Apr 1, 2017

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AUTOMATICALLY
PROGRAMMED
TOOLS
(APT)
Submitted by:
Shrikant Awad 162090010
Ankush Desai 162090011
INTRODUCTION OF APT
The APT language was the product of MIT development work

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on NC programming systems.
Its development began in June 1956, and it was first used in
production around 1959.

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Although first intended as a contouring language , modern
versions of APT can be used for both positioning and
continuous path programming.
APT is a three-dimensional NC programming system.
APT is not only a language; it is also the computer
program that processes the APT statements to
calculate the corresponding cutter positions and
generate the machine tool control commands
 To program in APT, the part geometry must first
be defined. Then the tool is directed to various
point locations and along surfaces of the work

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part to accomplish the required machining
operations.
The viewpoint of the programmer is that the

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work piece remains stationary, and the tool is
instructed to move relative to the part.
To complete the program, speeds and feeds must
be specified, tools must be called, tolerances must
be given for circular interpolation, and so forth.
 The statements are constructed of APT
vocabulary words, symbols, and numbers,

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all arranged using appropriate
punctuation.
APT vocabulary words consist of six or

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fewer characters.
Most APT statements include a slash (/) as part
of the punctuation.

Geometry Name= major word/definition

WHY APT ?

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APT was created before graphical user interfaces were
available, and so it is based on text to specify the geometry
and toolpaths needed to machine a part. It has English-like

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commands: GOLFT for Go Left, TANTO for Tangent to, etc.

You first write a program in APT, software converts it

into a series of tool coordinates called Cutter Location
Data (CLD). Another piece of software, a translator called a
Postprocessor, then converts the CLD into an NC
program (the G and M code program) that is understood
by the machine. You feed the NC program into the machine
and cut the part.
 In APT, the machining instructions are written in English-
like statements that are subsequently translated by the
computer into the low-level machine code that can be

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interpreted and executed by the machine tool controller.

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When using one of the part programming languages, the
two main tasks of the programmer are:
(1) Defining the geometry of the workpart.
(2) Specifying the tool path and operation sequence
 There are four basic types of statements in the APT language:

Geometry statements: also called definition statements; are used

to define the geometry elements that comprise the part.

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Motion commands: are used to specify the tool path.

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Postprocessor statements: control the machine tool operation,
for example, to specify speeds and feeds, set tolerance values
for circular interpolation, and actuate other capabilities of the
machine tool.

Auxiliary statements: a group of miscellaneous statements

used to name the part program, insert comments in the
program and accomplish similar functions.
1. GEOMETRY STATEMENTS
The general form of geometry statements is:

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symbol = geometry type / descriptive data
An example of such statement is:
P1 = POINT/100.0, 200.0, 300.0

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The statement is made up of three sections.
The first is the symbol use to identify the geometric element. Normally the
alphabet P is used for defining a Point, C for Circle, L for Line and
Pl for Plane.
The second section of the geometry statement is an APT vocabulary word
that identifies the type of geometry element. e.g. POINT, LINE, CIRCLE,
PLANE, etc.
The third section of the geometry statement is the descriptive data
 Rules for formulating APT geometry

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statements:
Coordinate data must be specified in the order x,

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then y, then z.
Any symbols used as descriptive data must have

been previously defined.

A symbol can be used to define only one geometry
element.
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DEFINITION OF POINT-1:
( COORDINATE VALUES )

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Y P1 = POINT/2,2,2

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P1
2

2
DEFINITION OF POINT-2:
(INTERSECTION OF TWO PREVIOUSLY DEFINED
LINES)

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P2 = POINT / INTOF,L1,L2

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L1

P2

L2
DEFINITION OF POINT-3:
(INTERSECTION POINT OF A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED LINE
AND CIRCLE)

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P3 = POINT / XSMALL, INTOF, L1, C1
Or P3 = POINT / YSMALL, INTOF, L1, C1
P4 = POINT / XLARGE, INTOF, L1, C1

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Or P4 = POINT / YLARGE, INTOF, L1, C1

C1
Y
P4

L1

P3

X
DEFINITION OF POINT-5: (ON THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF
A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED CIRCLE )

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P2 = POINT / C1,ATANGL,75

P2

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75
X

C1
DEFINITION OF POINT-6:
(CENTER POINT OF A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED CIRCLE )

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P2 = POINT / CENTER, C1

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P2

C1
DEFINITION OF LINE-1:
(PASSING THROUGH TWO PREVIOUSLY DEFINED
POINTS)

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L1 = LINE/P1,P2

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P2 L1

P1
DEFINITION OF LINE-2:
(PASSING THROUGH A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED POINT AND

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TANGENT TO A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED CIRCLE)
L3 = LINE / P1, RIGHT, TANTO, C1
L4 = LINE / P1, LEFT, TANTO, C1

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The RIGHT or LEFT modifiers are applied by looking from the point to the
circle and deciding whether the line will pass to the right or left of the circle.

