RockCAM turns a 3D model into a finished set of CAM operations. You supply the model, the tool library and your preferences; RockCAM works out the features, the machining methods and the toolpaths.
This page is the shortest route to seeing that happen. Do it once on a part you know well, then adjust the configuration to match your shop.
What you need #
- A 3D model of the part, opened in Siemens NX.
- RockCAM installed and its menu visible in NX.
That is all. There is nothing to set up before the first run.
Run it #
- Open the part in NX.
A typical RockCAM part open in the NX modelling or CAM view.
- Start the one-click programming command from the RockCAM menu.
The RockCAM menu with the one-click programming command highlighted.
- Watch what RockCAM produces: it identifies the features, picks machining methods, and builds the operation list and toolpaths.
The operation navigator after RockCAM has finished, showing the generated operations and their folders.
RockCAM reads a 3D model, not a drawing. It has no annotation to work from, so it recognises features from geometry and infers the rest. See How RockCAM Generates Toolpaths for what it does with the geometry and where the settings come in.
Parts RockCAM is built for #
RockCAM is built for prismatic parts: the machined blocks, plates, strips and fixture details that make up most one-off and small-batch work. Long parts, plates with many holes, jig plates, and slightly irregular parts are all fine.
A gallery of parts RockCAM handles well — strips, plates, multi-hole plates, jig parts and irregular parts — each labelled with its type.
It is not built for mould work with free-form surfaces, turned parts, or castings. If your part is one of those, RockCAM is the wrong tool — see the not-a-fit section on the home page.
Adjust the result #
The first run uses RockCAM’s defaults. From there, the result is shaped by four things, and each one is a separate settings page:
- The blank type and the stock you leave on it.
- The tool library, and the speeds and feeds that go with it.
- The operation templates — your own, or RockCAM’s.
- The machining preferences: workholding, roughing strategy, chamfering, and so on.
Every one of these is described in Using RockCAM with Siemens NX. If you only change one thing before your second run, change the tool library: RockCAM picks tools from it rather than inventing them, so an empty or generic library is the most common reason a program does not match your shop.