The Rookie Needs Help!

[operator1]

I'm trying to write a program using auto features now. I thought I had enough to make the program, but I'm stuck.

An alignment needs 6 degrees of freedom: level to, rotate to about.., and the X,Y, and Z origins. I figured a manual alignment would need the same thing (I'm a terribly good procrastinator and have not been able to look over those sites. Sorry, James).

I have to check a hook clamp with a height of 4.37 from the base to the center of the hooks, a width of 2.27, and a thickness of 1.88. There are 2 hooks (that obviously clamp on to something) toward the back of the part, and there is a hole towards the frot of the part. This hole has 3 different dimensions:
.75, .733, and .404. They want me to check the location of these holes (and the diameters, if I can). I know I can't get the bottom diameter without flipping the part to its back, and the hooks are in the way, so I won't get a good reading for the 2nd diameter, but that's not my question.

I'm trying to do a manual alignment. I leveled to the cylinder of the first diameter, rotated Y-minus about X-minus (the part is sitting straight up and lined up along the y-axis) to the side of the part, set the X and Y-origins to that of the cylinder, and used the top of the part where the hole starts as my Z-origin. The screen won't stop blinking, as to tell me the alignment is not complete. What am I missing or doing wrong?

[ag162]

I don't quite understand the part, can you upload a sketch or a pic?

A.Gore

[Perry Fisher]

I'm trying to write a program using auto features now. I thought I had enough to make the program, but I'm stuck.

An alignment needs 6 degrees of freedom: level to, rotate to about.., and the X,Y, and Z origins. I figured a manual alignment would need the same thing (I'm a terribly good procrastinator and have not been able to look over those sites. Sorry, James).

I have to check a hook clamp with a height of 4.37 from the base to the center of the hooks, a width of 2.27, and a thickness of 1.88. There are 2 hooks (that obviously clamp on to something) toward the back of the part, and there is a hole towards the frot of the part. This hole has 3 different dimensions:
.75, .733, and .404. They want me to check the location of these holes (and the diameters, if I can). I know I can't get the bottom diameter without flipping the part to its back, and the hooks are in the way, so I won't get a good reading for the 2nd diameter, but that's not my question.

I'm trying to do a manual alignment. I leveled to the cylinder of the first diameter, rotated Y-minus about X-minus (the part is sitting straight up and lined up along the y-axis) to the side of the part, set the X and Y-origins to that of the cylinder, and used the top of the part where the hole starts as my Z-origin. The screen won't stop blinking, as to tell me the alignment is not complete. What am I missing or doing wrong?

If your using a cylinder for manual alignment you may be trying to do too much with the manual. Try to simplify your manual features. The manual alignment is only to guide the CMM to the part close enough to measure DCC features and do a DCC alignment.

[John Kingston]

Perry makes a good point. I don't always use the same features in my manual alignment as in my DCC alignment. Use easy stuff to get close.

[Wes Cisco]

Also in describing your alignment, you do not tell us what plane you leveled to the cylinder. Your rotation my be overriding a degree of freedom you have already isolated by leveling.

[ag162]

On certain parts, it is easier and more time efficient to use other features to do the initial alignment. Once you get it close, then DCC the correct datum features to lock it in.

A.Gore

[#2#]

If I'm reading correctly your part is basically a block with a hole through it. You have the block sitting on the table with the hole pointing up. You measured the hole as a cylinder. You measured a line running y-plus on one side of the part. You measured a point on the top of the part.

You leveled z-plus to the cylinder
You rotated the line to y-plus
You set x and y to the cylinder
You set z to the point.

That looks good if I understood. If that is what you did, I suspect the 'flashing' has nothing to do with your alignment.

[operator1]

If I'm reading correctly your part is basically a block with a hole through it. You have the block sitting on the table with the hole pointing up. You measured the hole as a cylinder. You measured a line running y-plus on one side of the part. You measured a point on the top of the part.

1. You leveled z-plus to the cylinder
2. You rotated the line to y-plus
3. You set x and y to the cylinder
4. You set z to the point.

That looks good if I understood. If that is what you did, I suspect the 'flashing' has nothing to do with your alignment.

I took hits at the top of the area where the hole is(I can't call it a plane, because it is a radius. A huge radius, but the CMM measured it as a plane). I guess I could have measured a point on top of the part, tho.

1. Yes
2. Y-minus, but yes. Actually, I tried Y-Plus AND Y-minus
3. Yes
4. Z to the plane created from the top area

Usually after I place in all of the necessary components of the alignment, the screen stops blinking and the origin marker sticks to one place, showing me where the alignment placed my origin. It never stops moving and the origin marker rotates about X and Y as to say I pinned my Z-axis, but not my X and/or Y-axes.

[#2#]

I took hits at the top of the area where the hole is(I can't call it a plane, because it is a radius. A huge radius, but the CMM measured it as a plane). I guess I could have measured a point on top of the part, tho.

1. Yes
2. Y-minus, but yes. Actually, I tried Y-Plus AND Y-minus
3. Yes
4. Z to the plane created from the top area

Usually after I place in all of the necessary components of the alignment, the screen stops blinking and the origin marker sticks to one place, showing me where the alignment placed my origin. It never stops moving and the origin marker rotates about X and Y as to say I pinned my Z-axis, but not my X and/or Y-axes.

Can you post the code for your alignment?

