This feature lets you construct a 2D circle of a given radius at a minimum point along a linear scan. PC-DMIS finds the minimum point by using a starting point and a downward direction vector (as shown below). Think of the downward vector as a gravity vector. The circle will, in a sense, be "pulled" in that direction.
A - Scan
B - Start Point
C - Down Vector
D - Final Position
Minimum point of a circle along a scan with a defined downward vector and starting point.
PC-DMIS projects the scan to the current workplane and the circle will lie in a plane parallel to the workplane. The software interprets the scan as a line between consecutive points (piecewise linear). Thus, the circle that the software places at the minimum point along the scan will not "fall" between two consecutive scan points, but instead is constrained to touch a line that connects the two points.
Valid Input Types
The input for this construction must be a line type scan. This excludes all scans designed to scan a surface, such as Patch, UV, Grid, Multisection, Manual laser, and Cylinder scans.
Construction Procedure
To start this construction:
Access the Construct Circle dialog box (Insert | Feature | Constructed | Circle).
From the Method list, select the Scan Minimum option.
Select a linear scan from the feature list. You cannot use a surface scan.
Click the Search Setup button.
The Circle Minimum Search Setup dialog box appears:
Circle Minimum Search Setup dialog box
Define the circle’s start point, its down direction, and its diameter.
Click OK to construct the circle. PC-DMIS constructs the circle and inserts the construction command into the Edit window:
Cutaway view showing a circle (CIR15) constructed at the minimum point on the scan line (SCN1)
More: