PAPER • OPEN ACCESS

CNC
Design and Modelling of

Homemade Machine

To cite this article: I I Rastvorova and N A Klyucherev 2021 J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 1753
012040
INTROduction.
What do you
Designing mean by of Homemade
& Modelling CNC
?
This paper proposes a method of designing an affordable,
universal Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) machine for the
use by hobbyists and university laboratories. The machine
combines the functions of a 3 to 4-axis milling machine and of a
3D printer. We discuss the major factors contributing to
manufacturability and dimensional accuracy of the produced
parts, and make several suggestions that aim to maximize the
cost effectiveness of the machine’s design. A methodology is
developed for optimizing the machine’s rigidity and dimensional
accuracy by selecting the proper off-the-shelf components. A
calculation that follows the proposed method starts when the
required level of accuracy and the machining speed is specified;
the result of such a calculation is the overall design of the CNC
machine, a bill of materials, and the cost estimate. The design can
be optimized for cost, weight, or other parameters. The model
presently accounts for the forces generated by the cutting action,
the acceleration of machine components, and the associated
simple bending moments. The future work in this area relates to
the improvement of the proposed method and mathematical
model to account for the twisting moments, friction, and vibration.
PART 1: The Basics..

CNC MACHINE
THEORY.
 Main Concerns of CNC Machine
Mechanics.
• All CNC machines work on a similar principle: the machine places a tool of some kind in a sequence of positions defined by the program. The
tool then changes the workpiece by either machining the material away, or adding new material. Positioning is done by moving the tool or the
workpiece along one or more linear axes, or rotating them around a rotary axis. An assembly that allows positioning along a particular axis is
called a “linear stage” or a “rotary stage” depending on the type of motion performed. The process of machining (cutting, grinding, drilling, etc)
generates forces between the tool and the workpiece.

• A CNC mill, a 3D printer, and a laser cutter are similar in that they all use a 3-axis orthogonal linear positioning system, but the loads these
machines experience are different. A 3D printer’s positioning system deals with the forces of acceleration and weight of a relatively light
extruder (an extruder is the part of the 3D printer that heats and extrudes various materials and adds them to the workpiece). The positioning
system of a CNC mill, on the other hand, has to manage cutting forces in addition to the weight and acceleration of a spindle (which is, on
average, heavier than an extruder). This requires more powerful motors and a more rigid frame.

• Many 3D printing enthusasts have attempted to convert their 3D printers into CNC mills by replacing the extruder with a spindle, but the weaker
frame of the 3D printer resulted in such deflection that machining anything but the softest materials (styrofoam and balsa wood) proved to be
impossible.

• A machine that performs additive manufacturing 3D printing deposits material to places where the workpiece does not yet have any. On the
other hand, a subtractive manufacturing machine removes material that should not be part of the workpiece. If the machine cannot access this
excess material (for example, if the material is obstructed by the workpiece itself), the feature (a design- mandated area where material should
be removed) cannot be machined. This problem is solved using multiple “setups”, i.e. by rotating and clamping the workpiece in a different
orientation, so that previously inaccessible areas become accessible. Various types of features for subtractive manufacturing are typically made
using different, specialized machines, yet nothing prevents combining several functions in a single machine.
 Possibility of an Universal CNC
Machine.
• If one had a CNC milling machine that was perfectly rigid, could position its tool to infinite precision, and used as many
setups as necessary, one could manufacture any 3-dimensional part without cavities or caverns (a “cavity” is a fully
enclosed empty volume; a “cavern” is a feature that is partially obstructed from the machine tool no matter the
orientation). It stands to reason that parts typically made on a lathe, a planar cutting machine, or any other
subtractive manufacturing machine could also be made on a CNC mill. The difference between a universal machine
and a specialized one is in performance.

• Mechanical parts with cavities can be made through 3D printing. While 3D printing can, in principle, produce parts of
any geometry, it is typically slower and produces mechanically weaker parts than machining. The resolution of 3D
printing is typically lower than what can be achieved with subtractive manufacturing – around 50 um for FDM printing,
compared 5..20 um for milling. There is an inverse relationship between the time to machine and time to print a given
shape – if the part is large in volume, typically the volume of the stock material to remove is small, so machining
would be faster than printing, and vice versa.

• A CNC machine that combines the functions of a mill and a 3D printer would therefore be truly universal in the sense
of the variety of possible geometries, with the caveat that the admissability of the manufactured parts for use in
robotics depends in the required vs. available level of dimensional accuracy.
PART 2 : The Design..

Design
Suggssions.
The topology of the CNC machine (the arrangement
and order of the linear and rotary stages) determines
the way forces are distrubuted around the machine.
Designs where the tool has many degrees of freedom,
such as figure 1 (b) and (c), leave the bed stationary,
which means that majority of the weight of the
workpiece is transferred directly to the base. Such a
distribution of force has some advantages when the
workpiece is heavy relative to the tool – for example,
the machine as a whole can be made lighter while
maintaining the same level of accuracy. Designs where
the table has many degrees of freedom, such as figure
1 (d), are useful in the opposite scenario, where the
tool is heavy compared to the workpiece. Designs
where multiple axes are stationary relative to the base,
such as figure 1 (d) and (e), require a bigger, heavier
base, but reduce the requirements for all other stages.
Tool change should take little time and effort
How can a single CNC machine be operated as either a mill, a lathe, or a 3D printer, when each of those types of machines require a different
set of tools? The answer is: by changing the currently active tool. There are several mechanical and electromechanical means of changing
between rotary bits of varying diameter, such as automated tool changers (ATC) built into some high-end spindles. However, such tools are
prohibitively expensive for small laboratories and hobby-grade machines. An indexing turret can be used (an indexing turret rotates to bring
the needed tool into place, while all the other tools stay attached to the turret), but the added weight would cause an unnecessary increase
in rigidity requirements of the CNC machine. It may be possible to apply an inexpensive quick-change mechanism, as used for robotic end-
effectors [3]. By far the cheapest solution, requiring the least design commitment, is to simply make the tool interchangeable through simple
assembly operations, i.e. it should be possible to un-screw one tool and screw in another tool with minimal effort.
Using a detachable rotary axis
A rotary axis allows the CNC machine to manufacture round features with an improved accuracy. It also reduces the
number of setups required to make a complex workpiece, as some setup changes can be replaced by a simple rotation of
the part. The downside of a rotary axis is that it takes up valuable space within the workable volume. This downside can
be mitigated if the rotary stage is made detachable. A detachable rotary stage, that can be mounted either horizontally
or vertically, allows the user of the CNC machine to choose between one of three coordinate systems with every setup:
the orthogonal coordinate system (using only the linear stages), the axial polar coordinate system (with the rotary stage
mounted vertically), or the tangental polar coordinate system (with the rotary stage mounted horizontally).

Two Stages of Linear Stage Assembly

PART 2: The Design ..

Methodology of
Structure optimisation.
 Calculating Speed & Feeds
In machining terminology, the term “speeds and feeds” refers to the process
parameters of milling and turning. These parameters include: the feed rate
(velocity of the tool center relative to the workpiece), rotation speed,
tangential velocity (velocity of the point on the mill bit that contacts the
workpiece), chip load (maximum thickness of the chip that is shaved off by a
single flute (cutting edge) of the tool), width of cut (width of the cut cross-
section) and depth of cut (height of the cut cross-section).

For every mill bit (endmill, face mill cutter, engraving bit, chamfer cutter and
the like) there is a manufacturer-recommended chip load and tangential
velocity. These are experimentally measured parameters that result in the
highest material removal rate (MRR) for a given tool bit. Exceeding these
parameters may result in rapid decrease of tool life and breaking of the tool.

Here ω is rotation speed or angular velocity (rad/s), f is the rotation frequency

(Hz), vt is tangential velocity (m/s), D is a tool bit diameter (m), R is the tool bit
radius (m), FPR is the feed (m), FPT is the feed per tooth (m), N is the number
of flutes or cutting edges the tool bit has, AoC is area of the cut 2 cross-
section (m ), DoC is the depth of cut (m), WoC is the width of cut (m), L is the
length of the tool bit, MRR is the material removal rate (m3/s), Pspindle is the
power output by the spindle-motor, E is the 3 specific cutting power – a
reference value derived experimentally, taken to be 6.83 J/m , τ is the spindle
torque (N*m), Flinear is the linear (tangential) cutting force (N), Plinear is the
power due to the cutting force acting at the given feed rate, or power at the
linear stage motor (W).
 Calculating Beam Stiffness.
Here Ix is the object’s second moment of area about an arbitrary axis X
passing through the center
of mass of the body, assuming that the axes X and Y are orthogonal. Iy is
then the second moment of area about the axis Y. Ix and Iy have
units of (m)
Once we have calculated Ix and Iy for every beam to be considered, we
can determine the ratio of force acting on a beam (F, N) to the
deflection (dw,m) caused by that force. The formula for maximum
deflection in a beam varies depending on the beam’s support condition,
such that the deflection experienced by a cantileverred beam is 16
times greater than the deflection experienced by a beam supported on
both sides.
Here L is the length of the beam (m), F is the force acting on the beam
(N), E is the Young’s modulus of the beam’s material (Pa) and dw is the
deflection of the beam from its original dimensions (m).
The resulting ratios determine the stiffness of the beam along each
axis. Here, Z is the axis along the length of beam, while X and Y are
perpendicular to the beam. If the axes are chosen in such a way that
beam sizex > sizey, then
Fx/dwx becomes the stiffness of the “strong side” of the beam while
Fy/dwy becomes the stiffness of the “weak side” of the beam, which
simplifies subsequent sorting and selection of the best beam for a given
application.
 decomposition diagram for the CNC machine topology.
stage is represented by a rectangle with a pictogram illustrating the type of bending mome
Slide & Linkage Split, Beam
Bundle Method .
Slide and linkage split

A linear stage is composed of a slide, carriage, linkage and a motor, as seen in figure 2.
When selecting the beams to handle the forces experienced by the stage, we shall
assume that the slide rails handle only the forces perpendicular to the beam direction,
and the linkage (belt or a leadscrew) handles only the force parralel to the beam
direction. The motor would then be chosen according to the feed rate and the force
along the linkage.

For the following calculations, we introduce the concept of a beam bundle. A beam
bundle is an abstract beam, made from one or more elementary beams joined together,
where an elementary beam is simply a single off-the-shelf structural beam element.
The deflection of a beam bundle can be calculated as the the deflections of a single
beam when it experiences a force equal to the total force divided by the number of
beams in a bundle. Note that two beams are not equivalent to the single beam with a
doubled cross-section, as the Euler-Bernoulli theory of beam bending assumes that
“plane sections remain plane”, an assumption which is violated if we treat a bundle of
beams as a single beam. As an aside, this also explains why stranded wire is more
floppy than a solid-core wire, even though their cross section is similar. The effective
second moment of area for the beam bundle, as calculated backwards from the
resulting deflection, is shown in figure

Every element in a linear stage is modelled as a beam bundle. The composition of the
beam bundle depends on the type of application (e.g. the beams that act as slides in a
linear stage have requirements on surface finish and geometric accuracy). From all
beams appropriate to a given application, we select the one that would result in a
lightest and cheapest beam bundle, if the beam bundle contains as many copies of this
beam as necessary to support the requested load.
PART 4 : The Outcome…

Results.
A variety of commercialy available machine components
were considered: 15 spindles (5 high speed rotary hand
tools, 3 handheld routers, 7 bare spindle-motors), 22 linear
stage motors (14 stepper motors and 8 BLDC motors), 74
types of structural beams (aluminum, steel and cast iron
rods and profiles), and 6 types of linkages (1 rubber belt, 1
fiber-reinforced neoprene timing belt, 4 sizes of steel
leadscrews).
Where Flinear is the tangential cutting force generated (N), Vlinear
– optimal feed rate (mm/s), Plinear – required linear stage motor
power (W), Pspindle is the required spindle power (W), Mspindle is
the mass of the spindle (kg), MRR is the material removal
rate, Mmotor is the motor mass, Pmotor is the motor power and
CSmotor is the motor cost. Some of the values were different for
high and low chip load conditions.
The cost of machine components was partially based on
their retail price in Russia, their retail price in US, and in
some cases on the resale price in online marketplaces such
as amazon, ebay, aliexpress and alibaba. An accurate price
estimate for higher-end components could not be made, as
the distributors tend not to reveal the price outright but instead
have the potential buyer request a quotation, which may indicate
that the price is either negotiable or non-disclosable.
Nevertheless, a general rating can be made
As a starting point for the structure optimization, we
specified the desired CNC machine to have a working area
of 300 mm by 200 mm by 200 mm, accuracy of 0.4 mm,
material removal rate (MRR) of 100 mm3s-1, and
acceleration of 0.2g. The machine topology and its stage
decomposition are as shown in figure 3. The results of the
calculation are as follows:
Theoretical CNC
Device
CNC
We have established that there is demand for an affordable, universal CNC machine that could do
the work of a wide variety of expensive, specialized machines. A reasonable starting point for the

Conclusion
design of such a machine is to structure it as a CNC mill with a replacible tool and a detachable
rotary stage, possibly with a concrete base. The structure of the machine and the composition of
its sub-assemblies can be optimized through the method of stage decomposition and beam bundle
optimization. The method, when applied to real-world data, yields plausible results. The method
can be improved in the future by considering shearing and twisting loads, friction and vibration, as
well as by incorporating computer modelling techniques.