[operator1]

I had some superb help fom someone very well educated--thank you Perry--so I have my alignment down the way it should be:

[operator1]

startup    =alignment/start,recall:, List= Yes
            Alignment/end
            Loadprobe/rick1tester
            Tip/t1a0b0, Shankijk=0, 0, 1, Angle=0
            Workplane/zplus
            Prehit/ 0.075
            Retract/ 0.055
            Check/ 0.4724,1
            Movespeed/ 20
            Scanspeed/ 2
            Fly/on,0.1181
            Workplane/zplus
            Mode/manual
Manualpln  =feat/plane,rect
            Theo/4.2522,16.5891,-29.3224,-0.0002502,-0.0004395,0.9999999
            Actl/4.2522,16.5891,-29.3224,-0.0002502,-0.0004395,0.9999999
            Meas/plane,3
            Hit/basic,4.9813,16.7221,-29.3222,-0.0002502,-0.0004395,0.9999999,4.9813,16.7221,-29.3222,use Theo = Yes
            Hit/basic,4.3869,16.2542,-29.3226,-0.0002502,-0.0004395,0.9999999,4.3869,16.2542,-29.3226,use Theo = Yes
            Hit/basic,3.3885,16.7911,-29.3226,-0.0002502,-0.0004395,0.9999999,3.3885,16.7911,-29.3226,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
Y-axis Line=feat/line,rect,unbnd
            Theo/4.6619,21.6467,-29.0125,-0.0134382,0.9999097,0
            Actl/4.6619,21.6467,-29.0125,-0.0134382,0.9999097,0
            Meas/line,2,workplane
            Hit/basic,4.6619,21.6467,-29.0125,-0.9999097,-0.0134382,0,4.6619,21.6467,-29.0125,use Theo = Yes
            Hit/basic,4.635,23.6473,-29.0125,-0.9999097,-0.0134382,0,4.635,23.6473,-29.0125,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
Y-origin Pt=feat/point,rect
            Theo/1.793,18.7824,-27.3073,0,0,1
            Actl/1.793,18.7824,-27.3073,0,0,1
            Meas/point,1
            Hit/basic,1.793,18.7824,-27.3073,0,0,1,1.793,18.7824,-27.3073,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
Manual1    =alignment/start,recall:startup, List= Yes
            Alignment/level,zplus,manualpln
            Alignment/rotate,yplus,to,y-axis Line,about,zplus
            Alignment/trans,xaxis,y-axis Line
            Alignment/trans,yaxis,y-origin Pt
            Alignment/trans,zaxis,manualpln
            Alignment/end
            Mode/dcc
Dccy-rotate=feat/line,rect,unbnd
            Theo/-0.0043,0.1398,3.7402,-0.000095,1,0
            Actl/-0.0043,0.1398,3.7402,-0.000095,1,0
            Meas/line,2,workplane
            Hit/basic,-0.0043,0.1398,3.7402,1,0.000095,0,-0.0043,0.1398,3.7402,use Theo = Yes
            Hit/basic,-0.0045,1.6764,3.7397,1,0.000095,0,-0.0045,1.6764,3.7397,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
Dccx-origin=feat/point,rect
            Theo/-0.0042,0.329,3.6453,1,0,0
            Actl/-0.0042,0.329,3.6453,1,0,0
            Meas/point,1
            Hit/basic,-0.0042,0.329,3.6453,1,0,0,-0.0042,0.329,3.6453,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
            Move/point,0.1996,-1.0614,3.646
            Move/point,-0.4639,-1.0522,3.4722
Dccy-origin=feat/point,rect
            Theo/-0.4541,-0.2443,3.472,0,-1,0
            Actl/-0.4541,-0.2443,3.472,0,-1,0
            Meas/point,1
            Hit/basic,-0.4541,-0.2443,3.472,0,-1,0,-0.4541,-0.2443,3.472,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
            Move/point,-0.0187,-1.1704,0.8486
Dccz-originlevelpln=feat/plane,rect
            Theo/-0.4499,0.2227,-0.0003,0.0000009,0.000365,0.9999999
            Actl/-0.4499,0.2227,-0.0003,0.0000009,0.000365,0.9999999
            Meas/plane,3
            Hit/basic,0.2678,-0.9283,0.0001,0.0000009,0.000365,0.9999999,0.2678,-0.9283,0.0001,use Theo = Yes
            Hit/basic,-0.6973,-0.9153,0.0001,0.0000009,0.000365,0.9999999,-0.6973,-0.9153,0.0001,use Theo = Yes
            Move/point,-0.6967,-0.9369,6.0483
            Move/point,-0.6448,2.9222,6.0467
            Hit/basic,-0.9201,2.5115,-0.0012,0.0000009,0.000365,0.9999999,-0.9201,2.5115,-0.0012,use Theo = Yes
            Endmeas/
Dcc        =alignment/start,recall:manual1, List= Yes
            Alignment/level,zplus,dccz-originlevelpln
            Alignment/rotate,yplus,to,dccy-rotate,about,zplus
            Alignment/trans,xaxis,dccx-origin
            Alignment/trans,yaxis,dccy-origin
            Alignment/trans,zaxis,dccz-originlevelpln
            Alignment/end

[operator1]

So now I have to create the features I need to check, and I'm hoping to do 80-90% of them using the AUTO features option(although someone who uses PCDMIS for a machine{who knew just about as much as I knew before I had the help} told me there were some features I had to take manual hits for) to create the program.

Now my next issue is with using auto features......given my alignments are correct(which they should be, because I had someone walk me through it (baby step after baby step....)

[rangerboat72]

Can you post the pictures of you & your room mate?

Please do. I'd like to see them too...

[operator1]

Please do. I'd like to see them too...

Why do you want to see us so bad? We're ugly, nerdy, and have no fashion taste. You don't wanna see that.....

[John Kingston]

What do you want to measure using autofeatures? Lets start there. Be careful not to get any jello on the bearing surfaces on the granite.