CNC testing is primarily a safe check of your machine programs: the part’s machining is simulated on virtual machines before you run it on a real CNC machine.
The "CNC testing" button in the part's file export dialog runs the part through a set of virtual machines — including ones you don't own in your shop.
How to run a test
- Open the part card and go to the file export dialog — the same one used for regular program generation for a specific machine.
- Click "CNC testing" — the virtual machine configuration page for this part opens.
- Pick one or more machines from ready-made configurations, or set up your own: cutters (diameter, type, maximum depth), drilling groups with available sides and depths, saws, and whether the machine is single- or double-sided.
- Start the run — the part goes through the standard production pipeline on each selected machine.
What you get
The output is a zip archive. Inside, every machine gets its own folder: the programs and a part description.
Two more files sit in the root: «Machine description», with the configurations the part was run through, and «Errors», which appears only if something failed during the run.
File names inside the archive follow the interface language.
Together this lets you see, before buying the equipment, how the part will fit on a specific machine and compare which cutter setup handles your products best.
Machine configuration
The initial configuration is filled in automatically based on the actual holes and grooves of the selected part. Settings can be adjusted by hand and saved for reuse; 15 preset configurations are available (single- and double-sided machines with different combinations of top and bottom cutters). Virtual machines exist only for the duration of the run and do not appear in the firm's equipment list.
Programs for those without their own machine park
If the firm has no equipment of its own, the same mechanism is used as a working scenario: sawing and CNC programs are generated on a virtual machine, and the set of cutters and drills is taken from the tools the firm configured in its own personal account. The main machine program formats are supported: G-code, TPA, SCM Xilog, MPR, Biesse, KDT, SCX.
This is not the same as the 3D part view
CNC testing gives machine programs — files for running the part on the equipment, not an interactive preview. You cannot view the part itself in 3D here: the test checks how it passes through the cutters and drills of a specific machine.
Do not confuse this with downloading a DXF and the milling-path video — that is a separate feature of the 3D part view (the cube button in the parts list and detailing editor): there the part is shown in 3D with all its machining, and you can export a DXF and play the tool path. It has nothing to do with CNC testing — see the article 3D part view for details.
In short: CNC testing runs the part through different virtual machines and gives machine programs; the 3D view shows the part itself and gives a DXF and a video. These are different sections.
Background run
CNC testing runs in the background: you can keep working, progress is shown for each machine, and when ready the archive with all variants downloads automatically.