A foam cutting machine is gaining popularity thanks to the unusual idea of creating a business. Indeed, it is easy to make any model of advertising, curly facade element, sandwich panels used in building a house from soft material. A high-quality machine has high productivity, and control programs are simply created on CNC screens.
Unique equipment
A foam cutting machine can significantly speed up the production of even straight-form panels. The processing process on such equipment, judging by the reviews, is simple and takes into account all the subtleties when working with soft and brittle materials. Before implementing business ideas, it is recommended to evaluate the costs and return on investment after a decent investment.
The machine for figured foam cutting is made for a specific type of processing. So, having bought a small table for blanks, you will no longer have to work with huge layouts on it in the future. 3D processing requires an integrated state-of-the-art CNC system to track the position of all axes.
Processing methods
The machine for figured foam cutting has fastenings for the following tool:
- Jigsaw - works with thin blanks, make curly details.
- Thin wire - cutting occurs when the tool is heated. So exclude the appearance of uneven edges and chipped sections.
- The knife is thoroughly ground - more often used to obtain simple forms.
- Cutter - to create any shape, from patterned contours to full volumetric figures.
- Laser is the latest development of machine tool builders, which allows to perform elements on foam with very high accuracy.
The CNC foam cutting machine is equipped with a separate controller. The position of the axes is monitored by high-precision instrument position sensors: rulers, encoders. Servomotors are configured for minimum shift by command of the control program with increased stiffness of the axis.
Can I do the installation myself?
Consider the simplest machine for curly cutting foam. With your own hands you can make equipment with uncontrolled axles without an CNC system. It is based on a cutting tool: knife, jigsaw blade. The accuracy of the movement depends on the imagination of the manufacturer.
This may be the simplest guide with a flat edge, along which the tool will be held manually. Or skillful hands will be able to adjust the axis with an electric motor. True, for figured cutting, at least two ball-bearing screws or sliding axes will be needed.
More advanced ones can order spare parts for their table and set up a CNC controller. However, according to experts, there are models of Chinese machine tool manufacturers on sale that are several times cheaper than the cost of spare parts.
The disadvantages of manual processing
Polyfoam, according to everyone who worked with it, is a whimsical material and at high cutting speeds it begins to crumble, break in the most unpredictable places. You have to withstand very slow speeds, and this slows down the process. Manual processing requires certain skills from the master, for which a long and costly training is often carried out.
CNC machines work autonomously. One installer is able to service a fleet of equipment. A low-skilled worker can manage the process in one place.It should be familiarized only with the simplest shell commands, the rest of the system will be executed without human intervention.
Technological solution
The FRP 01 foam cutting machine on the market has a cost of about 100 thousand rubles. The unique design of the frame and moving elements makes it possible to produce advertising layouts, signs, curly elements, letters on one table. Already released a modernized model labeled FRP 02.
FRP 01 is the result of engineering. The machine is a universal development for any needs of an enterprise engaged in the manufacture of foam parts. By the way, the rigidity of the structure is enough for processing harder materials.
Programmatically, the user sets only the dimensions of the workpiece, sets the part to zero. You must manually level the material on the table. There are special adjusting screws for this. The finished model of the future product is loaded from graphic programs: CorelDraw, Compass, Autocad, SolidWorks.
The first products in serial production may have dimensions other than specified. This, according to experts, may be due to deviations in the operation of the machine at startup:
- The cutting speed is too high. Actual for workpieces of large thickness and length.
- Weak string tension.
- Weak tension of the cable, or inversion of its movement in the settings is set.
- Backlash affects accuracy. Check all couplings, drum.
- The layer of combustible material is not taken into account.
FRP 01 is advantageous to use in any season. So, in winter, products in the form of figures of snowmen, sleighs, Santa Claus are in demand. Various trading houses buy signboards and volumetric models of their own products. A foam can also be made from polystyrene to attract the attention of drivers. The foam cutting business is successful, and market competition is still moderate. The payback of successful products, judging by the reviews, sometimes reaches 1000%, which is very beneficial from the point of view of entrepreneurship.
Wire cutting
The FC9060b foam cutting machine has a nichrome wire. Before processing, it is heated, and a small part of the material burns out during the cutting process. This is taken into account when determining the final dimensions of the required part. Portable models are easy to use and quickly mounted in a new place.
The FC9060b belongs to lightweight structures and has a relatively low cost. The kit has everything that is required to work in the machine. However, the software will have to be installed independently. The necessary software can be found on the Internet in the public domain.
The kit includes a unit for heating the thread, the design itself, depending on the preferences of the customer and electronic filling. According to individual preferences, individual nodes can be replaced with more durable ones, and accordingly, the price of equipment will increase.
