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Lathe Tool Nose Radius Compensation

Tool nose radius compensation provides a way to perform precise cutting with a tool that doesn't end in a perfect point. Since no tool has a perfect point, the sharpness of the point be expressed in the radius of the tool nose (the smaller the radius, the sharper the point).

Suppose you wish to cut this profile.

tool_nose_radius_comp__desired_path.png

If the cutter had a perfect point, then the commanded path would be precisely along the desired geometry path.

tool_nose_radius_comp__perfect_cutter.png

For a real tool, however, the nose of the cutting tool is some distance away from the point on the desired geometry.

tool_nose_radius_comp__real_cutter.png

A real tool will not produce the desired geometry without some compensation. A compensated path would put the rounded end of the tool nose at the correct position to produce the desired geometry.

tool_nose_radius_comp__compensated_path2.png

 

 

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