Can post change the MasterCam settings?

[PcRobotic]

Hello everyone,
   I am trying to find a solution of which if OVER ALL LENGTH is shorter than Z-DEPTH then show me a warning to change the OVER ALL LENGTH and stores the value into the OVER ALL LENGTH.  Is that possible?

 

Thank you for the help.

 

[Guest]

30 minutes ago, PcRobotic said:

Hello everyone,
   I am trying to find a solution of which if OVER ALL LENGTH is shorter than Z-DEPTH then show me a warning to change the OVER ALL LENGTH and stores the value into the OVER ALL LENGTH.  Is that possible?

 

Thank you for the help.

 

You would first need to know the OPID of the operation you are looking to change. Depending on the operation type this could be done with a nethook or a chook. Not all operation types are supported by NETHOOKS..

[PcRobotic]

46 minutes ago, peter ~ said:

You would first need to know the OPID of the operation you are looking to change. Depending on the operation type this could be done with a nethook or a chook. Not all operation types are supported by NETHOOKS..

Let's say my OPID is CONTOUR or ID, can you give me an example code of how to call that out?

 

Thanks.

[Guest]

Sorry by OP_ID I mean the operations internal ID

OP_ID example.bmp

[crazy^millman]

Sorry and not going to come across as nice, but in my humble opinion that is the wrong time to find this issue. This should have been discovered well before that point. Why I always tell everyone to define a holder when they are programming their parts. If done correctly from the start then this would never happen. I don't want to hear about the lazy programmers your having to deal with as the reason driving this request. Define the holder and then when you run the Verify that crash and then it will be caught. 

[PcRobotic]

37 minutes ago, 5th Axis CGI said:

Sorry and not going to come across as nice, but in my humble opinion that is the wrong time to find this issue. This should have been discovered well before that point. Why I always tell everyone to define a holder when they are programming their parts. If done correctly from the start then this would never happen. I don't want to hear about the lazy programmers your having to deal with as the reason driving this request. Define the holder and then when you run the Verify that crash and then it will be caught. 

Hello 5th Axis,
   Thank you for your valuable comment.  This is what I have done (see below)

 

And what I am looking for a better solution than CHECK HOLDER as ONE BY ONE is to make the post checks it for us.  Of course not everyone is a good programmer as you are,  as myself I make tons of mistake and I think the best way is to make the post catch it for us.

 

Suppose I have 200 TOOLS (horizontal), I would have to go back and change 1 by 1 of which time consuming.  If we can change on the fly and make it stores back to the TOOL PARAMETER then it would much faster and more accurate.

 

 

Thank you for your comment, I truly look into solutions for some kind of C-HOOK if I can find any about the tool check ou.

 

[crazy^millman]

1 hour ago, PcRobotic said:

Hello 5th Axis,
   Thank you for your valuable comment.  This is what I have done (see below)

 

And what I am looking for a better solution than CHECK HOLDER as ONE BY ONE is to make the post checks it for us.  Of course not everyone is a good programmer as you are,  as myself I make tons of mistake and I think the best way is to make the post catch it for us.

 

Suppose I have 200 TOOLS (horizontal), I would have to go back and change 1 by 1 of which time consuming.  If we can change on the fly and make it stores back to the TOOL PARAMETER then it would much faster and more accurate.

 

 

Thank you for your comment, I truly look into solutions for some kind of C-HOOK if I can find any about the tool check ou.

 

Here is something I tell people. Someone who makes the claim they don't makes mistakes is someone who is either not working or blaming someone else for their mistakes.

I make make my fair share of mistakes, but by following some basic methods and processes I catch them as I make them. Your 200 tools in a machine not defined and not setup in holders in Mastercam is creating so much extra work and effort because it is not following a defined method and process. This is creating the extra effort you're having to come up with. There should never be any tools in a machine that the programmer and the person running machine are not aware!  By creating a tooldb for that machine and having all the programmers sharing that same tooldb in Mastercam then nothing would never be unknown and the extra steps you having to take wouldn't be needed. The whole idea of organization is being organized.  When that is not the case then chaos ensues which is what your describing in your example. EDP, Barcode, Part Number or something should make sense and when it doesn't then you have a situation where time is being wasted and that time is costing the company money. Our job as programmers is to come up with methods and processes that don't create extra work and effort. By having to do all these extra steps and methods of recheck then triple check then what is that accomplishing?

Sit down and talk to the other programmers, machinists, setup people and operators to come up with a method to define things. Here is just a quick example I threw together. You change on the fly and have a system that allows everyone to know and track it then there wouldn't be any surprises and other problems because everyone was all using the same method and process. The tooldb can be shared and even access on the floor if you really wanted to get communication moving. Companies with tool management systems do this all the time and don't need this to keep things under control.

