ME Consultant Professional V2.0

1
ME Consultant Professional V2.0

• The ultimate planning tool for CNC machining
  centers. A must-have for anyone serious about
  manufacturing!

Contents
General Information Main Windows Getting Started
with Machining Calculator Getting Started with
Job Planner Material Planner Thread Data Drill
Depth Calculator Surface Finish
Calculator Machining Data Editor Machine
Specifications Editor Configuration Basics
2
What Is MEPro?

• ME Consultant Professional (MEPro) is a
  program written to help you with planning,
  estimating, and programming for CNC machining
  centers and lathes.
• MEPro is a fast and accurate alternative to
  stacks of reference books, hours of Internet
  searching, and repetitive, error-prone manual
  calculations.
• MEPro is extremely easy to use.  It gives you a
  massive amount of useful, well-organized
  information in exchange for a very small amount
  of your time.
• MEPro is designed to be equally useful to users
  of the inch or metric system.
• All functions are accessible through a dropdown
  menu in the Machining Calculator window, or a
  right-click context menu available in any window.
• The program should run fine on any 32-bit
  Windows system.  Your screen needs a minimum
  resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels for best display
  of all the available functions.

3
Who Needs MEPro?

• CNC Programmers
• Applications Engineers
• Manufacturing Engineers
• Design Engineers
• Manufacturing Managers
• Planners and Estimators
• Supervisors
• Inspectors
• Machinists

4
Whats In MEPro?

• Advanced, Interactive Machining Calculator
• Integrated Job Planner and Estimator
• Material Weight, Volume, And Cost Calculator
• Massive Screw Thread Database
• Drill And Countersink Depth Calculator
• Surface Finish Calculator
• Comprehensive Drill Cross Reference
• Center Drill Dimensions
• Socket Head Cap Screw Dimensions
• Hardness and Tensile Strength Comparisons
• Machining Data Editor
• Machine Specifications Editor
• Highly Configurable Interface

5
The Machining Calculator IsAmazingly Powerful
and Easy to Use

• The Machining Calculator gives you precise speed
  and feed information for twenty of the most
  common CNC machining center and lathe tools.
• It comes with a database of twenty materials.
  You can easily modify or add to the material
  data.
• Very little typing is required for efficient use
  - you change one value and all the others update
  automatically.

6
The Job Planner
Summary Window
Viewer Window
Job Plan Window

• The Job Planner takes data from the Machining
  Calculator and creates a Job Plan for your
  operation.
• The data for each machining sequence, and all
  the totals to that point, are displayed in the
  Viewer and Summary Windows, respectively.
• Add or remove a Tool - the Viewer and Summary
  Windows update instantly.
• Change a Tool Diameter - machining data for
  that tool is recalculated. The Viewer and
  Summary Windows update.
• Add some Passes, change the Material, decide to
  run the job on a different Machine - do whatever
  - a click or two with the mouse and the entire
  job recalculates!

7
The Machining Calculator and Job PlannerWork
Together To Make Planning A Breeze!
The windows fit without overlapping on a screen
having a resolution of 1024 x 768 or better.
8
The Material Planner

• The Material Planner instantly calculates the
  weight, volume, and cost of the material you'll
  need for an upcoming job.
• It comes with a large database of the materials
  you're most likely to need. Adding more
  materials is easy, and so is adjusting the unit
  cost of a material in response to changing market
  conditions.
• You can enter data in inches, feet, millimeters,
  or meters - or even switch around as you work!
• Once you've made the calculation, the Material
  Planner can post it to the Job Planner.

9
Thread DataMore Than 1200 Sizes

• This is the information you're most likely to
  need for manufacturing threaded components.
• An invaluable reference for programmers,
  inspectors, machinists, and design engineers.
• The Tap Drill Guide automatically shows you the
  best drills for the thread you're displaying.
  Form taps are supported for most thread types.
• An Info Window has application and plating
  guidelines, along with other useful information,
  for each thread type.
• Infeed calculations for manual machinists.
• Inch or metric display.
• Prints a complete report for each thread size,
  which is especially useful to machinists and
  inspectors.

10
The Drill Depth Calculator

• Calculating the depth to feed a center drill,
  spot drill, or countersink to machine a specific
  chamfer diameter on the face of a part is one of
  those recurring time-wasters that every
  programmer and machinist is familiar with.
• The Drill Depth Calculator turns this into a few
  seconds' work.
• It can also tell you how deep to send a twist
  drill to machine a full-diameter hole of a
  specific depth.

11
The Surface Finish Calculator

• The main influence on surface finish,
  particularly in turning, is the combination of
  tool radius and feedrate.
• The Surface Finish Calculator gives you the
  theoretical feedrate needed to achieve a specific
  surface finish when using a given tool radius.
• CNC programmers and machinists need a reliable
  tool to make this calculation, so that they don't
  feed too fast and make unacceptable parts, or
  feed too slowly and increase costs.

12
The Machining Data Editor

• The Machining Data Editor lets you edit the data
  used by the Machining Calculator and Job Planner.
• You can modify, add to, delete from, or
  rearrange the data.
• A customer calls and needs a rush quote, an old
  job but with a material change. He says the new
  material has historically run well at 20 higher
  speed and 10 higher feed than the old one.
• You need to define that new material, and fast.
• Its so easy - a quick series of mouse clicks
  followed by typing in a name for the new
  material.
• The supervisor tells you the normal machine for
  that job is down. It will have to run on an
  older model, a much slower one. How much will
  that add to the cost?
• Three clicks in the Job Planner to recalculate
  the old job for the new material on the
  substitute machine.

