Version 2025 : September 2024

Common Reference
Contents
Introduction 7

Main Screen Components 8

Main Menu 9
File Menu 10
Preferences 13
Display Preferences 14
Interface Preferences 28
Machining Preferences 36
File Preferences 40
Import/Export Preferences 42
Auto Save Preferences 43
Coordinate Systems Preferences 43
Post Processor Comments 46
Communication Setup Preferences 48
Intermediate Tooling Preferences 50
G-Code Editor Settings 50
Materials 53
Importing a Material into the Database 56
Selecting Material from within a process dialog 58
The Edit Menu 59
Clipboard 60
Select and deselect 60
Geometry Expert 65
Edit Menu - Operations 66
The View Menu 67
View Orientation and Control 68
Explode/Coordinates 69
Visibility 70
The Modify Menu 71
Transform 73
Other Modify Commands 76
Wrap/Stock 80
The Solids Menu 82
Tools sub-menu 82

2
 Validity Checks 82
The Features Menu 85
Hole Wizard 86
Hole Manager 86
Attribute Manager 87
Feature Manager 87
The Window Menu 88
Arrangement 88
Managing a Large Number of Processes 89
Tool, Process , Operation and Workgroup Managers 90
Viewing Data 90
Operation Groups 91
Editing Data 91
Multi-Selection 92
Multiple views 92
Manager Context Menus 93
Title Bar Context Menu 93
Header Customization 94
Report Row Context Menu 95
The Plug-Ins Menu 96
The Macros Menu 97
Diamond Insert 97
Configuring the Macros Menu 98
The Help Menu 100
Online Help 100
Dynamic Help 102
GibbsCAM 103
About the Online Help 104
Troubleshooting the Online Help System 107

Floating Toolbar 109

Commands Toolbar 128

Actions Command Toolbar Group 129
Document Control Dialog 129
View Control Palette 130
CS List 132
CS Palette 132
Workgroup 132
Body Bag 133
CAD Command Toolbar 133
Geometry Palette 134

3
 Dimension Palette 134
Surface Modeling 134
Solid Modeling 134
Solid Modeling 135
CAM Command Toolbar 135
Tools 135
CAM 135
Tile Lists 136
Cut Part Rendering and Simulation 136
Program Error Checker 136
Post Processor dialog 137
Options tab 139
Workfixtures tab 140
Special Info tab 146
Configuration tab 147
Summaries Command Toolbar 148
MTM Command Toolbar 148
Sync Control 148
Part Stations 149
Cut Part Rendering and Simulation 149
Cut Part Rendering and Simulation Options 150
Playback Controls 151
Record Video 152
CPR/Rendering Visibility Controls 153
Simulation Control Icons 156
Simulation Context Menus 165
Legacy CPR Context Menu 166
All Context Menus 167
Printing the Rendered Image 171

Status Bar 172

Customizing The User Interface 173

Command Shortcuts in Trackball 173
Customizing the Workspace 174
Customizing Toolbars and Menus 175
Save/Load Customization Profile 176
New Menu Button 176
Keyboard Shortcut List 177
Commands tab 178
Menus tab 180
Rename/Delete/Reset Buttons 180
Toolbars Tab 180
Positioning Command Toolbar Groups 181

4
 Exit 181
Moving Command Groups around the workspace. 181

Miscellaneous 183
Lists 183
Tool List 184
View/Edit Tool List 185
Save or Load Selected Tools 186
Process List 187
Save or Load Process Lists 187
Operations List 189
191
Active and Inactive Ops 191
Appearance and Behavior of Op Tile Stacks 192
Opening, Closing, and Scrolling a Stack of Op Tiles 193
About Manual Stacks 193
Dragging and Dropping 194
About Linked Operations (Parent/Child) 194
Extended Tile Lists 194
Dockable Panes 195
Other Workspace Items 196
Workspace 196
Axis Block 196
Trash 197
Shortcuts 197
Cursors 198
Eyeball icon 200
Freehand Actions 200
Freehand Move and Rotate 200
Right-Click 202
Colors 202
Hole Manager 203
Math Functions 204
Interrogate 204

Appendix 206
About Clearance Volume 206
A Discussion About OpenGL 207
Recommendation 208

5
 Known Issues and Fixes 208
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) 208

Conventions 210
Text 210
Graphics 210

Links To Online Resources 211

Index 212

6
 Introduction

Introduction
Welcome to the GibbsCAM Common Reference guide. GibbsCAM is a modular application,
meaning that different customers will have different functions depending on their need. In other
words, not everybody needs Mill/Turn functionality or the SolidSurfacer module.
But much of GibbsCAMs interface and functionality is shared or is common across the many
modules. This guide documents most of the common interface items found throughout
GibbsCAM. Some options or third-party packages create their own Menu Bar entry. These
packages are not covered in this guide. Intermediate Tooling, Reporter, and Plug-Ins are all
covered in separate guides.
It is recommended that you also read the Getting Started guide in conjunction with this guide.

7
 Main Screen Components

Main Screen Components

1. Quick Launch Bar 4. Status Bar 7. Process List 10. Operations List
Commands
2. Main Menu 5. 8. Axis Block 11. Trash
toolbar
3. Floating Toolbar 6. Tool List 9. Workspace 12. Command Search

8
 Main Menu

Main Menu
The Main Menu is available to the user at all times. The Menu provides access to many of the
system’s functions through individual sub-menus. Some items may or may not appear
depending on the installed options.

1. Quick Access Toolbar

This can be customized and extended if
required. See Customizing the UI.htm 8. The Window Menu
9. The Plug-Ins Menu
2. File Menu 10. The Macros Menu
3. The Edit Menu 11. The Help Menu
4. The View Menu 12. Current filename display
5. The Modify Menu 13. Command search.
6. The Solids Menu
7. The Features Menu

Command Search
Command Search lets you find a command just by typing in a portion of its name.

You can hover your cursor over a list entry to see tooltips
(illustrated left). Click to execute the command. Click either
the main or sub-menu icon to highlight the command in
the UI, (it flashes yellow) but not execute it.

9
 Main Menu

If a menu item is grayed out, it cannot be selected. Selecting geometry or some other
appropriate item on the screen can change the menu item so that it becomes black and can be
selected.

File Menu

The system will keep track of the parts that have been most recently used and will display
information on folders. Moving the cursor over a recently opened file displays a larger preview of
the part.
Clicking the pin icon on the part view saves the part file onto the pinboard. This is a scrollable
expanding area which enables parts to be grouped together and will allow more than the most
recent parts to be saved. Use the large pin icon at the top of the pinboard to hide/unhide the pins.
All the last opened part information and pinboard is saved for your next session when you exit
GibbsCAM.
In addition to the standard Windows file controls, there are additional options as detailed below:
File Items

Open
Displays the Open dialog. Change to the filetype required, or choose All Files (*.*). Browse to the
file you want to open and click Open. If a file is currently open, it is closed and the file you select
opens.

10
 Main Menu

Save a Copy

This will save the current file under a different name or version and let you continue working with
the original file. “Save as type” pull-down menu provides an ability to save the file into older
versions of GibbsCAM.

WARNING: Please note that saving a file to an older version may, and in
some cases will, cause the part to lose capabilities, functions, tools, and
intermediate tooling blocks not available in the older version.

Type Default Part

You can designate that a particular part file is the default part associated either with one of two
machining types (Mill or Turning) or with an MDD (Machine Definition Document):

l
To save the part as the default for its type, choose File > Type Default Part.
l
To save the part as the default for its MDD, choose File > MDD Default Part.

Result: The part is saved in a special folder (the Default Parts Folder) with a special filename,
such as (for Type Default Part) New Mill Part.vnc, or (for MDD Default Part) New 3 Axis
Vertical Mill.vnc. The name and location of the Default Parts Folder are available through
Pathfinder — typically
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\CAMBRIO\GibbsCAM\<version>\DefaultParts\.
When a new part is created, the MDD Default Part will be copied in if it exists for this MDD;
otherwise, the Type Default Part will be copied in; or, if there is no default part set for either the
MDD or the machining type, then the new part will be blank.
Definition:
In GibbsCAM terminology, the MDD (Machine Definition Document) is where all aspects of a
particular machine are organized and stored, including its linear and rotary axes, its toolgroups,
spindles (part stations), and utility stations, and how these are associated and organized into
Flow Axis Sets, Interop Moves, etc. It also specifies the post processors, coolants, extended
cycles, and simulation bodies available to the machine, and it records preferences for work
areas, limits, clearances, and many other items.

Exchange
Import/Export

The Import and Export dialogs allow a variety of file types to be exchanged into and from the

current file. Each of the import types can be directly opened through the File > Open
command. For specific information on how each file will be interpreted and translated, see the
Data Exchange guide.

11
 Main Menu

Pack and Go

You can easily create and use package files (*.gcpkg) containing a GibbsCAM part and the
transportable portion of the environment that the part requires or expects.

Please Note: Be aware of proprietary considerations before you share parts and
environments with others. For example, you might have a part file that is not proprietary,
but its associated post, or Machine Sim part files, might be subject to a license or
nondisclosure agreement.

To create a package: On the main menu, File > Pack and Go.

The following are all included in the package:

l part file (always)
l MDD (always)
l VMM (always, if present)
l Templates for Basic Utility Operations (always, if present)
l Machine Simulation files (optionally, if present)
l Intermediate Tooling files (optionally, if present)
l Postprocessor file (optionally, if present)
l Macros for custom drill cycles (always, if present)
l system diagnostic file
To use a package: Simply drag the *.gcpkg file into GibbsCAM. A temporary "sandbox"
environment will be created that will be automatically deleted when you close the part.

Peripherals
Print Drawing

Selecting Drawing... (Ctrl+P) will print the geometry, toolpath, and the rendered image as they
currently appear on the screen. The exact output will vary depending on the settings in the
Printing preferences; see “Printing ” on page 23.

Post

Post... becomes active when a file has been post processed. Posted output can also be printed
from the Post Processor dialog.
Communication

Communication dialog allows the user to specify how to send and receive text or VNC files to
and from the machine control. The Communication dialog can also be accessed from the Post
Processing dialog. For more information on the use of this dialog and Post Processing see the
Getting Started guide and the guides for Mill or Turning.

12
 Main Menu

Intermediate Tooling

UKM provides the ability to support a Toolblock Library (a generic term encompassing
adapter blocks, holders for toolholders, right-angle heads and adjustable heads, etc.) and a

Fixture Library (chucks, tailstocks, steadyrests, etc.). For a part setup, you can see locations
and orientations of toolblocks and adjust their offsets, and you can control the display of tools
and toolblocks in the toolgroup. For more information, see “ Intermediate Tooling Preferences ”

on page 50. You can also change the machine configuration using Machine Data.

Application
Preferences

Preferences opens a dialog that allows you to set all the preferences and behaviors for
GibbsCAM. This includes communications with a CNC, establishing default file extensions, and
details on how to save files and set up the display output, as well as interaction with the mouse or
digitizer. All the preference settings are described in “ Preferences” on page 13.
Materials

This choice opens the Materials dialog which allows you to view, add and modify material
properties and cutting speeds. For a full description of this function, see “ Materials” on page 53.
Exit

This closes GibbsCAM.

Preferences
The Preferences dialog presents tabs containing controls that affect different parts of the
system.

1. Display Preferences , next

2. “Interface Preferences ” on page 28
3. “ Machining Preferences ” on page 36
4. “ File Preferences” on page 40
5. “ Import/Export Preferences” on page 42
6. “ Auto Save Preferences ” on page 43
7. “Coordinate Systems Preferences” on page 43
8. “ Post Processor Comments ” on page 46

13
 Main Menu

9. “ Communication Setup Preferences” on page 48

10. “ Intermediate Tooling Preferences ” on page 50
11. “ G-Code Editor Settings ” on page 50

Display Preferences

The Display preferences affect what you see on screen or what you print out.

Cut Part Rendering

The Cut Part Rendering section specifies preferences for the display when a part is being virtually
machined, including how tools are displayed.
Auto Tool Size
This modifies the length of some tools to maximize the visibility of Cut Part Rendering. Very long
tools are shortened and short tools are lengthened to just above the stock to ensure visibility.
Thus, a short tool will not be hidden inside a pocket when being rendered. When Auto Tool Size is
disabled the system will display tools as they actually look. This is particularly useful for Turning
threading and grooving operations and some milling operations. Activate Auto Tool Size if you
have an older computer or are not concerned with tool length, as this will increase Cut Part
Rendering speed.

14
 Main Menu

1.Enabled
2.Disabled

Auto Tool Size enabled and disabled examples.

Edit Op/Tool and Machine Sim Settings

Clicking this button opens the Settings dialog that allows you to define how Part and Tool
Rendering should look and act. This includes the quality and appearance of the rendering and
how collisions should be handled. For more information, see Settings for Op Sim, Tool Sim, and
Machine Sim

Appearance
The Appearance settings directly affect the look of the GibbsCAM workspace. Beyond just the
“look” of the workspace, these settings can directly affect the system’s performance. There are
three categories which can each have different settings.
Display
The Display category affects the immediate workspace and solids.
Op/Tool and Machine Sim
This affects how simulation will look and behave.
You can choose from several preset themes, including GibbsCAM 2005 No OpenGL, GibbsCAM
2006, GibbsCAM 2005 OpenGL, and many others. You can have different settings for Op/Tool and
Machine Simulation. Or, you can set Op/Tool or Machine Simulation to use the same settings as
Display by choosing “Display” from the drop-down list.
GibbsCAM 2005 No Open GL uses the legacy GibbsCAM cut part rendering and behavior. Older
systems may work best under this setting. Note that Op Sim and Tool Sim still work when using
this option, but it closely resembles the legacy ("CPR") rendering. GibbsCAM 2005 OpenGL has
the legacy look but uses OpenGL to accelerate solids and Op/Tool Sim. GibbsCAM 2015 3DS is
the standard display. GibbsCAM 2006 CR and GibbsCAM 2006 SW are variations on the
GibbsCAM 2006 appearance.
Edit Appearance Settings...
Clicking this button opens a dialog that lets you create your own appearance setting and choose
options. This can help speed up the system display.

15
 Main Menu

Appearance Settings Dialog

Configurations
This list shows the available presets. A red arrow is next to the preset the display is currently set.
These presets cannot be changed but you may choose one, duplicate it and modify the
duplicate. It is recommended that you change the name of your custom preset by double clicking
the new preset and changing the name to something you prefer. The items discussed in this
section affect the appearance and performance of GibbsCAM. There are other factors that can
have an effect on performance and appearance. Please see “Appendix” on page 206 for more
information on video cards, video drivers and various recommendations.
Common Tab
The items in this tab control very basic elements of the interface, which apply to all parts of the
system.
Enable OpenGL Acceleration
This item turns OpenGL on and off. Most of the system (from display to toolpath to rendering)
is accelerated by OpenGL. Therefore, this checkbox should remain selected, except for older
or low-end computers or video cards that do not handle OpenGL well.
Activate Dialog on RMB
When this option is active, you can bring up the Appearance preferences dialog by pressing
and holding the right mouse button when the mouse is positioned over an empty area of
workspace — in other words, not over solids, toolpath, or geometry.
Unzoom on View Change
When this item is active, the system will automatically unzoom the part when you change
views using any of the trackball buttons or keyboard shortcuts for the standard views. The
system will not unzoom if you perform a pan or rotate.
Semi-transparent Drag Rectangle
When this item is active, the system will softly shade the area surrounded by the mouse-drag
rectangle.

Semi-transparent Drag Rectangle Drag Rectangle with no semi-transparency

16
 Main Menu

View Animation Speed

This item controls how fast the transition is between standard views.
Plane Opacity
This item controls how “solid” the CS plane is. The CS plane fills in the grid of the current
coordinate system. The plane can be toggled on and off using the Show CS button in the
floating Taskbar.
Lights Tab
The model is lit by up to four lights. Each light’s position around the part can be controlled
through XYZ vector values ranging from –1 through 2551. Alternatively, you can control the
direction by dragging the light across the preview. Each light has a color defined by RGB (Red
Green Blue) values ranging from 0 through 255. Or, you can click on the color button and select
a light color from the color picker. The color picker is described in “Colors ” on page 22.
Here you see an example of a body lit with four lights. The Faux Shadows option is active.

Colors Tab
You can control the color and transparency of solids, surfaces, and many other items. The color
picker is described in “Colors ” on page 22.
Material Properties
The Material Properties of bodies can be modified as well. This is what kind of material a
body looks like. By controlling Specular, Ambient light, and Shininess values, a body can look
like plastic or aluminum or stainless steel.
Specular
The Specular value is the amount of reflectivity bodies have and color of the reflections. A
low value (color) means that the surface is dull. A high value (a brighter color) means the
surface is very reflective. You can select a color or define the RGB values for this
attribute.

17
 Main Menu

Ambient
The Ambient value is color of the non-directional lighting on the part. You can select a
color or define the RGB values for this attribute.
Shininess
Shininess is the size or intensity of reflections. This is a value from 0 through 255. Low
values create larger highlights (which are less intense). High values create smaller, very
intense bright spots. Here you see two examples of a part with low shininess and high
shininess. The lower shininess settings create larger, less-intense reflections. The high
values create small, more-intense reflections.
Below are some examples of lighting modes to show you how the different lighting can
affect the shininess. The models have two different settings for the part color. The top two
bodies are based on the default settings. The bottom two bodies have a lower specular
value and four light sources.

1. Low shininess
2. High shininess

An example of shininess, using custom light settings.

Pre-selection Properties
The items in this section control the appearance of items on mouseover or mouse hover

when Toggle Pre-Selection Highlighting is in effect:

Solid Edges When active, the edges of a preselected body will be shown in the pre-
selection.
Halo Transparency Sets the transparency of the pre-selection. A value of less than 20 will
be very subtle, whereas the maximum value, 255, will make the preselection opaque.
Halo Thickness Sets the width in pixels of halos and edges that surround pre-selected
elements.
Sim Tab
The items in the Sim tab allow you to define the color of the various items displayed by Machine
Sim, Op Sim, Tool Sim, etc. You can change the default color of rendered objects by setting the
RGB values by key-in or slider, or by clicking on the appropriate color button and then using the

18
 Main Menu

color picker, described in “Colors ” on page 22. Separate colors can be applied to selected
bodies (Target), toolpath (Cut), interference (Clash), the primary color of the cutting tool (Tool) and
its Shank and Tool Holder), the currently selected operation (Selected Op), errors (Tool Error and
Holder Error), and tool color while rapiding (Rapid Tool).

You can set the transparency level for fixtures, stock, and tools. A value of 0 turns the
transparency off (the item is solid); the maximum value of 255 makes the item completely
transparent. Whether the fixture and/or stock is transparent is controlled by the right-mouse
menu of the Render Control palette. The tool transparency is set using the Invisible,
Transparent, and Solid buttons on the Render Control palette.

An example of a transparent fixture.

Background Tab
The items in the Background tab allow you to define the colors of the cut part rendered
background. Both the single color background (defined by the Color setting) and the gradient
background can be customized. The gradient consists of up to four colors, one per corner of the
workspace.

Gradient
This option switches the single color workspace to a gradient, making it easier for you to
distinguish between standard rendering and the OpenGL rendering modes, which may be

19
 Main Menu

slower. The colors of the background may be customized (as seen above) by changing the
default colors.
Draw Axis
This enables/disables the display of a small Red (horizontal), Green (vertical) and Blue
(depth) axis marker in any of the four corners of the workspace. This marker can help
visualize the part’s orientation, and hovering over the marker with the mouse enables a
temporary trackball. Choose the location to display this marker, or turn it off.
Faux Shadows
This item enables the drawing of shadows for bodies. The shadows are not created from light
sources but are instead just to the Bottom, Back or Side of the model. The shadow can help
with part orientation but can slow the display.
System Tab
These options normally do not need to be modified. The items found in this tab can help improve
the performance of Op Sim or Tool Sim, depending on your CPU, the amount of memory
available, the video card, the type of monitor and its display. Some experimentation may be
necessary to determine the optimal settings for any given computer. As a general rule,
computers with higher quality/faster cards will not need to change these options.
Display Lists
This is a speed optimization. It is recommended to turn this on if you have a fast video card
with 128+MB of memory. This option outputs solid geometry to OpenGL display lists. Using
display lists can improve the performance of Simulation and, on some graphics adaptors,
provides performance improvements for rendering all solids. Generally, newer cards with
hardware geometry acceleration will take advantage of Display Lists. Using this option can
require large amounts of video adaptor memory.
There are two instances where turning off Display Lists may be useful.
a. If you find that Legacy CPR or Simulation crashes with some regularity (this is likely the
result a data-management issue with a MachineWorks/graphics card manufacturer).
b. Sometimes using display lists can result in fairly slow rendering. This situation is hard to
gauge but it has to do with inefficient display list management inside the graphics card
manufacturer's OpenGL implementation, typically where the card shares video RAM with
the computer’s memory. A good example is rendering a large contouring pass will be
slower with display lists than without. This is because certain video card manufacturer’s
OpenGL implementations are bad at managing display list memory. All the tiny changes
to contoured stock and the data added to the display lists can adversely affect the
simulation speed through inefficiencies.
Partial Updates
This is a speed optimization. Partial Updates lets the system redraw only sections of the
display that have been modified. Among newer video cards that use Display Lists, some will
benefit from Partial Updates, others will not. Partial Updates is particularly useful in
optimizing display updates in Simulation/CPR during animations and especially when the
Steps Per Update is smaller and animation runs more smoothly. Please note that some video
cards do not support partial update behavior. The trade-off of using Partial Updates is that on
some video cards there may be situations where a part of the display is not drawn correctly.

20
 Main Menu

Vertex Arrays
This option structures solid topology as an efficient point-reduced mesh and uses optimized
OpenGL functions to send data to the graphics adaptor. This option requires additional
memory to store meshes and additional processor bandwidth to pre-calculate the meshes.
This can be a big speed improvement on systems with a adequate video card, i.e. a lot of
memory.
Soft Shadows
Applies a blurring filter to the projected shadow. In some parts with extreme bounding volume
aspect ratios (like MTM), soft shadows may eliminate all projected feature details. On some
video cards this can have a large impact on solid rendering performance.
Driver
Select the type of OpenGL rendering that will be used in the next graphics session — either
the next part that is opened or the next GibbsCAM session that is launched. The options are:
Hardware
This is fully accelerated OpenGL. This option uses OpenGL to render all geometry, which
includes solids and toolpath. This mode requires a redraw whenever an overlapping
window is moved over the geometric window.
Software OpenGL
This is a software simulation of OpenGL. This is a standard implementation across all
Windows hardware platforms so it should work the same on every machine, but provides
no acceleration. This mode does not support shadows and uses the non-OpenGL method
for rendering non-solid geometry. This option does not require a redraw whenever an
overlapping window is moved over the geometric window. This option provides for a more
compatible result but sacrifices speed and power. This option should only be used if your
video card has poor or no OpenGL support, or if you experience unacceptable graphical
issues.
P-Buffer
This is a partially accelerated OpenGL. This option uses accelerated OpenGL to render
solid geometry and shadows but, like the Software mode, uses the non-OpenGL method
for rendering non-solid geometry and does not require a redraw whenever an overlapping
window is moved over the geometric window. This mode is not supported on all graphics
adaptors but appears to work well on NVIDIA. This option provides for a highly compatible
rendering system but sacrifices speed.
Facet Body Opacity
This item sets the visibility of facet bodies. Facet bodies are created from STL files. See the
Mill manual for more information.

21
 Main Menu

Driver Info

This item opens a dialog that displays the currently available OpenGL drivers on the
machine, their supported extensions, and the amount of currently used and available
graphics memory.
Test Frame Rate
This item tests the number of times per second that the current display is redrawn.
Colors

1. Standard Colors
2. Custom Colors
3. Color Mixer
4. Saturation Level
5. Add Custom Color
6. Use Custom Color

The Rendering Preferences lets you select a color from one of the forty standard choices. Clicking
the Default Color button is the same as clicking Escape, inasmuch as the dialog will close and the
color selection will not change.
To create a custom color, click near the color you wish to use, adjust the slider to select the
saturation of the color, and click one of the two buttons to the right of the color mixer and slider.
The upper color button (“Add Custom Color”) selects the specified color and adds it to the current
custom palette. The lower color button (“Use Custom Color”) selects the color but does not add it
to the custom colors palette.

22
 Main Menu

Printing
Geometry, bodies, toolpath and rendered images can all be printed by selecting the Drawing
item in the Print submenu. The Printing Preferences section of the Display preferences lets you
specify how the system will handle the background color and the colors of the image.
Separate options are available for printing the geometry and toolpath and for the rendered part.
Selecting Screen will print the drawing exactly as it appears on the screen, with a black
background and the colors as they appear on the screen. Selecting Screen on White will print the
image in color, but on a white background. Selecting Black on White will convert all the colored
items to black and print them on a white background. If the printer being used is a black and
white printer, the Black on White option should be selected to ensure that all portions of geometry,
including those that are of a light color, can be seen in the print. If a color printer is being used,
any option can be used.

Bodies
The Bodies section of this preference contains settings that affect the graphic display of bodies
and sheets.
The Render Faces button (found in the Floating
Taskbar) determines whether bodies and sheets will be
rendered as objects or wireframe drawings. The
wireframe drawings of the solids or sheets will be
displayed as either Edges or Facets depending on the
selection made for Wire Drawing.

