New to Portable

We don't use cad drawings for inspection so that shouldnt be an issue. Cam2 uses projection planes to calculate vectors automatically. Do you mean PC-DMIS uses the angle at which you take the hits to figure vectors or am i mistaken? I plan to make programs for high production or common parts and inspect smaller runs or one-off parts on the fly.

Yes, no, depends, yeah, that really is the answer.

There are such 'neat' things as single-hit holes (which aren't single hit).

As for vectors..... well, it will mostly depend on WHAT you are trying to measure. If it is a 3-D feature, then the vector is calculated based on the touches, but it bases the rough vector based on how you are holding the arm. For example, if you are measuring a plane (3-D feature), the rough vector will be calculated along the axis of the probe, then, once all the this are taken, Pcdmis uses the rough vector to get the vector direction, but uses the probed points to calculate the real vector.

Circles.... Pcdmis will comp for the ball, BUT, in order for it to comp the right direction, the probe must be pointed "into" the hole, so if you are using the BIG ball (15mm) in a BIG hole and are probing at the lip, the probe must be pointing INTO the material, and not into the hole (which you can do with the big probe/big hole) if ya follow me.

As for other things.... Well, you will learn quick (or had better learn quick!) that you need to pay VERY close attention to workplane!!!!! I just got done using my Romer arm & Pcdmis. Simple alignment (and there is a 'quick start' for alignments, but it wouldn't work for this one), plane for level, line for rotate, but then 2 more lines, intersecting the first line (2 points) then the mid-point of those 2 points for origin. Well, Pcmis starts out in a workplane. In order for those lines to be comped correctly, I had to change from WORKPLANE to PLN1 (measured plane) and the probe had to be pointed INTO the part to measure them. Ya follow that?

Yeah, the guts (Pcdmis) is the same, but the application can be quite different, do NOT let it rear up and chomp your hinder.

We don't use cad drawings for inspection so that shouldnt be an issue. Cam2 uses projection planes to calculate vectors automatically. Do you mean PC-DMIS uses the angle at which you take the hits to figure vectors or am i mistaken? I plan to make programs for high production or common parts and inspect smaller runs or one-off parts on the fly.

Yes, no, depends, yeah, that really is the answer.

There are such 'neat' things as single-hit holes (which aren't single hit).

As for vectors..... well, it will mostly depend on WHAT you are trying to measure. If it is a 3-D feature, then the vector is calculated based on the touches, but it bases the rough vector based on how you are holding the arm. For example, if you are measuring a plane (3-D feature), the rough vector will be calculated along the axis of the probe, then, once all the this are taken, Pcdmis uses the rough vector to get the vector direction, but uses the probed points to calculate the real vector.

Circles.... Pcdmis will comp for the ball, BUT, in order for it to comp the right direction, the probe must be pointed "into" the hole, so if you are using the BIG ball (15mm) in a BIG hole and are probing at the lip, the probe must be pointing INTO the material, and not into the hole (which you can do with the big probe/big hole) if ya follow me.

As for other things.... Well, you will learn quick (or had better learn quick!) that you need to pay VERY close attention to workplane!!!!! I just got done using my Romer arm & Pcdmis. Simple alignment (and there is a 'quick start' for alignments, but it wouldn't work for this one), plane for level, line for rotate, but then 2 more lines, intersecting the first line (2 points) then the mid-point of those 2 points for origin. Well, Pcmis starts out in a workplane. In order for those lines to be comped correctly, I had to change from WORKPLANE to PLN1 (measured plane) and the probe had to be pointed INTO the part to measure them. Ya follow that?

Yeah, the guts (Pcdmis) is the same, but the application can be quite different, do NOT let it rear up and chomp your hinder.