13
The Machine Specifications Editor

• The Machine Specifications Editor lets you
• define and modify six key performance
• characteristics for each of your machine
• tools. These values are used to optimize
• output from the Machining Calculator and
• Job Planner.

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The Configuration Window

• This is where you decide how you want MEPro to
  be set up when it starts.
• You can opt for a full-blown inch or metric
  setup.
• Do you want tooltips turned on? They're great
  for learning the program, but you might want them
  turned off later.
• How many decimal places to display?
• What are your rapid clearances? There are safety
  and efficiency considerations.
• What spindle efficiency rating do you want power
  calculations to be based on?
• Do you want a "canned" set of labels for the
  printed Job Plan Report?

No matter how you have things set up in the
Configuration Window, you can change the settings
around as you work. They just won't be saved for
next time unless you save them in the
Configuration Window.
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Time Savers - No Explanation Needed
Socket Head Cap Screws
Hardness and Tensile Strength
Hardness and Tensile Strength
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More Time Savers
Center Drills
Drill Chart
17
Getting Started With MEPro

• The first time MEPro is run, this window will
  pop on your screen. Youll have to select either
  inch or metric as the default startup mode.
  Dont worry about locking yourself in to one
  system or the other here its easy to
  reconfigure MEPro at any time, or even to switch
  back and forth between measurement systems as you
  work.

If you go with the inch system, a machining data
file will be created with speed data listed as
surface feet per minute and feedrate data listed
in inch units.  This file will be named
MEInchData.dat. If you select the metric system,
the data file will have speed data listed as
surface meters per minute and feedrate data
listed in millimeter units.  It will be named
MEMetricData.dat.
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The Configuration File

• A configuration file, me.ini, will also be
  created the first time MEPro runs.  It contains
  startup options for many MEPro functions.  The
  initial values assigned to me.ini are intended to
  be suited to the measurement system you selected
  (inch or metric). Theyre all very easy to
  change to meet your needs.
• All data and configuration files are located in
  the same directory as the main program file.  Any
  of them that can't be found when the program is
  run will be recreated by MEPro (with default
  values).

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The Machining Calculator

• When MEPro is run, the first thing youll see is
  the Machining Calculator. It starts up with some
  arbitrary selections - Cast Aluminum, a
  pre-defined CNC machine called Machining Center
  1, and a High Speed Steel (HSS) Spot Drill with a
  diameter of .500, set to drill .100 deep.

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What The Machining Calculator Does

• The Machining Calculator suggests speed and feed
  values for a specific combination of cutting tool
  and workpiece material.  Twenty tool types and
  twenty material types are defined initially.  You
  can easily create as many additional materials as
  you need.
• In addition to cutting parameters, the Machining
  Calculator displays cycle times and power
  requirements for your proposed operation.
• The Machining Calculator requires very little
  user input.  Much like a spreadsheet, when you
  change one value, all the dependent values are
  recalculated and redisplayed.  You can do what
  if experiments very easily and plan cutting
  operations that make the most of your expensive
  tools and machinery.

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A Bit Of Caution

• Workpieces can be held securely or poorly.
• Machine tools vary widely in their ability to
  take a cut.
• Some workpieces are more rigid than others.
• Sometimes cutting tools are used
  inappropriately.
• Some cutting tool designs work better than
  others.
• Some cutting tools are sharp, others are dull.
• Some cutting tools are rigid, others aren't.
• Unanticipated problems can crop up.

•   There's no way for the Machining Calculator to
  factor in non-optimal conditions without your
  help. If your setup isnt rigid or your
  workholding is inadequate, serious problems can
  result. If your cutting tool isnt in good
  condition, or is inappropriate for the operation,
  you could see unexpected results.
• You, the user, are completely responsible for
  the results of applying the recommendations made
  by the Machining Calculator.

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Getting Started With The Machining Calculator

• Select a Material Type, Machine, and Tool from
  the dropdown lists at the top of the window.  The
  Machining Calculator displays the suggested
  spindle speed (RPM) and feedrate (IPT, IPR, IPM)
  for the current combination of Tool and Material,
  along with the material removal rate (MRR) and
  machine power (HP) required.
• If you want accurate information about cycle
  times, input the quantity (Hole Qty) and depth of
  holes (Hole Depth) or the quantity (Pass Qty) and
  length of passes (Pass Length).
• Practice changing some of the displayed values
  to see the effect on others.  Change the Material
  Type and watch practically everything else
  change.  Move the Tool Diameter scrollbar and see
  how many other values change in response.  Think
  about the reasons for those changes.
• Thats really about all you have to do to get a
  wealth of information from the Machining
  Calculator. There are some options well need
  look at, but nothing is really complicated about
  using it.

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Entering Data

• To enter a value, just type it into the
  appropriate edit box and left-click anywhere
  outside that edit box. Instead of clicking, you
  can also press the Enter key or Tab key.  The
  Enter key inputs the value that's currently
  visible in the active edit box.  The Tab key
  inputs the value, then advances the focus to the
  next relevant edit box.
• Numerical data can be input in several formats.
  If you want to enter a value of .250, type in
  .250 or any numerical expression that evaluates
  to .250 (1/4 or 1-3/4 or .5.5 are some
  examples).
• Because the program is designed for
  manufacturing, you can also input an expression
  with one space (for example, you can specify a
  drill diameter of 1 3/16 and MEPro will convert
  it to 1.1875). Remember, only one space is
  allowed in your expression.
• MEPro wont let you make many mistakes.
  Non-numerical input wont be accepted. If
  numerical input isnt within the allowable range
  for a particular characteristic, it will be
  adjusted to the closest-possible legitimate
  value. For example, the diameter range for
  carbide twist drills is .015 to .750. Values
  smaller than .015 will be adjusted upward, and
  values larger than .750 will be adjusted downward.

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Materials

• MEPro comes with extensive machining data for
  twenty materials commonly used in manufacturing
  operations. This data is the result of averaging
  recommendations from a large number of technical
  organizations and cutting tool manufacturers.
• These materials, with perhaps some "tweaking" to
  suit specific needs, will probably be enough for
  most users. Later in the tutorial we'll see how
  easy it is to modify the machining data or create
  entirely new materials.

25
Tools

• MEPro can make machining calculations for twenty
  different types of cutting tools. These tools
  are commonly used on CNC machining centers or
  lathes, and most of them show up on both.
• Five of the tools (those with an "HP" prefix)
  are included to let you define cutting data for
  some of today's high-performance tool geometries
  and coatings. As we'll see later, they can
  easily be configured to reflect their enhanced
  cutting capabilities.

26
Cutting Speed

• Changing cutting speed values causes
  recalculation of
• machining time, material removal rate, and power
• requirements
• RPM - Revolutions Per Minute
• SFM - Surface Feet Per Minute
• SMM - Surface Meters Per Minute
• RPM Limit - A means of limiting the maximum
  revolutions
• per minute displayed or used in
  calculations.  All machines
• have an absolute maximum RPM, and some tools or
  setups
• have a maximum safe RPM.
• Spindle works like the spindle override on a
  CNC
• machine.

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Feedrates

• Changing feedrate values causes recalculation of
• other feed outputs plus machining time,material
  removal rate,
• and power requirements
• IPT - Inches Per Tooth (Chip Load)
• MPT - Millimeters Per Tooth (Chip Load)
• IPR - Inches Per Revolution
• MPR - Millimeters Per Revolution
• IPM - Inches Per Minute
• MPM - Millimeters Per Minute
• Feed works like the feed override on a CNC
• machine.
• Reset Sets Feed to 100.0
• Becomes pink when Feed is over 101.00, and blue

28
Cut Variables

• Length, Depth, and Clearance values affect
  machining time.
• Cut Depth and Cut Width values affect material
  removal rate,
• power requirements, and end milling speeds,
  feeds, and
• machining time.
• Pass Length - turning and milling tools
• Hole Depth - holemaking tools
• XY Clearance - rapid clearance for milling tools
• Z Clearance - rapid clearance for holemaking
  tools
• XZ Clearance - rapid clearance for turning tools
• Cut Depth - axial depth of cut for milling tools
• radial depth of cut for
  turning tools
• Cut Width - radial depth of cut for milling
  tools
• radial depth of cut for
  boring tools

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Cutting Tool Characteristics

• Flutes - holemaking and end milling tools
• Inserts - face mills and turning tools
• A change causes recalculation of feed outputs,
  machining times, material removal rate, and power
  requirements
• Tool Diameter - holemaking and milling tools
• Turn Diameter - turning tools
• A change causes recalculation of speed and feed
  outputs, machining times, material removal rate,
  and power requirements.
• When the diameter of an end mill or face mill is
  reduced, Cut Depth and Cut Width may also be
  reduced.

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Machining Calculator Options

• Inch - inputs and display in inch units
• Metric - inputs and display in metric units
• Tips - Turns the Machining Calculator tooltips
  on or off.
• Sticky Data - When checked, saves the most -
  recent data for each tool type, so you can go
  back to a previous tool without having to input
  all the cutting conditions again.  When
  unchecked, tool data is reset to defaults each
  time you select a new tool.
• Mill Radius - When checked, adds the radius of a
  milling tool to the pass length for cycle time
  calculations.
• Radial Feed - When checked, applies a radial
  chip thinning factor to the feedrate calculation
  for face mills and end mills when the Cut Width
  is less than half the Tool Diameter.
• Decimals - Lets you specify how many decimal
  places to display for some of the machining data.

31
Machining Time

• Minutes Per Hole - Shows the time in minutes per
  hole or pass.
• Display only.
• Minutes Total - Shows total time in minutes for
  all holes or passes.
• Display only.
• Hole Qty holemaking tools
• Pass Qty turning and milling tools
• Change causes recalculation of Minutes Total.
• Maximum Qty is 10,000

32
Machining Power

• HP - machine power (horsepower) required to
  perform the defined operation. Display only.
• KW - machine power (kilowatts) required to
  perform the defined operation. Display only.
• Both measures are based on the material removal
  rate for the active material.
• MRR - material removal rate - volume of
  material, expressed as cubic inches or cubic
  centimeters, removed per minute with the
  currently defined operation. Display only.
• Spindle Efficiency
• Change causes recalculation of power
  requirements.