Edges and Facets in Wire Frame mode

Chord Height
A chord is a straight line that joins any two points on an arc or circle. The chord height is the
distance from the chord to the arc or circle. This setting determines the faceting resolution when
bodies and sheets are rendered. The smaller the chord height, the closer the facet will be to the
arc or circle, resulting in a better rendered image. When the setting is very tight, the on screen
drawing of bodies and Boolean operations can become slow. A setting of 0.01 inches or 0.25mm
is recommended for most systems.

23
 Main Menu

Grid Brightness
The Grid Brightness option is for the Level 2 interface only. This slider controls the brightness of
the coordinate system grid in the stock diagram. The brightness can be adjusted by moving the
slider.

Other Items
Marker size

You have the option of displaying Small, Medium, Large or Extra Large Markers.

Show 'Other' turning toolholders in preview

For Turning inserts when no toolholder has been specified, select this checkbox to display a
"pseudoholder" (rectangle drawing) in the tool preview window.

Lines drawn for high degree curves

This setting is used when higher-order splines are imported into the system. The value specifies
the number of line segments that will be drawn to create the spline. For a smoother spline
drawing, enter a larger number. For the spline to be drawn faster, enter a smaller number. This
value only affects the drawing resolution of the spline, not the machining tolerance.

24
 Main Menu

Settings for Op Sim, Tool Sim, and Machine Sim

There are separate settings dialogs for Op/Tool Simulation and for Machine Simulation. Both
have virtually the same options but they save separate data files. They are opened by using the
Display preferences tab (File > Preferences > Display):

These dialogs can also be accessed by right-clicking the corresponding rendering dialog and
selecting the Settings... option.

Performance
Drag the performance slider to choose predefined settings to set greater accuracy or greater
speed, or to choose custom settings.

25
 Main Menu

Cutting
Frames per Second
A greater Number of frames equals better quality, but less speed.
Cut Part Chord Height

1. Chord Height

This setting is the resolution for the cut part displayed. The smaller the value, the higher
quality of the display and the more resources needed by the system, resulting in a slower
rendering, depending on your system's capabilities.
Body Chord Height
Determines the resolution of bodies (part, stock, and fixtures) in rendering.
Chord Height
You can set the Chord Height to a specific value, or a percentage of the
Body's Chord Height:
The % of Body’s Chord Height option uses the value set in the Properties
dialog. A setting of 100% uses the body Chord Height while a setting of
10% is 1/10th of the body Chord Height. Any percentage between 1 and
100,000 is acceptable. As the percentage is set higher, the body
displays faster but appears rougher.

Slider
This item affects the responsiveness and quality of the rendering. The Angle values can have a
very large impact on the rendering speed versus quality, especially on rotary operations. A low
number will create very small angles in rotations, resulting in a smooth image. A high number
can create a rendered part that is not smooth but is very fast. Please note that this does not
affect toolpath, only the rendered part.
For Machine Simulation, the Auto Range checkbox enables the use of the stock size to define
minimum and maximum feed and rapid lengths.

26
 Main Menu

Feature

Collisions/Program Errors
Collision and Program Error checking are available for Op Sim and Machine Sim. You can
choose any or all of the various feedback methods that alert you to a collision: The Beep option
provides an audible alert; Log To Display outputs errors to the Clash Console log window; and
Stock Flash provides a visual alert to the error by flashing the rendered stock. Stop Animation will
cause the rendering to stop when a collision is detected.
To guard against high-feedrate cuts, check the box for Cuts above ____ are collisions and supply a
value for maximum feedrate. This can help you foresee and prevent broken tools and damaged
parts even when rapid is not being used.
Collision Tolerance
The Collision Tolerance setting allows a different value for parts in metric and inches. Any
collision within the specified tolerance generates a collision alert.
Gouge Tolerance
Gouge Tolerance allows you to specify how much removed stock material can be ignored
without considering it to be a gouge. Drag the slider to the left to decrease (tighter tolerance),
or to the right to increase (looser tolerance).
Statistics
When the Statistics option is enabled, a window will open when you activate Simulation. The
window logs the current frame-rate for your machine as well as any logged errors for the CPR
session.

Reset
Resets all values to the default .

27
 Main Menu

Interface Preferences

The items found on this tab affect the basic interactions of GibbsCAM, including its “look-and-
feel”. The items on this tab let you set base size of GibbsCAM, the interface you will use, how
dialogs behave, selection behavior, and many other things.

Window Size
This option determines whether the application will occupy all of your monitor (Start Maximized) or
will be in windowed mode when you launch the application. Selecting the Enable Caption will leave
the blue bar visible (the caption bar shows the name of the application and has a Close box).
Deselecting this checkbox will hide the bar so that the menu bar is at the top of your screen.
When the application is not maximized, you can resize the window by dragging an edge or
corner.

28
 Main Menu

Dialogs
Transparent Dialogs

Selecting this option allows each dialog to have a custom transparency setting. You can also
set a default transparency setting that all applies to all dialogs until they are customized.
When Transparent Dialogs is in effect, the title bar of each dialog includes an icon ( ).
Click the icon to bring up a slider that lets you set a custom transparency for the dialog.
If Transparent Dialogs is not selected, the icon is hidden and all dialogs are opaque.
Window Snap Positioning
Enabling this option will cause windows and dialogs to “snap” to nearby windows. This allows
for easy and neat arrangement of windows.
Dialogs Roll-up
Selecting this option will cause dialogs to automatically “roll up” to show only their title bar
when the mouse leaves the dialog. When the mouse enters the title bar, the dialog unrolls to
show its contents. Enabling this option adds an icon to the title bars. When the “pushpin” is

down ( ), the dialog does not roll up. When the pushpin is up ( ), the dialog can roll
up.
Dialogs Follow Application
Selecting this option will cause all windows and dialogs to follow the application window if it is
moved.

29
 Main Menu

Lock Solid/Surface Palettes

This option affects the Solid Modeling and Surface Modeling palettes, the sub-palettes and
their dialogs. Selecting this option will cause the sub-palettes and dialogs to follow the Solid
Modeling and Surface Modeling palette. When the parent palette is moved, all palettes and
dialogs accessed from this palette move along with it.

Floating Toolbar Transparency

This allows you to specify the degree of transparency for the Taskbar and custom floating
toolbars. Select Enable to change the default values. The value for On specifies toolbar opacity
when the cursor hovers over a floating toolbar item. The value for Off specifies toolbar opacity
when the cursor is away from the floating toolbar. The default values make floating toolbars
almost opaque (80% On) on mouseover, and almost transparent (20% Off) the rest of the time.

Level
The Interface preferences allows you to toggle between the Level 1 and 2 interfaces. Although
you should use the interface that best suits your needs and knowledge, using the Level 2
interface is recommended. This is because the Level 2 interface is a more refined and optimized
interface, providing a richer environment. New and Current Part lets you specify the default level
interface the system should use. Open Part lets you designate whether the system will open an
existing part with the interface level that the part was originally created in, or with the interface
level that the system is currently running.
Level 1
This interface provides full functionality to the production Mill and Turning modules, using the
Command Toolbar. The full functionality of Level 1 does not, however, encompass Advanced
CS, Tombstone Management System (TMS), Multi-Task Machining (MTM), Solids Import,
2.5D Solids, SolidSurfacer, or Machine Sim capabilities.
Level 2
The Level 2 interface provides the most advanced set of features, including the Command
Toolbar and floating Taskbar. The Level 2 interface is necessary for using product options
Mill/Turn, Polar & Cylindrical Milling, MTM, Advanced CS, Solids Import, SolidSurfacer,
Machine Sim, or TMS, and is available to all users.
Open Part
This defines the interface level an existing part will be opened in. Part opens a vnc file and
sets the interface level to match the level used to create the file. Current opens a vnc in the
interface level currently in effect.

Selection
Targeting Pixel Tolerance
This setting specifies the accuracy you need to have when you select an item in the
workspace. The default setting, 5 pixels, means that the workspace item is selected if it lies
within 5 pixels of the cursor tip when you click the mouse, and not selected if it lies 6 or pixels
from the cursor tip. If more than one element is within range, the system selects the closest
geometry.

30
 Main Menu

Floor/Wall Angle Tolerance

This item is used with the face selection options found when right-clicking on a solid. Any
face that falls within the tolerance specified in this dialog will be selected. For example, when
selecting wall faces with the default setting of 10°, any face at an angle from 80° to 100° of
the selected face will become selected.
Face Blend Tolerance
This item is used with face selection. When selecting fillet faces, Face Blend Tolerance is used
to detect rolling ball fillets.

Other Items
Always show tool preview on hover
Specifies whether a preview of the tool is shown when you hover the cursor over a tool tile.

Zoom to Mouse Cursor

For scrollwheel zoom actions: If the Zoom to Mouse Cursor checkbox is selected, then the zoom
center is the cursor; otherwise, the zoom center is the window center.

31
 Main Menu

Zoom to Mouse Cursor not selected (top): Window-

centered zoom

Zoom to Mouse Cursor is selected (bottom): Cursor-

centered zoom
Reverse Mouse Wheel Zoom
When this checkbox is selected, the effect of rolling the mouse wheel is reversed (from zoom-out
or zoom-in or vice versa).
Open Process Dialog on Op Load
When this checkbox is selected, double-clicking an operation tile will cause the associated
process dialog to open.
Activate Machining CS on Op Load
When this checkbox is selected, double-clicking an operation tile will cause the machining
coordinate system (CS) of the associated process or process group to be activated.
Mouse drag selection limited to
Your choice here specifies the system behavior when you click-and-drag your mouse across the
workspace to select items that lie either totally or partly within the mouse-drag rectangle.
• When Right to left is in effect, a right-to-left mouse-drag includes only elements that lie
completely within the rectangle, whereas a left-to-right mouse-drag includes elements that
lie at least partly within the rectangle.
• When Left to right is in effect, a left-to-right mouse-drag includes only elements that lie
completely within the rectangle, whereas a right-to-left mouse-drag mouse-drag includes
elements that lie at least partly within the rectangle.

32
 Main Menu

Automatically Check for Updates on Startup

When this checkbox is selected, the system will check if a newer version of the software is
available for download. To disable this function, uncheck the checkbox.
Usage Statistics
When GibbsCAM is installed, a dialog asks permission regarding the collection of usage
statistics. These consist of general technical data (such as OS platform and graphics
subsystem) as well as software module statistics that are specific to GibbsCAM, such as
frequency of library/module calls and GibbsCAM software performance. No personally
identifiable information is ever collected (such as company name or user name, computer or
network ID, or the like), and no information on part design or part names is ever collected.
Information is never collected without permission, and permission can be withheld either by the
system administrator or (if the administrator allows it) by GibbsCAM.com users.
At installation time — or at any other time by running Bin\GCStatsAdmin.exe — the administrator
chooses whether to opt in or out of usage data collection, and also specifies whether or not to
permit individual users to override the administrator’s choice.
If users have this permission, they can exercise it as a preference: File > Preferences, Interface
tab, Usage Statistics button. Any changed setting takes effect immediately upon clicking the OK
button.
License Update

The License Installation or License Update dialog lets you drag an RLM license file (*.lic) onto the
dialog for application installation, browse the computer for a license file (*.lic), or run the
Registration Tool to obtain a license file (*.lic) through the Gibbs Activation Service.
Note that this release uses Reprise License Manager (RLM), not Cimatron License Server
(CimLM). If you try to use a CimLM *.cml file instead of an RLM *.lic file, it will not work.

Reseller Activation - If your Reseller will be assisting you with your installation,
have your registration files (and hardware keys, if any) ready in advance.

33
 Main Menu

License Options
This preference is only available when the Network Licensing Option (NLO) is in effect. This
preference lets you specify the licensing options to be checked out from the license server.
Select the options you wish to use and click Check Out. If the options you want to use are
available, you can then click OK; otherwise, you will need to select other product options.
This is useful when a full compliment of product options is unavailable or unnecessary. For
example: Suppose your company has five Mill seats, five Advanced CS seats, and three
SolidSurfacer seats. Even if three other users are currently using SolidSurfacer, you can still
check out a Mill and Advanced CS seat, because there are two open seats for each option.

NLO License borrowing with checkout/return/expiry parameters

Users can now check out an NLO license for a specified time period, then disconnect from the
network. This allows users to borrow licenses, disconnect, move their laptop, and keep using the
GibbsCAM products even when the license server is stopped. Borrowed licenses can be
returned manually, or they can be set expire after a set time. Where users can find this option:
Under File > Preferences > Interface, click License Options; then, in the License Manager dialog,
click Start Roaming.

Digitizer Calibration
This preference allows you to set the functionality of a tablet. The default setting is Tablet as a
mouse.

Tablet as a digitizer in three places: 1) Calibration 2) Mouse Point, 3) Mouse Line. When the Tablet
as a digitizer setting is selected, calibration points must be entered. Any three points on a part
print can be used for this purpose. Place the cursor in a text box, select a point on the print with
the digitizer puck, and enter the X and Y values. Repeat this process for two more points.

34
 Main Menu

Calibration must be performed for each part you wish to digitize, and the calibration does not
persist across instances of GibbsCAM. The calibration can be performed whether a part is open
or not.

Selection
Targeting Pixel Tolerance
This setting specifies the accuracy you need to have when you select an item in the
workspace. The default setting, 5 pixels, means that the workspace item is selected if it lies
within 5 pixels of the cursor tip when you click the mouse, and not selected if it lies 6 or pixels
from the cursor tip. If more than one element is within range, the system selects the closest
geometry.

Tab Single Click Behavior

This preference lets you specify the system behavior when you single-click the tab of a tool,
process, or operation tile.
Do Nothing
Selecting the tab has no effect. This is the default setting.
Select Tile
Selecting the tab causes the tile to be selected.
Select Tile and Redraw Toolpath (Op List Only)
Selecting the tab of a tool or process tile causes the tile to be selected. Selecting the tab of an op
tile causes the tile to be selected and the toolpath to be redrawn.

Tile Single Click Behavior

This preference lets you specify the system behavior when you single-click a tool, process, or
operation tile.
Select Tile
The tile is selected. This is the default behavior.
Select Tile and Redraw Toolpath (Op List Only)
Selecting a tool or process tile causes the tile to be selected. Selecting an op tile causes the tile
to be selected and the toolpath to be redrawn.

35
 Main Menu

Machining Preferences

The Machining Preferences tab contains several settings for the system’s behavior when
generating toolpath.
Default Mill/Turning CRC Type
This option allows you to set the default behavior of Cutter Radius Compensation in operations.
This is a default; for any particular part, you can override this default in the DCD (Document
Control dialog), Machining Preferences tab. The Default CRC Type options include Tool Center,
Tool Edge, Finish Profile and Last Used. The toolpath displayed on-screen will not change with each
selection, but the posted output will vary according to your selected preference. Additionally, if
you convert an operation’s toolpath to geometry, the resulting geometry will be reflective of the
CRC Type used.
When using custom form tools for turning-type parts, do not use the Tool Edge setting, because
the entirety of the form tool is used in the calculation. Tool Center is the recommended option
because that is the method used by the system to display the toolpath (orange lines) and cut part
rendered images. Regardless of the setting you choose, all toolpath drawing and cut part
rendering display as tool center.
Tool Center
The toolpath is rendered on-screen this way regardless of which CRC type option is selected.
With this option, the toolpath is calculated to the center of the tool including any stock
settings. When using Tool Center, the offset in the CRC register at the control should be the
difference between the tip radius of the actual tool used and the tip radius of the tool
programmed in the system. If the tools are identical, the CRC offset number should be zero. If
the actual tool is smaller, you can use a negative value.

36
 Main Menu

Tool Edge
With this option the toolpath is calculated to the edge of the tool including any stock settings.
CRC offset settings on the control should be set to the tool size.
The offset in the CRC register must be the full tool radius. Toolpath is to the tool edge,
including tool geometry. You also need a post processor that supports Tool Edge output. If
your post processor is incompatible, a warning message appears. Numbers generated in the
posted code are the same as the blueprint numbers. When you select Tool Edge, the toolpath
lines still display as tool center. Tool Edge only affects the posted code. Toolpath in Roughing
operations is calculated from the tool center, unless in Tool Edge mode, in which case,
(because we apply CRC to the last pass only) the last pass will be calculated from the tool
edge.
When using Tool Edge, you should enter the radius of the actual tool in the CRC register. If
you use tapered tools or tools with corner radii, you must calculate the appropriate offset
amount based on the taper.

You cannot enter negative line lengths in Tool Edge CRC approach/exits. This
means there is no way to have an arc only approach. With tool center you simply set
the line length to “0”. With tool edge you have to enter line length equal to -tool
radius.

Finish Profile
With this option, the toolpath is calculated to the finish geometry of the part and does not
include stock. The G-code output is essentially a blueprint of your part. CRC offset settings
on the control should be the tool size, plus any stock allowance. This option supports Rough
Bore, Finish Bore, Contouring and Offset Pocketing operations. For pocketing and rough
bore operations the Cut Width must be greater than the tool diameter otherwise tool center is
output in the code. This option is meant to be used as a finish pass.
Last Used
This option keeps the CRC offset setting currently in use.

WARNING: The system does a much better job offsetting the tool than the majority
of controls currently available. Regardless of the setting made in this preference,
all toolpath drawing and cut part rendering is calculated and displayed using the
system’s offsetting mechanism. Therefore, it is possible for the cut part rendered
image produced by the system to look good while the tool, cutting according to the
posted code, will not cut well. If the control’s offsetting mechanism is less advanced
than the system’s, it is possible that when the control produces the offset values,
errors and interference will result.

What exactly is meant by arc radius and line length in CRC? The arc radius is to tool centerline
for all CRC types. Line length is the distance you want the tool edge to start away from the
geometry start point.

37
 Main Menu

1. Machining Marker
2. Process dialog Line value

90 degree Line Approach

With Tool Center the line length and arc radius are tool centerline distances, meaning that a 90°,
9mm radius tool centerline arc will bring the tool edge down 9mm from the finish wall.
Tool Edge CRC defines the line length and arc radius in terms of edge position. If you specify “0”
for the line length, the tool edge starts on the geometry, and a tool radius-long line will be output
in the G-code for CRC to turn on. This results in “no move.” If a line-arc entry is used, you have to
visualize the equivalent finish geometry approach radius that will result from the arc radius
specified. The line length is measured from this finish geometry arc start point.

1. Tool Edge to part = centerline radius

Tool Edge Entry

Please note that the toolpath for “0” length approach/exit lines are drawn incorrectly. The output
toolpath appears to be correct. You can check the output toolpath by converting an operation to
geometry. The orange toolpath line drawn is not the output toolpath, but rather a prediction of
actual tool motion from turning CRC on/off. If you set the preferences to Tangent Entry Line to Arc,
and Tool Edge, it is easy to see how these values work. The very first move is an angled line. The
tool positions at a finish geometry equivalent position at the start point of the entry line. We
assume G41 will be applied on the first move, and the orange line angles over to the start point of
the centerline toolpath. This stays centerline until CRC off on the last line.

1. Turn on CRC move

2. Entry radius
3. Resulting Tool edge arc
4 .Finish geometry to G-code

Tool Edge G41 start

38
 Main Menu

Holder Class Menu Items

This item allows you to select which mill holders show up in the Document Control dialog. Most
users will not have all classes of back ends available so this item helps you minimize an
otherwise long list of items.
Ignore Lathe Max Feed Moves
When this checkbox is selected, no turning moves will use maximum feedrate. Instead, any
moves programmed for Max feedrate will continue at the feedrate immediately preceding. This is
normally Contour Feed, unless the preceding utility marker was changed — to User, for example.
Please note that if your Post Processor was written before this option was available, you will
need to get it updated.
Legacy Tool Edge CRC Entry/Exit
Check this option to enable output of values along the Entry and Exit Angle in G-code, but the
motion will deviate by a tool radius. The default is unchecked, where the Entry/Exit motion
displayed will match the Entry/Exit angle, but the G-code will show values that differ by a tool
radius.
Enable Background Material Calculation
Check this box to run 3D Material-Only calculations in the background, which is faster but takes
more memory.
Uncheck it to run these calculations in the foreground, which is slower but provides more control.
With 3D Material Only, material can be shared across different operation types (such as Milling
and Turning operations) or different CS’s, and 3D milling can use rest material. It also provides
Machine Sim with a more accurate picture. When a process dialog’s Solids tab is bolded, it can
use 3D Material Only. The DCD lets you set a global tolerancing preference for 3D Material-
Only: Tighter tolerances mean better accuracy, but they incur larger model sizes.
Solid to Facet Body Conversion Tolerance
This value (default: 0.1 mm, 0.005 inch) control the tolerance for automatic conversions from
geometric solids (b-rep bodies) to facet bodies. This value should be used only for CAD
operations like those in Facet Body Solid Modeling Palette, not for machining or display (which
have their own separate faceting tolerances).
Hole Wizard
The Hole Wizard section contains buttons to access the preferences for Hole Data. These
preference settings control the behavior of the Hole Wizard. In addition a predefined list of bolts
and tap definitions can be accessed here. The Bolt Table and Tap Table dialogs are spreadsheets
that contains standard data and user entered definitions of bolts and tap holes. These items are
fully described in the Features guide.
Hole Manager
Opens a dialog which enables setting of preferences for Hole Manager. This is fully described
in the Features guide.

5-Axis Preferences
Opens a dialog which allows you to set caching parameters for 5-Axis toolpath calculation.
Caching uses additional space to speed up Redo performance during a session.

39
 Main Menu

For example, if 5-Axis toolpath has been created during a session, then enabling caching means
that a Redo of that toolpath will recalculate only the changed data instead of recalculating all
data. For complicated toolpath and a location with fast I/O, such as an SSD (solid-state drive) or
EFD (enterprise flash drive), this can significantly improve performance.

File Preferences

The items found in the File tab determine how GibbsCAM reads and writes items in files.
Undo Memory
This value determines the amount of memory space in megabytes to be reserved for performing
Undo functionality.
Save Display Facets
Check this box to save facet information along with the part file. Saving without facets creates a
smaller file that requires more time to regenerate display facets when opened
With 3D Material Only, material can be shared across different operation types (such as Milling
and Turning operations) or different CS’s, and 3D milling can use rest material. It also provides
Machine Sim with a more accurate picture. When a process dialog’s Solids tab is bolded, it can
use 3D Material Only. The DCD lets you set a global tolerancing preference for 3D Material-
Only: Tighter tolerances mean better accuracy, but they incur larger model sizes. .

40
 Main Menu

Save Size
This preference lets you control the size of the files that have solids. The files can be saved as a
Large or Minimal (without facets) file. Saving without facets creates a smaller file, but will require
more time to regenerate the facets when the file is opened. On slow systems, this regeneration
may be quite long, depending on the size and number of solids.
Alert When Overwriting Post Output File
This option will present an alert if you overwrite an existing NCF file when generating a post. This
option will also open a Save dialog, allowing you to select a different name for the new post,
protecting the older file.
Launch New Application on File
This option dictates how the system will respond when a VNC file is opened. If Launch New
Application on File is selected, a new instance of GibbsCAM will open with the selected file. If this
option is not selected, the file will be opened in the current instance of GibbsCAM. If a file is
already open, you will be prompted to save the open file if necessary.
Use Default Part When Opening Non-VNC Files
Enables the MDD or Machine Type Default Part to be loaded before importing files with the Open
command. If unchecked, Open imports the file into an empty part.
Cutdata Path
The system looks for the Materials Database file in the path and filename specified here. The
default path is C:\ProgramData\CAMBRIO\GibbsCAM\<version>\.

• If you have not purchased CutDATA, the Materials Database file has the default name
Material.txt if empty, or else, if it contains custom data, MATERIAL.txt.

• If you have purchased CutDATA, the Materials Database file has the default name
CutDATA.txt.

In either case, you might want to name the file something else (not recommended), or you might
want to keep the file in a more central or convenient location such as the My Documents folder or
the desktop. Clicking the Browse button lets you define where the system should look for your
material database file.
Font Directory
This preference allows you to manually set the font directory that will be used in the Text Creation
dialog. Some users may designate a different folder for engraving fonts to make selecting a font
easier than sifting through a listing of all available fonts on a system. The system automatically
determines the location of the operating system’s Fonts folder; for most users, therefore, this
preference may be ignored. However, if the fonts that will be used for engraving are not kept in
the default system fonts folder (C:\WINDOWS\Fonts), this preference will be necessary. Simply
highlight the target folder that has the engraving fonts and click on OK. Please note that only
TrueType fonts can be used with the system’s Text Creation function.
Additional VMM, MDD & MachineSim Path
This preference allows you to manually set the directory where the system looks for VMMs,
MDDs, and Machine Sim models.

41
 Main Menu

Accelerated Process Loading

Significantly increases system performance for loading process lists and tool lists, using
additional memory.

Import/Export Preferences

The items found in the Import/Export tab affect how data is translated to and from GibbsCAM.
File Extension
These preferences set the extensions that will be added to different types of files that are created
by the system:
• The extension associated with Post is added to the text file generated by the system when a
part file is post processed. The default extension is NCF.

• The extensions associated with IGES, DXF, and Point List are used when importing and
exporting geometry.
• The extensions associated with Parasolid, SAT, CATIA V4, and VDA are used for importing and
exporting solids files.
Each entry in the dialog may contain more than one extension for a type of file. For example,
Parasolid files might have the extension x_t or xmt, depending on the application that saved the
file. Multiple entries must be separated by a comma and a space.
Choose Solidworks Configuration upon import
SolidWorks configuration allows the creation of multiple variations of a part or assembly within a
SolidWorks file. If checked, a dialog will appear during import to enable selection of the
configuration.

42
 Main Menu

Unchecked, the active configuration will be used.

Default Translators
This section allows you to specify which import/export option will be used by default on
operations like File > Open or drag-and-drop. For more information, see the Data Exchange
guide.

Auto Save Preferences

GibbsCAM has the option of automatically saving the file you are working on. You should be
aware that saving will purge any available Undos and Redos.
By default, auto-saved part files are saved in the same folder where they were opened. You can
override this default by selecting Override Backup Location and specifying a backup directory.
You have the option of saving As Backup file. Selecting this option has the advantage that you can
continue working on your current file as normal, with redo and undo available. The backup file
created is a temporary file that can be automatically deleted when you close GibbsCAM
(although you can override the automatic deletion if you want). The backup file is used only if the
software crashes before you close GibbsCAM.

Coordinate Systems Preferences

43
 Main Menu

The Coordinate Systems tab allows users to set the guidelines for the automatic creation of new
coordinate systems. It is recommended that beginning users check all of the items in the New CS
section. This will result in more coordinate systems being created but geometry will not be
modified.
These preferences affect the associativity between coordinate systems, geometry and toolpaths.
When these items are all unchecked, geometry and toolpaths may change their position to
reflect modifications made to the coordinate system on which they are based. In some cases,
this may not be a desired effect, so these preferences have been included to give the user
control over CS associativity.
Self Definition
This has an effect when modifying a CS and geometry is selected.
- When this item is checked the system will automatically create a new coordinate system
rather than updating the current CS. This will only occur if geometry was selected to
modify the CS and it is assigned to the CS being modified. The result is that the geometry
selected for the modification will not change its location. The geometry will still be based
on the coordinate system in which it was created rather than having its location in 3D
space moved to reflect the new CS modification.
- If this item is unchecked, any modifications to a CS will result in geometry in the CS
moving with the CS.
Geometry References
This has an effect when modifying a CS that contains geometry.
- When this item is checked, if a modification is made to a CS that was used for existing
geometry, the system will create a new coordinate system rather than modify the current
CS, which would result in moving the geometry.

44
 Main Menu

- If this item is unchecked, any modifications to a CS will result in geometry in the CS

moving with the CS.
Toolpath References
This has an effect when modifying a CS that was used for machining.
- When this item is checked, if a modification is made to a CS that was used as the
Machining CS for an operation, the system will create a new coordinate system rather than
adjust the current coordinate system. This prevents the changing of the position of
toolpath.
- If this item is unchecked, any modifications to a CS that was used for existing toolpath
will result in modified toolpath.
Out of Plane Rotation
This has an effect when modifying a CS that was used for machining.
- When this item is checked, the system will automatically create a new coordinate system
anytime geometry is rotated out of the plane in which it was based. Rotating out of plane
would be rotating geometry along its horizontal or vertical axis, as opposed to about its
depth axis.
- If this item is unchecked, geometry may be rotated and the CS will not be modified.
Set New CS Visible
When this is checked, the CS Frame Indicator will be displayed on the screen for any CS that
is automatically created by the system based on these preferences.

45
 Main Menu

Post Processor Comments

The Post Processor Comments preferences allow the user to specify comment data that is
output in the NCF file generated by the system. If an item is checked, that data will be output. At
the end of this section is a simple program that shows most of these options in use.
Extended Characters
Selecting this option will allow characters beyond the ASCII 1-128 character set to be output in
the post. Your machine should support non-English character sets to use this option.
Program Name
This item will output the name of the part file at the beginning of the program.
Program Comment
This item will output any comment entered in the Document Control dialog “Comment” section.
The comment will be placed in the program header.
Format Code
This option will output the ID number of the post processor that was used to generate the
program. The ID number will be placed in the program header.
Format Name
This option will output the exact name of the post processor that was used to generate the
program. The name will be placed in the program header.

46
 Main Menu

Date and Time

This option will place the date and time the program was created in the header.
Absolute or Incremental
The program will include in the header whether the output is absolute or incremental.
Number of Parts
This outputs the number of parts being posted in the program header.
Starting Tool State
This option outputs whether the post processor expects the first tool to be in the spindle or tool
changer.
Special Functions
By default this option is off. When active, the post outputs an explanation of Utility Data
commands that are available with this post. This is potentially a significant amount of text.
Operation Number and Type
With each new operation in the program the operation number and type will be output.
Operation Comment
This option will output any comment associated with the operation at its start in the program.
Workgroup Comment
This option outputs the workgroup name at the start of each operation.
Tool Number and Type
This option outputs the tool number and type at the start of each operation.
Tool Comment
If there is a comment associated with a tool, it will be output at the start of the operation.
Length in Characters
This option will output the program length in characters in the program footer.
Length in Feet
This option will output the program length in feet in the program footer.
Length in Meters
This option will output the program length in meters in the program footer.
Sub Number
In operations that have sub-routines, the sub-routine number will be output as a comment.

%
O1( PROGRAM: POSTEXAMPLE.NCF ) Program Name

( THIS IS FROM THE DOCUMENT CONTROL DIALOG. ) Program Comment

( FORMAT: FANUC 6M [VG] M001.19M.PST ) Format Name

( 3/21/06 AT 3:57 PM ) Date and Time

( OUTPUT IN ABSOLUTE MILLIMETERS ) Absolute or Incremental

47
 Main Menu

( PARTS PROGRAMMED: 1 ) Number of Parts

( FIRST TOOL NOT IN SPINDLE ) Starting Tool State

N1G17G40G80
N2T1
N3M6
( OPERATION 1: HOLES ) Operation Number and Type

( DRILL A SINGLE 13MM HOLE ) Operation Comment

( DRILLING WORKGROUP ) Workgroup Comment

( TOOL 1: 13. DRILL ) Tool Number and Type

( 13MM DRILL ) Tool Comment

N4G54
N5S3000M3
N6G90G0X20.Y20.
N7G43Z50.H1
N8M8
N9Z2.5
N10G81G99X20.Y20.Z-53.906R2.5F250.
N11G80G0Z2.5
N12M9
N13G91G28Z0.
N14M5
N15M30
%
( FILE LENGTH: 502 CHARACTERS ) Length in Characters

( FILE LENGTH: 4.46 FEET ) Length in Feet

( FILE LENGTH: 1.43 METERS ) Length in Meters

A simple program showing most of the available post options in use

Communication Setup Preferences

48
 Main Menu

To send a post file to a CNC machine, the parameters for data transfer must be set up in the File
> Preferences Com Set-up dialog. This dialog is used to set up two-way communications for
transmitting data between a control and workstation. Different controls have different protocols
or parameters. Refer to the machine control’s manual for the protocol specifications.
Adding a Protocol
To add a new communication protocol, enter the name of the new protocol, change the settings
to match those of the CNC machine, and click the Add button. The new protocol will appear in the
list.
Changing a Protocol:

To change protocol information, select the protocol from the list and change the information. The
changes are automatically saved when the dialog is closed or when a different protocol is
selected in the list.
Removing a Protocol:
To remove a protocol, select the desired protocol from the list and click the Remove button.

49
 Main Menu

Intermediate Tooling Preferences

This lets you set the default folder used for Intermediate Tooling.
You can set the default view to either Quick View (static image) or Dynamic View:
• Quick View is suitable for slow systems with underpowered graphics.

• Dynamic View is recommended for most systems, because you can pan, rotate, and zoom the
preview using many of the same mouse movements and keyboard shortcuts that you use in
the workspace, like CTRL-drag to pan, center-mousebutton-drag to rotate, marquee to zoom
in, CTRL+U to unzoom, and so forth.

G-Code Editor Settings

This lets you select an application for displaying and editing post files.

50
 Main Menu

Editor Choices

When a post file is processed, the system will automatically launch the application of your choice
and display the posted output.
No G-Code Editor
You can choose to disable the editor, in which case you will still be able to look at the output in
the post Processor dialog window.

Internal Editor
The GibbsCAM built-in G-Code editor provides the following features:
• Editing and file capabilities, such as Cut/Copy/Paste, Undo/Redo, and Save/Save As.
• Context colors that distinguish at a glance items like code, code labels, and parameters
within individual G-codes and M-codes.
• The ability to edit multiple subs. Each sub occupies its own tab in the window.
• When editing multiple flows, you can choose either independent scrolling, where each flow
is independent of all others, or synched scrolling, where each G-code stream is padded as
needed so that separate flows remain aligned according to their syncs.

51
 Main Menu

• Customization: You can set colors and font however you like, and you can edit and create
sync definitions.

If you require the G-Code editor to be permanently displayed, open it from the Plug-Ins menu

using Open G-Code Editor. If you have your own editor, this can also be opened from the

Plug-Ins menu using External G-Code Editor.

Custom Application
Any application that can open and read ASCII text files such as Notepad or Word can be used as
your custom editor. Click the Browse button to locate the custom editor you want to choose.

52
 Main Menu

You can select the Advanced Options checkbox if you want to use the ability to pass variables to
the custom editor. When this option is enabled, %f passes the filename; %p passes the path
down to the folder that contains the file; and %s passes the path and filename.

Materials

The Material Database with and without CutDATA

Materials database is available from the File menu Materials. The Materials Database is
used for storing and quickly retrieving feeds and speeds recommendations for various types of
materials. All Materials Database information must be entered by the user unless the CutDATA™
material library has been purchased. To access the database, you can also click on the Material
button in any of the process dialogs.

If you have not purchased CutDATA, the Materials Database file has the default name
Material.txt if empty, or else, if it contains custom data, MATERIAL.txt. If you have
purchased CutDATA, the Materials Database file has the default name CutDATA.txt.

The database is set up in a hierarchical format. A Family can contain more than one Alloy group
and is at the top of the hierarchy. Within the Alloy group(s) you can then specify materials.
Materials are sorted into hardness ranges and cut types. When you select an alloy group the
Alloys text field becomes active, where all of alloys that fall into the alloy group can be listed.

53
 Main Menu

Materials Dialog
6. Calculate RPM button
1. Family
7. Calculate Feed Button
2. Alloys textbox
8. Comment
3. Alloy Group(s)
9. SFPM (SMPM)
4. Material data list
10. ipr (mmpr)
5. Suggest button
11. Cut diameter (Turning)

Family
The dialog above shows some of the different families that come with the CutDATA™ database.
When a family is selected, the Alloy Group list will fill up with the groups that are part of this family.

Alloy Group:
An alloy group contains a list of all the alloys that fall into a material family and can be machined
with the same parameters. When an existing alloy group is selected, the material list will fill up
with materials.

54
 Main Menu

Alloys
This is a large text edit box which if using CutDATA, already contains a list all of the alloys that
are in the alloy group. The information in this box is available to edit when an alloy is selected.
Material Data List
The materials in this list are grouped together by cut type, hardness, and tool material.
Comment
If a comment has been entered, it will be displayed here.
Edit Material
To edit material information:

1. Select a Family, Alloy Group and Cut Type.

2. Click the material you wish to edit.
3. Type the information required.
4. Close the dialog. The information is updated in the Materials list.

The following settings are only available from the Edit Material or New Material dialogs.
Hardness
The text in this field is used to set up different hardness ranges that can all be machined with
the same settings for a specific material.
Condition
This is the condition of the material. It is related to the hardness value. It is only used for
reference and will not affect any calculations.
XY Depth
This box is used to enter the depth that the tool will be buried into the material. The axes
change depending on the cut type selected.
Tool Size
This is the diameter of the tool.

55
 Main Menu

Tool Material
This dropdown menu is a list of the available materials for tools.
Cut Type
This dropdown menu is a list of the different cut types available in the database.
SFPM (SMPM)
The value in this box will be used as the suggested Surface Feet Per Minute (or Surface
Meters Per Minute for metric) when a material is selected.
ipr (mmpr)
The value in this box will be used as the suggested Inches Per Revolution (or Millimeters Per
Revolution for metric) when a material is selected.
Comment
This box allows an additional comment to be displayed when the material is selected in the
Materials dialog.

Please note: When deleting any item in the Materials Database (Family, Alloy Group or
Material), great care must be taken as the undo function is not available.
Import Material
Click this button to open a dialog where you can navigate to and select a tab-delimited *.txt file
that defines a material.

Importing a Material into the Database

The Import Material lets you import custom material data can be imported into the Material
database. This option can be used whether you have purchased the CutDATA Materials
database or not. This function lets you define new material types and cutting parameters in an
external file and perform a bulk import into the database, either adding to the existing data or
creating an entirely new database of your own. The data may be created in any application that
can save or export a tab-delimited text file, such as Microsoft Excel or Notepad. A spreadsheet
application is recommended for its ability to clearly view your data.
Click the Import Material button, navigate to the correct folder, and open the file that contains your
custom data.
By default the Materials Database is stored in the GibbsCAM global data folder:
C:\ProgramData\CAMBRIO\GibbsCAM\<version>
The default name of a CutDATA file is CutDATA.txt; the default name of an empty Materials
Database file is Material.txt; the default name of a customized Materials Database file is
MATERIAL.txt; the all-uppercase letters indicate that custom data is present. If the file does not
exist in this folder or a location you specify in the File > Preferences > File I/O, then an empty
database file is automatically created when launching the application. Regardless, any imported
material will be added to the currently specified file.
The import process only adds data, it will not overwrite any existing entries. It is therefore
possible that you may have duplicate entries. The duplicates can be deleted using the Delete
Material button.

56
 Main Menu

Fourteen data categories are supported. Each new material entry must be on a single line and
there must be a tab between each entry. All categories must be entered; if a material you are
defining does not have an entry (typically a comment), then the category must be entered as
“NULL” (without quotes). Each category has a particular type of data it can read. A “string” is text
and a “real number” is any non-irrational number, e.g., -4, 0, 8, or 0.1215.

Type of
Category Example
data

Family string Alloy Steel, Cast

Alloy Group string Low Carbon

Alloy Comment string This is a low carbon steel alloy casting

Hardness string Over 50 HRC

Condition string Carburized &/or Quenched and Tempered

Tool Material string † Carbide Solid

Cut Type string ‡ End Mill, Peripheral

real
Cut Depth 75
number

real
Tool Size 6
number

real
Surface Feed 45
number

Inches per revolution or real

0.102
Millimeters per thread number

Use Comment 0 or 1 0 for no comment or 1 for using a comment

Comment string NULL (if there is no comment)

Metric 0 or 1 0 for inch or 1 for metric

† These strings must match strings in the current Material Database dialog. That means the
Tool Material must be

HSS HSS TiN Coated

Carbide Insert Carbide Solid

Diamond Other.

57
 Main Menu

‡ These strings must match strings in the current Material Database dialog. That means the
Cut Type must be

Boring C. Bore Drilling

End Mill, Peripheral End Mill, Slot FaceEdit Mill

Reaming Spotface Tapping

Turning Cutoff Thread.

Following is an example of a material entry as seen in Microsoft Word. The arrows represent
tabs and the pilcrow (¶) is a return.

Alloy Steel, Cast→Low Carbon→ This is a low-carbon steel alloy

casting→Over 50 HRC →Carburized &/or Quenched and Tempered→Carbide
Solid→End Mill, Peripheral→75→6→45→0.102→0→NULL→1¶

• The data is not case-sensitive, but it is language-sensitive. In other words, if you

are running a French or Spanish version of GibbsCAM, then the Tool Material
and Cut Type must be localized.
• If an entry is not complete, it will be skipped; that is to say that if an entry has
only 13 tabs, the entire entry will be skipped or if it has an empty field (it does not
have “NULL”) it will be skipped. If an entry is skipped, then the import process will
move to the next valid entry and will continue from there.
• The importation process is immediate and cannot be interrupted.

Selecting Material from within a process dialog

Clicking the Material button from within a process opens the Materials Database. Select a
material by clicking first the Family, then Alloy, then the material required. Once the material has
been selected (it is now highlighted in blue) you can populate the Speed RPM, Entry, and Contour
Feed in the process dialog from the data set up in the Materials Database, either by clicking the
buttons in the process dialog or the Calc RPM and Calc Feed in the Materials dialog.
The following buttons are only active when the dialog is accessed through a process dialog.
Suggest
Clicking this button will tell the software to select the material in the list that most closely
represents the cut condition of the open process dialog. First it will try to match the cut type.
Then it will match hardness, depth of cut and tool material.
Calculate RPM
This button calculates an RPM value and places it into the process dialog.
Calculate Feed
This calculates a feed value and places it in the Feed textboxes in the process dialog.

58
 Main Menu

The Edit Menu

The Edit menu contains options that enable you to adjust

and select file contents.
1. The actions and clipboard sections are the standard
Windows commands for removing and inserting text and
features. You can set the amount of memory allocated to
"undo/redo" in the File Preferences menu.
2. Select and deselect,
3. Geometry Expert. These four commands are used with
Geometry Expert.
4. Edit Menu - Operations.

59
 Main Menu

Clipboard

The Clipboard is used as a temporary storage space for geometry, solids, features, attributes
(including PMI), text, tool tiles, and process tiles. You will find the clipboard from the Main menu
> Edit > Clipboard. You can also use the standard Windows keyboard shortcuts.

Cut option (Ctrl+X) deletes whatever items are selected and places them on the Clipboard.
Previous contents of the Clipboard, if any, are replaced by Cut.

Copy (Ctrl+C) is similar to Cut inasmuch as it places a copy of the item in the Clipboard,
replacing the Clipboard's previous contents, but it does not delete the selected item.

Paste (Ctrl+V) is available only when the Clipboard contains something. It can do two things.
If something is selected, replaces that selection with the contents of the Clipboard. If nothing is
selected, it pastes the contents of the Clipboard in either the workspace (if the Clipboard
contains geometry) or into the active text box (if the Clipboard contains text).
The Clipboard can only hold one selection at a time. This means that it can hold either geometry
(with associated attributes, etc.), or text, but not both. If text is copied into a Clipboard holding
geometry, the geometry in the Clipboard will be lost.
Cut and paste is an easy way to move geometry between Workgroups in the same part file. You
can also move geometry, solids, tool tiles, and process tiles between parts. If you are Cutting
and pasting items between GibbsCAM instances, they must be the same GibbsCAM version for
the paste to work. Items are retained on the Clipboard even after GibbsCAM is closed and
relaunched. If you copy Processes, the system will automatically recreate the tools that are
associated with the Processes. Please note that you can only copy Workspace items (geometry
and solids) or items in the Tool or Process list.

Select and deselect

Selection
Select/ Deselect All

Select/deselect all available workspace items

60
 Main Menu

Invert Selection

Selected items are deselected and all unselected items are now selected.
Select/Deselect by Attribute

This item opens a dialog box that lets you specify an attribute, comparator, and comparison
value. When you click the Select button, all elements and bodies that match are added to the
selection set; when you click the Deselect button, all elements and bodies that match are
removed from the selection set. For information on attributes and comparisons, see the Features
guide.
Mouse Drag Select and Mouse Drag Deselect

After you click , you can click-drag the cursor to form a rectangle to select all items contained
in the rectangle. This is equivalent to holding down the Shift key when doing a click-drag.

After you click , you can click-drag the cursor to form a rectangle to deselect all selected items
in the rectangle. This is equivalent to holding down the Ctrl+Shift keys when doing a click-
drag.
Note that rectangles dragged left-to-right and right-to-left exhibit different behavior: One direction
affects the subset of elements that are entirely contained within the rectangle, and the other
direction affects the superset of elements that are even partly in the rectangle. You can set a
preference specifying which behavior occurs for which direction: File > Preferences > Interface:
Mouse drag selection limited to.

Filter Selections

Clicking opens the Selection Filter dialog box. This dialog lets you include and/or exclude
items by entity type: Not just points, lines, etc., but also dimensions, text, solids, holes, PMI, and
more. Because the results of selecting/deselecting items can be stacked, this is an extremely
powerful tool, providing the finest control possible over a selection set.

61
 Main Menu

Select Special
Circles

There are three circle selection options. All Circles will select all circles in the current
workgroup. Full, Radius and Full, Dia. Range will bring up the following dialog boxes.
Full Diameter Range

This dialog allows you to select all full, unterminated circles in the current workgroup whose
diameter is equal to or between the value range entered in the text boxes.

Full, Radius

This dialog allows you to select all full, unterminated circles in the current workgroup with a
radius equal to the value entered in the text box.

62
 Main Menu

Points
The Points selection options are as follows:

All Points will select all points in the current workgroup.

Connectors will select all points used to connect geometry in the current workgroup.

Terminators will select all points used to terminate open geometry in the current
workgroup.
Lines
There are three options to select Lines.

All Lines will select all lines in the current workgroup.

Feeds will select all lines designated as “Feed” in the current workgroup.

Rapids will select all “Rapid” lines in the current workgroup. See the Modify menu section
of this document for more information on Feed and Rapid geometry.
Curves

Selects all splines or curves in the current workgroup.

Dimensions

This will select all dimensioning annotations made in the current workgroup.
Text

Selects all textual annotations made in the current workgroup.

Sheets

Selects all sheets in the Workspace and open Body Bag.

Solids

Selects all bodies in the Workspace and Body Bag if it is open.

63
 Main Menu

All Profiles

Any profile shapes will be selected.

Edges

The Edges item will select all edges of selected bodies and sheets that are in the Workspace. Any
edge you do not want to select must be manually deselected.
Faces From Selected Profiles

Faces that are bound by the current profile will be selected.

Walls From Selected Edges

Any walls connected to selected edges will be selected.

Current CS

The Current CS item provides a quick way to select all geometry and bodies in the current
coordinate system. Geometry or bodies defined in coordinate systems other than the currently
active CS will not be selected.
By Depth

To select elements By Depth, enter values for From and To (in other words, depth values) to define
the maximum and minimum parameters for the selection. When the Select button is clicked any
element that lies within the range (wholly or partially) will be selected. If a section of connected
geometry falls within the selected range, only within-range elements will be selected. None of
the connection points or other elements outside of the range will be selected.
By Reference

To select an element By Reference, enter the Reference number that corresponds to the desired
selection. Reference numbers are assigned by the system to every geometric element created.
They can be viewed by turning on Labels from the View menu. To make the selection, click the
Select button.

By Body Comment

64
 Main Menu

To select (or deselect) bodies by comment, simply enter the search criteria in the By Comment
dialog and click on Select. This will select all bodies whose Comments field contains the search
criteria.
A search can be very specific, such as a name given to the body, or the search may be very
simple, such as selecting all bodies with the letter “s” in the comments. When Full Comment is
selected, only bodies whose comments are exactly the same as what you entered will be
selected. When Match Case is selected, capitalization of words is taken into account: even if
“rounded” was entered and a solid or sheet contained “Rounded” as a comment, it would not be
selected.
If the entry is left blank, all bodies with no comment will be selected.
By Body ID

To select a body using Select > By Body ID, enter an ID number that corresponds to the solid or
sheet you want to select. ID numbers are assigned by the system to each body that is created or
imported, and can be viewed by querying the properties of the body. For bodies in the Body Bag,
if View > Show Solid ID is in effect, the body ID is appended to the body name.
By Body Name

To select bodies (solids and sheets) By Body Name, you enter some data in the Name box to
specify the selection. All bodies have names — either automatically generated (such as Sphere
35) or given by the user. When Full name is selected, only bodies whose names exactly match the
text entry will be selected. When Match case is selected, capitalization of words is taken into
account.
Example: If you were to enter the text “round” into the Name box, it would not match a body
named “Rounded” if either checkbox is selected.

Deselect Special
The items contained in this sub-menu will deselect any geometry or bodies of the chosen type.
The Deselect sub-menu items have the same criteria as the Select sub-menu (explained above).

Geometry Expert

Insert Row

This item will insert a blank row in the spreadsheet above the currently selected row. When an
inserted row contains the necessary information and is entered, the system will recalculate the
shape and attempt to incorporate the inserted feature into the existing shape, if possible.

65
 Main Menu

Use Other Intersection

This item will toggle between Use Intersection #1 and Use Intersection #2 in the menu. This
option enables the user to select different intersections between concurrent features in the
spreadsheet. This option is available when the feature defined by the current row intersects the
feature defined by the following row in two places. This item will change the point of intersection
selected in a previous post targeting dialog to the other possible choice.
Delete Row

This item will delete the selected row from the spreadsheet. As soon as the row is deleted, the
system will adjust the remaining shape to maintain the appropriate connections, if possible.
Reverse All Rows

This item is only active when the Geometry Expert spreadsheet is open. When selected, it will
reverse the order of the rows in the spreadsheet which will change the direction of the shape as it
is loaded in Geometry Expert. This is useful when loading a shape that was imported or created
using the Free-Form CAD tools. When a shape that was not created using Geometry Expert is
loaded into the spreadsheet, the system decides whether to go in a clockwise or
counterclockwise direction when placing the features into the spreadsheet. Shape direction has
the potential to affect the angle values of lines and the direction of arcs. There are times when
the system will load the shape in the opposite direction than the one desired. When the shape
has been loaded into the spreadsheet, select the Reverse all rows item to reverse the order of
features. This item is only available when the spreadsheet contains feature rows.

Edit Menu - Operations

For more information on active and inactive ops, see “Operations List” on page 189.
Redo Active Ops
Recalculates the toolpath of all active operations.
Recalculate Material
Recalculate Material recalculates all data for Rest Material, including 3D Rest Material. This
ensures that the model's data is up to date, but it can require a long time for a large 3D model
with extensive Material-Only processes.
With 3D Material Only, material can be shared across different operation types (such as Milling
and Turning operations) or different CS’s, and 3D milling can use rest material. It also provides
Machine Sim with a more accurate picture. When a process dialog’s Solids tab is bolded, it can
use 3D Material Only. The DCD lets you set a global tolerancing preference for 3D Material-
Only: Tighter tolerances mean better accuracy, but they incur larger model sizes.
For more information, see Machining Preferences on page 36 and File Preferences on page 40

66
 Main Menu

Activate All Ops

Changes all operations currently in a deactivated to an active state.
Deactivate Unselected Ops
If this icon is clicked, all operations that are selected (yellow highlighting) will remain active (or
inactive if selected and is in an inactive). Unselected ops will change to an inactive state.

The View Menu

67
 Main Menu

The View menu provides access to commands that affect the display and how things are viewed.
This includes the Workspace, items within the Workspace, geometry, solids, workgroups, and
coordinate systems.
• View Orientation and Control next
• “Explode/Coordinates” on page 69
• “Visibility” on page 70

View Orientation and Control

Top Bottom

(Ctrl+E) Top view is the standard, default view of the XY plane in Mill, ZX in Turning. Bottom is
the opposite view.
Front Rear

(Ctrl+F) This a view of the XZ plane, Rear is the opposite view.

Right Left

(Ctrl+G) This is a view of the positive YZ plane in Mill, positive ZY in Turning. Left is the opposite
view.
Isometric Reverse Iso

(Ctrl+I) This is a “world” view. The part is drawn such that the part dimensions are all
foreshortened equally. Reverse Iso is the opposite view of the isometric part.
Home Reverse Home

(Ctrl+H) This is an option for Mill/Turn, Multi-Task Machining, Advanced CS, SolidSurfacer, and
products that build on these products. Home View is equivalent to the Top View for 2-axis mill or
turning parts. For any part with multiple coordinate systems, Home View rotates the view of the
part to a view normal (3D perpendicular) to the current coordinate system. The Home view
always displays the part with the positive depth axis projecting out of the screen. This has the
effect of showing the part rotated into the position it will be in when it is machined. Reverse
Home shows a view of the negative side of the active CS.
Op Cutting Plane Reverse Op Cutting Plane

Click to highlight an operation, then select this option. The Cutting Plane of the operation is
displayed.
Unzoom

(Ctrl+U) Also known as no zoom. This sets the scale of the stock diagram to the maximum size
that displays the entire stock diagram. The actual size is based on the stock size and the current
view.

68
 Main Menu

Redraw

(Ctrl+R) This item refreshes the screen image allowing the user to get a better indication of
what is currently drawn on the screen. Geometry, toolpaths, or the rendered part image can be
redrawn using this item.
Previous View

(Ctrl+K) This item changes the current view to the last view that was worked in.

Zoom In Out

(Ctrl++) Increases/Decreases the scale of the view, enlarging/shrinking by 25% each time you
press Ctrl++.

Explode/Coordinates
Explode View with Preview

View each connected shape and solid with space separating it from the others, displayed from
the cameras perspective. An insert preview window is displayed. Hovering over any area in the
preview window will zoom the main view to that area.
Explode

As above but no preview window.

Mouse Position

2D location 3D location

The Mouse position dialog may also be accessed from the geometry context menu. The top
section of the dialog allows the user to view the absolute two-dimensional (X and Y) or three-
dimensional (X, Y and Z) location of the cursor. As the cursor is moved, the values are updated.
The lower section of the window displays the incremental distance between two selected points,

69
 Main Menu

the relative distance between a selected point and the cursor and the angle of a straight line
between two selected points or a point and the cursor.
By selecting two points with the mouse, the Mouse Position dialog will display the distance
between the two chosen points as an incremental value. Each point selected will be confirmed
by a red marker on the ruler within the dialog. When one point is selected, the system will display
the distance (and angle) between the selected point and the cursor.

Visibility
Labels

(Ctrl+L) If this item is active, labels will be drawn next to every geometry feature. Circles and
arcs will be labeled C#; Lines L#; Points P#, and Bezier splines (free-form curves) B#. The # is
determined by the order the points and features were created in.
Points

(Ctrl+J) If this item is on, all points (plain points, connectors, and terminators) will be shown.

Extend Lines

When this is active, all unconnected lines will extend to the edge of the stock. If it is turned off,
lines will only extend to the features they were created between.
Show Stock & Origin

If this option is turned on, the gray outline of the stock and the origin marker will be drawn.
Show Geometry

(Ctrl+[) When enabled, this redraws only points, lines, circles/arcs, and splines. It will draw
geometry over the rendered image of the part.
Show Hole Features

This toggles screen display of hole features. The top of the hole is shown as a cross. The bottom
of a blind hole is shown with a line perpendicular to the hole axis.
Show Solids

If this is turned on, solids and sheets in the workspace will be displayed.
Show Dimensions

This toggles screen annotations on and off. Or, if the model contains PMI (Product and
Manufacturing Information), it opens the pull-down menu for the Show Dimensions Floating
Toolbar button, so that you can choose which items to show or hide.
Indicate Sheet Side

When enabled, the negative and positive sides of each sheet will be drawn in different colors.

70
 Main Menu

The Modify Menu

71
Main Menu

72
 Main Menu

The Modify menu contains commands for changing the state of geometry and bodies. All options

under this menu, except Move Part Origin, require geometry or a body to be selected before
their functions can be performed.
Several of the options have multiple pictures, one for the Mill module and one for the Turning
module. A few options treat Mill/Turn as a separate case. The functionality of each of the options
is identical for both the Mill and Turning modules; however, the dialogs differ slightly due to the
different axis designations.

This checkbox option is found in several of the functions accessed from the Modify menu. The
functions can be applied to entire workgroups as well as to any selected features. This function
is accomplished by checking the Visible WGs checkbox and clicking Do It. Visible workgroups
include all workgroups that are displayed in the Workspace, including background workgroups.
The Reverse Arc, Change CS (XYZ) and Change CS (HVD) items in the Modify menu do not have
dialogs associated with them. These three functions can also be applied to all items in Visible
WGs by selecting the item from the WG List context menu, accessed by right-clicking the
Workgroup list.
• Transform
• Other Modify Commands
• Wrap/Stock

Transform
Force Depth/Radius

This selection sets the absolute Z value of all selected geometry to the Z value entered. This
option is unavailable when working in the Turning module and therefore the item is grayed out in
the menu.
Mirror

Mill Turning Mill/Turn

73
 Main Menu

This selection will move the selected geometry or bodies to the other side of the axis or axes
specified around an axis point entered in the text boxes. Clicking Do It will perform the mirroring
function. This dialog can remain onscreen for further use while other functions are performed.
Absolute Rotate

This selection will rotate selected geometry or bodies at an absolute angle around a specified
point. That is to say: The geometry will be rotated from an angle to another angle around the
point specified in the X and Y (in Mill) or Z and Xr (in Turning) text boxes.
Holding down the Alt key displays virtual points, such a line segment's midpoint, a circle's
centerpoint, a solid's vertices, the corner and edge points of cubic stock, and many others. When
you Alt+click a virtual point, you copy its value into the text box. This is called interrogating a
point or virtual point. Also, the angle of a geometric element can be determined by interrogating
the feature.
Clicking Do It will perform the rotating function. This dialog can remain onscreen for further use
while other functions are performed.
2D Rotate

This selection will revolve or rotate the selected geometry or bodies around the point specified in
the X and Y (in Mill) or Z and Xr (in Turning) text boxes. The selected feature will be rotated by the

74
 Main Menu

amount specified in the Angle text box, in either a CW (clockwise) or CCW (counterclockwise)
direction depending on the selection made. Clicking Do It will perform the rotating function. This
dialog can remain onscreen for further use while other functions are performed.
Scale

This selection will change the size of the selected geometry by the amount specified. The value
typed in the Amount box is a ratio of one, one being full size. The inches >> mm or mm >> inches
buttons will change the units of measurement accordingly. The Mill module has an Include Z
option. If the Include Z option is turned on, the Z values of the selected geometry will be included
in the scaling process. Include Z will not have an effect if the selected geometry is at Z0. Clicking
Do It will perform the scaling function. This dialog can remain onscreen for further use while other
functions are performed.
Absolute Translate

This selection will move the selected geometry or bodies from a position to a new position. This
is an absolute move by a certain value. Clicking on Do It will perform the translating function. This
dialog can remain onscreen for further use while other functions are performed. Please note that
you do not need to use a value directly associated with the geometry or body. That is to say: You
can move an element from its position to a new location based on relative numbers. For
example, a sphere centered at X20Y20 can be moved to X40Y40 using a FromPos value of X0Y0
and a ToPos value of X20Y20.

75
 Main Menu

Translate

This selection will move the selected geometry or bodies by the specified amount. Clicking Do It
will perform the translating function. This dialog can remain onscreen for further use while other
functions are performed.

Other Modify Commands

Duplicate
Duplicate And...

This item will Duplicate and perform the specified action. Force Depth, Mirror, 2d Rotate, Scale
or Translate the selection. First, the selected geometry will be duplicated. Then, depending on
the option selected, the selected geometry is moved to one or more new locations based on the
number typed in the times text box.
Duplicate

(Ctrl+D) This selection copies the selected geometry or body to the same location. After this is
done, the next step is to move the duplicated item to another location, possibly using another
item under this menu. Additionally, Duplicate is useful for creating an unconnected feature in the
same location as a currently connected feature.

76
 Main Menu

Geometry
Sort

This selection is only available in the Mill module. It provides the user with a method for sorting
the selection order of a selected group of points and unconnected circles. Once the points or
circles are sorted, the reference numbers (labels) are changed to match the new order. This is
particularly useful when performing drilling operations, because the system drills holes in the
order they are selected. There are three possible sorting options: S pattern (Zig Zag), Closest Hole
next, and Reverse pattern. The different options are described below.

S pattern (Zig Zag)

This option allows the user added control over how the points or circles will be selected.
When using S pattern, the system creates a rectangle around the selected group points like
the picture shown in the dialog. This rectangle is broken down into definite sections (like a
grid) by creating scan lines and grid squares. The grid will be created starting with the point in
the farthest upper right-hand corner contained in the selected rectangle.
The user designates what corner of the rectangle to select the first point by using the Start
Corner radio buttons. For example, selecting X+ Y+ will start the selection order in the upper
right-hand corner; X- Y+ in the upper left-hand corner, and so on. Selecting a Main Axis (X or
Y) and entering a Scan Height value will create scan lines, either horizontal or vertical,
depending on the main axis selection. The Max. Gap value breaks up the scan lines into grid
squares that can be scanned for points. The Scan Height and Max. Gap values create the scan
lines and squares which break the area up in a grid-like fashion where all the selected points
are contained in a specific, defined area of the rectangle.
The system will select the point closest to the start corner (regardless of what scan line it is
in) as the first point, and then proceed to the next closest point in that section of the grid. If no
other points are contained in that area, the system will move to the next closest section and
select the next group of points. The system always looks at the scan line first and then looks
across or down the square for the next point. This continues until all selected points in the
group are found and labeled.

77
 Main Menu

Closest hole next

This option is fairly self explanatory. The system starts with the first point or circle selected
and then selects the point or circle that is closest. This process continues until all holes have
been selected. This option is useful when creating curves.
Reverse pattern
This option reverses the original selection order of the group of points or circles. The last
point that was selected is now labeled as the first point and so on.
Reverse Arc

(Ctrl+T) A circle can be fully connected either using the less than 180° arc or with the greater
than 180° arc. The system automatically selects the less than 180°arc as the fully connected
feature. If the other arc is needed, select the connected arc and the Reverse Arc item. In other
words, selecting Reverse Arc will tell the system to use the other side of the connected arc.
Toggle Feed Status

1. Start Point, Begin Rapid

2. Begin Feed
3. Begin Rapid

Toggle Feed Status allows the user to toggle the status of geometry from a Feed line to a Rapid
line. This is particularly useful in roughing operations as illustrated in the Mill Tutorial where
mouse lines are drawn, depths are changed and Feed or Rapid is designated.
This image shows a series of tool moves. The dashed lines indicate Rapid moves and solid lines
indicate Feed moves. Note that we are rapiding into the part. In the second image we have
toggled the lines from Rapid to Feed where the tool moves down onto the part.
Toggle Wall/Air

This option toggles geometry between wall features (light blue) and air features (red). This is
used for pocketing, particularly for open sided pockets. Tools will not cross wall geometry but
can cut across air features. See the Mill manual for more information.

78
 Main Menu

Segment Spline

An example of various spline segmentation settings.

Segmenting splines means converting a smooth curve (a NURBS) into a series of line or arc
segments that approximate the shape of the curve. The features, or segments, may consist of
lines or arcs. When converting the spline to segments the Accuracy must be set. The Accuracy
value is the chord height used to designate how closely the segments will approximate the
spline. The tighter the accuracy, the more segments that will be created to approximate the
spline.
Segmenting splines into Arcs is generally preferable over segmenting into Lines. Arcs will provide
smoother toolpath and less G-code output.
The series of images illustrate the differences between segmenting a spline into lines versus
arcs at two different accuracy settings. As you can see, even a loose accuracy with arcs is
smoother and more accurate compared to the same accuracy used with lines.

Solid/Sheet
Shrinkage

The Shrinkage function is designed to be used when creating molds to compensate for shrinkage
factors encountered in the manufacturing process, compensating for the rate at which an

79
 Main Menu

injection substance will shrink in a mold cavity. The Shrinkage item lets you perform uniform or
axial reductions or enlargements on selected bodies, including facet bodies, geometric solids,
and sheets. The Shrinkage range is -10% to 10%. A selected body can be reduced or enlarged up
to 10% of its original size. Repeated use of the function can yield shrinkages outside this range
(not recommended).
Final Size = (100 - Shrinkage%) * Start Size /100

Toggle Sheet Side

The Toggle Sheet Side item will flip the inside and outside of a sheet. This item is useful when
solidifying sheets into bodies using the Offset solidify option. When sheets are converted into
bodies by offsetting, the offset must be calculated from one side of the sheet or the other. The
Max and Min offset values are referenced from one side of the sheet. To offset the sheet from the
other side, select the sheet and then select the Toggle Sheet Side item.

CS
Change CS (XYZ)

When Change CS (XYZ) is used, all selected geometry will be assigned to the current coordinate
system. The geometry will stay in its same location in 3D space. It will change color to reflect the
fact that it is now in the current coordinate system. All selected arcs will be segmented (changed
into line segments), if the coordinate system they are being changed into uses a different plane
than their original coordinate system. If the Advanced CS module is not installed, this item will be
grayed out in the menu.
Change CS (HVD)

(Ctrl+\) When Change CS (HVD) is used, all selected geometry will be assigned to the current
coordinate system, and the HVD values of the geometry will be preserved. This means that the
geometry will be modified to be planar to the new CS location preserving the relative position. If
the Advanced CS module is not installed, this item will be grayed out in the menu.

Wrap/Stock
Unwrap Geometry

Selecting this item returns the display of wrapped geometry to flat geometry and takes dialogs
out of radial mode.
Wrap Geometry

80
 Main Menu

Selecting this menu item will wrap all geometry in any Wrapped workgroup and switch Geometry
dialogs to radial mode. Geometry will be “wrapped” around the part at the radius or depth at
which it was defined. This item is most useful in the Level 1 interface or as an alternative to the
Wrap Geometry button found in the Toolbar of the Level 2 interface.
Shrink Wrap

(Ctrl+‘) When this item is selected, the window zoom size becomes just large enough to
display all geometry in the part (including visible and hidden workgroups). This is especially
useful when working with imported files.
Shrink Wrap Visible

(Ctrl+]) When this item is selected, the window zooms out or zooms in to display all visible
workspace elements without excess blank space. This is especially useful when working with
part files that include hidden ( ) workgroups or items in the Body Bag.
Move Part Origin

This function can save the trouble of recalculating the values of stock definition in the Document
Control dialog if the part’s origin needs to be modified. This selection will move the part origin
relative to ALL the geometry in EVERY workgroup incrementally by the values typed in the
appropriate axis text box. In other words, the current location of X0, Y0, Z0 or Z0, X0 will change
incrementally by the values in this dialog and a new X0, Y0, Z0 will be established. When using
MTM you can choose which spindle will be modified. Clicking on the Do It button will move the
origin. This dialog can remain onscreen for further use while other functions are performed.

81
 Main Menu

The Solids Menu

The Solids menu provides tools for verifying the validity of bodies and toolpath. Most of the items
in this menu are system development tools that may be of little use to end users; however, on
some occasions, they may be helpful as a method of diagnosing issues with solids.
Rebuild

This command will update any solids if changes have been made in the part’s history. This
command is also accessed by right-clicking on a body and is often used in conjunction with the
Recreate command. This function is not undoable.
Check Self-Intersect Loops
It is recommended that this option is left on for optimal 3D toolpath generation. Turning it off will
not save any system resources.

Tools sub-menu
The system’s arsenal of tools for diagnosing problematic solids can be found in this menu. These
options are miscellaneous tools to check and correct bodies as well as report and output data.
Each item is described below under the category to which it belongs.

Validity Checks
These items do not fix any errors or problems you may be experiencing, but are simply a means
to determine whether the body you are using is valid or not. This may aid in troubleshooting any
problems you are experiencing with machining solids.

82
 Main Menu

Check Body Validity

When this item is selected, the system checks to ensure that all selected entities are valid. If a
sheet is not valid, it will be deselected once the check is complete, allowing the user to identify
the problem. An error message identifying the specific problem will also be displayed for each
invalid entity.
Check Face Validity

This item runs a face validity check on the selected sheets. This function can also be performed
by clicking on the Face Check button in the Stitch Utils dialog, and is useful for when stitching has
failed to identify problem areas before attempting to stitch again.
Machining Face Check

This item checks the validity of selected faces to see if they can successfully be machined.
Machining Face Check is only necessary when using the Gen 2 Engine in surfacing operations.
After validating the face(s), the system will display a message with information on the face(s) if
the check passed or an error message on each of the bad faces.
Remove Unneeded Topology

This command will inspect selected bodies or faces for any unneeded elements. If two items
share the same underlying surface, the body will be simplified. In this example we have a sphere
and a cuboid. The sphere (consisting of surfaces) shares a common underlying surface with
another sheet. The extra sheet will be removed from the model when running this command.
One edge of the cuboid actually consists of two intersecting lines. The lines will be modified to be
a single edge.
Simplify

This function attempts to convert NURBS surfaces into analytic surfaces within a given tolerance
amount. Often times when surface files are imported, analytic surfaces are converted to NURBS;
this function will convert those NURBS back into analytic. The geometry of a body is simplified
wherever possible. A body will be defined by lines, circles, spheres, cubes, cylinders and tori
instead of B-splines.

83
 Main Menu

Multi-Pass Stitch
Multi-Pass Stitch is a setting used with the Solidify function. When Multi-Pass Stitch is active, the
Solidify function will perform successive attempts to solidify sheets, starting at the tolerance
specified. Sheets that do stitch at the specified setting will be stitched; any sheets that do not
stitch at that tolerance will be attempted at a looser tolerance. This will be attempted a third time
at a still looser tolerance. Multi-Pass Stitch is on by default.
Check Trimmed Surface Polyline
This item verifies the validity of trimmed surface polylines to ensure proper machining. Check
Trimmed Surf. Polyline is only necessary when using the Gen 2 Engine in surfacing operations.

Check Trimmed Surface Edges

This item verifies the validity of trimmed surface edges to ensure proper machining. Check
Trimmed Surf. Edges is only necessary when using the Gen 2 Engine in surfacing operations.

Check Op Gouges

The system will perform a check to see if a selected operation gouges a selected body. A gouge
is defined as being off by greater than 50% of the machining tolerance. This command only
works with ball endmill tools. If the operation gouges, two lines will be drawn from the tool to
show the gouge. The first line runs from the tool center to the tip, and the second line runs to the
point of the gouge. This is illustrated in the following image.
Selected Op to Screen Points

This command creates points at the beginning and end of each feature of a selected operation.
Any type of operation on a solid may be used with this command. The Selected Op to Screen Points
command is useful for dimensioning toolpath. The image on the right shows a lace cut operation

84
 Main Menu

composed of line segments. Note the many points created by Selected Op to Screen Points. If the
lace cut was defined by arcs or splines, the points would be different.
Selected Op to Splines

This command creates a spline between sharp corners of any surfacing operation. For the
Selected Op to Splines command to work the curves dialog must be open. The tolerance of the
splines generated from the toolpath is determined by the settings in the curves dialog. This
image illustrates splines generated from a lace cut operation defined by line segments.
Selected Op to Lightwork File
This command outputs the selected operation to a Lightwork file.
Selected Op to Text File
This command will output a text file of the toolpath. The text provides the position of all features.
A line feature includes the start and end X, Y and Z dimensions. Arcs include start and end point
X, Y and Z values, the arc’s radius and the arc’s direction.
GE to Text File
Geometry Expert must be open to use this function. Selecting this command will output the
Geometry Expert’s contents to a text file named GEDump.txt. The file is created on the Desktop.

Clear Bodies’ History

This option will remove the History of any selected bodies, making the body an atomic body.
Undo is not available for this.

The Features Menu

85
 Main Menu

The Features menu provides access to two tools specifically for Hole features and two tools that
help you manage user-defined features..
• Hole Manager helps you to identify and machine holes in solid models.
• Hole Wizard quickly creates hole operations for you using the available tools and geometry.
• Feature Manager provides additional capabilities for managing attributes of type Feature
and elements that have been tagged with Feature attributes.
• Attribute Manager allows you to create and manage (view/sort/edit/etc.) data tags that
attach to multiple elements; attributes can be of type Integer, Real, Text, Color, or Feature.
All options on this menu are fully detailed in the Features guide. This guide is provided with the
installation media and is available for download from https://online.gibbscam.com.

Hole Wizard
The Hole Wizard automates the process of making holes. The Hole Wizard can make a single
drill hole or it can make a pattern of tap holes using multiple tools on any number of holes. The
Hole Wizard does all of this in four easy steps and guides you through them.

Two of the Hole Wizard steps

Hole Manager

Hole Manager lets you identify Hole features in a model, specifying geometry, creating groups,
and quickly defining the features. From within Hole Manager, you can invoke Hole Wizard (or

86
 Main Menu

use Auto Wiz) to invoke it multiple times) to create operations and the list of tools that are
needed to create holes.
Hole Manager is intended for models with a large numbers of holes that are primarily solids.
However, even if you do not have any of the Solids options, you will find the sorting and grouping
of holes very useful.

Attribute Manager

Attribute Manager presents attribute information in three panes:

l In the upper left, a two-column table lists the attributes defined for the current part. You
can sort by either column. When one or more attribute names are selected, corresponding
columns appear in the element list on the right.
l In the lower left, the Element Filter pane lets you specify what elements will appear in the
element list.
l On the right is a table of elements that meet the filter criteria. Each qualifying element
appears as a row of values. Cells on the far right show values for attribute whose names
that are currently selected.

Feature Manager
Feature Manager lists user-defined features in a table that displays their ID, Description, Type
(element-selection-based or attribute-comparison-based), Recreate flag, and Color:

87
 Main Menu

To modify a feature's Description, Recreate flag (for features based on attribute comparisons), or
Color, click or double-click the corresponding cell.

The Window Menu

The Window menu provides control over windows and dialogs. It also provides access to part
summaries including workgroup data, the contents of the tool list, and a summary of the part’s
operations.
• Arrangement , next
• “ Tool, Process , Operation and Workgroup Managers ” on page 90

Arrangement
Close All
Closes all open sub-menus.

88
 Main Menu

Cascade

Arranges dialogs so that all title bars are visible but dialog bodies overlap, as shown here:

Minimize All

When turned on, this command shrinks all dialogs to title bars only, tiling them along the
bottom edge of the workspace window, as shown here:

Managing a Large Number of Processes

If the base folder specified by Set Directory contains 500 or more sub[sub[...]]folders that contain
processes (or if the total number of processes contained exceeds 2500), the Process menu will
not display all folders (or all processes). Instead, the Process menu will display a new menu item:
Process Manager. Clicking this item opens a dialog that shows a collapsible hierarchy: the base
folder, its applicable subfolders, and so forth. This lets you navigate quickly and easily to the
processe you need to access. The top right corner of the Process Manager dialog has a Browse
button that lets you reset the base folder for your processes.

89
 Main Menu

Tool, Process , Operation and

Workgroup Managers
Manager reports can be accessed from several places.

Managers are always available from the Main Menu Window tab.

Right-click the Tool/Process/Operation/Workgroup List and select Manager ... from the menu.
Operation Manager and Tool Manager are located in the Command Toolbar.

Viewing Data
In each of the Manager interfaces, you can do any of the following:
• Choose which columns to display and in which order, by right-clicking the column heading
and choosing Customize Headers.
• Sort the display with a simple click on the required column header. You will note that the
“sorted by” is indicated by a triangle symbol in the header — pointing up is low-high; pointing
down indicates high-low.
• Right-clicking anywhere in a row reveals a menu that lets you:
- Sort the entire tile list, or find tiles and move them within the list.
- Open the corresponding dialog.
- Isolate a subset of rows.
• Print or save the data using the icons provided in the header.
Dozens of data types are available. Tool Manager can display up to 35 columns; Process
Manager, up to 50; Operation Manager, up to 79; Workgroup Manager, up to 47. Balloon help
will provide a brief description when hovering over a column heading.

