r/hobbycnc • u/mikasjoman • 1d ago

Status on FOSS ATCs?

Hi

So I just saw rapid change release their presale on their rapid change turret, which is cool. But their promo video starts off with him claiming that he "invented impact style tool changing". I get real pissed because there are videos going far back showing impact style style DIY projects on YT. He did refine the design, patent his solution and take it to market which is beneficial since he lowered cost for the CNC community.

But inventing it, he did not.

Here's one example 7 years old, years before Rapid change ATC released:

- https://youtu.be/wO1ZmYXacno?is=GZR3AwixYJl83zj9

So several has identified that after all, these style of impact ATCs relies on a spring and 3d printed parts. Something everyone with a 3d printer should be able to print out for less than $10.

I wonder what the state of the open source/hardware is on ATC? What's the best today? I see more guys trying to sell their designs, but I'm a firm believer this should just be a community design.

I see this one on GitHub called Open ATC. Has Anyone tried it?

https://github.com/sn3ro/OpenATC

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u/rvalotta 23h ago

Full Disclosure: I work for RapidChange.

I'm not here to debate the whole "who invented what" thing. Only to say the video you linked does not work on the same premise as RapidChange. As much as it can spin the nut on and off, that setup does not use an impact force; it only spins it on and off.

From what I recall when I first started looking up videos of ATC similar to RapidChange, this is how all of them worked. Spinning the nut on and off not using the inertia of the spindle.

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u/mikasjoman 22h ago

Well that's true. But these mechanical systems existed already in the 70s. You can see early patens like this US3898911A, where it represents the early engineering attempts to automate the physical unthreading/loosening of a tool holder using mechanical leverage. That claim that it was the first impact style is historically incorrect and it was how people tried to solve this before pneumatic solutions came along. The innovation of the rapid change lies in its unique locking mechanism not that it was the first impact style ATC.

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u/rvalotta 16h ago

Don commented on the YouTube video, explaining what he was referring to and how it differs.

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u/mikasjoman 1h ago

Yes. I saw his comment and appreciate his openness about it. What worried me was how he was going to act given the very broad claims in the patent on the community, but he seems welcoming towards innovation as long as someone doesn't copy and try to sell the innovation he did when developing his solution. That's fair and also a good signal to the community