Flip operations with SB Link

[dlcw]

SB Link Gurus,

I'm having a small-brain-syndrome attack and have been trying to get my head wrapped around the whole concept of flip operations with SB Link.

I've done this operation ALOT in the saw and router world where I'm coming from but not in this CNC world that I'm very new too.

I've read and re-read the manual several times and my brain still can't get around it.

I've done a set of 4 night stands in eCabinets that I will be cutting out of cherry plywood ($100/sheet) and don't want to screw anything up. I have 4 parts that need flip operations to cut half-blind dados.

When setting a part for flip operation, how is the piece positioned on the table so that SB link knows where to make the milling operation? The picture below has 3 of the 4 parts (the 4th is on another sheet of ply) that show the green milling operation that will be the flip operation. Once all the milling and cutout are completed on the this sheet, where and how do I position/orient these parts on the table to have the dado milling operation completed on the flip side (without messing up the part and me pulling what little hair I have left out)? My milling and outline cutting operations are being done with a 3/8" compression bit. My table X0,Y0 is located at the lower left corner of the sheet for all my SB Link operations. Any help would be greatly appreciated.


666


Thanks,

Don
www.diamondlakewoodworks.com (http://www.diamondlakewoodworks.com)

[Gary Campbell]

Don...
I am looking at parts 3,4 and 5 as needing Flip Ops. Lets use part 5 for the example. In the orientation shown, which is as cut, take the right (+X) end of the part and flip it to the left (-X, leaving the left edge on the table. Move the part to your FlipOp pin location, (0,0 is the default unless relocated with a flipop offset)

Another version shows placing the label in the lower right corner of the part as shown. Flip the part upside down and place the labeled corner in the flipop pin corner location. Same operation, different way. All FlipOp parts orient this same way, unless rotated in setup.

Hope this helps, Gary

[thewoodcrafter]

Don,
Looks like parts 3,4 and 5 are flip op parts.
Thoughs are the only parts with green lines.
You flip them right to left and place them at 0,0.
The flip op parts will have a number on the label that you will need to input when asked so it cuts the right part.

[thewoodcrafter]

Gary, you type too fast.

[Gary Campbell]

Roger...
You should see how fast I could go if I used 2 fingers.
Gary

[englert]

As I understand it the SB interface is similar to the Control Nesting module on a Thermwood. If that's the case, there are two possible offset positions. One for the full sheet of material and one for flip operations. They can be the same, but on a Thermwood the part that gets flipped is put up against a fence and that offset is usually not the same. The fence is a squaring device and is placed against a fixed bracket on the machine, which allows you to accurately locate the part. This would not be the case with most popup pin devices, since the sheet materials are usually rammed against them. On a Thermwood, the fence is made of aluminum and is L-shaped with a handle. The fixed bracket is shimmed and squared to the machines movement on the X and Y axes. The fence or L-shape is, of course square. The second offset is the inside corner of this fence.

If you don't encounter a lot of flip operations, many users will make the L-Shaped fence from a piece of scrap material. The inside corner can not be radiused, since the flipped part would not locate properly.

All the information in the previous posts appear to be correct regarding flipping the parts is correct. Your labels will have a UPC code that you'll enter at the conclusion of all sheets being cut. After the part is secured to the table, the L-shaped square is removed. Fairly, straight forward at that point.

Keep in mind that since this is your first experience with flipping parts, you can test this portion of the operations by changing your Z offset. On a Thermwood, we call it ZSHIFT, which equates to the material thickness. None of the flip operatons are thru-cuts, so if you double that offset value, the router will not touch the material. I dont' know what SB or the SB Link uses for this value.

Dennis Englert
Manager of Product Training
Thermwood Corporation

[dlcw]

Gary, Roger and Dennis,

Thank you very much for the education on flip operations. The clouds are parting :-).

One question is about the labels you mention. I don't have a printer or label maker hooked up to the computer running all this so I can't print any labels. Is the barcode information, you mention, displayed on the screen in a window so I can copy it down and use it for flips ops?

Don,
www.diamondlakewoodworks.com (http://www.diamondlakewoodworks.com)

[thewoodcrafter]

Don,
You don't need a label print.
Yon print labels from e-cabinets in the nesting area.
Prints to 8.5 x 11 paper. I use Avery #5366 labels.
I don't think you can find the barcode numbers anywhere else.

[dlcw]

Thank you Roger.