Digital Manufacturing Education: Implementation of an Integrated CAD/CAM Workflow to Reduce the Difficulty of Using Complex Digital Fabrication Tools

Traditional engineering curricula place a premium on education related to design and analysis. Often, this leads to little or no formal education related to manufacturing processes. To become more effective designers and analysts, students must gain exposure to advanced manufacturing tools and processes. This paper explores how CAD/CAM technology is being used at a large Midwestern university’s Artisan and Fabrication Laboratory to facilitate experience with digital manufacturing techniques through hands-on learning opportunities. Specifically, it describes the development and implementation of an integrated CAD/CAM workflow that reduces the difficulty of learning complex digital fabrication tools so that students can more easily obtain manufacturing experience while building on their design knowledge. This workflow was built utilizing integrated CAD/CAM tools (CATIA v5 and Siemens NX), and features a custom user environment, tool and process catalogs, CNC machine simulation, and process validation. Further, this unique implementation deploys online learning modules, teaching assistant training, and consultations to further facilitate learning and familiarity with manufacturing processes. The result is a fully functional workflow that allows for engineering students to gain experience with digital manufacturing techniques using a project-based learning perspective.