33
Tap Pitch Selector

• These controls are enabled when a Tap is the
  active tool type. The screenshots show some of
  the tap pitch options available in MEPro.
• When the TPI option button is selected, the
  values represent threads per inch. When the MM
  option is selected, the values represent the tap
  pitch in millimeters.
• TPI and MM are both usable whether you're
  working in Inch or Metric mode. If you're
  working in Inch mode and need data for an M8-1.0
  tap, for example, just select the MM option
  button, then 1.0 from the pitch selector. Click
  on the Metric mode option button, input 8.0 into
  the Tool Diameter edit box, then switch back to
  Inch mode. Everything will be converted for you.
• Of course, you could stay in Inch mode the whole
  time and just input the expression 8/25.4 into
  the Tool Diameter edit box to get the same result.

34
Opening The Job Planner

• When the Job Planner is first opened, what you
  see are three new windows arranged around the
  Machining Calculator. There aren't any numbers
  showing in these three windows, except in the
  Machine , Eff , Setup, and Tool Sec boxes.
• The values in those edit boxes are taken from
  the MachineSpecsData.dat file, where the
  performance characteristics of your machine tools
  are defined.
• Machine - hourly rate for the active machine
• Eff - overall efficiency factor for the active
  machine
• Setup - default setup minutes for the active
  machine
• Tool Sec - tool change seconds for the active
  machine
• Select a different Machine in the Machining
  Calculator and you'll see some of these values
  change in the Job Planner.

35
Adding a Sequence

• What we're trying to do here is have you tell
  the Machining Calculator what kinds of tools and
  cuts you want to have in your proposed job, so
  that it can figure out all the machining
  parameters and send them to the Job Planner,
  which will keep track of and display everything.
  If you want a printed report after everything
  looks good, you can have that too.
• There's already a machining operation defined in
  the Machining Calculator (I'll refer to a unique
  machining operation as a"sequence" after this).
  It's the one that shows when you first run MEPro,
  a Spot Drill going .100 deep.
• Start out by clicking the Seq button in the
  Job Planner and see what happens.
• The machining data for the sequence is posted to
  the Viewer Window, while current time and cost
  totals appear in the Summary Window. The Spot
  Drill is now shown as the Active Sequence
  (sequence 1) in the Job Planner,
• Select a different material in the Material list
  of the Machining Calculator and watch what
  happens to your machining times and summary
  values. It's that quick and easy to play what-if
  games with different materials, whether you've
  defined one sequence or a hundred.

36
Job Planner Commands 1

• Active Sequence - this can be either the
  sequence you've just added or the sequence you've
  chosen to make active, perhaps for editing or
  deletion.
• To change the Active Sequence, you can either
  select a new one from the dropdown list in the
  Job Planner, or click on the ID number of the
  desired sequence (leftmost column) in the Viewer
  Window.
• Notes - you can insert a descriptive note
  for each sequence. The note will display on the
  printed report.
• Active Material - this is the material upon
  which the current Job Plan machining calculations
  are based.
• To change the Active Material, select a new one
  in the Material dropdown in the Machining
  Calculator. The Job Plan will instantly
  recalculate.
• Active Machine - this is the machine upon which
  the current Job Plan non-machining calculations
  are based.
• To change the Active Machine, select a new one
  in the Machine dropdown in the Machining
  Calculator. The Job Plan will instantly
  recalculate.

37
Job Planner Commands 2
Move - this is used to rearrange the order of
your defined sequences. Say you had five
sequences defined, and wanted to move sequence 5
up to become sequence 3. Type 5 in the From box
and 3 in the To box, then click on the green
button (it will be green if you have more than
one sequence defined). Tips - this turns the
tooltips on and off for the Job Planner. Win
Sync - when this is checked, all four windows
minimize as a group rather than individually.
When they're hidden, some external applications
allow them to maximize as a group and some don't.
38
Job Planner Commands 3
These values can be modified freely. Each
change results in an update of the Summary Window
data. Machine - the Active Machine hourly
rate Eff - Active Machine efficiency ("fudge
factor") Material - unit material
cost Setup - Active Machine setup
minutes Tooling - tooling and fixturing cost
for the job Tool Sec - Active Machine tool
change seconds Process - job process cost
(plating, heat treat, etc.) Part Sec -
part change seconds per part Lot Size - lot
size for the job Extra Min - extra
minutes per part (for any purpose)
39
Job Planner Commands 4
Seq - deletes the Active Sequence. Seq
assigns the data currently displayed in the
Machining Calculator to a new sequence. Tool -
subtracts one from the current number of tool
changes - useful if you're doing more than one
sequence with the same tool and don't want the
extra tool change seconds added to the
total. Tool adds one to the current number of
tool changes. Edit lets you edit any value in
the Active Sequence. Update recalculates the
Job Plan after using Edit.
40
Editing A Job Plan Sequence
You can change any value in a previously-defined
sequence. Make the sequence you want to edit
the Active Sequence. Click the Edit button. It
will turn pink as an indicator that you're in
edit mode. All the machining data for the
Active Sequence will be pasted into the Machining
Calculator. Using the Machining Calculator,
make any changes you like to the values. Click
Update to recalculate the Job Plan and exit edit
mode. You can exit edit mode without saving
changes by clicking the pink Edit button.
41
Job Planner Commands 5
Feed - reduces all feedrates in the Job Plan by
5. Feed increases all feedrates in the Job
Plan by 5. Spindl - reduces all speeds in the
Job Plan by 5. Spindl increases all speeds
in the Job Plan by 5. F-100 sets all feed
overrides in the Job Plan to 100. S-100 sets
all speed overrides in the Job Plan to
100. Calc forces a recalculation of the Job
Plan. Zero subtracts the Active Sequence
values from the Summary (it "zeros out" the
sequence). Clicking the Zero button a second
time restores the values. This can be useful for
"what if" experiments.
42
Job Planner Commands 6
Notes opens the Notes Window, where you can
define up to twelve sets of notes for the heading
of a Job Plan Report. Hide minimizes the Job
Plan Window. If Win Sync is checked, all Job
Planner windows and the Machining Calculator will
be minimized. Save saves the Job Plan data as a
.csv file, which can be easily imported into your
favorite spreadsheet program for use with custom
report formats. Clear clears the Job Plan from
memory. Load loads a previously-saved Job Plan
(.csv file) into memory. Close closes the Job
Planner.
43
Adding Notes To The Job Plan Report
Click Here To Add A Label

