cam, mechanical device for converting a rotating motion into a reciprocating, or back-and-forth, motion, or for changing a simple motion into a complex one. A simple form of cam is a circular disk set eccentrically on a shaft in order to induce (when the shaft rotates) a rising and falling motion in a rod or some other moving part held against its edge. There are cams of many diverse shapes, e.g., oval, elliptical, and scalloped-edged, each shape being designed to induce the particular kind of motion required in a moving part. Cams are widely used in many different kinds of machines.

Cam Ranh Bay, inlet of the South China Sea, 10 mi (16 km) long and 20 mi (32 km) wide, S Vietnam. It is an excellent harbor linked to the sea by a strait (1 mi/1.6 km wide). The bay was the site of one of the largest U.S. military facilities (est. 1965) in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War and was seized by Communist forces in 1975. The USSR (now Russia) established a naval base there in the early 1980s.

CAM: see computer-aided manufacturing.

Machine component that either rotates or reciprocates (moves back and forth) to create a prescribed motion in a contacting element (the follower). Since the shape of the contacting surface of the cam is determined by the prescribed motion and the profile of the follower, cams take various forms. Cam-follower mechanisms are particularly useful when a simple motion of one part of a machine is to be converted to a more complicated prescribed motion of another part, one that must be accurately timed with respect to the simple motion and may include periods of rest (dwells). Cams are essential elements in automatic machine tools, printing machines, sewing machines, and textile machinery.

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Vietnamese Vinh Cam Ranh

Inlet of the South China Sea, south-central Vietnam. Located between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, it was a French colonial naval base. It was used by the Japanese in World War II. From 1965 it was a major U.S. base in the Vietnam War. It later was a major Soviet naval base, and Russia maintained a presence there after the dissolution of the U.S.S.R.

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in full computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing.

Integration of design and manufacturing into a system under direct control of digital computers. CAD systems use a computer with terminals featuring video monitors and interactive graphics-input devices to design such things as machine parts, patterns for clothing, or integrated circuits. CAM systems use numerically controlled (see numerical control) machine tools and high-performance programmable industrial robots. Drawings developed during the design process are converted directly into instructions for the production machines, thus optimizing consistency between design and finished product, and providing flexibility in altering machine operations. These two processes are sometimes grouped as CAE (computer-aided engineering).

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