channel Volume is specified by the formula: (Water Plate Width - (2 * Tool Run Off Margin)) * Vacuum Channel Depth * Vacuum Channel Feed Width

    • Water Plate Width is specified by the setup option Mold Base Size - Width.

    • Tool Run Off Margin, Vacuum Channel Depth, and Vacuum Channel Feed Width are described above.

  • Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Material Removal Rate is specified by the Vacuum Line High Tolerance Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

  • Mold Plate Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

  • Water Plate Vacuum Channel Low Tolerance Machining Setup Time is specified by the Vacuum Line High Tolerance Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

Design Cutter Paths Cost-Actions

Design Cutter Paths Cost-Actions is the sum of Core Pulls Cutter Path Design Cost and Core Pull Electrodes Cutter Path Design Cost.

Core Pulls Cutter Path Design Cost

Core Pulls Cutter Path Design Cost is the product of Core Pulls Cutter Path Design Time and Design Rate.

  • Core Pulls Cutter Path Design Time is the product of Core Pulls CNC Machining Time and Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple.

    • For Core Pulls CNC Machining Time, see Core Pulls CNC Machining Time. Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple is specified by the cost model variable cutterPathComplexityFactorSimple (0.1 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Design Rate is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop.

Core Pull Electrodes Cutter Path Design Cost

Core Pull Electrodes Cutter Path Design Cost is the product of Core Pull Electrodes Cutter Path Design Time and Design Rate.

  • Core Pull Electrodes Cutter Path Design Time is the product of EDM Electrodes CNC Machining Time and Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple.

    • For EDM Electrodes CNC Machining Time, see EDM Electrodes CNC Machining Time. Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple is specified by the cost model variable cutterPathComplexityFactorSimple (0.1 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Design Rate is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop.

Core Pulls CNC Machining Time

Core Pulls CNC Machining Time is given by the formula:

((max(Total Core Pulls Volume, 0) / Core Pull Material Removal Rate) * Core Pull Machinability Index) + (Core Pull Setup Time * Total Number Of Core Pulls)

EDM Electrodes CNC Machining Time

EDM Electrodes CNC Machining Time is the sum of EDM Electrodes Core Pull Pockets CNC Machining Time and EDM Electrodes Core Pull Facing CNC Machining Time.

EDM Electrodes Core Pull Pockets CNC Machining Time is given by the following formula:

((max(EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume Machined, 0) / EDM Electrode Material Removal Rate)) + (EDM Electrode CNC Machining Setup Time * Number Of EDM Electrodes Core Pull Pockets)

  • EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume Machined is the product of EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume and EDM Electrodes Percent Machined:

    • EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume: see EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume.

    • EDM Electrodes Percent Machined is specified by the cost model variable edmElectrodesPercentMachined (0.2 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • EDM Electrode Material Removal Rate is specified by the EDM Electrode CNC Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

  • EDM Electrode CNC Machining Setup Time is specified by the EDM Electrode CNC Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

  • Number Of EDM Electrodes Core Pull Pockets is given by the following formula:

    (Number of Small Core Pulls * burnsPerSmallCorePull* Number of Parts per Sheet) + (Number of Medium Core Pulls * burnsPerMediumCorePull* Number of Parts per Sheet) + (Number of Large Core Pulls * burnsPerLargeCorePull* Number of Parts per Sheet):

    • burnsPerSmallCorePull, burnsPerMediumCorePull, and burnsPerLargeCorePull are cost model variables, all with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

EDM Electrodes Core Pull Facing CNC Machining Time is given by the following formula:

((max(EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume Machined, 0) / EDM Electrode Material Removal Rate)) + (EDM Electrode CNC Machining Setup Time * Number Of EDM Electrodes Core Pull Facing):

  • EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume Machined is the product of EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume and EDM Electrodes Percent Machined:

    • EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume: see EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume.

    • EDM Electrodes Percent Machined is specified by the cost model variable edmElectrodesPercentMachined (0.2 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • EDM Electrode Material Removal Rate is specified by the EDM Electrode CNC Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

  • EDM Electrode CNC Machining Setup Time is specified by the EDM Electrode CNC Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

  • Number Of EDM Electrodes Core Pull Facing is given by the same formula described above for ‘Number Of EDM Electrodes Core Pull Pockets’.

EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume

If Number of Small Core Pulls + Number of Medium Core Pulls + Number of Large Core Pulls is 0, then EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume is 0.