L4

C1

P1 L3
DEFINITION OF LINE-3:
(TANGENT TO TWO PREVIOUSLY DEFINED CIRCLES)

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L1 = LINE / LEFT, TANTO, C1, LEFT, TANTO, C2
L1 = LINE / RIGHT, TANTO, C2, RIGHT, TANTO, C1

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The RIGHT & LEFT modifiers are applied looking from the first circle
quoted to the second

L1

C2

C1
DEFINITION OF LINE-3: CONTD.
(TANGENT TO TWO PREVIOUSLY DEFINED CIRCLES)

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L3 = LINE / LEFT, TANTO, C1, RIGHT, TANTO, C2
L4 = LINE / RIGHT, TANTO, C1, LEFT, TANTO, C2

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L3
C2

C1

L4
DEFINITION OF LINE-4:
(PASSING THROUGH A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED POINT AT A
SPECIFIED ANGLE TO THE X-AXIS)

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L2 = LINE / P1, ATANGL, 30
L2 = LINE / P1, ATANGL, -150

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L2
Y

P1 30

150

X
DEFINITION OF LINE-5:
(PASSING THROUGH A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED POINT,
PARALLEL TO A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED LINE)

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L3 = LINE/P3,PARLEL,L2

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P3

L3

L2
DEFINITION OF LINE-6:
(PASSING THROUGH A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED POINT,
PERPENDICULAT TO A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED LINE)

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L3 = LINE/P1,PERPTO,L2

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P1

L2
L3
DEFINITION OF CIRCLE-1:
(COORDINATES OF CENTER OF CIRCLE, WITH A GIVEN
RADIUS)

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C1 = CIRCLE/X,Y,R

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C1

(X,Y)
DEFINITION OF CIRCLE-2:
(PREVIOUSLY DEFINED CENTER POINT AND TANGENT TO A
PREVIOUSLY DEFINED LINE)

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C2 = CIRCLE/CENTER,P1,TANTO,L2

L2

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P1
C2
DEFINITION OF CIRCLE-4:
(PASSING THROUGH THREE PREVIOUSLY DEFINED POINTS)

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C3 = CIRCLE/P1,P2,P3

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P2
P1

C3

P3
DEFINITION OF PLANE:
(BY THREE PREVIOUSLY DEFINED POINTS)

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PL4 = PLANE/P1,P2,P3

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2. MOTION STATEMENTS
APT motion statements have a general format:

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motion command / descriptive data
e.g. GOTO / P1
At the beginning of the motion statements tool must be given a starting

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point
FROM / P0
Or FROM / -2, -2, 0

The FROM is an APT vocabulary word which indicates that this is the
initial point from which others will be referenced. The FROM statement
occurs only once at the start of the motion sequence.
USE OF THE APT MOTION WORDS.
THE TOOL HAS MOVED FROM A

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PREVIOUS POSITION TO ITS PRESENT
POSITION.

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THE DIRECTION OF THE NEXT MOVE
IS DETERMINED BY ONE OF THE APT
MOTION WORDS
Motion commands:
GOLFT/ : Move left along the drive surface

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GORGT/ : Move right along the drive surface
GOUP/ : Move up along the drive surface

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GODOWN/ : Move down along the drive surface
GOFWD/ : Move forward from a tangent position
GOBACK/ : Move backward from a tangent position
THE MACHINING PLAN

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GORGT/ <drive surface>, <check surface>
Start A B C D E Start

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z

FROM/ START
y
GOTO/ L1, TO, PL1, ON, L3
GORGT/ L1, TANTO, C1
x
C
GOFWD/ C1, TANTO, L2 D

GOFWD/ L2, PAST, L3 L2

GOLFT/ L3, PAST, L1 L3 C1

GOTO/ START
L1
E

B
A Start
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In APT there are two basic types of motion statements:
a) Point to Point motion

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b) Contouring motion
A) POINT TO POINT MOTION
There are only two commands: GOTO and GODLTA.

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The GOTO statement instructs the tool to go to a particular point
location specified in the descriptive data.

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Examples:
GOTO/P2
GOTO/25.0,40.0,0

In the first command, P2 is the destination of the tool point. In

the second command, the tool has been instructed to go to the
location whose coordinates are x=25.0, y=40.0, and z=0.
 The GODLTA command specifies an
incremental move for the tool.
The GODLTA statement is useful in drilling and

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related machining operations. The tool can be
directed to go to a given hole location; then the
GODLTA command can be used to drill the hole,

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as in the following sequence:
GOTO/P2
GODLTA/0,0,-50.0
GODLTA/0,0,50.0
B) CONTOURING MOTION
In contouring motion commands the tool position must be continuously

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controlled throughout the move. For contouring movements, the tool is
directed along intersecting surfaces. These surfaces have specific names in
APT.

