Numerical control (CNC) machining
Control numérico de máquinas herramienta (CNC)
- Date
- 1952 · confidence high
- Place
- MIT Servomechanisms Laboratory, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
- Credited to
- John T. Parsons and Frank Stulen (idea); MIT (three-axis milling machine, 1952), funded by the Air Force
- People
- 👤 John T. Parsons1913–2007
- Field
- Tools
What it is
A machine tool guided by instructions coded on punched tape and later by computer. It made it possible to manufacture complex aviation parts with repeatable precision without skilled machinists.
What it led to
- Computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM) and industrial automation
- The disappearance of manual machining trades
- 3D printing and industrial robots as successors
Built on
- servomechanisms
- punched tape
- digital computer