Makino HMC500 With HSK-100 holders.

Define a holder.

HSK100 250 x 4          HSK100 1/4 endmill holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

HSK100 250 x 4 SK    HSK100 1/4 Shrink endmill holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

HSK100 ER-25 x 4      HSK100 ER-25 holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

HSK100 ER-32 x 4      HSK100 ER-32 holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

Tools

 2-250-500-2       2 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

3-250-500-2        3 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

4-250-500-2        4 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

5-250-500-2        5 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

7-250-500-2        7 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

2-250-1000-4      2 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 4 FLAT Endmill

3-250-1000-4       3 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

4-250-1000-4        4 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

5-250-1000-4        5 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

7-250-1000-4        7 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

3-250-375-3 RD   3 Flute 1/4 x 3/8 x 1.25 reach reduced neck  x 3 Flat Endmill

2--03-250-375-3 RD  3 Flute 1/2 x 3/8 x 1.25 reach reduced neck  x 3 .03R Bull Endmill

Sorry you feel I am trying to show you up with my thoughts far from it. I go into many different companies and get paid to give my thoughts and method to improve them. This is one of the first things I will work on when I work with a company and see this situation your describing. Takes discipline, hard work and effort to get it going. Normally after 3-6 months of a good system being in place not only are the companies more profitable, but they make less mistakes and are more efficient. Not a matter of being better it is a matter of creating a method and process that will not put you in a situation where you have to create all these extra hoops to jump through. 

[Zaffin_D]

5 hours ago, peter ~ said:

You would first need to know the OPID of the operation you are looking to change. Depending on the operation type this could be done with a nethook or a chook. Not all operation types are supported by NETHOOKS..

Not exactly. 

The post can access the tools slot ID, so we can look up and modify the tool using a NET-Hook and ToolNetApi.dll. However, this would not effect the NCI file that's currently being processed, only the source files tool system.

What you're asking for is possible, have you contacted your reseller or CNC's post department for help?  That would be my first stop.

[PcRobotic]

1 hour ago, 5th Axis CGI said:

Here is something I tell people. Someone who makes the claim they don't makes mistakes is someone who is either not working or blaming someone else for their mistakes.

I make make my fair share of mistakes, but by following some basic methods and processes I catch them as I make them. Your 200 tools in a machine not defined and not setup in holders in Mastercam is creating so much extra work and effort because it is not following a defined method and process. This is creating the extra effort you're having to come up with. There should never be any tools in a machine that the programmer and the person running machine are not aware!  By creating a tooldb for that machine and having all the programmers sharing that same tooldb in Mastercam then nothing would never be unknown and the extra steps you having to take wouldn't be needed. The whole idea of organization is being organized.  When that is not the case then chaos ensues which is what your describing in your example. EDP, Barcode, Part Number or something should make sense and when it doesn't then you have a situation where time is being wasted and that time is costing the company money. Our job as programmers is to come up with methods and processes that don't create extra work and effort. By having to do all these extra steps and methods of recheck then triple check then what is that accomplishing?

Sit down and talk to the other programmers, machinists, setup people and operators to come up with a method to define things. Here is just a quick example I threw together. You change on the fly and have a system that allows everyone to know and track it then there wouldn't be any surprises and other problems because everyone was all using the same method and process. The tooldb can be shared and even access on the floor if you really wanted to get communication moving. Companies with tool management systems do this all the time and don't need this to keep things under control.

Makino HMC500 With HSK-100 holders.

Define a holder.

HSK100 250 x 4          HSK100 1/4 endmill holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

HSK100 250 x 4 SK    HSK100 1/4 Shrink endmill holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

HSK100 ER-25 x 4      HSK100 ER-25 holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

HSK100 ER-32 x 4      HSK100 ER-32 holder with 4 Inch Gauge length.

Tools

 2-250-500-2       2 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

3-250-500-2        3 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

4-250-500-2        4 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

5-250-500-2        5 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

7-250-500-2        7 Flute 1/4 x 1/2 x 2 FLAT Endmill

2-250-1000-4      2 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 4 FLAT Endmill

3-250-1000-4       3 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

4-250-1000-4        4 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

5-250-1000-4        5 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

7-250-1000-4        7 Flute 1/4 x 1 x 2 FLAT Endmill

3-250-375-3 RD   3 Flute 1/4 x 3/8 x 1.25 reach reduced neck  x 3 Flat Endmill

2--03-250-375-3 RD  3 Flute 1/2 x 3/8 x 1.25 reach reduced neck  x 3 .03R Bull Endmill

Sorry you feel I am trying to show you up with my thoughts far from it. I go into many different companies and get paid to give my thoughts and method to improve them. This is one of the first things I will work on when I work with a company and see this situation your describing. Takes discipline, hard work and effort to get it going. Normally after 3-6 months of a good system being in place not only are the companies more profitable, but they make less mistakes and are more efficient. Not a matter of being better it is a matter of creating a method and process that will not put you in a situation where you have to create all these extra hoops to jump through. 

