planar chain?

[joeldiaz]

Thank you for your help, I'm new in Mastercam and i'm dealing with mold making where I use a digital arm to grab points or shapes in different planes and then i need to create surfaces or solids but i can't because the're not planar (flat) how can I recreate the shape so it is flat? will i be able to create a solid or surface? thank you for your help again. Joel Diaz [email protected]

[Steve Biehl - Cimquest Inc]

Xform-Squash

[Dan_AKA_ROY]

Transform/Squash is a very useful tool in mc. joel, play around with squash - it will come in handy. squash precisely maintains the x and y coordinates of whichever construction plane your in while collapsing the z coordinates to a fixed, constant depth which you decide. it is most useful for surface/project toolpaths i have found among other things.

 

when you digitize and have points in 3D space showing up on the screen they are not planar. of course. but what about your 3 reference points? are they at the same depth?

 

to build a 3D wireframe off of points set cplane to 3D. you could define alternate cplanes using your points and that may come in handy but for the most part leave cplane to 3D. arcs, lines are primary wireframe entities, but learn about splines. at times if one builds a 3D wireframe using lines and arcs they may have problems tangentally connecting them. in this case leave the ends unconnected and use spline/blend. or just connect the points using create/spline/manual while in the 3D cplane.

 

manipulate cplanes. that will help you. if you have a wedge modeled and you need to draw a circle on the slanted surf, solid, or wireframe click on cplane/entity to select 2 lines or whatever and bingo! the circle you draw will be parallel to the slanted wedge. you can go in WCS to make the new cplane look like the top view.

 

you can create surfaces or solids planar or non-planar so long as your geometry lets you.

 

welcome to the forum! this place is the best when your stumped and need answers. you'll love mastercam. very powerful program.

[joeldiaz]

Thank you Danniel Fitz for all your help. Wow I feel like in family for all this support!

[Rob Dusenbury CAD/CAM CONSULTING]

Joel I will be out there around 9am tommorow I will give you a call somtime today after class. Also I want thank you guy's for helping Joel out,He's new and his boss just through a bunch of stuff at him. Thanks again!