In order to provide the user of CNC machine tool system
with the best possible performance and functionality, it is
important for machine tool builders to add the custom
control functions by their own engineering.
For the enhancement of the machining performance to
achieve higher accuracy and productivity, custom control
functions may need to be introduced in addition to the
conventional control functions implemented in the
commercially available CNC controllers. Such custom
control functions can be referred to as the “intelligent
control functions” and a variety of such functions have
been developed as the results of the recent pioneering
works [I2,, 3, 41.
Although these functions have been proven to be
effective, the integration of them into the control system
can not easily be done by a machine tool builder due to
the fact that most of the today’s CNC machine tool
systems are being equipped with CNC controller
supplied by controller vendors as a “black box” and this
makes it difficult for the machine tool builder to quickly
develop and implement the custom control functions.
The recent emerging technology so-called “Open
Architecture Control” seems to be effective and
applicable [5, 6, 71. The Open Architecture Control,
however, has not yet reached the matured level to
replace the current conventional CNC controller.
Since most of the intelligent functions to enhance the
performance need to be implemented as a real-time
processing close to or inside of the servo control system
for machine motion, it is desirable for the machine tool
builder to have a CNC controller, in which any additional
real time application can be implemented without
touching any existing control functions already available
in the CNC controller.