GROUPS and Chains...

[Niezingerly]

Howdy all.

 

I am in search of a way to use "GROUPS" (see picture #1) to aid in selecting chained geometry.

 

I do differing variations of the same thing, day in and day out, month after month, and I am always looking for ways to "automate" things in my programming...It gets VERY boring and very tedious otherwise...(it pays the bills)

 

Anyhow, I am currently using GROUPS, where I have saved surface or solid geometry into a group, and then I use an external keystroke recorder to execute a set of keystrokes, and I can make Mastercam select geometry "semi"-automatically...

 

But, so far, I am unable to get chained geometry to be selectable by GROUPS...

 

 

 

Does anyone know how I could first:

 

 

 

Define a chain in a GROUP, with correct chaining "direction" and the correct "side" defined...

 

and then...

 

Also be able to select that GROUP from within the operation...

 

 

 

 

I have proven that, for example, in a Surface Finish Contour operation, I can go to select Drive Geometry, and then I can click the "ALL" button (see pic #2) and there at the top is the "GROUP MANAGER".

 

I can enter that GROUP MANAGER, and then select the group I want, and that geometry is selected...

 

But, when I attempt to select Containment Geometry, there is no way I can access the GROUP MANAGER...

 

 

Yes, it seems like alot of work, when I could just pick geometry "normally" but, I am not normal...

 

And, in the past years I have made 100's if not 1000's of the same thing, with just slight variations, and I have realized over time that I am constantly doing the same things, over and over, and if I could eliminate even a few mouse clicks on each job, that alone would be satisfaction enough...

 

Anyhow, thanks...

[CJep]

In the chain manager you can select similar chains by using the chain feature function, select a chain then use the feature utility to match it.

[K2csq7]

I don't know of a way to access groups from the chain manager... You can do levels...

 

Do you import/export operations (Operations libraries)?

Sounds like it may work better for you than the route you're trying to take.

[Niezingerly]

CJep @ Prismeng:

 

I will look into that... Thanks...

 

K2csq7™:

 

Yup, I am heavy into the use of Import / Export of Ops.

 

That has helped alot. Thanks...