Intercon feature requests.

[lavrgs]

Thanks Tom
I'll update my spreadsheet

[suntravel]

You can also save them as custom thread like 1/2" UNC sharp...

Uwe

[Toaster]

Threading... That's something I have thought about adding. Honestly that could likely be a whole "app" by itself...

For those following along I have done an update to Blockmill: TEXT!

There's now a single font, single line text and number engraving feature included. This was a bear to do!

It only supports the alphabet and numbers 0-9.

I've got some more stuff planned so stay tuned!

[ronk]

Make intercon internal rectangular frame accept negative values for X and. Y lengths, like rectangular pocket.

Give us a way to force the Zref in the tool library to always equal zero, or better, shut it off, or type in a value.
I use a cheap touch probe to set part Z zero, but then I have to go to the tool geometry offset library and set z ref to the current location (zero).

I'm running ver 5.2

Ron (Centroid is amazing! Way better than my previous control software! )

[Toaster]

Ronk, so you want a a rectangle that can do Inside/Outside/On-line cuts?

For the Z ref feature, and you just asking if operations can start at Z zero?

[Toaster]

Hey @suntravel I added some "canned operations" that you might be interested in:

viewtopic.php?p=100654#p100654

If you have any suggestions I'd be interested in hearing

[ronk]

Toaster,
The existing rectangular pocket allows me to define the pocket using negative values in X and/or Y relative to the starting point.
So in intercon; insert, cycles, FRAME, inside rectangle, position type, CORNER.
So for example corner at 0,0
Length (here's the thing) -123
And /or
Width (same issue) -456

A negative value in either of those locations causes "tool diameter is greater than frame length"

Negative values in those location when defining the rectangular pocket yields a pocket on the negative side of the corner position.
I just like in some cases to define the frame to the minus side of the corner position.

--------
The Z ref: number is not useful in my process.

I touch of the top of my part with a cheap touch probe and set z zero there.

If I forget to set Z ref while the touch probe is at zero, I have to move back to that location to set Z ref = zero. Otherwise I end up with some number in Z ref that only confuses things.
Any tools I use for the job I touch in the same location and use "manual measure"to plug in the number for the tool length relative to the length of the touch probe.

I don't see any use for Z ref to be anything other than zero, based on my procedure.
My Z axis it's the knee, quill stays locked normally. Once set up this way, I can use the same bunch of tools on another part with a different height, my probe sets a new Z zero and I'm ready to go.

I hope I'm not confusing you guys.

Thanks for your interest.
Ron

[Toaster]

Are you doing something different than setting Z Zero at the top of your work?

[ronk]

Toaster, I almost always set Z zero at the top of my part.

Ronk

[cncsnw]

I am guessing that what ronk is asking for is to be able to set the Z axis part zero location, and the tool-measuring Z Reference height, in one step.

This is, of course, nothing to do with Intercon. It relates instead to the CNC12 Setup screens.

For certain workflows, where some or all tools are re-measured for each job, but where there is no fixed tool-measuring surface, this would save a step or three. It would require, of course, that the surface always be located using the Reference Tool.

As a feature request, a good starting point would be for Centroid to make the #2410x CNC system variables read/write instead of read-only. Then it would be possible for a user to write a CNC macro that sets both part zero and Z Reference.