• After the sequences are defined, you might want
  to add some descriptive notes before printing or
  saving a report.
• The Notes Window has space for up to twelve
  labels and associated notes, which will be
  displayed at the top of the printed Job Plan
  Report.
• Labels and notes may be edited freely, but the
  total number of characters for a label and its
  companion note cant exceed fifty.
• To create or edit a label, click in the
  background area just above the appropriate note
  box.

Clear Data erases the notes but not the
labels Clear All erases everything Close Window
closes the Notes Window. Any labels or notes are
retained.
Clear Labels erases the labels but not the
notes Reload Labels loads any default labels
you've created in the Configure Window.
44
The Job Plan Viewer
Compact View

• Expanded View enlarges the Viewer Window to show
  as much of the Job Plan data as possible.
• Compact View shrinks the Viewer Window to show a
  smaller amount of the Job Plan data.
• Increment controls the range of lot sizes
  displayed in the Unit Cost section of the Job
  Plan Report.
• Preview displays a detailed Job Plan Report,
  with option to print. Print prints the report
  immediately, without a preview.
• Hide minimizes the Job Plan Viewer Window.

Expanded View
45
The Job Plan Summary
Values shown in this window update as required
whenever you make changes to the Job Plan.
46
The Job Plan Report

• This job has twenty-two tools.
• The labels and notes from the Notes Window are
  at the top.
• The machining data from the Viewer Window is in
  the middle.
• There's a complete Summary at the bottom.

47
The Material PlannerGetting Started

The first time the Material Planner is run, it
generates a data file. Depending on your
configuration, the density values in the file
represent either pounds per cubic inch or grams
per cubic centimeter. If configured for inch
data, the file will be named WeightUSData.dat. If
configured for metric data, the file will be
named WeightMetricData.dat. Materials can be
added to the file by opening it in a text editor
like Notepad. Cost information for each material
type is maintained in the same file. You can
also modify and save material cost information
directly from the Material Planner.
48
The Material Data File
The format of the data file is simple. Here's a
typical line Aluminum,.0975,.50 As this
line was taken from WeightUSData.dat, it says
that the material named "Aluminum" has a density
of .0975 pounds per cubic inch, and costs fifty
cents per pound. The metric equivalent, taken
from WeightMetricData.dat, would be
Aluminum,2.6988,.50 It says that the
material named "Aluminum" has a density of 2.6988
grams per cubic centimeter, and costs fifty cents
per kilogram. You can modify the density and
cost values as needed. If you add a new
material, be sure to include a number for the
cost, even if you don't plan to use it (.50 would
be fine).
49
Materials And Shapes

• Choose a material category by clicking on the
  appropriate option button (Metal, Wood, Plastic,
  Other). Next, select a specific material from
  the dropdown list.
• The density will be displayed to the right, in
  pounds per cubic inch or grams per cubic
  centimeter, depending upon the active input mode.
  The density value can only be modified by
  editing the data file.
• Select a shape from any displayed in the frame
  at the left edge of the Material Window.
• Depending on which shape you pick, you'll have
  to furnish from one to six dimensions before
  volume, weight, and cost calculations can be
  made.  The labels above the input boxes will
  change to fit the requirements of the active
  shape.
• In the case of Fabrications (Pipe, Angles,
  Channels, I-Beams), you'll have to select a size
  from the dropdown list.  Except for the length,
  all inputs for the selected size will be entered
  automatically.  These values represent industry
  standard dimensions and can't be modified.

50
Material Units

• Dimensions can be entered in any combination of
  Inches, Feet, Millimeters, and Meters.
• The current input mode is displayed at the top
  of the Inputs Frame.
• You can enter everything in the same mode, or
  switch around as you dimension a shape.
  Selection of the input mode is done in the
  Options Frame at bottom-center.
• As an example, if you had round stock with an
  outside diameter of thirty millimeters and a
  length of ten feet, you could input the diameter
  in Millimeters, then switch to Feet for the
  length.
• All values display in the currently selected
  mode.

