Please help explain this mcam error msg:

[MetalFlake]

Getting a chain error on a containment boundry for a Rough-Pocket toolpath. Looks like this:

 

 

 

 

....The chain looks fine to me. Its continous and everything. I got rid of any splines and squashed it, & got rid of any real small entities. I also made 1 arc where there were three back to back arcs. What gives?

 

MF

[J. Rod Rood Warmoth Guitar]

You may have some overlapping entities. Try analyze chain and delete duplicates. Screen statistics may help find the problem as well.

[MetalFlake]

I tried the fndovlp.dll c-hook ---No luck.

 

No duplicate entities..

 

..Here, give it a go PLEASE!! Its on the FTP MC( folder: SURF-RUF ERR.MC9

 

Many thanks!!!

 

MF

[J. Rod Rood Warmoth Guitar]

Did not find the SURF-RUF ERR.MC9 folder. Did you mean file? If so, what folder is it in. You might also try chaining the geometry and sending it to a clean level. Then do a file, next menu, RAM saver. Do not delete duplicates unless you really know that that is what you want to do. Save the file. Then open the file afresh. See if that works.

[Allan]

Setting the containment boundry to inside compensation is the culprut here. Set to center will produce the same toolpath (unless you need some offset of the center boundry? it was set to 0.0").

 

The error is generated because the small sharp corner enities can and always seem to blow up. Try an offset of the boundry (using xform ofs ctour)and you will usually see where the problem is.

 

HTH

Allan

[Thad]

Whatcha makin' there, MetalFlake?

 

This is a very annoying error indeed! We get it often when extracting edge curves to use as containment boundaries. One time I got that error after creating 2 vertical lines, 2 horizontal lines and trimming them to a rectangle! Now if that isn't "clean" geometry, I don't know what is.

 

 

quote:

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The error is generated because the small sharp corner enities can and always seem to blow up. Try an offset of the boundry (using xform ofs ctour)and you will usually see where the problem is.

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Thanks for the insight Allan, but could you be more specific? What should I look for after offsetting the boundary. Actually, that is usually the culprit behind this error. My chain will be fine until I offset it. Wonder what I'm doing wrong?

 

Thad

[foolsh]

it seems everybody is getting this error,a way around it,is to offset the boundary out and use center for tool boundary.or else change the boundary into one spline,sometimes it works!

[MetalFlake]

J. Rod Rood,

 

Folder on the FTP = MC9

 

File name = SURF-RUF ERR.MC9

 

Thanks!!

[Thad]

quote:

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a way around it,is to offset the boundary out and use center for tool boundary.

---

That's usually what causes the error.

 

quote:

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or else change the boundary into one spline,sometimes it works!

---

That has worked for us. Sometimes when it doesn't, changing it back to lines and arcs works. Sometimes changing the tolerance on ANY of these changes works. Sometimes squashing works. Sometimes the find overlap chook works. That's what I don't like about this. I've never had one that I couldn't fix, but it could be any of a number of things that actually fix it. I'd like something a little more concrete.

 

Thad

[Allan]

The times I see it fail are when the arc rads in the corners are smaller than the cutter rad/ offset rad and the entity either disapears or blows up and goes the other direction. Try offsetting a closed spline with some small corners.

 

Before we had the option of left or right offsetting this was never a problem. What I would like is a dynamically settable offset left right or center.

 

Allan

[Bruce Gibson]

MetalFlake,

I downloaded your file and it regened the toolpath no problem. All it asked was for a start point.

One thing that might be causing you trouble, is that some of your arcs are "flipped". Try screen, next menu, combine veiws.

 

Bruce

[Shawn Wentzel- Wenteq Inc]

what is 'squash'? Never used it.

[Thad]

XForm-Squash will squash all geometry selected to your desired Z level. It was a chook in V8, but now it's on the side menu.

 

Thad