Selecting surfaces

[hancast]

Is there a way to select all the remaining surfaces that were not drive surfaces when you go to pick the check surfaces?

[Gary]

only by color masking and hiding and unhiding an far as I know.

[hancast]

I think it would be good if there was a choice of selecting all remaining surfaces, after picking drive sufaces. I think it would change alot of time.

[Thad]

Give this a try. When you have only the drive surfaces selected in your operation, select the operation and click the "Only display associative geometry" icon in the Ops manager. Only your drive surfs should be left on the screen. Window select them. Now click the "Only display associative geometry" button again to toggle it off. You should now have everything on the screen, with only your drives surfs selected. Click the invert selection icon, then ALt+E. You should now have all geometry on the screen EXCEPT the drive surfaces. Now you can select them for another toolpath or whatever you needed.

 

It sounds like a lot of work, but it can be done in seconds.

 

Thad

[Richard Thomas - Mastercam UK]

Hancast, happily there is an option to do what you want.

 

Go to Settings, Configuration and then go to the Toolpaths page. To the top right hand corner there are a number of options under the heading "Toolpath/surface selection".

You can change the option "Check" (third one down) from None, to Unselected.

 

Next time you do a surface toolpath, all the surfaces you do *not* pick as drive surfaces will become your check surfaces.

[hancast]

I knew there had to be an easier way, Thanks.

[Smit]

Nice tips, thanks gents.

[Roger Peterson]

You guys make life too difficult

While the config setting works, it applies to all toolpaths you create. And as we know having uneccesary check surfaces adds a lot of calculation time. So while sometimes I want all unused surfaces selected as check, most of the time I do not.

 

so here is what I do:

1. select your drive surfaces, end selection

 

2. hit the button to select the check surfaces

hit the "select last" button on the general selection ribbon bar.

 

3. hit the "invert selection" button on the general selection ribbon bar, end selection.

 

you now have all unused surfaces selected as your check surfaces. The other problem with the config setting is it only applies to the initial toolpath creation. It does not work if you import from operation library, or if you just want to add all unused surfaces at a later date.

 

to add all unused surfaces as check surfaces after initial toolpath creation you must simply hit the add drive surface button, hit end selection. Now when you go into check surface selection the "last" button will grab the drive surfaces from this toolpath.

 

 

I hope this is clear.

[jeff]

I just make all of my check surfaces the same color, and select those.

Quick and easy.