51
Material Planner Inputs
When you select a shape, two or more of the
labels above the six edit boxes change to
indicate the inputs required. As usual,
left-clicking the mouse outside of an edit box
inputs the value youve just typed in. The Enter
key or Tab key can also be used to input the
data. Additionally, the Tab key shifts focus to
the next required edit box for further
input. For shapes where they are geometrically
possible, internal and external fillets are
established and initialized to zero. They're
skipped in the first run-through - you can go
back and change their values later if you want
to. Remember that you can use numerical
expressions for your inputs, so 1.500 is the same
as 11/2 or 1 1/2 Note that Feet is not the
same thing as feet and inches - to input 1 foot 6
inches while in Feet input mode, you could enter
1.5 or 16/12 or 1 6/12 or 1(6/12), but not 1
6. Inputs that are recognized as being
geometrically impossible are adjusted up or down
as appropriate.
52
Material Planner Outputs

• Once you've input all the required dimensions,
  Volume and Weight will be calculated and
  displayed. Cost Data will be displayed also if
  you have that option enabled.
• You can change the dimensional values, quantity,
  and input mode at will to evaluate the effect on
  volume, weight, and cost.
• Changing the Material Type will cause a
  recalculation and redisplay of volume, weight,
  and cost.
• Changing the Material Shape clears all boxes -
  you start from scratch.
• Outputs in Inches or Feet mode are in cubic
  inches (volume) and pounds (weight).
• Outputs in Millimeters or Meters mode are in
  cubic centimeters (volume) and kilograms (weight).

53
Material Planner Limits
Maximum Length 300 inches or 25 feet or 7620
millimeters or 7.62 meters Minimum Length .001
inches or .0254 millimeters Maximum Outside
Diameter 100 inches or 8.333 feet or 2540
millimeters or 2.54 meters Minimum Outside
Diameter .001 inches or .0254 millimeters Maximum
Inside Diameter (Bore) 99.998 inches or 8.333
feet or 2539.949 millimeters or 2.539
meters Minimum Inside Diameter (Bore) .001
inches or .0254 millimeters Maximum Thickness -
Width - Height 100 inches or 8.333 feet or 2540
millimeters or 2.54 meters
Minimum Thickness - Width - Height .001 inches or
.0254 millimeters Maximum Wall 49.999 inches or
4.166 feet or 1269.975 millimeters or 1.269
meters Minimum Wall .001 inches or .0254
millimeters Maximum External Fillet 50.000
inches or 4.166 feet or 1270.000 millimeters or
1.270 meters Maximum Internal Fillet 49.999
inches or 4.166 feet or 1269.975 millimeters or
1.269 meters Minimum External or Internal
Fillet 0 - a sharp corner Maximum Quantity 10,000
54
Material Planner One-Shot Calculations
There are two options for making simple one-shot
calculations. If you know the volume of an
object and the material density, selecting the
User Input Volume mode lets you input the volume
and calculate the weight. If you know the
weight of an object and the material density,
selecting the User Input Weight mode lets you
input the weight and calculate the volume.
55
Material Planner Tricks
Some of the limits (maximum length or maximum
quantity, for example) are designed to keep
things manageable. An item that weighs 50,000
pounds is fine, but displaying the total weight
of two million of them wouldn't be. In some
cases it's possible to "fool" the program. For
example, if the length limit of 300 inches (25
feet) is inadequate for a specific calculation -
say, 5000 feet of wire - a workaround would be to
enter the wire diameter, then select Feet mode
and enter 25 for the Length. Input the
expression 5000/25 into the Quantity box, and the
correct Total Weight will be displayed. This
method should work equally well with most of the
other shapes.
56
A Lot Of Thread Data

• The Threads Window displays detailed dimensional
  information for more than twelve hundred common
  screw threads.
• There's a sophisticated Tap Drill Guide with
  more than seven hundred twist drill sizes. Form
  tap drill sizes can be displayed for many of the
  thread types.
• An Info Window has application and plating
  guidelines and additional geometric information
  for each thread type.
• Lathe infeed calculations are available
  for manual machinists.
• You can Print a detailed report for each thread
  size.
• The display can be toggled between Inches and
  Millimeters.

Tracking down thread data is one of the biggest
time-wasters in manufacturing. Manual
calculations based on partial data are likely to
cause expensive errors. It's all here, fast and
accurate.
57
The Tap Drill Guide
75 Thread Selected
When you select a Thread Size, the minimum minor
diameter (internal) is checked and the first
drill in the database which is at least that
large is positioned at the middle of the sorted
Tap Drill Guide. This gives a thorough overview
of drilling options for a specific thread, and is
much more useful than an ordinary tap drill
chart. There's another worthwhile feature in
the Tap Drill Guide. For those Thread Types that
have Percent Thread data available, clicking the
desired percent value in the Percent Thread
listbox will cause the suggested drill size for
that thread to be positioned at the middle of the
Tap Drill Guide. Tap drill data for form (roll)
taps is available for many of the thread types.
If the Form option button at the top of the Tap
Drill Guide is enabled, selecting it will cause
display of recommended drills for form taps.
55 Thread Selected
58
The Thread Info WindowSome Useful Information
59
The Thread Report
You can display and (optionally) print this
report by clicking the Preview button. To print
the report immediately from the Threads Window,
click the Print button.
60
The Drill Depth Calculator

• The Drill Depth Calculator outputs the depth to
  feed a center drill, spot drill, or countersink
  to machine a specific chamfer diameter on the
  face of a workpiece, as well as the depth to feed
  a twist drill to machine a full-diameter hole of
  a specific depth.

