What's New in BobCAD-CAM V31 SP2 (Build 3110)

Introduction

Release Date: March 11, 2019

 

The second update for BobCAD-CAM V31, build 3110, includes updates, and corrections in the User Interface, File Import and Export, CAD, CAM, Simulation, and Posting

Updates

CAD

  • Updated the software to allow a 3D mouse to adjust the graphics area regardless of where the focus currently is inside of the BobCAD-CAM application.

 

  • Updated the Fit Text to a Curve function to require the curve to be long enough to support the full text.

 

  • Updated the Measure function to show the layer name of the selected entity.

 

  • Updated the CAD to allow for the same entities to be selected for two different chains when creating offsets.

 

  • Updated the Fit All option to eliminate instances of geometry being shown too close to the edges of the graphics area.

CAM

General

 

  • When defining the machine setup, temporary bounding geometry is created which you can utilize for easier placement and alignment. In this update, we have created a Keep Bounding Geometry button. This will automatically save the temporary bounding geometry on the active layer.

 

Geometry Stock and Bounding Geometry during Machine Setup creation Bounding Geometry Kept

 

  • Updated the Machine Setup to prevent arbitrary screen locations from being used. The machine setup can only be snapped to entities, and their snap points.

 

  • Updated the software to account for incorrect data entry. If a user enters a 0° drill tip angle, we will update it to 180°.

 

  • Updated the Tool Library to allow for scrolling with the mouse wheel when it is accessed through the Tool Crib.

 

  • Updated the software to ignore Note and Dimension entities in the graphics area when using Select All to pick feature geometry.

 

  • Updated the software to allow Ctrl+A and Spacebar to be used to select all geometry, and confirm selection without removing focus from the Selected Geometry box.

 

  • Updated the software to allow selection toggles to be changed while in the same picking box.

 

Mill

 

  • Optimized the software to avoid sluggishness when a large number of faces have been selected from a solid for Mill 3 Axis geometry picking.

 

  • Software has been updated with a Cross Center Line check box in the Pick Bottom dialog to handle cases when the bottom of a cross drill hole is past the center of rotation.

 

  • Updated the Drag Knife operation to allow for Chain Start Point control at the operation level.

 

  • Updated the software to allow for the selection of merged .stl files as the Solid Model for the Operation Stock.

 

  • Updated the Profile Side Roughing algorithm to allow offset passes to have fewer toolpath entities than the original geometry. In the past offset passes with fewer toolpath entities were dropped.

 

Lathe

 

  • Updated the lathe groove tool to accept a negative angle value during creation.

 

Wire

 

  • Updated the displayed toolpath to show an extension clearly when a taper is applied to the skim pass.

Posting

 

  • Created three new variables to help handle all possible cases: 
    • xf_no_output
    • yf_no_output
    • zf_no_output

 

  • Added post question: 447. When using DPM, Polar should be output as UPM? y/n

 

  • Updated the posting engine to add block 228: Support unicode? y/n. This will determine whether unicode characters are supported in the comments, and will default to "no" if the block is not present.

 

  • Updated the post to include questions 688, and 689 which allows you to update the hard coded prefix for the xp, and yp variables.

Simulation

  • Updated the simulation to orient mill turn machines in a more straight forward view at the beginning of the simulation

NC Editor

  • The NC Editor has been updated to include a speed slider in the Simulation ribbon. Now, users with an NC Editor Pro license can have full control over the play speed!

  • Users can now work within their document while the Find/Replace dialog is open.

Corrections

General

  • Corrected an issue with the internet connection check. Now if Use online help is selected, but no internet connection is detected, the local help will launch when the help system is opened by the user.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused instances of an error when launching the NcEditor.

File Import / Export

  • Corrected an issue which caused temporary anomalies in the graphics area when saving geometry as an .stl file.

 

  • Corrected an issue which resulted in instances of particular STEP files failing to open.

 

  • Corrected a customer reported issue where a file containing several meshes was crashing the software.

 

  • Corrected an issue with DWG import changing the scale to mm for a particular file.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a crash when closing import options.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a CAM Tree loading error when an EDM Job was deleted, saved, and reopened.

 

  • Corrected an issue with DWG file reading which caused some geometry to be shown on the wrong layer.

User Interface

  • Corrected an issue with toolpath patterns failing to show in the print preview.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the Data Entry Manager which, while it was undocked, caused crashes when using particular functions.

 

  • Corrected an issue which prevented the X, Y, and Z fields in some CAD functions from reorganizing to Z, X, and Y when Lathe Coordinates were toggled in Settings.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the Edit Toolpath dialog to appear off screen in particular instances.

CAD

  • Corrected an issue which caused incorrect results when using the Mirror function when the active UCS was not Top(X/Y).

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a crash when clearing and reselecting geometry repeatedly for the Measure Two function.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused undesirable results when applying multiple lines of text to a spline using the Fit Text to a Curve function.

 

  • Corrected a crash which resulted from right-clicking and selecting OK, or Cancel, while a shape from the Shape Library was placed, and in Modify Mode.
  • Corrected a crash which resulted from attempting to use the Merge or Print functions in the Backstage with no document open.

 

  • Corrected several font related issues.

 

  • Corrected a graphical refresh issue which showed the mouse icon as being in pan, or rotate mode after the function was completed. This would refresh once another function was used.

 

  • Corrected graphical issues caused by using Select All.

 

  • Corrected an issue with a solid fillet and chamfer failing on particular geometry.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the Reference dimension option to overlap in some instances.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused Cleanup / Optimize results dialog to be blank when construction geometry was turned off.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the selected geometry to change location when attempting to use the Scale sketch handle inside of the Translate function.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused Arc 3 Entity results to be created flat regardless of the selected entities Z height.

 

  • Updated the colors used to display the window selection box to allow for greater visibility.

 

  • Corrected an issue with editing dimensions which had Pre and Post text listed. When the dimension was edited, the Pre and Post would not be listed in the dialog, causing them to disappear from the result when the edit was confirmed.

 

  • Corrected a tolerance issue which caused an instance of wireframe extrusions failing to boolean together.

 

  • Corrected an issue which allowed layers with geometry to be deleted without a warning message with the delete key.

 

  • Corrected an instance of surface normals failing to show on an imported model.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused difficulty selecting a snap point when using the Line Enter/Sketch method in a rotated view.

 

  • Corrected an issue which prevented a mirror feature to be added to the CAD Tree when a mirror function was undone, and then redone while in the feature.

CAM

General

 

  • Corrected an instance of feature names not saving in the file.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the tool number to be output incorrectly for the Stock Feed operation in the setup sheet.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the Toolpath Statistics dialog to show speeds and feeds in inch regardless of the units assigned to the file.

 

  • Corrected an issue which prevented the Reset to Stock Coordinate option in the Machine Setup dialog from working.

 

Mill

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a problem with the speeds and feeds in a Drag Knife operation.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused incorrect toolpath height when using Calculate From Tool Center with particular tools.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the backplot showing calculation from tool tip, even when tool center was selected.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the Plunge Feedrate on the Drill tool page to be listed as zero.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the Vertical Tangent Lead-in failing to produce a vertical tangent lead-in.

 

  • Corrected an instance of toolpath failing to be generated on particular shapes due to the Sharp Corner Type.

 

  • Corrected an issue with drill tip positions not being utilized.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused broken lines to be optimized when selecting tabs. This prevented lines broken for tab placement from being utilized as intended.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused new T-Cutting tools to be created to match their flute length to the needed depth.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the ramp entry method to use a different diameter depending on whether the helix was created using the Automatic or Spiral method.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused toolpath to remain when geometry was removed and the operation was recomputed.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused operation names, which have been edited in the Edit Toolpath dialog, to remain displayed in red font after being recomputed from the wizard.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused toolpath patterns to be hidden if the feature was set not to post.

 

Lathe

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused instances of a vertical move being created prior to the lead-out move.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused instances of tool numbers reverting when changed using the Assigned Tools dialog.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused no toolpath to be generated when collision detection with system compensation was used on a back face feature type.