90
 Main Menu

1. Disallow editing (Default)

2. Allow editing of Operation
fields
3. Allow editing of Process
Fields
4. Individual Mode
5. Process Mode
6. Process List Mode
7. Manual Mode
8. Print
9. Save
10. Calculate TP/Len Time

Operation Groups
Op Manager toolbar allows you change the grouping mode, which is synchronized with the
grouping mode in the Op Tile list. For more information on active and inactive ops, see
“Operations List” on page 189.
l When collapsed, each group shows only the values that are shared between operations in
that group. Editing shared data in the operation or process changes the corresponding
value for all operations in that group.
l When expanded, each operation’s data is fully populated individually, and the data can be
edited for each individual operation.

Editing Data
The Manager dialogs provide powerful editing capabilities. Clicking the Allow Editing buttons
(shown above) highlights all editable fields. You can modify the value in an editable cell, or you
can apply a single value to many selected items at once.

91
 Main Menu

Multi-Selection
You can select multiple tiles to highlight multiple rows, and vice versa. However — important! —
use extreme caution when using Edit mode, especially context menu item Apply Value to
Selected..., which copies the value from the cell under the mouse location (the pointer cursor) into
all highlighted light-green cells in the same column, whether or not those cells are visible in the
current scroll region. (The Apply Value ... choice is unavailable if any of the highlighted cells in the
same column is ineligible to receive the value of the cell that you right-clicked.)
Warning: In Edit mode, a single click can cause far-ranging global changes, and there is no
Undo capability.
To edit data:

1. Click Allow Editing of Data Fields. A warning message appears.

2. Click OK. The fields you can edit highlight in green.
3. Double-click the field you want to change and type the information. Or, if you are very
confident, you can right-click a cell whose value you want to copy to all editable cells and,
on the context menu, choose Apply value to selected operations This should not be used if
you have any doubt about the outcome.

Multiple views
The manager allows multiple views, and each view can be scrolled independently.

To split the manager grid:

92
 Main Menu

l To create or reposition the horizontal split: Hover your cursor just left of the horizontal
scrollbar at the bottom. When the cursor changes to or , click and drag it to the
right or left to create or reposition the horizontal splitter.
l To create or reposition the vertical split: Hover your cursor just above the vertical scrollbar
on the right. When the cursor changes to or , click and drag it down or up to create
or reposition the vertical splitter.

Manager Context Menus

The Manager dialogs provide the following right-click menus:
l Title bar context menu
l Header row customize option
l Tool row context menu

Title Bar Context Menu

This is not available for the Workgroup Manager. To select items from the title bar context menu:
Right-click the title bar and select the item you want from the menu.

Tool Title Context Process Title Context Operation Title Context

Show Selected/All:
Displays selected or all items in the Manager.
Multi-level Sort
Selecting the Multi-Level Sort… command opens a dialog where you can select up to four columns
you want to use as sort criteria. Check the Ascending checkbox to sort in ascending order,
unchecked will sort in descending order.

93
 Main Menu

Clicking OK transfers the sorted order of the items in your Tool/Ops Manager to the actual Tool
and Operation lists.

Important: Performing a sort changes the order of your operations. If you are not
careful you could tell the system to do something you do not want, such as tapping a
hole before the hole is drilled. The system does have a reminder to warn you that
performing a sort can be harmful but you should still be aware of the potential
consequences.

Header Customization
Right-click the column title row and select Customize Headers. This option enables you to
select the columns to wish to show or hide in the Manager reports and place them in the desired
order.
Clicking a data type will provide a brief description of the item at the bottom of the screen. The
item is also highlighted in the visible columns window. Please note that data can only appear
once in the report.

• To show a hidden column: Under Available Columns, select a heading and click Add>>.

94
 Main Menu

• To hide a visible column: Under Visible Columns, select a heading and click <<Remove.
• To move a visible column: Under Visible Columns, select a heading and click either Move Up
(to shift left) or Move Down (to shift right).

Report Row Context Menu

Tool Manager Process Manager Operation Manager Workgroup Manager

To select items from the row context menu, right-click a detail row and select the item you
want from the menu.
Move To:

You use the Move To option to move a tile to a specific position by

number or to move a tile to the last position in the list.

Find:

You use the Find option to locate a specific tile by number or jump to
the last tile. For operations, you can also search by tool number.

Sort:
Sorts all tools by Tool number in ascending order. For Operations, sorting reorganizes the
operations by tool number and creation order, from lowest to highest tool number. The system
examines all the operations and tries to group them by tool number to minimize the number of
tool changes. Any blank spaces in the Operations List are removed.
Operations created in a Process Group (a group of processes to machine the same geometry)
are sorted based on their order in the Process List when they were created. For example,

95
 Main Menu

finishing operations are not placed before the roughing operations in a Process List. You can
manually reorganize operations by dragging them to the location you want in the Operations List.
The order of machining in the finished NC program is the same as in the Operations List.
Therefore, the order of tiles in the Operations List is very important. You can organize operations
anytime during the programming of the part.

Please be aware that sorting operations can be risky. For example, you could
potentially tell the system to tap a hole before it is drilled. Please be sure to review
the results of the sort to ensure you get the results you want.

Apply Value to Selected:

To apply a value to selected, select the rows you want to apply the value to, Then right-click
the cell containing the value you want to apply and select Apply Value to Selected.
Other options in the Operations context menu are described in more detail in the Getting Started
guide.

The Plug-Ins Menu

96
 Main Menu

Plug-ins are modular functions that are built onto the system to provide enhanced functionality.
One large advantage of plug-ins is that third parties can create software that integrates with
GibbsCAM. Another strength is the rapid development of plug-ins, allowing clients’ needs to be
met quickly. Each plug-in can interact with either geometry, solids, toolpath, the rendered part, or
some combination of these items. The actual contents of your Plug-Ins menu depends on your
system and specific plug-ins installed.
Two drop-down menus provide access to plug-ins: most commonly used plug-ins are on the left,
and Legacy and Custom plug-ins are on the right. Also, you can pin your most-used Legacy
plug-ins to a pin-pad, or hide a pin-pad by clicking the pin icon at the top.
The layout and contents of the Plug-Ins menu can be customized using Plug-In Manager. This
interface allows you to place plug-ins into folders and subfolders (corresponding to submenus
and subsubmenus) and to globally activate or deactivate individual plug-ins and plug-in groups.
You are able to suppress or display plug-ins in any order and also group them into sub-menus.
Changes made by Plug-In Manager take effect the next time you start the system.
For a full description of each plug-in provided by the software installation (including Operation
Modifiers that are implemented as plug-ins), see the Plug-Ins guide. This guide is provided with
the installation media and is available for download from https://online.gibbscam.com.

The Macros Menu

The Macros menu provides access to macros that have been installed on your machine's global
data folder (such as C:\ProgramData\CAMBRIO\GibbsCAM\<version>). By default, one macro,
Diamond Insert, is pre-installed to this folder. If you or your administrator have placed other
macros under this folder, they will appear under the Macros menu.

Diamond Insert
The Diamond Insert macro is shipped as a sample, but not pre-configured as a Macros menu item.
It lets you create custom diamond-shaped inserts for turning tools. If it is not available on your
Macros menu, follow the steps provided in “ Configuring the Macros Menu” on page 98.

The initial dialog of the Diamond Insert macro requires you to select a direction for the insert. For
example, here is the result of selecting Down Left as the setting for Insert Direction.

97
 Main Menu

After you make a choice for Insert Direction, click OK. This opens a new dialog box where you
define the angle type and specify the angles and radii of the diamond insert.

Configuring the Macros Menu

If you have macros in a previous release of GibbsCAM and you have not yet
configured the Macros menu in your current release, you can migrate the old
macros using the Migration Tool. If, instead, you have already configured your
current Macros menu and you want to migrate old macros, see the instructions
provided in the Macros wiki: https://Macros.GibbsCAM.com

The Macros menu shows all macros that have been installed and configured to appear within the
menu. You can use Pathfinder to learn the location of the predetermined Macros Folder —
typically under a global data folder like
C:\ProgramData\CAMBRIO\GibbsCAM\<version>\Macros\ — but you can use a different
location if you prefer. You can add to and customize the menu entries by selecting menu item
Configure to open the Macros dialog. A sample macro, Diamond Insert, is presupplied under the
Macros folder, but the Macros menu will display it only after it has been added to the
configuration.
The Macros dialog lets you add and organize macros:

98
 Main Menu

• To add a macro, simply select an empty field, enter the name as you want it to appear under
the Macros menu, enter the path and filename of the .mac file (either by using the Browse
button, or by pasting it from the text buffer, or by keying it in), and then click the Update
button. Repeat as needed.
• To add a separator line, create an entry whose "name" is a single hyphen ( - ). Separators
help you organize groups of macros.
• To move an entry above or below other entries, select it and then click Move Up or Move
Down. Repeat as needed.

• To move an entry subordinate to its predecessor, select it and then click Move In. To move an
entry one level higher in a stack of sub[sub]entries, select it and then click Move Out.
• When you are done making changes, click the OK button. This closes the dialog and
immediately applies your changes to the menu structure under the Macros menu.

99
 Main Menu

The Help Menu

The Help menu contains options to help you use the system and provides additional information
about the application.
• Online Help, next
• Dynamic Help
• GibbsCAM
• About the Online Help

Online Help
Contents

Selecting this item will activate the system’s online help. A window will open in which you can
browse or search for information.

100
 Main Menu

For details, see About the Online Help.

Getting Started

Selecting this option will launch Adobe Reader and open the PDF version of Getting Started.
On Item

This item is the same as clicking the On Item help button found on the GibbsCAM Floating
Toolbar. Once active, the cursor changes to the On Item Help cursor . Clicking on a dialog,
palette or window in GibbsCAM will then open the online help to the section that is relevant to
what you clicked on. This is known as context-sensitive help.
2025 PDFs

Selecting this option will launch Adobe Reader and open a “light” version of a PDF organizer that
references a few of the books in the GibbsCAM documentation set. (The full version of the
master PDF is available from the GibbsCAM website, gibbscam.com, or when you install the
complete documentation set.)

101
 Main Menu

Online Training

This opens a web browser to view the courses available from Cognus Online Training. Courses
entitled “Whats New in GibbsCAM 14”,” Production Milling for GibbsCAM 14” and “Production
Milling/Turning for GibbsCAM 2016 and Older Versions” are available free of charge. A
subscription-based training program to learn more advanced options such as 2.5D Solids, 3D
Machining and more is available.

Whats New Presentation

Opens a short video displaying highlights of the newest features added in the latest GibbsCAM
version.

Dynamic Help
Balloons

This button toggles the on-screen help built into the system. When this item is checked, balloons
containing reference information will come up on the screen whenever the mouse cursor is
moved over an input box, command or other object (and not clicked). Use (Ctrl+B) to turn this
option off.

Tooltips

102
 Main Menu

This option summons the Tooltips dialog. Tooltips show the name of a button or item that the
mouse is held over. The Tooltips dialog allows you to set whether tooltips are shown, and to set
the delay before tooltips are shown. Tick Delay sets the delay, where each “tick” is 1/60th of a
second. The IDs item is not of any real use to end-users: it displays the identifying number of a
dialog’s components, rather than a description. It is a development tool.
The following image provides an example of a tooltip. It shows the cursor being held over a
button in the Solid Modeling dialog. The name of the button is displayed in a white box next to
the hand cursor.

GibbsCAM Copilot
GibbsCAM Copilot is an AI-powered chat tool — a ChatGPT LLM (large language model) that has
been trained on a wide variety of source material relating to GibbsCAM. It lets you access
information without having to search through documentation or call Technical Support. It can
respond in any of the languages supported by the GibbsCAM user interface. A “thumbs-down”
feedback mechanism allows you to register dissatisfaction with any reply. GibbsCAM Copilot
works best when responding to specific queries that are narrowly worded.
Please note that, because some countries’ laws relating to AI are not yet fully analyzed, the
GibbsCAM Copilot chatbot is disabled in some countries.

GibbsCAM
Check for Updates

Clicking this item causes the system to perform a one-time check for updated releases. If a later
version of GibbsCAM is available, a message dialog appears.
You can configure whether or not to check for updates each time GibbsCAM is started: File >
Preferences, Interface tab, checkbox Automatically Check for Updates on Startup.

103
 Main Menu

About GibbsCAM

The About dialog provides information about your GibbsCAM software as well as phone
numbers and e-mail contacts if have questions or problems.
The About box displays your Gibbs ID, which can be copied and pasted directly from this dialog.
If applicable, your HASP key expiration is also displayed here.

About the Online Help

The system provides several navigation panes for working with online help:

104
 Main Menu

The icon on the Help toolbar activates the TOC pane, which
presents a hierarchical list of help topics organized into
folders and subfolders like a table of contents.

The icon on the Help toolbar activates the Index pane,

which presents an alphabetized list of keywords, each one
linked to one or more help topics.

105
 Main Menu

The icon on the Help toolbar activates the Search pane,

which uses a term that you enter to construct a list of all topics
that contain the term. The list is ranked by the number of
times the term occurs within the topic.

The icon on the Help toolbar activates the Favorites pane,

which lists searches and topics that you have previously
bookmarked.

To add a favorite topic, click (on the Help toolbar). To add

a favorite search, click (in the Search pane). To delete a
favorite, select the corresponding checkbox and then click
(in the Favorites pane).

Other useful tools in the Help toolbar include the following:

Add the current topic to your Favorites

Show or hide all navigation panes.
Expand all folders and subfolders.
Collapse all folders at the current level.
Print the current topic.
Find a text string within the current page.

106
 Main Menu

Remove highlighting from search hits on the page.

Browse back to the topic last visited.
Browse forward to the topic next visited.
Stop loading the current topic.
Refresh the display of the current topic.
Jump to the home (root) topic of the online help system.
Jump to the previous topic in sequence.
Jump to the next topic in sequence.

Troubleshooting the Online Help System

Changing the Text Size
To temporarily increase the text size in online help, press [CTRL +].
To temporarily decrease text size, press [CTRL -].

Generally the size of the text in the Help window text is determined by the size of the default text
set for Windows.

Allowing Blocked Content

Depending upon the security settings for your operating system you may receive an alert
warning you about Active Content. This is generated because of the installation of the JRE. You
can easily disable this warning and safely enable the JRE.
• Clicking on the warning brings up a menu. Select Allow Blocked Content...

• You will receive a Security

Warning. Click Yes to
continue.

107
Main Menu

• To avoid this error

message in the future,
open the Internet Properties
Control Panel.
• Select the Advanced tab
and scroll down to the
Security section (it is at the
bottom of the list.)
• Select the Allow active
content to run in files on My
Computer.

• Click Apply and then click

OK.

108
 Floating Toolbar

Floating Toolbar

1. Show Geometry 8. Wrap WGs 15. Hidden-line Toolpath

2. Show Dimensions... 9. Show Stock & Origin 16. Toggle TP Color Mode
3. Show Holes 10. Toggle CS Plane/.../Grid 17. Show Clearance ...
4. Show Solids 11. Face Selection 18. Toggle Color Mode
5. Toggle Render ... 12. Edge Selection 19. Viewport Manager
6. Show Section View 13. Toggle Profiler: ... 20. Unzoom (Ctrl + U)
7. Indicate Sheet Side 14. Pre-Selection Highlighting 21. Get Help on Item

Show Geometry
When this button is active, all geometry in the currently selected coordinate system and
workgroup is shown in the drawing window.

Show Dimensions/Annotations
For a model that has no PMI, when Show Dimensions is active, all dimensions in the currently
visible workgroups are shown in the workspace. If Show annotations is active, both dimensions
and annotations are shown.

Pull-down menu choices for PMI

When an imported GibbsCAM model contains PMI, you can hover over the
Dimensions dropdown button to open a menu of options relating to dimensions and PMI.

109
 Floating Toolbar

PMI-related options under the Show Dimensions button; PMI Manager; and GibbsCAM
solid model with PMI displayed
Show Dimensions

When checked, non-PMI annotations are displayed.

Show PMI

When checked, PMI is displayed using the most recently used PMI view.

Manage PMI
Opens the PMI Manager dialog box.
PMI Manager displays all PMI items in a tree that is organized into the following categories:

Dimensions: Dimensioning information associated with the PMI, not with the GibbsCAM
model.

GeomTols: Geometric tolerancing information

Datums: Datum information for GD&T (geometric dimensions and tolerancing).

Notes: Annotations associated with the PMI, not with the GibbsCAM model.

Roughnesses: Information regarding surface texture and finish: smoothness, waviness,

and the like.

110
 Floating Toolbar

Tree Controls for PMI Categories

- To expand a branch to see all items in a category, click the symbol.

- To collapse a branch and hide all items in a category, click the symbol.

Display Controls for PMI Categories and Items

- To display all items in a category, or to display a particular PMI item within a category,
select the corresponding checkbox.
- To hide all items in a category, or to hide a particular PMI item within a category, clear the
corresponding checkbox.
PMI Views
- If the imported model contains specific groupings of PMI items into named views, you
can click the Views button to list the defined views. Selecting a view rotates and re-centers
the workspace display and shows only those items of PMI associated with that named
view.
- If you make changes to the workspace display or the shown/hidden statuses of
PMI items or categories and items, the changes are saved in a special view named
Custom.

Hide All PMI

Clears all checkboxes in PMI Manager, thus hiding all PMI.
Show all PMI
Selects all checkboxes in PMI Manager, thus showing all PMI.
Custom View
When checked, PMI is displayed using the most recent PMI custom view.
<viewname>
When checked, PMI is displayed using the named PMI view.

Show Holes
When this button is active, hole features are displayed in the workspace.
Holes are displayed in different colors, depending on the hole type. (See “ Hole Manager” on
page 203.) In the Level 1 Interface, the hole is displayed as a dot. In the Level 2 Interface, the
hole feature is displayed and right-clicking the hole feature provides a menu as illustrated.

111
 Floating Toolbar

Activate CS From Hole

When clicked, GibbsCAM activates the CS associated with the hole selected. It will be displayed
on the screen and highlighted in the CS list.
Reverse Hole Direction

This is not available for blind holes and will be greyed out.
Edit Hole Profile
Opens the Edit Hole Profile dialog.
Select Other
Enables clarification of the selection - if the point is clicked you can choose to select the Hole,
Point, or Solid. If the Hole Feature is clicked you can choose to select the Hole or Solid.

Show Solids
This button is very similar to the Show Geometry button, except that it affects bodies (that is, solids
and sheets). When turned on, all bodies are displayed in the workspace. If it is off, bodies are not
displayed. The display of bodies in the Body Bag is unaffected. This button is available with any
of the solids options — Solids Import, 2.5D Solids, and SolidSurfacer.

Render Solid Faces

This button has four states that control the rendering of bodies.

Render Solid is the default. It shows solids and sheets as normal rendered bodies. This
button is available with any of the solids options.

Render Solid Faces/Edges renders the bodies but shows the edges of the bodies.

112
 Floating Toolbar

Render Hidden Edges renders bodies as hidden wireframe objects — the “hidden” edges
are not shown.

Render Wireframe renders all solids and sheets as wireframe objects. This wireframe

state will be either edges or facets, depending on the File> Preferences > Display tab >
Bodies > Wire Drawing preference setting.

1. Render
Wireframe
2. Render Hidden
Edge
3. Render
Faces/Edges
4. Render Solid

Show Section View

This button is available only with the Solids Import or SolidSurfacer options. It lets you display
only the portion of a solid that lies below a defined plane.
You can dynamically modify this by dragging the plane of the section view and/or by entering a
value for Section Depth, as shown in the following illustrations.

113
 Floating Toolbar

Although the orientation and position of the section plane is associated with the CS, you can
toggle the section view on or off in individual viewports, as shown in the following illustration.

Left viewport: Section View OFF Right viewport: Section View ON

Indicate Sheet Side/Annotations

This button is for use with sheets. It differentiates between the outside and inside of a sheet by
displaying them in different colors. The outside of the sheet will remain the standard blue that is
assigned to all sheets, while the inside will be displayed in red. The outside of a sheet is the side
from which the positive direction of the surface normal is projected. The other side of the surface
normals are projected out from the inside of the sheet. The sheet side is important when
performing such functions as offsetting sheets or solidifying sheets using either the offset or
extrude option. This is due to the fact that sheets are offset or extruded in the positive direction of
their surface normal. It is possible to toggle the inside and outside of a sheet, using the Toggle

114
 Floating Toolbar

Sheet Side item in the Modify menu. This button is available only with the Solids Import or
SolidSurfacer options.

Wrap Workgroups
When Wrap WGs is selected, geometry in the current workgroup at a depth other than Depth 0 is
wrapped around a radius equal to the geometry’s depth. This button is available if Wrapped is
enabled. The Wrapped function provides continuous C-axis rotation on milling operations,
referred to as wrapping. When the Wrap WGs button is on, geometry is created and viewed
radially, wrapped around the part. Geometry can be defined using XZC coordinates, where X
designates the radius or diameter. In order to create and view wrapped geometry, a rotary
machine must be selected and the Workgroup must be defined as Wrapped in the WG Info
dialog. For more information see the Polar & Cylindrical Milling section of the Mill guide.

Show Stock & Origin

When this button is depressed (ON), the stock outline and origin are shown on the screen. This
button provides the same function as the Show Stock & Origin option in the View menu.

Toggle CS Plane/.../Grid

This button controls the visibility of coordinate systems and associated CS grids and planes. The
button has four states.

Hide CS Grid. This hides the grid and the plane.

CS grid + plane. This shows the CS grid and axis markers for the current coordinate
system. The CS grid and plane will be drawn through the origin of the CS.

CS Plane. This hides the grid but shows a shaded plane, representing the coordinate
system.

CS Grid. This shows only shows the grid and not the plane.

Face Selection
When this button is depressed (ON), the system is in face selection mode. Clicking a body (that
is, a solid or sheet) will select only the face and not the entire body. This button is available with
any of the solids options.

Edge Selection

115
 Floating Toolbar

When this button is not depressed (OFF), the workspace does not display edges of solids or
sheets, such as curves where faces intersect. When it is depressed (ON), edges are displayed
and can be selected. This item is available with any of the solids packages.
The button has two states:

• Visible Edge Selection shows only edges that are not obstructed. Edges that are
behind the body are hidden, making it easier to select the correct edges on a complex solid
model.

• Edge Selection shows all edges.

In order to select edges for such functions as blending, geometry extraction, and body
unstitching, you must be in Edge Selection mode; in other words, one of the states must be ON.
Also, when using the stitching function, Edge Selection mode is useful for viewing the external
edges of a body.
If an edge is double-clicked, the system will attempt to select an entire loop that contains the
selected edge. This edge selection will stop when it has more than one good choice at a vertex.
In some instances, it may take a few double-clicks on different edges to select an entire loop, but
it is still much faster than attempting to select edges individually.

Toggle Profiler: Slice Plane / Slice Spun Body /

Slice Silhouette / Slice Cylinder
The Profiler is a moveable cross-section tool that can be toggled off or on in any of four different
modes.
The Profiler’s main use is to set machining markers on a solid. The Profiler can also be used to
create geometry: Drag the profiler and release it; right-click a green geometry profile and, on the
context menu, choose Extract Geometry; when you click the dialog’s Do It button, the system
creates geometry for the selected geometry profile. This item is available with any of the solids
packages.
To change modes, hover over the dropdown arrow and choose from the list.

116
 Floating Toolbar

In Slice Plane
mode, the Profiler
is planar to the
current CS. To
dynamically display
the part’s cross-
section geometry,
drag the slicing
plane up or down
along the depth
axis.

In Slice Spun
Body mode, the
Profiler is planar to
the current CS, and
slices the outline of
the body that would
result from
spinning all
elements around
the rotary axis.

117
 Floating Toolbar

In Slice Silhouette
mode, the Profiler
is planar to the
current CS, and
displays the outline
of the “shadow”
cast by all bodies
from rays of light
normal to the plane
and shining down
on it. Each body
(even a multi-lump
body) casts a
single shadow with
a single outline.
Multiple bodies
cast separate
shadows with
possibly
overlapping
outlines.

In Slice Cylinder
mode, the Profiler
is cylindrical
perpendicular to
the current CS. To
radially expand or
contract, drag the
slicing cylinder
outwards or
inwards.

Hidden-Line Toolpath
This button sets the mode to hide/show toolpath with hidden-line removal activated. When on,
toolpath that lies behind solid objects is not shown.

118
 Floating Toolbar

Toggle Toolpath Color Mode:

Gibbs/Op/Tool/Feedrate / TP Mode Manager

In addition to the standard red GibbsCAM toolpath color (Gibbs TP Mode), toolpath can be
displayed with the Operation numbers (Op TP Mode), Tool numbers (Tool TP Mode), or Feedrate
(Feedrate TP Mode) highlighted in user-editable colors.
The colors for each mode are managed by the Toolpath Mode Manager, as shown in the
following illustrations.

