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COE DISCUSSION FORUM
Forums > COE Forums > MFG
Subject: Compute Tool Path is wasting my time

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Author Messages
CLIFFJOHNSON


16 Dec 2007 11:18 AM
Lately I have been using a lot of feature recognition, prismatic machining areas, and machining process catalogs.

It is very easy to generate hundreds of operations quickly.

There is invariably 2 or 3 machining operations that will not compute a tool path. It seems that some recognized pockets "forget" their boundary curve definitions. But thats another issue...

The problem I have is that  Catia stops all computations when any single operation fails. 

When this happens then is I fix the problem (or skip past the offending operation for now) and restart the Compute Tool Path command.

It would be much better if Catia would compute all the operations that it can compute then tell me which ones failed and why somehow..   Then I can just walk away from the computer and let it run for a few hours. Hopefully at night.

As it is now I have to keep checking in and confirming that progress continues.

I have not had much success trying to develop a macro to perform the "Compute Tool Path" command.  That is mostly complicated by the fact that interactively, "Compute Tool Path" requires you to hit the Enter Key, twice, andbehaves differently for non-computable operations. StartCommand and SendKeys just don't seem up to it. 

It is a bit bewildering to me that a ManufacturingOperation object doesn't have a ComputeMe method. Which returns the status of the computation. Perhaps it is somewhere?

MfgAptGenerator and that whole mess seem geared towards generating output, not towards automating computations.

Does anyone have a working approach for this problem?
SAMARINDER


16 Dec 2007 09:49 PM
Hi Cliff,
I also go thru this problem sometimes and I agree with you that catia must compute all tool-paths regardless of failure in a few ops.
But sometimes I find the button with swirly icon along with x and ! (Display Status of Selected Activities) useful. Then again ,I usually forget to use it before I hit the compute button.
I think dassault needs to make it more flexible. So it doesnt stop on single machining op.
I have never seen this problem with other cadcams I used ug,mastercam,surfcam.
Samarinder Singh
CUTPATHCNC
DAVE SUMM


17 Dec 2007 05:54 AM
If the computation fails on a roughing strategy but continues to calculate further toolpaths and there is another roughing MO then it wouldn't calculate the rest areas properly.
David Summerscales

Concentric Asia Pacific
SZACHARIA

17 Dec 2007 07:42 AM
Hi Samarinder:
Sorry for asking but how does the Display Status fo Selected Activities work?? I tried to use it and it keeps asking me to select a manufacturing entity, nothing happens when I select a M.O Could you please tell me what I am doing wrong or what I should see when I use that button?? I tried to look up on help docs but there is nothing there ..

Thank you in advance.

Regards

Zac.
DFRANK


17 Dec 2007 08:44 AM

Cliff said:

 It seems that some recognized pockets "forget" their boundary curve definitions. But thats another issue...

If there was some syntax, geometry status check, that would be helpful. A tool that would make sure that all MO's has boundary curve definitions, and what ever else was needed to properly compute.

Hmmmmm, is that what Display Status of Selected Activities is supposed to do???

This is all there is I found in the doc's on it.
Allows display of activity status in tree. This command is available when the Update Activity Status Automatically check box is not selected in the Tools > Options > Machining > General tab.

 

And yes, it should continue to compute, IMHO.

Dave

 

 

 

 
ROGER_BOMBASSEI

18 Dec 2007 09:30 AM
I don't know if this will help in your case, but you might try locking all of the MOs after you compute them.  Only unlock them when you need to make changes.
Roger Bombassei -
Online CATIA MFG Instructor
roger@catiaonline.com
SZACHARIA

18 Dec 2007 09:49 AM
I could understand why catia dosen't compute any further if it hits an incomplete M.O, especially with roughing as stock is automatically calculated from previous ops, I believe it is a good feature. But when it stops it will give an error message like ' Profile Contouring.195 failed to compute' I don't know how they think that the programmer would find that bad 'Profile Contouring.195' from within a process that have 25 tool changes and 500 M.O's !!!! especially if it is another programmer optimizing the program from previous run. Its a nightmare.. I mean for me.. I don't know whether there is a better way to find that M.O other than opening all the tool changes and looking thru each and every M.O. Guess what after finding and fixing that M.O and you set it to force compute again it will stop at another "Facing.65 failed to compute" thats when I start throwing stuff at other people and pull my hair and bite my fingers off my hands ...
ROGER_BOMBASSEI

18 Dec 2007 10:17 AM

Jeeez Zac you must be under a lot of pressure.

Roger Bombassei -
Online CATIA MFG Instructor
roger@catiaonline.com
DFRANK


18 Dec 2007 10:27 AM
Posted By ROGER BOMBASSEI on 18 Dec 2007 10:17 AM

Jeeez Zac you must be under a lot of pressure.

 

There is no pressure where you work Roger?

Are there any job openings?
SAMARINDER


18 Dec 2007 10:35 AM
Hello All,
The Display St Sd Act button is only useful if the file contains computed toolpaths and next time you open it and find some design change or any missing geometry.
I found that creating machining areas and setting up all tool changes and mo, the activity status doesn check if something is missing or not.
But it is helpful when you are working on someone else's file.
Zac you might want to try this when working on 500 mo.
As Dave said leave sts act check box "unchecked" in machiining general option
then select manf. prgm expand it to mo level and hit the sts act button
you'll find it will put x or ! on your Profile Contouring.195 mo.
Thanks
Samarinder Singh
CUTPATHCNC
ROGER_BOMBASSEI

18 Dec 2007 11:23 AM

Everyplace has openings for V5 NC guys.

Roger Bombassei -
Online CATIA MFG Instructor
roger@catiaonline.com
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