 

  • Corrected an issue that caused incorrect toolpath to be generated for the offset pattern when using collision checking in some cases.

 

  • Corrected an instance of the Alternate Pattern failing to compute.

 

  • Corrected an issue which resulted in particular chamfer angles failing to be output in cutoff operations.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the rapid height to be affected when allowances were changed.

 

Mill Turn

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused operations to create duplicate tools in the loose group of the tool crib instead of pulling the original from its assigned station.

 

  • Corrected an issue in the cutoff feature which caused an incorrect value of zero to be returned when selecting a custom top of feature using the pick button.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused lathe toolpath in the Mill Turn Job to ignore edits to the clearance values.

 

  • Corrected an issue which failed to refresh the submachines in the CAM Tree when changing machines.

 

  • Corrected a refresh issue in the OpenGL window of the tool crib which failed to show the tools of an imported tool crib until the Tool Crib was opened a second time.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the wrong reference point to be used in the simulation when the reference point was set in the tool page instead of the library.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the sub machine item to be removed when the Delete All Features option was selected from the Machine Setup context menu.

 

Nesting

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused an additional feature to be added to the nesting job if a center drill tool was changed while the feature was expanded in the CAM Tree.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a crash when using the pick option to set the bottom of a profile feature.

 

  • Corrected an issue with Round option in the Internal corners group of the Corner Types page causing the nest to fail.

 

  • Updated the software to place focus on the next item in the table, rather than the first item in the list, when a sheet is removed from the table on the Sheet Parameters page.

 

Wire

 

  • Corrected an issue with the feature preview showing the wrong direction for the chain.

 

  • Corrected an instance of an optional stop not being output in the code.

 

  • Corrected an issue which prevented the Enter = Tab option from working in the Edit Cutting Conditions dialog.

Simulation

  • Corrected an issue with the simulation showing an incorrect clearance move along the tool axis after operations in an index system.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused an instance of the simulation showing a move, which was programed using the MDI page, incorrectly.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a crash when attempting to open the simulation, while it was already open in another window. Since there is only one simulation, this cannot be done, but there is no longer a crash if it is attempted.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused unicode characters in the CAM Tree from displaying properly in the simulation.

Posting

Mill

  • Corrected an instance of the correct post block failing to be output after a lead-out move.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the Output User Comments check box preventing output when cleared.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the Arc Fit option which caused a plunge move in the Spiral Lead-in.

 

  • Corrected an issue that causes the variable stock_height to output an incorrect value in particular circumstances.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the variables output_primary_rotary_index, and output_secondary_rotary_index outputting a space between the rotary axis prefix and its value.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the Arc Fit Tolerance which caused an instance of a reversed arc.

 

  • Corrected an issue which failed to output the first rapid move relative to the active transform plane.

 

Lathe

 

  • Corrected an issue with the variable output_lathe_tool_list in the Predator header outputting tool numbers incorrectly.

 

Mill Turn

 

  • Corrected the fact that post question 215. Number of places for Tool Numbers? was inadvertently effecting the spindle speed output as well.

 

Wire

 

  • Corrected an instance of wire compensation being canceled prior to the lead-out.

 

  • Corrected an issue with the taper direction being reversed when a Taper with Land was used with Reverse Skims, and a Glue Stop without a tab.

 

  • Corrected an issue which prevented the lead-out block from being called when stop points were used.

 

  • Corrected an issue which prevented the comments in blocks one and two from outputting.

BobART

  • Corrected an issue which caused a disconnect between the keyboard shortcut for hiding and showing an image, and selecting the Blank/Unblank option from the context menu. You can now hide with the keyboard shortcut, and show with the context menu, and vice versa.

 

  • Corrected a tolerance issue which resulted in a slight change in Y value when the Keep Aspect Ratio was switched off, and back on, while vectorizing.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused a crash when computing a V-Carve operation with particular geometry.

 

  • Corrected an issue which caused the Data Entry Manager to open after selecting geometry for an art feature, rather than the BobART Manager.