ReleaseNotes.doc

EdgeCAM Part Modeler®   v2.0-2.5 Release Notes

February 2004

Pathtrace Engineering Systems.

Information is subject to change without notice.

Copyright (C)1988-2004 Pathtrace PLC. All rights reserved.

So far as applicable:

Microsoft, Windows,Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Windows XP are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

MemoHASP is a registered trademark of Aladdin Knowledge Systems Ltd.

NetSentinel is a trademark of Rainbow Technologies, Inc.

OpenGL(r) and Optimizer are trademarks of Silicon Graphics Inc.

Parasolid is a trademark of UGS PLM Solutions (an EDS Company)

Autodesk Inventor (tm) is a trademark of Autodesk Inc.

PTC Wildfire, Pro/ENGINEER(r), GRANITE (tm) One, are trademarks or registered trademarks of Parametric Technology Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and in other countries.

AutoCAD and DXF are registered trademarks of Autodesk Inc.

MicroStation is a trademark of Bentley Systems Inc.,

IGDS is a trademark of Intergraph Corporation.

EdgeCAM Simulator and EdgeCAM Verify use technology developed by MachineWorks Ltd.

ACIS is a trademark of Spatial Technology, Inc.

Dimensional Constraint Manager has been developed by D-Cubed

Other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

Contents

EdgeCAM Part Modeler®   v2.0-2.5 Release Notes  February 2004              i

Contents              iii

Release Notes v2.5 SP1              1

1. Enhancements              1

2. Error Corrections              1

Release Notes v2.5              2

1. Enhancements              2

1.1. Key Modeling Enhancements              2

1.2. Key Drawing Enhancements              4

1.3. Key Graphics Enhancements              4

1.4. Key Translation Enhancements              5

2. Error Corrections              5

Release Notes v2.11              9

1. Enhancements              9

2. Error Corrections              9

Release Notes v2.1 Service Pack 2              11

1. Error Corrections              11

Release Notes v2.1 Service Pack 1              12

1. Error Corrections              12

Release Notes v2.1              13

1. Enhancements              13

1.1. Key Enhancements to The MODEL Application              15

1.2. Key Enhancements to the DRAWING Application              19

1.3. Key Enhancements to Data Translation              19

1.4. Key General System Enhancements              20

2. Error Corrections              21

3. Miscellaneous Operational Notes              28

3.1. Platform Support              28

Release Notes v2.04              29

1. Error Corrections              29

Release Notes v2.03              30

1. Enhancements              30

2. Error Corrections              30

Release Notes v2.02              32

1. Error Corrections              32

Release Notes v2.01              33

1. Error Corrections              33

Release Notes v2.0              36

1. Enhancements              36

1.1. Key Enhancements to The MODEL Application              36

1.2. General System              44

1.3. Data Translators              44

1.4. Programming API              44

1.5. The New Drawing (Detail Drafting) Application              46

2. Error Corrections              48

EdgeCAM Part Modeler Release Notes   February 2004              1

Release Notes v2.5 SP1

1.  Enhancements

1. A new licensing mechanism was implemented (with different serial numbers and keys) as an alternative when the current mechanism failed to validate a key, as was indicated in some cases with Japanese XP.
2. Support was added for the imported of SolidWorks 2004 files.
3. Rendered highlighting of faces is automatically set to the default option, unless OpenGL acceleration is turned off.
    

2.  Error Corrections

The following notable bugs existing in v2.5 were corrected in v2.5 SP1:

Release Notes v2.5

1.  Enhancements

1.1.  Key Modeling Enhancements

1.1.1.  Continuous Sketch Mode

Continuous Sketch allows you to easily create a continuous chain of curves suitable for defining profiles for 3D modeling procedures.

Activate Continuous Sketch to enter a mode where the last position indicated to end an open curve will be used as the start position of the next open curve created. This works for 2D Lines, Arcs and Splines that are created using a start/end point method, but once a closed curve is created (for instance, a circle), the last position is canceled, ending the chain. If you then make another open curve, you must choose the start point and the chaining sequence starts again.

To interject a tangent arc into the chain, once the arc endpoint is pre-selected at the end of the entity, choose the entity again (let the tangent symbol appear on the cursor) as shown below:
 

1.1.2.  Geometry Text

Text entities may be used a simple notes or converted to geometry (lines and arcs) and used as any other 2D profile geometry would. Any TrueType®  font installed in the system may be used to create the text.