Gibbs
Toolpath Color Mode

Gibbs TP Mode is the toolpath display used in previous versions of GibbsCAM:

119
 Floating Toolbar

• Interop and entry/exit moves are all in one color. (default: white)
• Op moves are all in another color. (default: orange)
• Rapid moves are all in the same color as feed moves, but drawn with dashes.

Op Number
Toolpath Color Mode

Op TP Mode is useful for multiple operations, so you can see which ops create which toolpath:
• Interop and entry/exit moves are all in one color. (default: white)
• The toolpath for each operation is drawn in that operation’s “Op Color” — that is, the same
color displayed when Op Sim is in Op Color mode.
• Rapid moves are in the same color as feed moves, but drawn with dashes.

120
 Floating Toolbar

Tool Number
Toolpath Color Mode

Tool TP Mode lets you see which tools create which toolpath:
• The toolpath for each op is drawn in that op’s “Tool Color” — the color displayed when Op Sim
is in Tool Color mode.
• Interop and entry/exit moves are also in the Tool color, so you can easily identify tool
changes.
• Rapid moves are in the same color as feed moves, but drawn with dashes.

Feedrate
Toolpath Color Mode

Feedrate TP Mode lets you see when moves vary in speed so you can identify fast feed moves
that might be dangerous:

121
 Floating Toolbar

• The toolpath for each operation is drawn in a color that ranges from cool “slow feed” to hot
“fast feed”

• Entry/exit moves are drawn in the same color as an op toolpath move at that feedrate.
• Interop moves are in Gibbs color (default: white); interop feed is solid, and interop rapid is
dashed.
• Intra-operation rapids are drawn in a dashed red.

Pre-Selection Highlighting
This mode highlights objects on the display as if they were selected whenever the cursor passes
over them. The preselection face and edge colors, halo transparency, and thickness can all be
set by the user in preferences on the Color Tab.

Show Clearance Planes / Clearance Volumes

When this button is not depressed (OFF), the workspace does not display clearance volumes or
clearance planes.
When this button is depressed (ON):
• If the MDD defines clearance volumes, the workspace displays them.
• If the MDD does not defines clearance volumes, the workspace displays the clearance plane
for the current operation.
See the following illustration.

: Show Clearance OFF : Show Clearance ON

Op Clearance
Volume, Lathe:

122
 Floating Toolbar

Op Clearance
Plane, Mill:

Part Clearance
Volume with an
MDD that defines
custom
Clearance Volume:

Toggle Color Mode: Gibbs Color /

Feature Color / User Color

This mode determines the color mode currently in effect for the workspace. Hover over the
dropdown button to display all modes that can be selected.

Gibbs Color
This mode is the default system color mode. For more information, see the extensive discussion
of color under “Appearance” on page 15, especially the Colors tab.

Feature Color
This mode exists only if the model contains features defined in Feature Manager to have feature
color attributes. For more information, see the Features guide.

123
 Floating Toolbar

Taper Angle Color and Curvature Color

These two modes make it quick and easy for you to visualize angles and curvatures. In either
mode, the model displays its solids and surfaces using the spectrum of colors for this mode. You
can hover your cursor over the body and wait for the floating dialog to appear. Then, as you
move your mouse over the body, the value in the text field updates accordingly.

Both modes let you choose either an unsigned color ramp that runs from zero to maximum or
else a signed color ramp that runs from maximum negative values on the left to maximum
positive on the right.
To switch between signed and unsigned: Right-click the title bar of the Curvature dialog and use
the context menu to toggle your preference, as follows:
- For Taper Angle, the choices are Taper Angle and ± Taper Angle.
- For Curvature, you can toggle Signed Curvature on or off, and you can also choose the
type of curvature to measure: Min, Max, Mean, or Gaussian.
The default signed color ramp, , runs from yellow
(maximum negative) through blue (zero) to red (maximum positive).
The default unsigned color ramp, , runs from blue (zero) to
yellow (maximum).
You can, if you want, modify a color ramp by right-clicking in it and selecting Edit. In the Color
Ramp Editor, shown below, you can right-click any color to move it down (leftward on the
ramp) or up (rightward), or to delete it. The editor's context menu also lets you insert a new
color or edit an existing color. The color picker is described in “Appearance” on page 15.

124
 Floating Toolbar

User Color
This mode exists only if the model contains features defined in Attribute Manager to have user
color attributes. For more information, see the Features guide.

Viewport Manager
This button activates the Viewport Configuration Manager, which lets you to switch between
viewsets, create a new viewset, bring up the view manager, indicate a default view for a viewset,
or lock the attributes of a viewset.

The system maintains three default internal viewsets, each of which maintains its own set of
viewports (panes and windows). These internal viewsets are tied to a particular part. To switch
between viewsets, simply hover over the dropdown arrow and click the name of the desired
viewset.
Right-clicking the title bar of the Viewsets window, or right-clicking the name of a viewset,
displays a context menu. From this menu you can create a new viewset, delete a viewset,
access View Manager, or lock the attribute set.

125
 Floating Toolbar

If Attribute Set Lock is checked, any changes made (turning on edge selection, render wireframe,
etc.) will affect ALL viewports, active or inactive. If Attribute Set Lock is unchecked, changes will
affect only the active viewport.
Additionally, you can define if a given viewset will default to Part, Op/Tool Sim, or Machine Sim.
These checkmarks can be active in only one viewset at a time. They specify which viewset will
be used for each GibbsCAM mode (Part, Op/Tool Sim, or Machine Sim).
The Viewsets context menu includes an option to access View Manager, which displays the
Views dialog box.

The pull-down button lets you select one of the eight pre-defined pane layouts. Panes
are always visible. Each pane or window will always show in part mode, and display the part.

View Manager also allows you to define the look of each viewport. Each viewport can have
Machine Sim and Op/Tool Sim toggled on or off. If the Machine Sim and/or Op/Tool Sim options are

126
 Floating Toolbar

checked, the pane or window will also show a rendering session (Machine Sim or Op/Tool Sim)
when using these modes.
Windows behave slightly differently from panes here, as they can be toggled to be seen or
unseen by clicking on the eye icon.

Unzoom (Ctrl + U)
Returns screen to full visibility.

Help on Item
This item is used to activate context-sensitive online help. When you select this item, the cursor
switches to the Help cursor. When you click on an item in the interface with the Help cursor, the
online help system opens to display the help topic for that the selected item. As soon as you click
on an item, the cursor switches back to its normal state.

127
 Commands toolbar

Commands toolbar
This area of the User Interface is highly customizable: individual commands can be added or
removed, and individual command groups can be moved out of the toolbar to the bottom or sides
of the workspace — whatever suits your needs. (See Customizing the User Interface)
The standard display is as shown below:

The toolbar can be minimized by using the small box controls situated on the left
of the menu. (In the example below the command text has also been removed).

The contents of the default toolbars change according to the current Interface Level set in the
File>Preferences>Interface Tab.

Level 1 Interface Level 2 Interface

128
 Commands toolbar

Level 1 Interface Level 2 Interface

Actions Command Toolbar Group

Document Control Dialog

Displays the Document control dialog where the major settings for the part are specified. For
more information, see the section on "Setting up a part" in the Getting Started Mill and Lathe
guides.

129
 Commands toolbar

View Control Palette

The View Control palette lets you easily change the current view of the part. The eight buttons
around the outside of this circular palette provide quick access to standard views and lets you
redraw or unzoom. Holding the Alt key and clicking one of the buttons shows the opposite view.
The trackball is moveable; drag its edge to move the trackball around the workspace.
Click and hold the center ball with the mouse and it will operates like a trackball. If you use the
left mouse button, the part moves only when you release the button. Use the right mouse button
and the part moves dynamically. The “T” always identifies the Top surface of the part.
The track ball has four small solid black triangles around it, inside the ring of buttons (located at
12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00). These are called axis “handles”. Drag any of these handles in a
circular motion for Z axis view change. Or drag the top/bottom triangle vertically (up and down) to
rotate the part about the Y axis. The left/right handle dragged horizontally (left and right) rotates
the part about the X axis.
If your mouse is equipped with a scrollwheel, you can click anywhere in the workspace and
drag the mouse to dynamically move the stock and geometry. Scrolling with the scrollwheel will
also make the part display larger or smaller.

130
 Commands toolbar

Keyboard control

Rotating
Rotating the part is controlled by pressing the Shift key and the appropriate arrow keys on your
keyboard. Rotating can also be accomplished using Ctrl+click-dragging the third button of
the mouse (producing the same results as rotating the part using the rectangle in the track ball).
This key combination rotates the part upward by about 10%; south moves toward you
and north recedes.
This key combination rotates the part downward by about 10%; north moves toward
you and south recedes.
This key combination rotates the part to the right by about 10%; west moves toward
you and east recedes.
This key combination rotates the part to the left by about 10%; east moves toward you
and east recedes.

The point of rotation depends on the current view. Whatever intersects with a ray
that projects from the center of the GibbsCAM window is what the view rotates
about. If the ray intersects with a solid, the part rotates about the center of the
intersection. If the ray intersects with the part stock, the rotation is about the center
of that intersection. If the stock is not in the center of the window, the rotation is
about the intersection of two planes that define the stock boundary and the ray.

Panning
Panning is controlled by pressing the Ctrl key and the appropriate arrow keys on your
keyboard. Panning can also be accomplished by a Ctrl+Drag.

This key combination moves the part up by about 10% of the screen.

This key combination moves the part down by about 10% of the screen.

This key combination moves the part to the right by about 10% of the screen.

This key combination moves the part to the left by about 10% of the screen.

Zooming
Mouse. You can drag a marquee around the region to zoom in. Additionally, if your mouse is
equipped with a scrollwheel, each turn of the scrollwheel is equivalent to a 10% zoom in or out.
For scrollwheel zoom actions, the center of the zoom is determined by an interface preference
that you can set using File > Preferences > Interface: If the Zoom to Mouse Cursor checkbox is
selected, the zoom center is the cursor; otherwise, the zoom center is the window center.
Keyboard. You can zoom in and out of the part is by using the Ctrl key with the + or – keys.

131
 Commands toolbar

This key combination zooms in on the part by about 10%.

This key combination zooms out from the part by about 10%.

CS List
Clicking this button activates the Coordinate Systems dialog. If you click on the small arrow in
the bottom corner of the icon, a selectable list of all the current CS's is displayed. Coordinate
systems are used for 3D geometry creation, rotary part orientation for machining, multiple work
fixture offsets, and as a basis for solid modeling. For more information, see the "Coordinate
Systems" section in the Getting Started guide.

CS Palette
This activates the Coordinate System Palette. For more information on Coordinate Systems see
the Advanced CS guide.

Workgroup
Clicking this button activates the Workgroup dialog. If you click on the small arrow in the bottom
corner of the icon, a selectable list of all the current Workgroups is displayed. Workgroups are
separate layers used to separate different groups of geometry, including custom stock. For more
information, see the "Workgroups" section in the Getting Started guide.

132
 Commands toolbar

Body Bag
This opens the Body Bag. The Body Bag is used to organize the Workspace by storing bodies
during part creation. For more information on the Body Bag, see the "About the Body Bag"
section of the SolidSurfacer or 2.5D Solids guides.

CAD Command Toolbar

133
 Commands toolbar

Geometry Palette
This opens the main Geometry creation palette. For more information, see the Geometry
Creation guide.

Dimension Palette
This opens the Dimensioning Palette. For more information, see the "Dimensioning" section in
the Geometry Creation guide.

Surface Modeling
This opens the Surface Modeling Palette. You use the Surface Modeling palette to perform
sheet, or surface, modeling. For more information on surface modeling, see the "Surface
Modeling" section of the SolidSurfacer or 2.5D Solids guides.

Solid Modeling
This opens the main Solid Modeling palette. For more information on solid modeling, see the
"Solid Modeling" section of the SolidSurfacer or 2.5D Solids guides.

134
 Commands toolbar

Solid Modeling
This opens the Facet Body Solid Modeling palette. For more information on facet body modeling,
see the "Facet Body Solid Modeling" section of the SolidSurfacer guide.

CAM Command Toolbar

Tools
This button activates the Tool List on the top left of the screen, containing the tiles that you use to
define tools. For more information see "Tool Creation" in the Getting Started guide.

CAM
The Machining button activates the Process and Operations lists and the Machining palette for
the type of machine specified in the Document control dialog. You can move the Machining
palette to any location on the screen. This palette contains Function tiles and buttons. The
Function tiles are moveable objects that you can drag to the Process List to create operations.

135
 Commands toolbar

Lathe Machining Palette Mill Machining Palette

Note: The processes that appear on the palette depend on which product options are licensed
and active. They also vary according to the Machine Definition Document (MDD) associated with
the Machine type currently specified in the Document Control dialog.
The Select Process Type dialog can be customized. See the Process dialogs section in the Mill
and Lathe Guides.

Tile Lists
When you click the CAM button, both the Process and Operation Tile lists are displayed. The
Processes and Operations buttons will toggle the individual lists on and off.

Cut Part Rendering and Simulation

For more information see the section on Simulation Cut Part Rendering and Simulation:

Program Error Checker

When you open a pre-V12 *.vnc file in V12 or later for the first time, an icon appears
on the Main Palette:

136
 Commands toolbar

To run Program Error Check, click the button. The system will then test the current *.vnc file for
errors and incompatibilities and displays any problems found, or else the message “All Checks
Passed.”

Please Note: This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected.
For more information about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference,
chapter "Miscellaneous", section "Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".

Post Processor dialog

The Post Processor button in the Command Toolbar becomes active once machining operations
have been created in a file. Clicking Post Processor will display the Post Processor dialog,
which allows you to select a Post Processor, an .NCF Program name, and the format of the

output. The Document Control dialog is used to set up Multiple Parts or TMS, if available.

This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected. For more information
about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference, chapter "Miscellaneous", section
"Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".

For details, see Options tab

1. Post Processor Selection
2. Program Name
3. Communications
4. Text Window

137
 Commands toolbar

For details, see Workfixtures tab

The text file will be saved under the file name entered and is displayed to the right of the Program
Name button . If a file with that name already exists the system will ask if you want to replace
the existing file. If yes, clicking the Process button will erase the old file and replace it with the new
one. To view the text file as it processes, click the Text Window button. When this button is
depressed, a window will appear that displays the posted text file as it is created. The program
will scroll by in the window as it is being generated. The Pause button lets you stop the scrolling of
the output as it is being processed. The Print button becomes available after the program file is
finished processing. Clicking the Process button generates the NC program for the file currently
open.
Before posted output can be generated, the post processor and program file name must be
specified.

To select the post processor, click the Post Selection button. An Open dialog allows you to
access the directory or folder where the post processors are stored in the system.
The file extension of a post processor is *.post (or, in much earlier releases, *.pst). The full
filename displayed in the Open dialog usually reflects the control and the machine.

138
 Commands toolbar

When a file is post processed, a text file is created with

the extension specified in the Post text box in the File >
Preferences > Import/Export > File Extensions dialog.

By default this extension is set to *.NCF.

A file can be post processed multiple times and saved with different *.NCF file names. If changes
are made to the part file, it must be post processed again in order to incorporate the changes into
the posted output. As a default, the text file uses the part file name with an *.NCF extension (e.g.
EXAMPLE1.NCF). This file name can be changed by clicking the Program Name button and
entering a new name.

Options tab
The items in the first tab of the Post Processor dialog change the format and content of the
finished output. Each item can react differently with different post processors. Below is a
description of the effect they will have with most post processors.
Post Selected Ops as a Complete Program
Checking this item will cause the output to only include operations that are currently selected
in the Operations list. Items that are unselected will not be output.
This is not recommended for MTM part files or any part containing rotary axis rotations.
Instead, post-process all operations together, to avoid possible large differences between
posted output of operations using Post Selected Ops as a Complete Program and the same
operations when posted together with others.
This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected. For more
information about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference, chapter
"Miscellaneous", section "Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".
Inactive ops will not be posted to the program. Active and inactive ops functionality adds a
more reliable solution to disclude ops, improving consistency and posted code accuracy.

139
 Commands toolbar

Starting Program Number

This is the number of the program as it will appear in the control. It is also the starting number
for all sub-programs. If the Starting Program Number is one, the first sub-program will be two,
the second three, etc.
Sequence from
This is the starting number for the block numbers or “N” numbers. The by box determines the
increment.
Minimize Line (N) Numbers
If this option is turned on, the post processor will only output block numbers on tool change
positions.
Insert Comments
This option will output information about each operation and tool used as well as file length. If
any additional comments have been entered by the user about tools or operations, they will
be output as well.
Insert Optional Stops at Tool Changes
If this option is on, the software will output a machine operator selectable program stop at
every tool change. This is generally used as an aid to the setup man.
Minimize Sub Use
When this option is checked the post processor will prefer longhand output when possible.

Workfixtures tab
Note that the post processor that you have chosen influences what the Workfixtures tab
presents. The post is compiled with many settings that apply to your particular CNC. Therefore
those settings dictate how the WFO algorithm proceeds as it calculates the operation/WFO list to
display in the Workfixtures tab.
If your post is from before GibbsCAM 12, the interface simply lists CS’s and WFOs, and the rest
of this discussion does not apply to you.
For WFOs that are not in one-to-one correspondence with CS's, items in the Workfixtures tab of
the Post Processor dialog let you do the following.
This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected. For more information
about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference, chapter "Miscellaneous", section
"Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".
• Distinguish at a glance a part station from a multi-part part instance, with markers for whether
the WFO is manually changed, the op is shifted from the WFO origin, op oriented differently
from the WFO definition, or any combination, as shown in this table.

Op oriented Shifted
No shift, same Op shifted
differently and
orientation from WFO
from WFO oriented

140
 Commands toolbar

Part Station

Multi-Part

(marker: manual change)

Part Station, manually changed

Multi-Part, manually changed

• Assign a WFO per op rather than per CS (including multi-part instances).

• See the WFO list before you post.
• Tell the system how to handle cases where a WFO does not match a CS.
Although all columns in the table can be sorted by clicking the column header, the column
presentation and organization depend on which option button is chosen: By Operation or By WFO.
The Workfixture column displays only the WFOs that are currently relevant. Relevance can
depend on the current MDD, DCD, post processor, and choices and settings in the dialog.
For example, when Part Duplication is in effect, if Part 1 is assigned to G55 and Part 3 is
assigned to G56 in the By WFO view, then in the By Operation view, when you expand the drop-
down menu for an operation that uses Part 1, you will not see G56 as an option (because it is
held by Part 3), as shown in the following illustrations:

141
 Commands toolbar

The Workfixture drop-down menu

... makes that drop-down menu item

In the By WFO view, assigning a Workfixture
unavailable to other parts in the By Operation
drop-down menu item to a particular part ...
view

By Operation

When this is chosen, the focus is on operations. Workfixtures can be applied or reverted.
The columns are presented in this order: (icon), Op #, CS, Part # (or Part Station # for an MDD that
defines multiple part stations), Workfixture, locked status, Offset, Orientation.
Locks
A WFO that is locked in the By Operation view becomes (in effect) a user-modified WFO (green
dot) and will retain that WFO selection. Unlocking a row has the same effect as performing a
Revert on that row (see below, under Right Mouse Menu). In other words: Not only does the icon
change from locked to unlocked, but the row is reverted: The WFO algorithm is invoked to find
the first available default WFO.
If you click the lock icon in the column header, all rows will lock or unlock so as to match the
header.
Right Mouse (Context) Menu
When you right-click a row, the context menu presents two possibilities:
• Revert (remove the green dot from the icon): Undo manual changes and re-run the WFO
algorithm to re-assign each row using the appropriate default values.
- This Operation

142
 Commands toolbar

- All Operations with this CS on this Part

- All Operations
• Apply WFO (add a green dot to the icon): Take the Workfixture assignment of the selected
row and propagate it to one or more of the other rows (according to the based menu item you
choose). Each menu item represents a different filter for propagating the selected
Workfixture. This allows you to modify multiple WFO rows instead of changing each row
individually, which is particularly useful when Part Duplication is in effect.
- All Ops with this CS on this Part
- All Ops of this type with this CS on this Part
- All Fixed Part Orientation Ops with this CS on this Part
- All Ops on this Part

143
 Commands toolbar

By WFO

When this is chosen, the focus is on workfixtures; operations are combined, and the icons do not
reflect if a WFO has been applied to an operation or if an operation is shifted or oriented
differently to a WFO.
The columns are presented in this order: (icon), Workfixture, locked status, CS, Part # (or Part Station
# for an MDD that defines multiple part stations), Offset, Orientation, Operation #s.

One WFO Per Part

When handling multiple parts, checking the One WFO Per Part box collapses Part/Workfixture
assignments so that each part has only one WFO assignment, as shown in the following
illustrations.

144
 Commands toolbar

Checkbox: One WFO Per Part

The By Operation view, The By Operation view,

with as many WFOs as needed per part with One WFO Per Part

The By WFO view, The By WFO view,

with as many WFOs as needed per part with One WFO Per Part

As you can see, the most condensed view is By WFO with One WFO Per Part.

Restrict WFOs

The Restrict WFOs button opens the Restrict Workfixtures Editor, illustrated below. If the button
has a checkbox (as shown), then at least one of the possible workfixture offsets (WFOs) has
been made unavailable.

145
 Commands toolbar

Special Info tab

If the Post Processor dialog has a Special Info tab, it contains information written by Gibbs Post
developers that is specific to that post. Before requesting help on your post, or a post update,
read this information. The following illustrates one possibility.

146
 Commands toolbar

Configuration tab
If there is a Configuration tab, it contains a user interface created by Gibbs Post developers that
allow end users to make selections or supply values can be used by the post. Configuration
parameters differ from one post to another, and most posts do not have them. The following
illustrates one possibility.

147
 Commands toolbar

If you have a post that you think could be made improved using user input, talk to your post
developer to see if there are existing options that can be exposed to make interacting with the
Post Processor easier.

Summaries Command Toolbar

MTM Command Toolbar

Sync Control
This button activates the sync dialog if your part uses multiple spindle operation. It displays
operation tiles sized according to their individual run-times in the order in which they will be
executed. All other times the option will be greyed out. For more information on Sync Dialogs
see the MTM guide.

148
 Commands toolbar

Part Stations
This button activates the Part Station list if your part contains multiple spindles. It is unavailable
on parts with only one part station. For more information on part stations (spindles), see the MTM
guide.

Cut Part Rendering and Simulation

For Simulation, the rendered image is an OpenGL-based 3D part capable of zooming, panning
and rotating without restarting the render. The last-used render type becomes the active button
in the Floating Toolbar.
This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected. For more information
about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference, chapter "Miscellaneous", section
"Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".

Op Simulation display is part-centric toolpath rendering, showing the part with material cut
away by the operations.

Tool Simulation shows toolpath movement on the stock without any material removal,
displaying inter-op moves as dashed lines. The use of transparent stock display is
recommended. In Tool Sim mode, the Render Control has two additional sliders. As with other
render modes, the first slider (from top to bottom) controls rendering speed. The second slider
moves the tool back and forth through the render process with a fairly coarse granularity. The
third slider provides a much finer granularity of control. The Show Toolpath options control the
display of the toolpath.

Machine Simulation can include an actual

machine model. To use Machine Mode a
machine file will need to be selected using the
Load Machine option in the Render Control
menu. However, if you do not have Machine
Sim as a part of your license, you cannot load a
machine sim model. If this is the case, machine
sim will create a temporary machine kinematic model (no visible components) based on the
MDD, and will do the simulation with that. In Machine mode to aid in the visualization of spindles
on turning machines, the spindle will rotate while cutting during any lathe turning operation. This
rotation is only to assist in showing the direction of rotation.

Rapid Sim rendering is only available for Milling operations and is a very quick rendering
method.

Legacy CPR is often faster to render, but if you change the view, the rendering restarts.

149
 Commands toolbar

Simulation, in any mode, will show all of the part instances in a TMS multi-part setup, whereas
Legacy CPR only shows the single part as programmed in the VNC file. You may find that when
checking your part file you use several or all of the rendering types, depending on your needs.
All operations are rendered in their current order. Selected operations render in shades of
yellow, and all others render in shades of grey. Shades of red appear when non-cutting tool
surfaces or rapid moves hit the material. Selected tools appear in shades of yellow. Deselected
tools appear in shades of grey. Smaller pictures render faster and use less computer memory.
l Cut Part Rendering and Simulation Options
l “ Playback Controls ” on page 151
l “CPR/Rendering Visibility Controls” on page 153
l “Simulation Control Icons” on page 156
l “Simulation Context Menus” on page 165
l “Settings for Op Sim, Tool Sim, and Machine Sim ” on page 25

Cut Part Rendering and Simulation Options

Hovering over the icon on the Command Toolbar, provides a dropdown menu for selecting
one of the five methods of Rendering/Simulation. Click to select the required option. The last-
selected rendering type remains in effect.

150
 Commands toolbar

Playback Controls
The playback controls shown below are common to all Simulation palettes.

1.
Current Display
2.
Rewind
3.
Stop
4.
Step Forward
5.
Play
6.
Next Operation
7.
Record (not Legacy
CPR)
8. Speed control
Note: If you click the Stop or Step Forward button to pause the rendering, and then close and
redisplay the Render Control palette, rendering pauses at the same location. The system
remembers where you pause the rendering. Click the Play button to continue rendering.
Current Display
This box displays the number of the current operation being rendered or the current runtime.
Rewind
Click this button to return playback to the first operation.
Stop
Click this button to pause rendering.
Step Forward
Click this button to render the next feature of the current operation, and then pause.
Play
Click the Play button to render the part from the current feature of the current operation in the
Current Display box. Rendering continues until you click another button or the last feature of the
last operation renders. The Stop and Step Forward buttons pause the rendering. If you click the
Play button during rendering, the rendering pauses. The Next Operation and Rewind buttons
change the current operation being rendered, but do not stop the rendering process. When the
last feature of the last operation is complete, rendering stops. If rendering is paused, you can
click the Play button to resume.

151
 Commands toolbar

Next Operation
If rendering is in progress, clicking Next Operation finishes rendering the current feature, skips
the remaining features for that operation, and continues rendering the next operation. If
rendering is paused, clicking Next Operation advances the operation number in the Current
Display box to the next operation. Click the Play button to continue rendering.
Speed Control
Shows the current location of the Speed Control slider. The Speed Control slider sets the speed
of rendering. You drag the speed control slider to the left to slow the rendering speed or to the
right to increase the rendering speed. You can drag the slider while rendering is in progress and
the rendering speed adjusts accordingly.

Record Video
For all rendering modes except Legacy CPR, an additional red button is provided. Clicking it
opens a dialog that lets you save the current simulation as a video file. The output video can then
be played and viewed independently of GibbsCAM.

Output File
You can designate the path and filename of the output file.
Record
Click this button to start recording the Machine Simulation video.
Encoder
From the pull-down list, you can choose one of the following video encoders:
- H.264 Video

- Windows Media Video 7

- Windows Media Video 8

- Windows Media Video 9

- SMPTE 421MVideo

Frame Rate
Set the speed of the output video, in terms of how many frames to capture per second.
Video Dimensions
Set the width and height of the output video, either by entering the number of pixels or by
using the current window view size.

152
 Commands toolbar

Simulation Legacy CPR Rapid CPR

1. Tool Visibility Control 5. Overlay Geometry 9. Run time or Number of

2. Stock Visibility Control 6. Show Rapid Tool Operation Display
3. Fixture Visibility Control 7. Show Tool Holders 10. Active Flow Number (For
4. Lathe Stock Cutaway 8. Show Machine MTM machines)

CPR/Rendering Visibility Controls

Tool Visibility Control
(Available for Operation, Tool, Machine Simulation, and Legacy CPR)
As with standard rendering, the hidden tool produces the fastest rendering; the opaque tool is
the slowest of the options.

/ Invisible Tool:

If this button is selected, the tools do not appear during the rendering process, although the
material as a result of the tools cutting is removed (see example). Radii render more smoothly,
and the part renders faster with this choice selected.

/ PartiallyTransparent Tool:

If this button is selected, transparent tools appear during the rendering process.

/ Opaque Tool:

Select this button to display opaque tools during the rendering process.

153
 Commands toolbar

Invisible Tool Partially Transparent Tool Opaque Tool

Stock Visibility Control

(Available for Operation, Tool and Machine Simulation and Rapid CPR)

For Rendering, stock can either be displayed as Partially Transparent or Solid .

Partially Transparent Stock Opaque Stock

Fixture Visibility Control

(Available for Operation, Tool and Machine Simulation and Rapid CPR)

For Rendering, fixtures can either be displayed as Invisible , Partially Transparent , or

Opaque .

Invisible Fixture Partially Transparent Fixture Opaque Fixture

154
 Commands toolbar

Lathe Stock Cutaway

(Available for Operation, Tool, Machine Simulation and Legacy CPR)
When rendering parts in the Turning, Mill/Turn, or Multi-Task Machining modules, there are three
cutaway states for the stock cut part rendering. The three cutaway states are: No cutaway;
1/4 cutaway; and 1/2 cutaway.

No cutaway 1/4 Cutaway 1/2 Cutaway

Overlay Geometry
(Available for all rendering options)

This option hides / shows workgroup geometry while rendering the part.

Turning: No
Turning Geometry Mill: No Geometry Mill Geometry
Geometry

Show Rapid Tool

(Available for Operation, Tool and Machine Simulation)
The tool is rendered in a different color to show when it is Rapiding when this option is enabled.

Show Tool Holders

(Available for Operation, Tool, Machine Simulation and Legacy CPR)

155
 Commands toolbar

No Toolholder Show Toolholder

Show Machine
This option is only available in Machine Sim Rendering.

Run time or Number of Operation Display

(Available for all rendering modes)
This displays the current run time or Operation number. If the rendering is stopped, the display is
the time it was stopped or the number of the previous operation. A value of zero means that
rendering has not yet begun.
Available on the Machine and Operation Rendering, the central "home" button, when clicked,
aligns the active Flow cutting plane to the home view.
Active Flow Number
The second dropdown box, on the right hand side, available for all Rendering modes except
Legacy, is to select the active flow display.

Simulation Control Icons

For full information on all controls in all Simulation dialogs, see the Machine Simulation guide.
The Rapid, Part, Tool and Machine Simulation palettes have various control options. To select
an option, click the icon. More than one icon can be selected at once.

Stops

(Available for Rapid, Operation, Tool and Machine Simulation)

Clicking the Stops icon opens the Stops dialog, which lets you set one ore more conditions
at which rendering should stop. Use the checkboxes to add/deselect options. Rendering will stop
upon reaching the condition before the number specified in the dialog.

156
 Commands toolbar

The Stops dialog initially displays stop options as shown in the following illustration. Select a
stop using the checkbox, then double-click the option to input conditions. All options except Stop
at Part Load/Unload provide a window to input specific operation/tool numbers, times, and so forth.
When a stop is active, it is highlighted with a red box, as shown below. If multiple stops have
been set, use the Play button to go to the next stop.

Stops dialog

1. Dropdown menu
2. Delete selected stops
3. Delete all stops
4. Enable/disable selected
stops
5. Import stops (*.smd file)
6. Export stops (*.smd file)

(1) Dropdown menu items for

Stops

157
 Commands toolbar

Additional stop options can be chosen from the dropdown menu. Scroll down the menu and
select the desired option, then input required values in the dialog window. The Stop at Script
Condition option has a right-click menu within the input window, providing the opportunity to input
more specific conditions. Use the Validate button to ensure there are no script parsing errors.

Stop at Script Condition Options

Tool motion on target body

(Available for Operation and Machine Simulation)

This option provides a non-cutting simulation of the tool motion. Selecting this option will
increase the speed of the simulation, where the display of material removal is not as important
as what the tool is doing.

Cut Color Mode

(Available for Rapid, Operation, and Machine Simulation)

158
 Commands toolbar

This option lets you use color to enhance the functionality of

CPR and Simulation. The corresponding options sub‐dialog
has three color modes: Cut Color (the default behavior,
matching earlier versions of the software), Tool Number, and
Op Number. The color of the remaining material changes with
each operation or tool. In this way, you can see what areas of
the part were machined by each operation, tool, or selected
op. The color palette is generated automatically to create a
set of colors that are readily distinguishable from one
another. Double-clicking a color allows you to change it.

Example of Using Cut Color, Tool Number, and Op Number

Collision Checking

Available for Operation and Machine Simulation)

This option enables checking of collision events. The result of a collision event is controlled by
setting the Collisions/Limits parameters. For details on these preference settings, see the
documentation on File > Preferences > Display > Op/Tool and Machine Simulation Settings. If
the Collisions/Limits is set to “Log To Display”, then a report detailing any “collisions” is generated.
The report, which includes when the collision occurs (Time), the XYZ value of the collision
(Location), the operation, and the tool, can be saved out as a text file. Additionally, the Prim 1
section details whether a Tool or Holder was involved. The Prim 2 section reports whether the
collision was with Stock or a Fixture. Using this option will slow down rendering speed.

159
 Commands toolbar

Program error checking

(Available for Rapid, Operation and Machine Simulation)

This setting checks for any axis motion that is beyond the limits set in any machine component. If
an axis limit is exceeded, a collision event is generated in the same way that it is generated when
two components collide. The result of an axis limit exceeded event is controlled by the
Collisions/Limits settings in the Simulation Settings dialog.

This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected. For more information
about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference, chapter "Miscellaneous", section
"Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".
Please note that a Program error message will be displayed if axes are not properly set up or are
missing in Machine Manager, even if this option is not enabled.

Point of View Lock

(Available for Operation and Machine Simulation)

This gives you control over how the virtual camera moves around the scene, defining the point of
view during animation. The element chosen to be locked then becomes fixed in position.
The choices available for Point of View Lock will be different, depending on the rendering mode.

• Operator (Machine Sim): This fixes the view to outside the machine.

160
 Commands toolbar

• Part/Fixed Part (Machine/Op Sim): This enables a pull-down menu to select the spindle to use
to sync the simulation. GibbsCAM will focus on the stock, and the tools and machine will
rotate around the part.
• Machine (Op Sim): This shows the viewpoint from within the machine. It is similar to Fixed
Part, but shows stock moving/rotating. Tools do not move around it.
• Machine Component (Machine Sim): This locks the view to a particular machine component.
Use the pull-down menu to choose which component is to remain stationary during
simulation.
• Tool Rotary/Linear Axes (Machine/Op Sim) The view will lock on the Tool and its movements
along the chosen axis.

Show position

(Available for Tool, Operation and Machine Simulation)

This option opens a dialog box showing continuous tracking of axis motion and current feature
information. Sliders allow you to explicitly move machine axis. The Render Tracking dialog
summoned by the Machine Sim Rendering palette might display more axes than the Test
Machine dialog (in Machine Manager), which shows only the axes that are available in the
kinematic tree. The Machine Sim Show Position dialog can potentially also display axis motion
for custom axes defined by a VMM or by a script, such as for a Z601 axis for a bar loader.
For easy visualization, when you press Next Feature, in the Rendering dialog, the Show
Position dialog shows the axes that move by changing the color of their values and sliders.

161
 Commands toolbar

Skip Unselected Ops

(Available for Rapid, Operation, Tool and Machine Simulation)

This option reduces the rendering time.

The Skip Unselected Ops function preserves material state. This is equivalent to setting multiple
Start at Op triggers. Selected ops will play in detail; unselected ops will have material removed
immediately, and playback will skip ahead to the next selected op, so selected ops are always
played in the correct program and material context.
If you want to skip material removal for unselected ops, deactivate the ops instead of deselecting
them, and the program will simulate as if they were not present.

Analyze Cut Part

(Available for Rapid and Operation Simulation)

Note: To use Analyze Cut Part, you must select a solid before starting Simulation.

The Analyze Cut Part dialog provides several options to determine the results of the toolpath on
a rendered part. This is an easy way to determine if there are areas on a body that are not being
machined (Remaining Material Change) or if any cuts violate the part.

Show Multipart

(Available for Operation, Tool and Machine Simulation)

The Show Multipart icon is available on MDDs with Multi-Part capability.
This icon appears only when Part Duplication is selected, or when the TMS with Multi Part option
button is selected. For more information on the Multi-Part tab, see the Mill or TMS guide.
In Op Simulation, the Multipart icon shows as available to use but is OFF by default. In Machine
Simulation, Multipart is ON by default and can be toggled off if desired.

162
 Commands toolbar

Example of Show Multipart OFF

When Show Multipart is ON, all duplicate parts are shown. When using Part Duplication, the part
and each fixture will be duplicated. When using TMS, the parts will be duplicated on the fixture.

Example of Show Multipart ON

Trace Options

(Available for Tool Simulation)

This option let you choose how much of the toolpath will remain on the screen — 0%, 1%, 5%, or
100% of the toolpath — as the tool follows the toolpath. Trace Operation will draw one operation at
a time. Trace From Run will clear the previous toolpath and begin redrawing if you stop the render
midway through and then restart.

163
 Commands toolbar

Machine Component Visibility

(Available for Machine Simulation)

This option opens a dialog box allowing control of the visibility of components in the machine
assembly file. You can control the components individually and/or by the groups set in Build
Machine. The eye icon lets you show or hide a component. Additionally, you can set a specific
transparency level from 0 (invisible) to 255 (opaque).

Don't Block Stock

(Available for Machine Simulation)

Don’t Block Stock is a rendering mode that renders all fixture bodies that appear in front of the
stock bodies as transparent. This lets you see material removal on stock bodies even when
some other bodies move in front of them.

164
 Commands toolbar

Load Machine

(Available for Machine Simulation)

This option allows you to select which machine assembly file will be used for the current part.
Once it is selected, the same machine will automatically be used for the part until a different
machine is selected. Clicking User Folder allows you to select a directory that contains machine
assembly files. Select the machine you wish to use and then click OK.

Simulation Context Menus

To display the Simulation context menu, right-click the title bar of the Simulation Control palette.
Left-click to select any of the options.

165
 Commands toolbar

Legacy CPR Simulation

Legacy CPR Context Menu

The following options are found in the context menu of Legacy CPR.

Set Op Start/Stop #s...

This option opens a dialog to specify an operation at which to start rendering and/or set a stop
point where rendering will stop and wait for you to start it again. The Start At Op option can be
used when operations have already been rendered once and you would like to skip operations
you have already seen. For example, you have a part with 10 operations and you know the first 7
operations are correct and render correctly but need to modify operations 8 through 10. Using
this option, you can skip operations 1 through 7 and start at 8. As long as the tool or operation
information for the first 7 operations does not change, the rendering will jump to operation 8. The
Stop Before Op option will cease rendering before the operation you specify. If you press the Play
button, then rendering will begin again.

Please Note: This applies to active operations only; inactive operations are unaffected.
For more information about active and inactive operations, see Commom Reference,
chapter "Miscellaneous", section "Lists", subsection "Active and Inactive Operations".

166
 Commands toolbar

Use Op Start
Placing a check mark on this option activates the Start At Op option. Removing the check mark
will disable the start point specified in the Set Op Start/Stop #s dialog.
Use Op Stop
Placing a check mark on this option activates the Stop At Op option. Removing the check mark
will disable the stop point specified in the Set Op Start/Stop #s dialog.
Stop Before Load/Unload
Placing a check mark on this option activates the Stop Before Op option. Removing the check
mark will disable the stop point specified in the Set Op Start/Stop #s dialog.

All Context Menus

The following options are found in context menus of both Legacy CPR and the Simulation
options.
Show Time
This will set the Current Display to show the elapsed cut time.

Show Op #
This will set the Current Display to show the current operation number.

Render Loop
Replays the simulation until the user presses the stop button.
The following options are only to be found in the Simulation dropdowns:
Save to STL
Select this option to save a copy of the simulation to an .stl file for viewing later.
Save to Bitmap
Select this option to save a copy of the
simulation to a bitmap file. This will re-render
your current state at the specified resolution
and save it as a picture. Please note that some
video cards will not support saving a picture
over 4000x4000.
Create Facet Body
This function turns the current cut rendered condition into a facet body. The facet body will
appear in the workspace as a transparent body. Facet bodies can be regarded as other solid

167
 Commands toolbar

bodies: They can be queried, profiled, sliced, and machined. One of the uses of facet bodies is
that they can be set as stock for “display only” purposes; i.e., they are not used as a stock
condition for creating toolpath but they can be shown in rendering. Setting a facet body as stock
can be quite useful for saving a rendered condition so you can instantly get to later operations.

Example of a Facet Body used as stock.

Skip pecks
The Skip Pecks option does not render any pecking moves used in drilling operations. Pecking is
still generated. This option simply reduces the rendering time.
Don't preload Subspindles
Disables sub-spindle stock generation. This improves performance with the tradeoff of not
having accurate stock on the sub-spindle during the first run. Not available for Tool Sim.
Reload Simulation
This option reloads the simulation.
Render Loop
This option causes the simulation to loop continuously.
Skip Interop Moves
Switches off the display of inter-op moves. Available only for Op Sim.
Graphic Part Face Distance
For use with parts containing multiple spindles. When enabled, this will render simultaneous
display of multiple spindles. Available only for Op Sim, and standard for Flash CPR.

168
 Commands toolbar

Show Spinning Part

Displays a transparent solid that represents the stock spinning at high speed, projected over the
subspindle stock. This transparent solid image is called a spun outline. This option is useful for
visualizing stock that is asymmetrical or has deep concavities. It is not useful if the stock is
simply a revolved profile, because the spinning stock is identical to the stock at rest.
Show Skipped Ops

Please Note: Use in conjunction with Skip Unselected Ops enabled.

Shows current stock condition of skipped ops. This condition includes the work performed by the
ops that have been skipped, up to the point of the unskipped op.
This is useful for showing only a certain few ops, without having the unmachined material of the
skipped ops in the way of the render.
Show Rotary Hints
Displays a green arc arrow that indicates the spindle direction.
Watches
The purpose of the Watches function is to graphically display, trace, measure, and analyze the
relationship and the location between chosen point A (Datum) and point B (Reference). These
points can be set to almost any item defined in the current Machine Model. You can choose from
the Trace dropdown either to track Distance between points or to trace the Path they take.
Multiple watch combinations can be created and displayed at the same time. You have the ability
to differentiate them by Trace Color. To enable or disable watches, check or uncheck the
checkbox. To edit a watch item, double-click it. You can import and export watches as *.smd
files.
The location measurements are updated continually during rendering, and are displayed on the
Watches dialog. Path Trace lines are shown in the workspace in their chosen color. Distance lines
also display an axis block at each end. Available only for Machine Sim.

169
 Commands toolbar

Watch example

Steps to creating a Watch

1. Click the Create watch Icon in the Watches
dialog. Result: The Create Watch dialog 5. Set color
opens. 6. Click OK. The Create Watch dialog closes.
2. Set Datum 7. Rewind Rendering and play. Path and
3. Set Reference Distance markers display in the Workspace.
4. Set watch to either Path or Distance (or turn Location data displays in the Watches dialog.
Off)

Sample Cut
Enables/Disables MachineWorks SampleCut technology. Sample Cut is a MachineWorks
technology feature that minimizes memory used by simulating material removal at the expense
of accuracy. (Material removal is accomplished using a 3D grid space instead of the standard
facet-body booleans). This means that an application will only use a fixed amount of memory to
render an arbitrarily complex toolpath. This can be of benefit in particularly dense surfacing
toolpath where users have sometimes run up to the memory limits of their computer.
Settings
This option opens the relevant Sim Settings dialog. There are separate dialogs for Op/Tool
settings and Machine Sim settings. (Rapid cut uses the Op/Tool Simulation settings dialog.)

170
 Commands toolbar

Although both dialogs are essentially the same, they save separate data files. For details on
these preference settings, see the documentation on File > Preferences > Display > Op/Tool and
Machine Simulation Settings.

Printing the Rendered Image

After the rendering is complete, the rendered image can be printed, either in either black and
white or in color. When the rendered image is on the screen, summon the system Print dialog

using either the standard keyboard short (Ctrl+P) or by choosing File > .

Depending on your printer, you might have very fine control over each printout using the options

in the system Print dialog. To adjust default printing preferences, using File > , Display tab,
Printing section. For more information, see “Printing ” on page 23.

171
 Status Bar

Status Bar

At the bottom of the workspace is a Status Bar which includes a message display. To the left of a
progress bar, the following items are displayed: current Coordinate System, current Workgroup,
current unit of measurement, and current TMS status (such as number of parts) are displayed.
Double-clicking on the Workgroup and CS indicators will open their respective dialogs. If
present, double-clicking the TMS status indicator will open the DCD dialog to the Multi-part tab.
Hovering over or clicking the progress bar reveals the Progress dialog, which will display real-
time feedback of toolpath calculations and timings. Use the pin symbol indicated below to keep
the dialog open.

The messages displayed indicate the current function the system is performing, and the
progress bar gives the percent-completed status of the function. Click the Stop button to stop
the current function, if required.
Some Plug-ins, notably Show Position, can be added to the status bar. To do this, click and open
the Show Position plug-in, then right-click the Show Position title bar and check the option to
Install to Task Bar.

To uninstall the plug-in, right-click the icon on the Status bar and select the option Uninstall Task.

172
 Customizing the User Interface

Customizing the User Interface

Command Shortcuts in
Trackball
When you right-click the trackball, its context
menu now offers a powerful choice: Customize.

The Trackball Customization dialog allows you to drag any command to any of the eight slots of
the trackball, using any of eight possible combinations of key modifiers (Shift, Ctrl, and/or
Alt). This puts up to 64 commands at your fingertips: Press F5 to summon the trackball, press
up to three modifier keys (the trackball display changes accordingly), and click a sector of the
trackball.

(Sampl
Plain Shift
e)

Plain

Ctrl

Alt

Ctrl+A
lt

173
 Customizing the User Interface

Customizing the Workspace

1. Right-click here to Customize

2. Do it/Redo Command.
3. Alternative command docking areas

Some customization is available within the workspace. For instance, from the tile right-click
menu you can select large or small tile size. Right-clicking a process tile also enables the Do
it/Redo controls that are attached to the process tiles to be hidden or shown. (The Do it/Redo
commands are still available at any time by right-clicking in the workspace.)
The File>Preferences>Interface tab has options to control the Startup window size, the
Transparency of the Floating Toolbar, the dialogs and the tile lists and also various other
controls.
Other more sophisticated customization is possible by right-clicking within the header area
highlighted within a red box in the screenshot above. You can totally rearrange, or duplicate
command icons and place them into existing or custom Toolbars and Menus. For instance this
would enable you to create a command menu specifically for your own oft-used workflows.

174
 Customizing the User Interface

Customizing Toolbars and Menus

Access the Toolbar and Menu customization function by right-

clicking anywhere in the Title or Commands Toolbar. When
you are in customization mode, functionality that affects the
workspace is temporary disabled. The following dialog will
appear:

The checkboxes in the Customization menu can be used to quickly show/hide the GibbsCAM
Toolbar groups. Click the option Customize Toolbars & Menus to open the main customization
dialog.

175
 Customizing the User Interface

Save/Load Customization Profile

These options enable you to save and load your customizations to and from a *.cui file. This
way it is possible to set up customizations for specific tasks.
You can also load a copy of the as-shipped default UI at any time.

For your convenience, three preset interface *.cui files are available.

A Level 2 Legacy Interface is provided. This allows you to use Level 2 as it was
before GibbsCAM 12. Or, you can choose from the standard GibbsCAM 12 Level 1
and Level 2 Interfaces.
To load an interface, from the bottom of the Customization main screen, click the
option Load Customization Profile. Navigate to the following folder:
C:\Program Files\CAMBRIO\GibbsCAM\<version>\User Interface Layouts
Double-click the required option.

Note: When you load a package file (*.gcpkg) that contains user interface customizations, the
system offers you the option of applying or rejecting the customizations before loading the
package contents.

New Menu Button

The New Menu Button dialog lets you name a new command container and provide tooltip text
strings and an icon for it. After a command container has been dragged onto a toolbar or into a
menu, you can drag one or more commands into it.

176
 Customizing the User Interface

Command Name
The text string that will label the command container.
Short Tooltip
The text string that will appear when the mouse hovers over the command container.
Long Tooltip
The text string that will appear on mouseover if Balloons are turned on.
Icon
If you do not use the (Browse) button to navigate to and choose an *.icn file, then default
icon will be .

OK: Accept changes and close the dialog.

Cancel: Discard changes and close the dialog.

Keyboard Shortcut List

The Keyboard Shortcut List dialog lets you display and print a list of all commands that have
keyboard shortcuts assigned.

177
 Customizing the User Interface

Keyboard Shortcut List

Icon Command Name Shortcut(s)

Balloons Ctrl+B

Bottom Alt+Ctrl+E

Ctrl+4
CAM
F4
... ... ...
Ctrl+OemPlus
Zoom In
Alt+DOWN
Ctrl+OemMinus
Zoom Out
Alt+UP

Commands tab
This tab contains all the GibbsCAM command icons available for UI customization.
Search
A search function is provided at the top of the screen. This searches not only the command titles,
but also the Tooltip descriptions to enable you to find the correct command.
Shortcuts
The commands tab is also used to set up new keyboard shortcuts. Click to highlight an icon. A
box will appear if it is available for shortcuts. Simply hold the Ctrl or Alt key, together with the
character you wish to use for the shortcut. If the shortcut is not already in use, it will appear in the
box. Click any other icon to enter, or click the x next to the box to delete. If a shortcut is already in
use, a warning will be displayed. You then have the opportunity to reassign the existing shortcut,
or choose another.

178
 Customizing the User Interface

To insert a command
Click, hold and drag the required command icon either into a new or existing
command group or main menu dropdown. If you hover over a Main Menu
option (File, Edit, View etc.) the dropdown will automatically open. Move the
icon around and you will see an orange bar. Once this bar is positioned just
to the left of where you wish to insert the command, let go the mouse button
and the icon will drop into place.
When in Customization mode. a command can be inserted into either a
Menu dropdown, the Floating toolbar or an existing Toolbar Command
group. Items placed anywhere else will disappear into the trashcan. It is
especially important that you are aware of this if you are moving existing
icons. If inadvertently deleted, they must then be reinserted.

Reposition an icon
If your command has been place incorrectly, simply click, hold and drag it into the correct
position. All existing menu commands can also be moved around in this manner.
Right-click menus
Right-clicking a command icon in the UI while in Customization mode gives additional options to
arrange the commands by adding separators or extra lines. Please note that only one separator
can be added in a particular space. Clicking Add separator a second time will remove it.

Right-clicking an icon in the Main-menu dropdown Right-clicking an icon in the toolbar

179
 Customizing the User Interface

Menus tab

Use the Menu tab to create a new Main Menu option or to add a
sub-section to an existing menu. You can also change the
width of the Main menu dropdown - just type in the required
number of columns and click the column icon next to it. Menu
options can be renamed, or if need be, deleted.

