'Batch' positions in Calypso? PC-DMIS guy trying to learn Calypso

[[Da...]]

So, this part I'm learning on has something like 16 PEMS of various sizes, as well as 5 holes, each with a position callout. MOST of the PEMs have the same Ø.13|A|B|C callout, so I want to position ALL of them at once, rather than having to do all 16 separately. Likewise, the holes all also share a common positional callout, albeit one with MMC. This used to be easy on my old B&S, so how do I do this on Calypso??

Thanks in advance.

[[Mi...]]

As long as you're not too picky about the names, the Paintbrush tool will do this for you, you might never have clicked it before, but it's near the top left under "Features".

You can use it to many things on the feature side and the characteristic side.

 

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But also, another way to do this that also applies depending on your situation:

Example - Multiple bores, with Size, Cylindricity, Perpendicularity, etc.

Create Cylinder 1, name it whatever but keep the indexer "1" at the end - set it up however is appropriate for your measurement.

Create ALL Characteristics that apply to that Cylinder individually, keep "1" at the end of them.

Copy Cylinder 1 , then right click and hit "Paste Contents"

You will get a "Paste Contents" popup... leave both checked.

You will now have Cylinder 2 AND it will duplicate all the Characteristics from Cylinder 1, creating them all for Cylinder 2.

Adjust the nominals of Cylinder 2 to wherever it's supposed to be, I'm often doing round parts where features repeat, so I will have secondary alignments that are simply rotations of the Base Alignment. So I do everything in location 1, copy, Paste contents, Switch all the new features to the Rotated alignment with "Keep Position" on... Rinse and repeat around the part.

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There's also patterns.

 

When you have a feature open, there's the button near the top middle that says options... open that and one of those is pattern. You can get quite creative with patterns... and if you create a feature with a pattern, THEN apply a characteristic to it, it will automatically apply the pattern to the characteristic. (Note the order I said that in)

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None of the 3 options solve every problem, but they all have good times to use them

 

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EDIT: Are you sure none of these holes or studs are a GD&T Pattern.... because Calypso can deal with that too... 

 

Edited November 28, 2024

[[Da...]]

No, there is no real 'pattern' here, this customer just likes to throw fasteners onto parts at random locations, as well as set up rotational datum elements at directions NOT corresponding to the cartesian axes. My names for these locations are a bit long (like "PEM1-M4", followed by "PEM2-M3", etc.), so will it work if the names vary, just so long as all the cylinder measurements end with an integer after the name?

[[Mi...]]

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Yup so using the Paintbrush or the Paste Contents methods will be more appropriate for your situation...

I most often use the Past Contents method as it's impressively flexible. You can have a dozen different features in one area of the part, do all the characteristics, copy, paste contents, then use a secondary alignment to move all the features to the new place.

You might have to watch the nominals in Position Characteristics... sometimes you will have to re-add the feature because the nominals didn't update to the new location after you move the features.

Since you likely already have it done, using the paintbrush tool on the Position Characteristic to copy it to what I'm guessing are your already existing features will likely be faster.

Edited November 28, 2024

[[Da...]]

Actually, I haven't done anything yet; it's a 4-day holiday weekend here in the 'states', and I won't be back to work until Monday 0700 EST (12:00 GMT/CUT).

Also, you mention nominals. This may be an issue, because this particular customer is infamous for doing a plane/hole/hole datum structures, where the B and C datums are NOT on the cartesian axis. For the last year, I've been doing these reports with nothing more than a manual CMM and a LOT of spreadsheet work, calculating 'datum rotational nominals' then figuring positions with MMC from those. Oh, and they also require 5 separate 100% FAI's for each new job.....

[[To...]]

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Best Fit Bore Pattern option in the Position Characteristic.

[[Mi...]]

Calypso doesn't care where the datums are... as long as the features are created in the right place, from hopefully accurate CAD models, the Position characteristic will create the right nominals. All the GDT characteristics create their own coordinate systems, regardless of what the features are measured in. Meaning you may make your Base Alignment using Datums -ABC-, but you have a position to datums -XYZ-, you do NOT have to measure the feature in question on an alignment XYZ.... you can measure it in your Base Alignment, then when you create the Position Characteristic you fill out the correct datums. Don't default to dropping Secondary Alignments in Position characteristics... there are times where that makes sense, but more often its better to fill out each datum properly so ISO 5459 gets applied properly, and if your Calypso is setup right OTE is set for the Datum features.

One Caveat that comes to mind is if your Tertiary Datum is a point, or symmetry point, the Position Characteristic doesn't work correctly ( at least in older versions), and you must create a secondary alignment to use in the Position Characteristic... but you still do not have to measure the Toleranced feature in that alignment.

Secondary Alignments Primary purpose is to help the CMM find features, or for use as references for the Best-Fit Alignments. The bulk of your program should be measured in your very stable, all 6 DoF constrained, Looped, Base Alignment.

If you're ever dealing with Polar like I more often do, just switch the feature represention on the feature side to polar... and the position characteristics will automatically change to report Angle and Radius, instead of XY..

[[Da...]]

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Thanks for mentioning that; early in my career I worked with an 'assistant quality manager' who actually thought you could figure out positions in cylindrical coordinates  by doing [2*(sqrt[(Rdelta^2)+(A°delta^2)])]! I had to explain that millimeters and degrees are not interchangeable!!  He was actually checking the CMM output in distance and degrees and was wondering why his numbers didn't match the report!! 

Note; if there is a Z element, the coordinate system is CYLINDRICAL , using Radius (distance), Azimuth (angle), and Z elevation (distance). The POLAR coordinate system used Radius (distance), Azimuth (angle) and Zenith (angle). People in QC often is the term "polar" to mean "cylindrical", since true polar coordinates are rarely used in manufacturing. Sorry, I spent 4 miserable months having that pounded into my head in my engineering dynamics course years ago....

[[Ma...]]

Ok, from what I'm gathering is you want to position all 16 holes together. Open Position and select the Bore Pattern icon, right next to the default position icon, this will open the Bore Pattern routine. Select the features (all 16 diameters), Choose View Tolerance under the constrain (Trans & Rotate) area. Now you can proceed to create the Position callout as normal.

 

[[Da...]]

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Well, it's not a 'bore pattern'; these PEMs are roughly in the shape of a letter T, with the 7 on top on a single line but erratically spaced and the upright being 2 parallel columns, each also erratically spaced.

[[To...]]

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Best Fit Bore Pattern does not need to be circular.  Because your DRF is fully constrained, you will un-check Translate and Rotate options in best fit window.  

Edited December 3, 2024

[[Ma...]]

Just like Tom said. It can be unequal in spacing. This just allows the 'pattern' to move as one unit within the tolerance band and reflect the translation and rotation of the pattern.