If the user has overridden the values of the setup options Number of Small Core Pulls, Number of Medium Core Pulls, and Number of Large Core Pulls), then EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume is the sum of (Total EDM Electrode Small Standard Core Pull Pockets Volume, Total EDM Electrode Medium Standard Core Pull Pockets Volume, and Total EDM Electrode Large Standard Core Pull Pockets Volume):

  • Total EDM Electrode Small Standard Core Pull Pockets Volume is the product of Total Small Standard Core Pull Volume and burnsPerSmallCorePull.

    • Total Small Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Number of Small Core Pulls, Number of Parts per Sheet, and corePullVolumeSmall (a cost model variable with a default value of 1,229,032mm3 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • burnsPerSmallCorePull is a cost model variables with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

  • Total EDM Electrode Medium Standard Core Pull Pockets Volume is the product of Total Medium Standard Core Pull Volume and burnsPerMediumCorePull:

    • Total Medium Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Number of Medium Core Pulls, Number of Parts per Sheet, and corePullVolumeMedium (a cost model variable with a default value of 13,109,647mm3 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • burnsPerMediumCorePull is a cost model variables with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

  • Total EDM Electrode Large Standard Core Pull Pockets Volume is the product of Total Large Standard Core Pull Volume and burnsPerLargeCorePull:

    • Total Large Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Number of Large Core Pulls, Number of Parts per Sheet, and corePullVolumeLarge (a cost model variable with a default value of 28,677,354mm3 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • burnsPerLargeCorePull is a cost model variables with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

In all other scenarios, EDM Electrode Core Pull Pockets Volume is the sum of (Total EDM Electrode Small Bundled Core Pull Pockets Volume + Total EDM Electrode Medium Bundled Core Pull Pockets Volume + Total EDM Electrode Large Bundled Core Pull Pockets Volume):

  • Total EDM Electrode Small Bundled Core Pull Pockets Volume is the product of burnsPerSmallCorePull, Number of Parts per Sheet, and the total volume of all extracted core pull pocket electrode volumes from small core bundles.

  • Total EDM Electrode Medium Bundled Core Pull Pockets Volume is the product of burnsPerMediumCorePull, Number of Parts per Sheet, and the total volume of all extracted core pull pocket electrode volumes from medium core bundles.

  • Total EDM Electrode Large Bundled Core Pull Pockets Volume is the product of burnsPerLargeCorePull, Number of Parts per Sheet, and the total volume of all extracted core pull pocket electrode volumes from large core bundles.

EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume

If Number of Small Core Pulls + Number of Medium Core Pulls + Number of Large Core Pulls is 0, then EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume is 0.

If the user has overridden the values of the setup options Number of Small Core Pulls, Number of Medium Core Pulls, and Number of Large Core Pulls), then EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume is the sum of (Total EDM Electrode Small Standard Core Pull Volume, Total EDM Electrode Medium Standard Core Pull Volume, and Total EDM Electrode Large Standard Core Pull Volume):

  • Total EDM Electrode Small Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Total Small Standard Core Pull Volume and burnsPerSmallCorePull.

    • Total Small Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Number of Small Core Pulls, Number of Parts per Sheet, and corePullVolumeSmall (a cost model variable with a default value of 1,229,032mm3 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • burnsPerSmallCorePull is a cost model variables with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

  • Total EDM Electrode Medium Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Total Medium Standard Core Pull Volume and burnsPerMediumCorePull:

    • Total Medium Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Number of Medium Core Pulls, Number of Parts per Sheet, and corePullVolumeMedium (a cost model variable with a default value of 13,109,647mm3 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • burnsPerMediumCorePull is a cost model variables with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

  • Total EDM Electrode Large Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Total Large Standard Core Pull Volume and burnsPerLargeCorePull:

    • Total Large Standard Core Pull Volume is the product of Number of Large Core Pulls, Number of Parts per Sheet, and corePullVolumeLarge (a cost model variable with a default value of 28,677,354mm3 in starting point Digital Factories).

    • burnsPerLargeCorePull is a cost model variables with a default value of 1 in starting point Digital Factories.

In all other scenarios, EDM Electrode Core Pull Facing Volume is the sum of (Total EDM Electrode Small Bundled Core Pull Facing Volume + Total EDM Electrode Medium Bundled Core Pull Facing Volume + Total EDM Electrode Large Bundled Core Pull Facing Volume):

  • Total EDM Electrode Small Bundled Core Pull Facing Volume is the product of burnsPerSmallCorePull, Number of Parts per Sheet, and the total volume of all extracted core pull electrode volumes from small core bundles.

