Toolpath Trimming now available as a Fusion 360 Manufacturing Extension

November 3, 2020 Ed Gillman

Toolpath Trimming has been added to the Fusion 360 Manufacturing Extension! While creating milling toolpaths in the Manufacture workspace, users can now remove unwanted toolpath segments inside or outside a custom boundary. The feature automatically recalculates new leads, links, and ramps after the toolpath region has been removed.

This is really helpful when creating 3D Finishing toolpaths like Parallel or Contour because custom boundaries aren't required. For example, finishing the inside of this casting die would have required a custom sketch boundary to limit the toolpath contact area. The ball nose tool rolls over the edge of the inner surface and may leave marks on the vertical walls.

With the Toolpath Trimming feature, users can simply sketch a boundary and remove the unwanted segments. Only the selected paths are modified, so there's no need to regenerate the entire toolpath or any prior operations. This saves time and headaches!

Toolpath modifications are stored in the toolpath timeline at the bottom of the Fusion 360 graphics window. Users can right-click on trim features and edit the boundary region.

NOTE: Toolpath trimming is not currently available for 2D and 3D roughing operations such as 2D Adaptive, 3D Adaptive, 2D Pocket, 3D Pocket, Thread, Bore, Circular, Chamfer, Slot, and Horizontal. The majority of the 3D finishing operations are supported.

About the Author

Ed Gillman

Manufacturing Applications Expert<br><br>Ed assesses clients' current business processes to recommend and implement software solutions to meet their needs. His software expertise includes Inventor, Inventor FEA, Nastran, Inventor HSM (CAM), Fusion 360, Fusion 360 Simulation, Fusion 360 CAM, and Generative Design.

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