Hi,
My question is simple and the answer is perhaps less so !
How can I engrave text and maybe also a small logo on a metal cylinder ?
In fact, I have to engrave my photo lenses with my name around the edge of the front lens.
I have already read that the Nomad does not allow the 4th axis and that the transformation is not planned or possible for a neophyte like me.
Can we imagine another way to engrave the letters one after the other on the circumference of a cylinder ?
Thank you for your thoughts
Correct. The mechanics and electronics of the Nomad don’t directly support a 4th axis.
Some folks have replaced the electronics and added a 4th axis, but that’s not supported.
The other option is to work up a mechanism which allows translating Y-axis movement into rotation using a rack and pinion.
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Just to be sure:
Do you mean like the text on the circular face of the lens, like this?
Or do you mean on the side of the cylinder, like this?
Assuming you mean the latter, there are a few ways to do it:
- 4th axis. This is possible on a Nomad, I have one, but it means replacing all of the machine’s electronics, so it’s definitely not for the faint of heart.
- Surface mapping + (maybe) multiple setups. This Old Tony recently did a video on it. You need a tool probe and a controller that supports it. GRBL doesn’t unfortunately, so this also means replacing all your electronics.
But all is not lost! This should actually be doable on a stock Nomad. If your surface is really a cylinder, you should be able to generate a toolpath to do the engraving:
- Model your cylinder as accurately as possible in Fusion 360. Make sure to model it using the measurements of the cylinder, not just what you think they should be.
- Wrap your text around the cylinder.
- Orient the cylinder so that the text faces up.
- Create an engraving toolpath. You’ll probably want something like a 3D contour.
If your text fits within say 25% of the circumference of the cylinder, you’re done. If it doesn’t, you’re going to need to do this multiple times, once for each segment of the cylinder.
This won’t be perfect because the engraving tool isn’t perpendicular to the surface of the cylinder but it should work. I think the pointier your tool and the larger the diameter of your cylinder, the better it’ll work.
If that’s not good enough, I think you’ll need to set up a 4th axis using one of the more complicated options.
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Thank you for your answer !
The problem is I want a perfect engraving, same depth and angle of engraving for each letter, this implies being perpendicular.
Moreover I would like to add the small logo of my company…
Thank you, can I find tutorials on this subject, adaptable to my problem and my machine?
I’ve not done this yet, but for a similar project I’ve been planning on making a regular polygon (to be attached to the end of the cylinder) with a matching cradle and engraving the letters one at a time as I manually turn the cylinder to the next step. You probably need finer resolution than my project (a codex as in The DaVinci Code) so a gear might work better.
The only way to get it perfect is a rotary axis unfortunately.
To be blunt: the Nomad doesn’t support this. The only way you’re going to be able to manage it is through weird and complicated hacks. You’re not going to find easy tutorials to follow. You can make it work but it’s going to take lots of fiddling and work.
I don’t think Will’s proposal was an “out of the box” solution but a suggestion of something you can research. But to sum up:
- You need to set up some kind of framework that holds the cylinder underneath the X-axis
- The cylinder needs to be able to rotate
- You need to attach a gear wheel to the cylinder that rotates it
- You should attach a rack to the bed of the Nomad
Now when the bed moves, the rack pushes the teeth on the gear wheel and the cylinder rotates.
Basically, your Y-axis has been mapped to a rotary axis. The cool part of this is that you can set up your toolpath as if your cylinder was a plane.
I’d probably 3D-print most of these parts if you have a 3D printer, otherwise mill them out of a cheap and easy to work plastic.
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I understand, I suppose you have to redo the zero with each new engraving?
In my case, the letters are 2/3mm high…
Ouch, I understand and definitely I think it’s not in my area of expertise !
If you setup so the cylinder rotates about its center, the zero should remain valid.
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Sounds like a good application for this style of setup:
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