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 Drive Surface (DS): the surface against which the edge of tool rides.
Part Surface (PS) : the surface on which the bottom end of the tool rides.

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Check Surface (CS) : the surface at which the tool motion is stop.

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HOW TO APPROACH THE CHECK
SURFACE
Modifier words, such as TO, ON, PAST or TANTO, are used to govern the

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position of the tool in relation to the check surface.

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HOW TO USE THE DRIVE SURFACE
Motion statements, GOLFT (go to the left), GOFWD (go forward) and

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GORGT(go to the right), are also used to control the cutter motion.

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THE MACHINING PLAN

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CS CS CS

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DS DS DS

TO ON PAST
3. POST PROCESSOR STATEMENT
Post processor command for a particular tool are :
MACHIN/ : use to specify the machine tool and call the post processor for the tool.

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e.g.- MACHIN/DRILL,3
COOLNT/ : allow the coolant fluid to be turned on or off.
e.g.- COOLNT/OFF

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COOLNT /ON
COOLNT/FLOOD
COOLNT/MIST
FEDRAT/: specifies the feed rate for moving the tool along the part surface in
inches per minutes:
e.g.- FEDRAT/4.5
SPINDL/: gives the spindle rotation speed in revolution per minute.
e.g.- SPINDL/ 850
FINI: end of program
MACHINING SPECIFICATIONS

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FEDRAT/ : specifies the feed rate for moving the tool along the
part surface in inches per minute:

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FEDRAT/ 4.5
SPINDL/ : gives the spindle rotation speed in revolutions per
minute:
SPINDL/ 850
TURRET/ : can be used to call a specific tool from an
automatic tool changer:
TURRET/ 11
 UNITS/MM indicates that the specified units in the
program are INCHES or MM.

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INTOL/0.02 specifies inward tolerance for circular
interpolation (OUTTOL/0.02).

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SPINDL/1000,CLW specifies spindle rotation speed in
revolutions per minute. Either CLW (clockwise) or
CCLW (counterclockwise) can be specified.
(SPINDL/OFF)
CUTTER/20 defines cutter diameter for tool path
offset calculation
DELAY/30 temporarily stops the machine tool for a
period specified in seconds.
 FEDRAT/40,IPM specifies feedrate in

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mm/min or in/min as specifies in UNITS
statements. (FEDRAT/4,IPR)
RAPID engage high feedrate for next moves.

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COOLNT/FLOOD turns fluid one
(COOLNT/MIST)
(COOLNT/OFF)

LOADTL/01 used with automatic tool

changing
4. AUXILIARY STATEMENTS

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Auxiliary statements are used to identify the part
program, specify which postprocessor to use, insert
remarks into the program, and so on. Auxiliary

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statements have no effect on the generation of tool
path.
Examples:
PARTNO is the first statement in an APT program,
used to identify the program; for example, PARTNO
SAMPLE PART NUMBER ONE
REMARK is used to insert explanatory comments
into the program that are not interpreted or processed
by the APT processor.
FINI indicates the end of an APT program
MACHINING SPECIFICATIONS

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Specified
Specified path
path

OUTTOL

INTOL
MACHINING SPECIFICATIONS

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PARTNO: identifies the part program and is inserted at the start of
the program.

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CLPRINT: indicates that a cutter location printout is desired.
CUTTER: specifies a cutter diameter for offset (rough versus finish
cutting). If a milling cutter is 0.5 in. in diameter and we have
CUTTER/ 0.6
then the tool will be offset from the finish cut by 0.05 in.
APT PROGRAM
MACHIN/ MILL

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P0 = POINT/ 0, 0, 3
P1 = POINT/ 1, 0
L1 = LINE/ P1, SLOPE, 0
L2 = LINE/ P1, SLOPE, 90

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L3 = LINE/ PARLEL, L1, YLARGE, 2
L4 = LINE/ (POINT/ 4, 2), SLOPE, 1, L3
L5 = LINE/ (POINT/ 6, 4), ATANGL, 270, L4
L6 = LINE/ (POINT/ 10, 0), PEPTO, L3
L5 L4
P2 = POINT/ INTOF, L3, L4
P3 = POINT/ INTOF, L4, L5 L3
P4 = POINT/ INTOF, L5, L3
PL = PLANE/ P1, P2, P3
L6 L2

CUTTER/ 60 L1
TOLER/ 0.1
SPINDL/ 200
COOLNT/ ON P0
FEDRAT/ 20
Apr 1, 2017 V.J.T.I. Mumbai
Thank you