Hello 5th Axis,
   It seems like you are working with a medium size company of which they allow you to be very organize like the way you look great today.  I am in a situation that the "owner" throws at me the drawing and told me the due date.  He does not care what my trouble is and I understand that is how the way most shops where I live are.

   Of course then I make bad parts , it is my own responsibility nothing to write John about.  What I am trying to achieve it to catch my own mistake by creating my own system, my own post, not share to other so I get blamed off. 

   I have tried the resident toolings of which allow setup people doing faster as the result after a month, other old school setup men didn't like (they told me in person they wanted overtime).  In that case I had to quit and work for the other shop.

   This shop is a bit of better but still they don't believe in organization because most of their jobs are prototype and even the own told me straight, "WE DON'T MAKE MUCH MONEY ON THIS KIND OF JOB, DON'T SPEND TIME FOR ORGANIZING".

   Don't know what to say to you, 5Th Axis and if you are  standing on where I am standing I think you will feel the same way as I am.  Once again, I have nothing to be offend of but only look for solutions of how to improve.

 

 

Thank you for your time, I truly appreciated.

[PcRobotic]

49 minutes ago, jeff.D said:

Not exactly. 

The post can access the tools slot ID, so we can look up and modify the tool using a NET-Hook and ToolNetApi.dll. However, this would not effect the NCI file that's currently being processed, only the source files tool system.

What you're asking for is possible, have you contacted your reseller or CNC's post department for help?  That would be my first stop.

 

I have contacted and they told me that they don't think it is doable like the way I proposed.  Perhaps, I should call directly MasterCam after the holiday to ask for solutions.

[Zaffin_D]

That's not surprising, strictly speaking the answer to your question is no; MP.dll can not make changes to the Mastercam file.*

However, if a Mastercam Add-in is created, the post can call that and it can be used to do all sorts of things to the Mastercam file.

Just so you're aware, the help your looking for likely will not be free.

*Prior to Mastercam X8, MP.dll could draw basic geometry in the Mastercam file, but the functions have since been deprecated.

[crazy^millman]

35 minutes ago, PcRobotic said:

Hello 5th Axis,
   It seems like you are working with a medium size company of which they allow you to be very organize like the way you look great today.  I am in a situation that the "owner" throws at me the drawing and told me the due date.  He does not care what my trouble is and I understand that is how the way most shops where I live are.

   Of course then I make bad parts , it is my own responsibility nothing to write John about.  What I am trying to achieve it to catch my own mistake by creating my own system, my own post, not share to other so I get blamed off. 

   I have tried the resident toolings of which allow setup people doing faster as the result after a month, other old school setup men didn't like (they told me in person they wanted overtime).  In that case I had to quit and work for the other shop.

   This shop is a bit of better but still they don't believe in organization because most of their jobs are prototype and even the own told me straight, "WE DON'T MAKE MUCH MONEY ON THIS KIND OF JOB, DON'T SPEND TIME FOR ORGANIZING".

   Don't know what to say to you, 5Th Axis and if you are  standing on where I am standing I think you will feel the same way as I am.  Once again, I have nothing to be offend of but only look for solutions of how to improve.

 

 

Thank you for your time, I truly appreciated.

Tail wagging the dog is what your running into. Sorry wish I could offer you a better solution, but what your asking for is quite a task and hopefully you will end up in a shop that allows you to focus on programming and not pulling the knives out of your back.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving. 

[Guest]

3 hours ago, jeff.D said:

Not exactly. 

The post can access the tools slot ID, so we can look up and modify the tool using a NET-Hook and ToolNetApi.dll. However, this would not effect the NCI file that's currently being processed, only the source files tool system.

What you're asking for is possible, have you contacted your reseller or CNC's post department for help?  That would be my first stop.

I believe he want the mcx and nci to be modified upon error detection during his instance of grape city active reports via either of the api's, I don't think post language has functionality to modify mcx files

[Guest]

~

[Guest]

Its not like it is hard to change an operations zdepth via a macro...