Five-axis machines are capable of complicated movement; however, their operation requires both experience and knowledge. For applying these machines to diversified small-quantity production, a sophisticated operating system that assists the operation in deriving the toolpath and avoiding errors is indispensable. From this perspective, the authors attempted to develop an automatic toolpath deriving method that detects processable polygons with a circular saw by analyzing a target geometry. A movement simulation method was also developed to ensure safety in operation. This paper reports the implementation of the system, and its validation through building a catenary dome that has miter joints.
