is there any way I can convert a spline to a series of arcs? Thanks!

in the CHOOK API, is there anything that will allow me to intersect a line with a spline? Intersect_ents says that it works with splines, but it never intersects when I use it. Any help greatly appreciated!

is there a way to create a chain from a spline entity via CHOOK API? Thanks! Simon

I used chain_to_ctour_array and then cutter_comp_2d to offset my geometry, but I want to be able to work with the geometry as chains afterwards. Is there a way to convert a ctour array back into chains? ALternatively, is there another way to offset geometry by a certain amount via CHOOK programming? Thanks, Simon

Thanks MATSSMan for the confirmation and for the encouragement! It's definitely appreciated! I am not a strong c++ programmer, and I am completely new t MasterCAM, but I've learned a lot during these projects that I've been doing. Thanks again! (Now I have to figure out how to break a circle in the ctour array and insert two arcs...Right now the circle is part of the ctour array, if I had to split it into two parts, would I have to copy the whole array to insert elements?) - ah, I realized that the circle is the only element in ctour since it constitutes the entire chain...splitting was more painless than expected! Just wondering: for cutter_comp_2d, what is the purpose of do_self_inters? Thanks! [ 07-23-2002, 12:08 PM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

actually this is from a purely c++ programming perspective...but perhaps you are right and something is conflicting with my cutter diamter...thanks! nope, i checked, I set the radius correctly, but the function still returns an error. It works fine for lines and arcs, but for a complete circle, the function fails. ANy ideas? Thanks! [ 07-22-2002, 06:20 PM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

I am trying to use cutter_comp_2d to offset a circle, but it always returns failure. Is there something inherent in the function? or am I doing something wrong? Thanks, Simon

Is there a way to use the chook api to determine if a chain has branches? i.e. is not one complete contour? Thanks a lot!

I've set min_fil_ang to 180, so there should be no arcs created... and thx a lot! you must've put a lot of work into trial and error! something which unfortunately i am running out of time to do! btw, how do you zero out the endpoints of a gt ent? [ 07-18-2002, 10:30 AM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

for cutter_comp_2d, what is the purpose of cc_info[]? and how should such an array be constructed? thanks a million btw MATSSMan, i might actually be able to finish my project! i tried creating an empty array of cc_rec, and cutter_comp_2d seems to work... however, when i set compensation to 'R', the resulting ctour_rec is not a closed chain anymore! i.e., the starting and finishing point are different...any ideas why? Thanks again! [ 07-17-2002, 03:39 PM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

this sounds like a great idea, let me try it, thx!! btw, what is the diff between usin gr_mill and ct_mill? other than that it draws on the screen? [ 07-16-2002, 02:59 PM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

Oh man! you can't be serious...my math isn't quite strong enough! ahhh!!! (or I'm too lazy hehe) This is pretty ridiculous...I've emailed mastercam support, but even they cannot give me an appropriate answer... hold on a sec...what function do you use to create toolpath? I am using ct_lin_mill, and this only accepts a p_2d to mill to...is there a way to create toolpath based on geometry instead of points? Thanks!~ [ 07-16-2002, 12:26 PM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

thx!

Is there a way to determine the direction of an arc (CW/CCW) given that it is stored in an ent.u.ar?

actually, the variable is cutter_orientation, but even after I set this to 'L' or 'R', I do not get any compensation...I've looked and looked, and by now I'm thinking it's more than a single variable that I have to set...but I'm still not sure how... thanks anyways though! I've also tried operation op; op_cc oc; oc.type = CC_COMPUTER; oc.direction = CC_LEFT; op.cc = oc; cur_op = op; but this doesn't work either... [ 07-16-2002, 09:43 AM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

hehe Thanks James you understand me best! However, I cannot find a reference to cc_pos anywhere...I am thinking that it should not be a post processor variable though, but that it should be a flag that should be output to the NCI from my CHOOK... PDG, if you are around, please help!

How do i set so that when writing to a NCI file, my chook will use computer compensation instead of control compensation? desperately need help! thanks!

I am trying to use ct_arc_mill to write a ent.u.ar to a NCI file. However, this function requires a reverse argument(G2/G3). How can I determine if my arc should be reversed or not? Thanks, SImon

I have a bunch of lines that I am writing to an NCI file using ct_lin_mill, and I want cutter compensation to the left. I'd like the line to be written so that this is already taken into account, and G42 would not be necessary. ie, how do i set it so that the computer controls the compensation? Also, what is the difference between ct_lin_mill and ll_lin_move and wr_nci_3d_pt? Thanks! [ 07-05-2002, 04:19 PM: Message edited by: Duckman ]

works like a charm, thx so much!

hi run_post_exe_dll, what should the exe_fname[] argument be? thanks!

has anybody used the wr_nci_3d_pt() function? I can't seem to get it to output anything to the file. If anybody has successfully used this function, could you copy and paste a code fragment? Thanks!

i've tried, but it still doesn't work

yes the file is created, and if i use wr_std_param, stuff is actually written to the file

In my chook program, I have the following code FILE *f; boolean succf; f = fopen_hl ("C:Pocket", "output.txt", "w", &succf); if (!succf) AfxMessageBox("File open error", MB_OK); p_3d pt, pt2, pt3; pt[X] = 100; pt[Y] = 200; pt[Z] = 0; pt2[X] = 4; pt2[Y] = 5; pt2[Z] = 6; pt3[X] = 0; pt3[Y] = 0; pt3[Z] = 1; wr_sof(f, 1, true, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_COOL_ON, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_THREAD, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_CUT, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_POWER_ON, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_POWER_OFF, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_GSTOP, &succf); wr_nci_3d_pt(f, 0, pt, 10, CFLAG_RAPID_TO_PT, &succf); wr_five_axis(f, pt, pt2, 100, 12, 0, pt3, &succf); if (!succf) AfxMessageBox("File write", MB_OK); p_2d p2; p2[X] = 10; p2[Y] = 20; ct_lin_mill (f, 1, p2, 100, 3, false, CC_OFF, CFLAG_CUT, &succf); gr_lin_mill(f, 1, p2, 100, 0, 0, GREEN, false, false, 12, &succf); ct_z_move(f, 100, 20, &succf); FCLOSE(f); I don't get any errors, but nothing is ever written to the file. Any ideas why?