ical Control (CNC) machine automatically controls machine tools by means of computer. A multipurpose CNC machine is designed to drill holes, cut, draw and engrave wood, metal or an acrylic board. It can be used to make a design on a board or to draw the layout of a printed circuit board.
The system consists of a computer, a microcontroller board and motors attached to the drilling and milling machine. The layout of the circuit or the design to be engraved is drawn, by means of an application software installed in the computer. The Arduino microcontroller board is attached with the computer via USB port. The microcontroller board receives information from the application software about the coordinates of the movement and type of the drill bits. It decodes them and exercises a controlled movement of the machine tools. The motor drivers control the movement of the machine tools in three dimensions (X, Y and Z axis) and create the design on the board. There is also a spindle drill connected with the motor drivers to control its angular motion. High precision and accuracy is achieved in the design through microcontroller.
The system has been tested to work with boards of different sizes and materials like wood, acrylic and copper. It has been tested to draw different shapes like circle, square, rectangle and alphabet shapes etc. In all cases its working has been found satisfactory. A circuit diagram is also drawn and its conversion to proper PCB has also been achieved successfully. The system can therefore be used in small industries to cut, drill and engrave a board automatically. It can draw layouts of circuits with precision and be helpful for making PCBs for small projects.