CAM Software Updates Focus on Speed, Risk Reduction, and Workflow Modernization
The latest round of CAM software updates highlights a clear direction for digital manufacturing: faster, more reliable simulation and inspection tightly integrated into everyday workflows. Hexagon has expanded its NCSIMUL verification platform with a patent-pending, GPU-accelerated approach to viewing in-process stock. Open Mind’s new Hypermill release enhances NC-code simulation, toolpath optimization, and 2D strategies tailored to demanding sealing surfaces. In parallel, SHINING 3D has re-architected its Inspect software around modular, application-specific workflows that support both ISO and ASME GD&T inspection practices. Across these releases, common themes emerge. Vendors are leveraging GPU-accelerated simulation and smarter algorithms to cut verification time on long, complex jobs, while keeping full NC-code simulation as the standard for final signoff. At the same time, new deployment options—from desktop to on-device and automated cells—aim to make advanced CAM and GD&T inspection software more accessible on the shop floor.
Hexagon’s NCSIMUL Adds GPU-Accelerated Rest Stock Previews for Long-Cycle Jobs
Hexagon’s latest NCSIMUL release introduces Selective Simulation, a feature designed to accelerate verification of lengthy NC programs without sacrificing safety. The core innovation is GPU-accelerated Rest Stock Previews generated during NC decoding. Instead of waiting for a full, sequential simulation, programmers can quickly see intermediate stock states at key stages of a long-cycle machining process. In one mold application trial, a 47-hour machining program that previously required 48 minutes of simulation before the target operation could be inspected now produces usable previews in under two minutes. These previews enable earlier detection of visible issues and more direct navigation to critical operations, supporting faster iteration while keeping risk under control. Full NC code simulation with collision detection and detailed material removal analysis remains the final verification step. By tightening feedback loops in preproduction review, NCSIMUL’s update strengthens the role of GPU-accelerated simulation in high-value machining workflows.
Hypermill Enhances NC-Code Simulation, Angle Head Support, and Sealing Surface Machining
Open Mind’s new Hypermill release concentrates on both performance and process reliability, particularly for complex multi-axis and turning applications. For the first time, Hypermill and its NC-code simulation environment, Hypermill Virtual Machining, offer integrated support for angle heads as part of the NC tool definition. The virtual machine accounts for angle heads across toolpath generation, optimization, collision checking, and critical approach/retract moves, with automated path optimization and curve-based approaches to reach difficult areas. Initial support targets Siemens Sinumerik 840D and Heidenhain controls. Hypermill also introduces 2D hale machining (contour planing) for scratch-free sealing surfaces common in battery, semiconductor, and mold applications. Redesigned algorithms for 3D and 5-axis rest machining improve detection and processing of remaining material, producing more uniform, reliable toolpaths with smooth overlaps and a configurable minimum clearance angle. Additional enhancements in CAM plan turning and electrode erosion path control further streamline programming and reinforce NC-code simulation as a central verification tool.
SHINING 3D’s Inspect Modernizes GD&T Inspection with Modular, Multi-Mode Deployment
SHINING 3D’s Inspect release rethinks dimensional inspection workflows around modularity and standards-based GD&T evaluation. The PTB-certified software now structures projects as guided workflows that lead users from feature creation and alignment through GD&T inspection, full-field deviation analysis, and reporting. It supports both ISO and ASME GD&T standards, allowing manufacturers to validate tolerances using their preferred specification framework while comparing 3D scan data against CAD via color maps and 2D cross-sections. New application modules for sheet metal inspection and dent inspection reduce setup overhead by surfacing task-specific functions, particularly valuable in automotive, civil aviation, and precision manufacturing contexts. Inspect also broadens deployment flexibility: full-featured desktop use, on-device inspection through the FreeScan Omni handheld scanner, and integration with automated inspection systems for repetitive, high-volume tasks. Together, these changes position the software as a versatile GD&T inspection solution aligned with increasingly automated production environments.