  • Total EDM Electrode Medium Bundled Core Pull Facing Volume is the product of burnsPerMediumCorePull, Number of Parts per Sheet, and the total volume of all extracted core pull electrode volumes from medium core bundles.

  • Total EDM Electrode Large Bundled Core Pull Facing Volume is the product of burnsPerLargeCorePull, Number of Parts per Sheet, and the total volume of all extracted core pull electrode volumes from large core bundles.

Design Cutter Paths Cost-Plug

Design Cutter Paths Cost-Plug is the product of Plug Cutter Path Design Time and Design Rate.

  • Plug Cutter Path Design Time is the product of Plug CNC Machining Time and Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple.

    • Plug CNC Machining Time is the sum of Plug Roughing CNC Time and Plug Finishing CNC Time. See Plug Roughing CNC Time and Plug Finishing CNC Time).

    • Cutter Path Complexity Factor Simple is specified by the cost model variable cutterPathComplexityFactorSimple (0.1 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • Design Rate is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop.

Plug Roughing CNC Time

Plug Roughing CNC Time is given by the following formula:

Plug Roughing CNC Time = ((max(Plug Volume Removed, 0) / Plug Roughing Material Removal Rate) * Plug Machinability Index) + Plug CNC Setup Time

  • Plug Volume Removed is specified by the formula: Plug Starting Volume - Plug Finished Volume.

    • Plug Starting Volume is specified by the formula: Number of Parts per Sheet * ((Part Projected Area * Part Height) + Plug Ram Volume).

      • Part Projected Area and Part Height are extracted from geometry. Plug Ram Volume is the product of Plug Ram Diameter and Plug Ram Length. Plug Ram Length is the height of the pressure box. Plug Ram Diameter is specified by the cost model variable plugRamDiameter (25.4mm in starting point Digital Factories).

    • Plug Finished Volume is specified by the formula: Number of Parts per Sheet* ((Part Projected Area * Part Height * Plug Size Factor) + Plug Ram Volume).

      • Plug Size Factor is whichever is the lower value: 1, or the value of the cost model variable plugSizeFactor (0.75 in starting point Digital Factories). Other variables are described above.

  • Plug Roughing Material Removal Rate is specified by the Plug Roughing value in the lookup table toolMachiningRates.

  • Plug Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

  • Plug CNC Setup Time is specified by the Plug CNC Machining value in the lookup table toolMachiningSetups.

Plug Finishing CNC Time

If the Number of Surfaces on the part (extracted from geometry) is less than or equal to the value of the cost model variable moldSurfaceCountThresholdSimple (500 in starting point Digital Factories), Plug Finishing CNC Time is given by the following formula:

(Plug Finishing Area * Hrs Per Sq MM Simple(Plug Finishing Area) * Plug Machinability Index)

  • Plug Finishing Area is the product of Number of Parts per Sheet and Part Plug Surface Area.

    • Part Plug Surface Area is the product of the atmosphere-facing area of the part (extracted from geometry) and Plug Size Factor. Plug Size Factor is whichever is the lower value: 1, or the value of the cost model variable plugSizeFactor (0.75 in starting point Digital Factories).

  • aPriori calculates the hours per square meter for Plug Finishing Area by performing a lookup in the finishingHrsPerSqMeter table and returning the Hrs Per Sq Meter value corresponding to the calculated Surface Area and a mold complexity value of ‘Simple.’

  • Plug Machinability Index is specified in the Digital Factory tool shop for the material specified by the setup option Select Mold Material.

If the Number of Surfaces on the part (extracted from geometry) is less than or equal to the value of the cost model variable moldSurfaceCountThresholdAverage (2500 in starting point Digital Factories), Plug Finishing CNC Time is given by the following formula:

(Plug Finishing Area * HrsPerSqMMAverage(Plug Finishing Area) * Plug Machinability Index)

  • Plug Finishing Area and Plug Machinability Index are described above.

  • aPriori calculates the hours per square meter for Plug Finishing Area by performing a lookup in the finishingHrsPerSqMeter table and returning the Hrs Per Sq Meter value corresponding to the calculated Surface Area and a mold complexity value of ‘Average’.

In all other scenarios, Plug Finishing CNC Time is given by the following formula:

(Plug Finishing Area * HrsPerSqMMComplex(Plug Finishing Area) * Plug Machinability Index)

  • Plug Finishing Area and Plug Machinability Index are described above.

  • aPriori calculates the hours per square meter for Plug Finishing Area by performing a lookup in the finishingHrsPerSqMeter table and returning the Hrs Per Sq Meter value corresponding to the calculated Surface Area and a mold complexity value of ‘Complex’.