61
Drill Depth Calculator Usage
For Center Drills, you'll need to enter the Drill
Size and Chamfer Diameter. For Spot Drills,
you'll need to enter the Drill Angle, Chamfer
Diameter and Drill Diameter. For Countersinks,
you'll need to enter the Tool Angle, Chamfer
Diameter and Tip Diameter. For Twist Drills,
you'll need to enter the Tool Angle, Drill
Diameter and Full-Diameter Hole Depth. For all
but center drills, there are two ways to specify
the included angle of your tool.  The first is a
Std Angle dropdown list of industry-standard
angles for the active tool type. The second is a
User Angle edit box that allows you to input
whatever geometrically-valid angle you like.
62
The Surface Finish Calculator
The most important factors affecting the
theoretical surface finish are feedrate and tool
radius. The Surface Finish Calculator displays
the range of feedrate/surface finish combinations
available when using a specific tool radius. The
best way to get started is to make sure you're in
the correct units mode, then select the radius of
your tool from the dropdown list. Next, enter
the finish you need to achieve.  The theoretical
required feedrate will be calculated and
displayed. Changing the feedrate updates the
surface finish for the active tool
radius. Changing the surface finish updates the
feedrate for the active tool radius. Changing
the tool radius updates the feedrate for the
active surface finish. The maximum value
allowed for surface finish is 500 microinches or
12.7 micrometers.
If Turning is selected in the Machining
Calculator, you can assign the feedrate
determined by the Surface Finish Calculator to
the Turning operation by clicking on the Post
button.
63
The Machining Data Editor

• The Machining Data Editor lets you edit the data
  used by the Machining Calculator to calculate
  recommended speeds and feeds.
• Each tool has edit boxes beside it that contain
  either a cutting speed or a feedrate value.
• The boxes labeled SFM or SMM show the cutting
  speeds for the various tool types when machining
  the Active Material.
• The labels for the other boxes represent tool
  diameters, and the edit boxes contain the
  corresponding feedrate values for the tools when
  machining the Active Material.
• Machinability is used to calculate machine power
  requirements for a specific material.  In the
  Machining Calculator, a material with a larger
  Machinability value requires more power than does
  a material with a smaller value.

64
Modifying Machining Data - The Basics

• The editor initially loads data for the Active
  Material. If that's not the material you want to
  modify, then select the one you want to work with
  from the Defined Materials dropdown list.
• The material you select then becomes the Active
  Material.
• The Modify function lets you change the
  machining parameters for a material that already
  exists in your data file.
• Once you've clicked it, the option to pick a
  different material is disabled, and several of
  the other input buttons turn green and are ready
  to use.

65
Modifying Machining Data - Individual Values

• This is how you modify individual values, in
  contrast to making mass
• changes.
• Click the Modify button.
• Change the values you're interested in by typing
  in the new values.
• To cancel unsaved changes, click the Undo button.
• If you cancel, the editor will exit Modify mode.
• If you're saving the changes, click the Save
  button.
• You'll be asked to confirm the Save.
• If the editor detects a syntax error, that error
  will be highlighted and
• you'll be able to correct it.

66
Modifying Machining Data - All Feedrates
This is how you modify all the feedrates by
a percentage factor. Click the Modify
button. Click the Feed - or Feed button. All
feedrates will be changed by 5 with each
click. To cancel unsaved changes, click the Undo
button. If you cancel, the editor will exit
Modify mode. If you're saving the changes, click
the Save button. You'll be asked to confirm the
Save. The data will be backed up and saved. The
editor will exit Modify mode.
67
Modifying Machining Data - All Speeds
This is how you modify all the cutting speeds by
a percentage factor. Click the Modify
button. Click the Speed - or Speed
button. All speeds will be changed by 5 with
each click. To cancel unsaved changes, click the
Undo button. If you cancel, the editor will exit
Modify mode. If you're saving the changes, click
the Save button. You'll be asked to confirm the
Save. The data will be backed up and saved. The
editor will exit Modify mode.
68
Creating New Machining Data

• Clone creates data for a new material by
  duplicating the data from an existing one.
• Select the material you want to Clone in the
  Defined Materials dropdown list.
• Click the Clone button.
• The new material data is created, and assigned
  the name "Unnamed Material".
• To discard the new material definition, click the
  Undo button and exit Clone mode.
• Before saving, rename the new material in the
  Active Material edit box.
• Click the Save button.
• If you've renamed the new material, the data will
  be backed up and saved.
• If you haven't renamed the new material, you'll
  be reminded.
• After saving, the new material will be appended
  to the list of materials.

69
Deleting Machining Data

• The Delete function deletes the data for the
  Active Material.
• Select the material you want to Delete in the
  Defined Materials dropdown list.
• Click the Delete button.
• A confirmation dialog will appear.
• If you click No to cancel, the editor will exit
  Delete mode.
• If you click Yes to proceed, the data file will
  be backed up as MEInchData.dat.bak
• or MEMetricData.dat.bak.  The active data file
  will then be saved, after deleting
• data for the Active Material.
• The editor will exit Delete mode.

70
Rearranging Machining Data

• The Move function moves the data for a material
  to a new location in the Material list.
• Click the Move button.
• To cancel the move, click the Cancel button.
• Enter the From and To positions for the material
  to be moved.
• Click the green input button below the From and
  To edit boxes.
• The data is moved.
• To undo the Move, click the Undo button. The
  Move is reversed and the editor exits Move mode.
• To save the Move, click the Save button. The
  Move is saved and the editor exits Move mode.

71
The Machine Specifications Editor

• The first time you run MEPro, a text file is
  created which stores performance information
  about
• five theoretical machine tools. By modifying the
  values in this file to reflect your actual
  machines,
• you can increase the accuracy of calculations
  made by the Machining Calculator and Job Planner.

You can add, remove, or modify a machine, as well
as change its position in the Machine dropdown
list. The following values can be modified. Max
RPM - Maximum RPM available to the machine HP
or KW - Power available to the machine spindle,
expressed as HP or KW Spindle - Spindle
efficiency of the machine tool, expressed as a
percentage Tool Change - Chip-to-chip tool
change time, expressed in seconds Setup -
Average number of setup minutes per job Shop
Rate - Monetary value of one hour of machine
time Except for the machine name and the power
rating, these values can be temporarily changed
inside of MEPro.
72
Modifying Machine Specs - The Basics

• The editor initially loads data for the Active
• Machine. If that's not the machine you want to
• modify, then select the one you want to work with
  
• from the Defined Machines dropdown list.
• The machine you select then becomes the Active
• Machine.
• The Modify function lets you change the
• specifications for a machine that already exists
  in
• your data file. Once you've clicked it, the
  option
• to pick a different machine is disabled, and
• the edit boxes become ready to receive input.

73
Modifying Machine Specs

• This is how you modify individual values
• Click the Modify button.
• Change the values you're interested in by typing
  in the new values.
• To cancel unsaved changes, click the Undo button.
• If you cancel, the editor will exit Modify mode.
• If you're saving the changes, click the Save
  button.
• You'll be asked to confirm the Save.
• If the editor detects a syntax error, that error
  will be highlighted and
• you'll be able to correct it.
• When there are no errors, the data will be backed
  up and saved.

74
Creating New Machine Specs

• Clone creates specifications for a new machine by
  duplicating the data from an existing one.
• Select the machine you want to Clone in the
  Defined Machines dropdown list.
• Click the Clone button.
• The new machine specs are created, and assigned
  the name "Unnamed Machine".
• To discard the new machine definition, click the
  Undo button and exit Clone mode.
• Before saving, rename the new machine in the
  Active Machine edit box.
• Click the Save button.
• If you've renamed the new machine, the data will
  be backed up and saved.
• If you haven't renamed the new machine, you'll be
  reminded.

75
Deleting Machine Specs

• The Delete function deletes the data for the
  Active Machine.
• Select the machine you want to Delete in the
  Defined Machines dropdown list.
• Click the Delete button.
• A confirmation dialog will appear.
• If you click No to cancel, the editor will exit
  Delete mode.
• If you click Yes to proceed, the data file will
  be backed up as
• MachiningSpecsData.dat.bak. The active data file
  will then be saved, after deleting
• data for the Active Machine.
• The editor will exit Delete mode.

76
Rearranging Machine Specs

• The Move function moves the data for a machine
  to a new location in the Machine list.
• Click the Move button.
• To cancel the move, click the Cancel button.
• Enter the From and To positions for the machine
  to be moved.
• Click the green input button below the From and
  To edit boxes.
• The data is moved.
• To undo the Move, click the Undo button. The
  Move is reversed and the editor exits Move mode.
• To save the Move, click the Save button. The
  Move is saved and the editor exits Move mode.

77
MEPro Configuration Basics

• Startup options for MEPro can be modified by
  clicking the Configure button at the right edge
  of the Machining Calculator.
• Changes are saved to the configuration file
  me.ini, and take effect the next time you run
  MEPro.
• Options can be changed at any time for the
  window you're working in, but the startup mode
  will always be determined by settings in the
  configuration file.

78
MEPro Configuration Categories
The Units section lets you specify which
measurement system is to be active, at startup,
for each of the MEPro functions. The option
buttons are labeled I for the inch system and M
for the metric. The Tooltips section lets you
choose whether to have tooltips turned on or off,
at startup, for six of the MEPro functions. The
Decimals section lets you choose how many decimal
places to display, at startup, for four of the
MEPro functions. The Machining section lets you
modify startup parameters related to the
Machining Calculator and Job Planner. Controls
to modify startup parameters for the Material
Planner are located in the lower left corner of
the Configure Window.
The Job Planner Labels section gives you space to
create up to twelve default labels for the
printed Job Plan Report. If you don't want
labels, leave these boxes blank. You can change
the labels from inside the Job Planner to
customize an individual report. They'll revert
to the default set each time you close and reopen
MEPro.
Detailed explanations of Configuration features
are in the User Guide.
79
The End
Thank you for your interest in ME Pro!