You have the option of creating two different types of text:

1)       Simple Bitmap Text
With this method, you may have outlined or filled text. Bitmap text is accepted as a profile for procedures such as Extrude. It will be converted to geometry in the process of performing the operation. The text, however, will remain bitmap text for the purpose of editing afterwards. In other words, you can create solids/surfaces with the text and later edit the text, updating the solids or surfaces created. Bitmap text is recommended if changes will later be made through the text editor.

2)       Geometry Text
Using the “Burst outlines into curves” geometry is directly created from the text typed in. You can also choose “Arcs” or “NURBs”. With the Arcs option, the text geometry is created as lines and arcs as opposed to lines and NURBS curves. The reason you would use this option is if you would like to edit the text string with geometry operations afterwards. Note that once you create geometry text, it cannot be edited though the text editor like bitmap text, since it is converted to geometry permanently.
 

1.1.3.  2D Cubic Spline Editing

It is now possible to move the end points of a spline without moving the spline. This was more of an error correction than an enhancement. It is now possible to edit the tangent vectors to set them to the same direction as the end of another selected planar curve.  This is done by grabbing the vector endpoint, holding down the left mouse button, moving the cursor over another planar entity, then releasing it, as shown.

1.2. 
Key Drawing Enhancements

1.2.1.  Auxiliary Views

Auxiliary View allows you to create a drawing view aligned to a selected line or curve on edge in the geometry of an existing drawing view. Here is an example of a simple auxiliary view:

1.2.2.  Selection of Multiple Note Entities

1.3.  Key Graphics Enhancements

1.3.1.  Shaded Highlighting

There is now a new highlight mode for face selection called “Render Highlighting”. This only works if you have OpenGL acceleration turned on, so it is turned off by default. To turn it on, go to the Tools-System-Options dialog box and you will see a button on the Graphics tab page called “Render Highlighting”. You can either choose to render individual faces only or all of the faces created by a procedure, when a procedure is highlighted. You can also choose to highlight the face edges (outline) along with the render face highlighting. Choose the dropdown list option to set both or use the checkboxes below to set individual properties for single face and procedure highlighting.

1.3.2.  New Display Controls

You can now turn off the display of the World (Model) Origin axes and the Plane ICON. These options are found in the Tools-System-Options dialog box on the Graphics tab.

1.3.3.  Non-Solid Linetype Display Improvements

Dashing display when non-solid lines are displayed on top of solid lines has been improved, so that if the non-solid line entity is displayed in front of the solid entity, the non-solid entity display takes precedence.

1.4.  Key Translation Enhancements

1.4.1.  DWG/DXF File Export

You can now export an AutoCAD® DWG (.dwg) or DXF (.dxf) file from a Model document or Drawing document. Currently, 2D geometry, text and annotation are supported. To export the file, choose File-Export-DWG/DXF while either in an open Model or Drawing document. 

AutoCAD has its own fonts, so they do not map exactly to TrueType fonts. The system maps the more popular AutoCAD fonts to a TrueType font and makes adjustments so that the text appears in the same location. To change the mapping of a particular AutoCAD font to a TrueType font for export, edit the file “DWGExportFonts.dat”, which is found in the directory where the program exists.

1.4.2.  Text Support in DWG/DXF Import

You can now import text from an AutoCAD DWG/DXF file, either into a Drawing or Model document. Once again, AutoCAD fonts do not map exactly to TrueType fonts, so the system maps the more popular AutoCAD fonts to a TrueType font and makes adjustments so that the text appears in the same location. To change the mapping of a particular AutoCAD font to a TrueType font for import, edit the file “DWGImportFonts.dat” which is found in the directory where the program exists.

1.4.3.  IGES Import of Planar Entities

Improvements were made for the import of IGES planar entities. Most wireframe geometry in IGES files is not flagged as planar (this is an option, not a requirement). For instance, even though lines and splines that existing on a plane with other entities, such as arcs, in the source CAD system file, the CAD system may have just exported them as 3D wireframe geometry. In this case, the entities are imported as 3D wireframe, providing limited functionality for 3D solids modeling. By choosing the option “Translate 3D to 2D curves”, found in the Tools-Options-System-Translation dialog box on the Translation tab, the system attempts to sort lines and planar splines onto a plane by checking to see if the imported entities lie on an existing plane that was already created by the import (such as a plane for an arc). This was partially working before and now works in most situations.

1.4.4.  IGES Import of Trimmed Surfaces

More improvements were made for importing IGES trimmed surfaces, especially where 2D trimming curves were used.

2.  Error Corrections

The following notable bugs existing in v2.11 were corrected in v2.5: