Project 3: CNC Milling Machine
Our custom-made CNC mill with controller box and laptop interface
Overview:
The goal of this project was to aid the children's museum in designing concepts for a new exhibit describing manufacturing processes. The group I worked in designed and built a CNC milling machine which could be used as part of an exhibit and have some interaction with children.
My Experience:
To make the machine we started with a cheap milling machine and made brackets and fixtures to allow stepper motors to control the three axes. The motors were then connected to my laptop through a control box and we used free programs to allow the mill to write letters. The majority of what I did in this project was working on the motor mounts for two of the three axes. From this project I got a little more experience using tools in the machine shop, as well as becoming familiar with the software we used for milling. I also gained some experience in working with a team, though it wound up being fairly independent and split up as everyone had hectic end of the year schedules.
Real CNC Milling Machine