The execution of measurement routines in PC-DMIS in Offline mode behaves the same as in Online mode. The Edit window provides immediate access to all of the commands in a measurement routine, which makes it as easy to fine-tune an offline measurement routine as a routine done on a CMM. For an overview of the many edit options in PC-DMIS, see the "Editing a Measurement Routine" chapter.
Pay careful attention to the probe animation to detect collisions and misplaced hits. The best way to do this is to use the probe path and collision detection functionality to determine collision points between the probe and the part.
The Operations | Graphic Display Window | Collision Detection menu option provides an animated graphical representation of the probe's path along the part. This tool for probe path editing can help you when programming measurement routines in Offline mode.
To access the Collision Detection option:
In the Edit window, mark the features you want to use in the probe path. (See "Marking Commands for Execution" in the "Editing a Measurement Routine" chapter.)
Select the View | Path Lines option. PC-DMIS displays the path lines of the probe created during the learning portion of the measurement routine.
Select Operation | Graphic Display Window | Collision Detection. PC-DMIS moves an animated probe along the path lines. It shows any collisions in red on the part and in the Collision Detection dialog box. Once execution finishes, a Collision List dialog box shows where any collisions occurred. The "Showing, Animating, and Moving Path Lines" topic in the "Editing the CAD Display" chapter has additional information on how to use path lines and detect collisions.
Manipulating Animation and Execution Speeds
You may also find it helpful to manipulate animation and execution speeds while you debug measurement routines. Several settings exist so that you can fine-tune these speeds to meet your needs. For information on these settings, see the "Setup Options: Animation tab" topic in the "Setting Your Preferences" chapter.