Rename/Delete/Reset Buttons
You can rename or delete any menu or toolbar. The Reset option will reset sub-menus back to
the default condition.
Note: Take care not to delete top level menu items (Main Menu options like File, Edit. View etc
that appear in the header bar), or the actual command Toolbar groups, unless this is what you
intended. The Reset option will not work for these. The only way to recover these deletions is to
reload from a saved Profile.

Toolbars Tab

180
 Customizing the User Interface

Enter a title into the New Toolbar box and hit return. A new Toolbar Command Box is created.
You can then drag command icons into this new box from the commands tab. The new menu will
also appear on the Customize screen and can be switched on/off using a checkbox, just as with
the default groups.
To add items to the Quick Access or Floating Toolbars, just drag the required command into the
toolbar.

Positioning Command Toolbar Groups

Command Toolbar groups can be pinned to the outer

margins of the workspace (Left, right and bottom).
In Customization mode, click and drag the Toolbar
Command Box grip point (the group of 8 dots in the top
left corner of each toolbar).

The cursor will change to a white arrow and an orange line appears when the group is in a
location where it can be inserted.
The orientation automatically adjusts to fit the available space.

Exit
Once you have finished customizing the UI, click the close or Exit button (situated in the
bottom right corner of the customization dialog). This will save the changes and return to normal
GibbsCAM functionality.

Moving Command Groups around the workspace.

Once you have exited customization mode, you can click and drag command groups to any
location on your screen, or even onto a different screen. When you close and reopen GibbsCAM
the group will appear where you last left it. To return a group to a docked position, drag the group
using the grip point, this will activate the orange guideline and the group will then snap into place.
You do not need to be in Customization mode to do this.

181
Customizing the User Interface

182
 Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous
• Lists
• “Other Workspace Items” on page 196
• “Shortcuts” on page 197
• “Cursors” on page 198
• “Eyeball icon” on page 200
• “Freehand Actions” on page 200
• “Right-Click” on page 202
• “Colors” on page 202
• “Math Functions” on page 204
• “Interrogate” on page 204
• “About Clearance Volume ” on page 206

Lists

There are three main lists in the system. These are the Tool List, the Process List and the
Operations List. These lists hold tiles and are not moveable. Each tile is used to describe an
individual tool, process or operation. A list can hold many items.

183
 Miscellaneous

To scroll through a list, click on the large blue arrow at the top or bottom of a list. This will
move the list up or down one item at a time. Lists may be scrolled through quickly by clicking
on the scroll arrow and dragging the mouse past the arrow. This is called Speed Scrolling.
When Speed Scrolling, the list advances six tiles at a time. The arrow will turn red when Speed
Scrolling.

You can also scroll to the first or last non-empty tile by clicking the smaller button next to
the single-scroll button.
Hold down the Shift key and double-click on the triangular space between process tiles to
create an empty space between processes. Hold down the Shift key and double-click on an
empty space between process tiles to delete the space between processes. To navigate through
the lists faster, use a context menu command.
Right-clicking on either of the arrows in a list will bring up a menu with the Find command.
Right-clicking on a tile will bring up a menu to select the Find or Move dialogs.

Find Tile dialog Move Tile dialog

Tool List

The Tool List and its (right-click) context menu

184
 Miscellaneous

The Tool List is used to define the tools used to cut a part. By double-clicking on an empty tile
a new tool is created and a Tool dialog opens. A tool is then fully defined within the Tool dialog.
This includes, but is not limited to, the type of tool and its size and material. Only one Tool dialog
can be open at a time.
Tool tiles display a graphic of the tool type and the size of the tool. This instantly changes with
any modifications to the tool. Tool Lists may contain both milling and turning tools at the same
time. Each tool has a unique graphic to help the user quickly determine what each tool is.
The Tool List is accessed from the Tool button in the Commands palette. There can be a
maximum of 999 tools in a part. The tool tiles do not have to be contiguous; there can be empty
spaces between tiles.
To navigate through the Tool Tiles, click on any part of the Tool List to select it. Then use the
mouse wheel to scroll through the list. Use Ctrl+the mouse wheel to scroll through multiple tiles
at a time. The Process List and Operations List, described elsewhere in this section, can also be
navigated in this manner.
Tool lists can be saved and even automatically generated by using default part files. See “ Type
Default Part ” on page 11.

View/Edit Tool List

Tool List Manager lets you:

• Hover
over a tile
in the
dialog to
show the
Tool
Preview in
the hover
window.
• Order
tools by
tool type
(default),
by tile
number,
or by
toolgroup.

• Use the search bar to find a tool by text and/or by its most important dimension, optionally
filtered by toolgroup.
• Delete a tool from the tool list.
• Drag a tool from the tool list to the part or vice versa.

185
 Miscellaneous

Save or Load Selected Tools

To save a set of tools:
Select the tool tiles, right-click any non-blank tile in the Tool List, and choose Save Selected
Tools. To load a saved tool list file: Right-click a blank tool tile, choose Load Tools from the
context menu, and then navigate to and select the tool list file (*.tlst) that you want to load.
Tool List

To load: Right-click a blank tile and choose Load....

To save: Select one or more tiles, right-click any non-blank tile, and choose Save....

186
 Miscellaneous

Process List

The Processes List and its (right-click) context menu

The Process List is used to define toolpath and create operations. A process consists of a single
tool from the Tool List and a machining function. When a Process tile, a process is created.
Clearance values, cut depth, speeds and other items are specified in the Process dialog. In most
cases, geometry or a solid is then selected to generate toolpath by clicking the Do It button.
Once toolpath is generated, one or more operations are created for each process. After
operations are created, the processes can be thrown away, because the information from the
process is stored in the Operation.
Please note that multiple processes can be created in the same list. This will cause multiple
grouped operations to be performed on the same geometry or surface. This function can be used
to drill, bore, and tap — all in one set of operations. It can also be used to create a set of
operations that drill, rough, and contour the same geometry or solid. Any combination of
machining functions can be grouped as needed.
The Process List contains a maximum of 99 Process tiles. The Process tiles do not have to be
contiguous; there can be empty spaces between tiles.

Save or Load Process Lists

Process List

187
 Miscellaneous

To save: With one or more process tiles selected, right-click a non-blank tile and choose
Save Process List....

To load: Right-click a blank process tile and choose Load Process List.

188
 Miscellaneous

Operations List

Two examples of the Operations List and its (right-click) context menu

Operations are created from processes and tools. Operations store the toolpath (the cutting
motion of the tool) and the information defined by a process. A process generates at least one
operation, some processes will result in more than one operation. The software will use the list of
operations to generate the final program that is sent to the CNC machine.
A part can have a maximum of 16,000 operations. The Operation tiles do not have to be
contiguous; there may be empty spaces between tiles.
The Operations List has a larger context menu than the other lists. The menu contains a number
of commands that can be applied to an operation or its toolpath. The normal Find and Move
options are also included. For detailed information, see the Mill and Turning guides.

Operation Tile Stacking

The Operations list offers four choices for organizing Op tiles by stacking them:

189
 Miscellaneous

1. Individual:
Unstacked.
2. Process Mode:
Consecutive
operations are
stacked together if
they originated from
a single process and
all belong to the
same flow.
3. Process List:
Consecutive
operations are
stacked together if Unstacked op
they originated from tile has no
a group of processes dashed line
to machine the same under the
geometry—and all number in the
belong to the same tab.
flow.
4. Manual: Allows
you to create stacks
of consecutive
operations that all
belong to the same
flow. Can include Stacked op tile
blank tiles and has a dash-
operations on underscored tab
different spindles. number and a
visual depiction
of multiple
A blue box enclosing a stacked items.
stacking icon indicates
the currently selected
choice.
Icons that are grayed
out (e.g., ) are
unavailable; this occurs
in Multi-Flow parts
when the Operations
list is in Sync Flow
mode.

190
 Miscellaneous

Icons for Organizing Operation Tiles in Multi-Flow Parts

For MTM parts that have two or more flows, the Operations list offers additional choices for
organizing Op tiles:

Icon Name Function

Show All Flows Displays op tiles in a single column.
Multiple columns, one for each flow. Gaps in the column
Show Each Flow
indicate where a flow waits for another flow.
Multiple columns, one for each flow. Gaps are suppressed;
Sync Flow Mode
instead, blue bars indicate syncs between flows.

Show Each Flow Sync Flow Mode

Active and Inactive Ops

The Inactive Operation feature can be used to work with parts as multiple programs in sequence,
to experiment with alternative programming strategies, or for any other purpose where an op
needs to be retained in the file but excluded from the program. Active and inactive ops
functionality adds a more reliable solution to disclude ops, improving consistency and posted
code accuracy.
Op active/ Op inactive status persists when op selection is changed and even when the part is
saved and reloaded. You can also view or set active/inactive status using Operation Manager.

191
 Miscellaneous

To activate or deactivate ops, do one of the following:

l Right-click an op tile selection. Context-menu choices now
include Activate Selected Ops and Deactivate Selected Ops.
Only valid ops can be deactivated.
l Use Operation Manager to batch-activate/deactivate
operations.
l Use Edit > Operation and click Activate All Ops or Deactivate
Unselected Ops.

l Use Plug-Ins > Main; the Find Operations dialog box has a
Look In checkbox for Inactive Ops.

Colors. Op tiles for inactive ops have a dark gray background when unselected, dark
yellow when selected. Toolpath for inactive ops is drawn in gray rather than orange
(when using default colors). Note that inter-operation connection moves are not
drawn for inactive ops, since they are not participating in the program.
Affected functions. Inactive ops do not participate in any of the following GibbsCAM
functions: Post Processing, Simulation, Material State Calculation (for Material Only
or Start at Op), Program Error Checking, Sync Control, WFO assignment, Reporter
output, and Multipart (TMS and Part Instancing).

Redo and Op Modifiers. If you perform a manual Redo on an

inactive op, or if you add an op modifier to it, then its status
changes to Activated. However, batchRedo actions skip inactive
ops by default, and their names have been changed to Redo Active
Ops and Redo Selected Active Ops.

Appearance and Behavior of Op Tile Stacks

Tile stacks differ from single op tiles as follows:
• Stack of frames. The process icon is framed to suggest a stack of icons.
• Tile number. The stack is numbered according to the first op tile in the stack,
followed by an ellipsis ... indicating a break in the numeric sequence between
it. In the illustration, 21... is above op tile 23; 5... is above op tile 8.
• Tool numbers. A single tool number indicates that all ops stack share the
same tool. If the ops use exactly two tools, then the first-used is separated
from the second-used by a comma(T 11,12 in the illustration). If the ops use
three or more tools, the first-used is separated from the last-used by a colon
(T 6:4 in the illustration).

192
 Miscellaneous

• Extended tile numbers. Numbers for toolgroup, tool ID, and spindle number
are displayed only if all ops share the same value. In the illustrations,
toolgroup and spindle are shared by all ops in each stack; tool ID is not.

Which Process Icon Is Displayed?

If all operations share the same process type, the stack displays that icon.
For Process List, the stack icon indicates the highest-priority process type in the process list. For
example, if a process list consists of Holes, Pocket, and Contour , stack displays a Pocket icon.
When two or more processes of equal priority exist (such as Pocket and VoluMill), the stack
displays the icon for the earliest process.
For Manual, the stack icon shows the process type of the earliest
operation.

Opening, Closing, and Scrolling a Stack of

Op Tiles
Double-clicking a stack opens a flyout that shows a list of op tiles it
contains:
To close the flyout: click its close icon or move/resize the GibbsCAM
window.
Just as in the main op list, a sufficiently long flyout list provides a
scrollbar that lets you navigate up and down.

About Manual Stacks

Choosing Manual op tile stack display creates the following special
conditions:
• The context-sensitive (right-mouse-click) menu offers two additional items:
- Create Stack Allows you to create a manual stack. For Manual only, a stack can consist of
one tile.
- Unstack Undoes the manual stack of the right-clicked item.

• The part "remembers" all manual stacks even when it is in a different mode. Reselecting
Manual will restore the previous Manual display state, unless manual stacks have been
broken by other op tile additions, moves, or deletions.

193
 Miscellaneous

Dragging and Dropping

You can drag an entire stack and drop it anywhere in the op list or into another stack. When a
stack flyout is open, you can drag tiles into or out of the stack. However:
• Dragging a tile into or out of the stack may cause the stack to break into two stacks if the
rules for that stack cannot all be kept.
• Dragging a stack into the flyout of another stack might result in two or three stacks if the rules
for the target stack cannot all be kept.
• Dropping a stack onto a stack does nothing.

About Linked Operations (Parent/Child)

In some circumstances, such as using the TpTrans plug-in on a selected operation, one or more
operations are created that are linked to the operation that was selected. Each new operation
created in this way is called a child op, and the original from which a child op is created is called
a parent op.
A child op can itself become a parent of other ops, each of which is a grandchild of the original
op; likewise with great-[great-[...]]grandchildren.
A child op has no process of its own: its processes derive from the process (or process group) of
its parent op. Therefore, deleting a parent op deletes any child/grandchild/... ops linked to it, and
redoing the parent after changing its process propagates the same change to all its
child/grandchild/... ops.
Op Tile Stacking. Since an op shares the same process or processes with all its children, such
tile stack views as Process Mode and Process List group the parent together with all its
children.

Breaking Links. To break the link from a child op to its parent, use the Break Parent-Child Link
plug-in.

Extended Tile Lists

If the GibbsCAM window is sized large enough, additional slots will be visible in the tool and
operation lists. You can increase the size of the GibbsCAM window by dragging the lower right
hand corner or by clicking the Maximize button to make the window grow to the full size of the
screen.

194
 Miscellaneous

You can view more tool icons by dragging down the bottom margin of the Tool Tile list. Drag it
up to see more Process Tiles.
To increase the number of tiles on view you can also switch to Small icons.

Dockable Panes
Many dialogs can now be docked — that is, attached to the left,
bottom, right, or top side of the workspace or to each other
(creating a tabbed window). These dialogs include: Body Bag,
Program Error Check, CS List, Workgroup List, Operation
Manager, Tool Manager, Process Manager, and a few others.

Clicking in a dialog’s titlebar activates the Docking Control in

the workspace and in the center of each docked pane.
Dragging the dialog onto an outward-pointing arrow (up= ,
left= , right= , down= ) docks it to that side, and dragging it
onto the center ( ) adds a tab.

Right-clicking the titlebar of a

dialog in a tabbed pane lets
you set tabs at top or bottom.

195
 Miscellaneous

Other Workspace Items

Workspace
The workspace occupies the entire window space. It can be moved and repositioned using the
View Control palette or keyboard shortcuts. All drawings of geometry, toolpath, and rendered
images appear in the drawing window. The overall size of the workspace is defined by the
Document Control dialog settings and represents the default stock condition. To change the size
of the window, move the mouse pointer to the outer border and when a double arrow appears,
click and drag to the desired size. Use the Viewport manager in the floating toolbar to view in
GibbsCAM Multi view mode.

Axis Block

The axis block shown above is, for most users, permanently displayed on the bottom left corner
of the screen and indicates the orientation of the part displayed. However, if your computer does
not have OpenGL installed, or if OpenGL is disabled, then the axis block is not displayed. If you
want to suppress the axis block display, or display it on another corner of the workspace, go to
Preferences: File > Preferences > Display tab, Edit Appearance Settings button > Background tab. See
“Appearance Settings Dialog” on page 16.

196
 Miscellaneous

If you hover over the axis block you will see a view palette that you can use
in a similar way to the View palette on the Command Group menu.

Click on geometry and press Ctrl+Alt to display a temporary axis block at

that location. For more information, see the section on Freehand Actions.

Trash
The Trash is a graphical method for deleting on-screen objects such as tiles in a list, geometry or
solids. There are two ways to use the Trash. The first method is to click the Trash button which
will delete any active and selected item. Multiple elements may be selected, such as one or more
tools, operations and geometry. Please note that only the currently active items will be deleted.
Active items are usually found in the last selected window. The second method is to drag tiles to
the Trash. The last deletion is undoable by selecting Undo from the Edit menu or by pressing
Ctrl+Z.

Shortcuts
Button Shortcuts
In some cases, buttons may be depressed by actions other than clicking on them. When a button
has an outline around it or is highlighted, it can be selected by pressing the Enter or Return key.

Geometry Dialogs give the user a choice of single or multiple feature creation. To create only
one feature (a circle, for example), click the single circle button. To create more than one circle,
click the multiple circles button. One of the buttons will always be highlighted. The highlighted
button can be depressed by clicking on it, pressing the space bar, the Enter key or the Return
key. Pressing Shift+Enter will select the unhighlighted button.

The Do It button is found in some dialogs, primarily those found in the Modify menu. It
can be depressed by clicking on it or by pressing the Enter or Return keys.

197
 Miscellaneous

Command Shortcuts
Keyboard shortcuts can be set up for often-used commands. See the section on Customizing the
User Interface.
Palette Shortcuts
There are some keyboard shortcuts for functions other than menu choices in the system. Simply
hit the appropriate number to activate the button.

Geometry Creation palette Point sub-palette

Line sub-palette Circle sub-palette

Auto-Shape sub-palette Geometry From Solids sub-palette

Cursors
The cursor is the screen object moved with the mouse. Its appearance changes depending on its
location and will dictate its usage.
Pointer
This cursor is used to select objects and geometry by clicking on them. You can
zoom by dragging a rectangle around an area on the screen as shown right.

Area Select

This mode is accessed by holding down the mouse key and

dragging the mouse or using the Edit > Select > Mouse Drag
command. Geometry with any of its area appearing within the
rectangle will be selected in its entirety.

198
 Miscellaneous

Pointing Finger

This indicates that the cursor is holding an object, such as a tile, that is being moved. It is also
seen when moving the workspace using Ctrl-leftmousebutton drag.
Edit/Input

This indicates that the cursor is over a text or value input location. Clicking in the text box will
produce a flashing text cursor to enter or edit the field.
Interrogation Cursor
This cursor appears when the Alt key or Shift+Alt keys are held down. The Interrogation
cursor is used to automatically enter values from geometry, profiler arcs, circles, and solids into
text boxes.
Spot
The cursor changes to this while rolling the trackball in the View palette or while a handle of the
pop-up axis block is being dragged for freehand rotation or translation.
Small Pointer

The small pointer appears when the Ctrl key is held down. It allows for more than one item to be
selected at a time.

Hand Pointer
This appears when selecting commands from sub-palettes

or Resize: Horizontal
This cursor signals that the window or pane can be dragged horizontally to increase or decrease
its width.

or Resize: Vertical
This cursor signals that the window or list can be dragged vertically to increase or decrease its
height.
Help on item Cursor

This cursor is activated from the Floating Toolbar Help button or when you select the same
command from the Help menu. This cursor is active until you click on an item in the GibbsCAM
interface.
The Help cursor activates context-sensitive online help for the item you click on. Online Help will
open and will attempt to load the section regarding the item you clicked. Some items go to a very
specific topic; others will lead to a general section of the help.

Move
This cursor can be found in conjunction with command toolbar groups. Hovering over the drag
point (the group of 8 dots in the top left corner of a group) the cursor changes to Move and allows
a group to be dragged to another position. Care must be taken with this however a group could

199
 Miscellaneous

become hidden if inadvertently dragged out of the visible area. For more information see
Customizing the User Interface.

Eyeball icon
The eyeball icon is used in Workgroup, CS and Hole Manager Group list dialogs. An
open eyeball means that the item is displayed in the workspace, a closed eyeball means
that it is hidden.
A single mouse click places a box around the eyeball. This is a selection marker box. You can
select multiple eyeballs (either one at a time using (Ctrl-click) or by specifying a range
(Click, Shift-click). Double-clicking inside any one of the selected eyeballs will then either
deselect or select all items.

Please note that you cannot close the eyeball if a Workgroup or CS row is highlighted in blue, as
this is the active Workgroup/CS.

Freehand Actions
Do not confuse actions that scale / pan / rotate the view from actions that affect elements such as
2D geometry or bodies.
For example, the following actions affect only the current view:
• All mouse actions in the View Control Palette, such as:
- Drag and right-drag ( cursor) of the trackball axis handles, for constrained rotation or
of the trackball itself, for unconstrained rotation.

• Ctrl-drag( cursor) to move the workspace.

• Mousewheel-turn to zoom and mousewheel-drag to rotate the workspace.

• Hardware controls on 3D motion controllers such as spaceballs

• Gestures on touch screens
In contrast, as you would expect, items on the Modify menu affect elements selected in the
workspace and Body Bag, and have no effect on the view.
An entirely different class of actions, freehand move and rotate, affects selected elements in the
workspace by creating and modifying coordinate systems on the fly.

Freehand Move and Rotate

You can move or rotate elements using the mouse: Select one or more elements, press
Ctrl+Alt to pop up a temporary axis block, and then drag either the origin (for freehand
translation) or one of the six axes (for axis-constrained translation or rotation).

200
 Miscellaneous

The pop-up axis block remains displayed for as long as the Ctrl+Alt keys are held down. If you
add or remove bodies in the selection set, the pop-up axis block moves to the center of the
bounding box (the minimum box containing all currently selected elements). To zoom in or out
on the view, use the Down ( ) and Up ( ) keys.

Pop-up axis block showing move (1 or 2) and rotation (3)

operations
1. For a freehand move operation of selected elements, click
and drag the origin of the pop-up axis block.
2. For a freehand move operation along one axis of the pop-
up, click the axis arrow's shaft or arrowhead and drag along
the axis.
3. For a freehand rotation operation around one axis of the
pop-up, click the spinner around the corresponding axis
arrow and drag. The closer to the axis origin, the more
extreme the rotation.
When hovered over a handle, the cursor becomes a pointing

finger ( ). As the mouse button is clicked and held, the

cursor becomes a fist ( ).

When a freehand move or rotation operation is performed, a new or modified CS is associated

with each body and profile that has been shifted. The CS is labeled with the comment Freehand
CS. Subsequent translations and rotations of the body or profile will update the associated CS.

201
 Miscellaneous

Right-Click

The mouse has (at least) two buttons that are used in different manners. The left button
selects/deselects and accesses items such as geometry, bodies, text boxes, and buttons. The
right button gives access to context menus that contain items specific to the selected object or
objects. You can right-click a title bar of some dialogs to open a menu containing items
specific to that dialog.
An example of a context menu is shown above. When you right-click the title bar of the
History list, its context menu appears. The context menu only contains options that are
applicable to the History list.

Colors
The system uses colors to graphically display different items drawn on the screen. All system

colors may be customized in File > Preferences > Display tab > Colors tab. The default color
scheme for geometry, toolpaths, and rendering is listed below.

Item Color Meaning

Workspace White Wire frame view of the Part Stock and coordinate system markers
Green Profile Grid

202
 Miscellaneous

Item Color Meaning

Geometry Yellow Unconnected Geometry or a terminating Point
Dashed Yellow Unconnected Rapid Geometry
Light Blue Connected Geometry
Dashed Light Blue Connected Rapid Geometry
Red Geometry designated as “Air” geometry for machining
Gray Geometry viewed as a background workgroup
Magenta Geometry viewed in a background coordinate system
Toolpaths Dark Blue Cut Shape; selected area of a shape to be machined
Solid Orange Feed Move in Toolpath
Dashed Orange Rapid Move in Toolpath
Dashed Gray Rapid Move used for positioning moves and tool changes
Solid Gray Approach Feed Move
Solids/Sheets Gray Solid Body
Yellow Selected Body (solid or sheet)
Blue Stock; Selected Profile
Red Fixture or negative depth side of a sheet
Light Blue Sheet or plane
Green Deselected Profiles
Rendering Blue Stock
Yellow Rendering of selected operations and/or selected tools
Gray Rendering of unselected operations and/or unselected tools
Red Tool Interference

Hole Manager
The Hole Manager draws an “X” at the top of the hole and a line leading to the drill point (the final
depth), for each hole. The color of the line and “X” will vary depending on the hole type.

203
 Miscellaneous

Spot Bore, Back Com

Drill Tap Ream Bolt Hole Bore
Face Thru Bore pound

Dark Dark
Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Brown White
Green Blue

Math Functions
All numeric input boxes will accept the four standard math function symbols (+ - x /) as well as a
number of special functions (either * and x can be used for multiplication). Pressing the Equal
key or Tab key on the keyboard will display the final value. The following list provides all of the
math functions recognized by the system.

Key Function Key Function

+ addition – subtraction
* multiplication x multiplication
/ division = equals
m convert inch to metric (x25.4) i convert metric to inch (/25.4)
s sine c cosine
t tangent a arc tangent
r square root e scientific notation (41e-2 = 0.41)

Interrogate
When a text box contains a cursor, you can Alt+click a point, virtual point (such a line
segment's midpoint, a circle's centerpoint, a solid's vertices, the corner and edge points of cubic
stock, and many others), including toolpath, to interrogate its value and copy the value to the text
box. In some circumstances, you can Alt+Shift+click to copy the value to multiple text boxes.

The contents of any text boxes can be cut, copied and pasted to and from the Clipboard by
choosing items from the Edit menu or by using Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, or Ctrl+V.
Angular values entered in text boxes follow the standard Cartesian coordinate system, shown
below. Negative values are acceptable as input.

204
Miscellaneous

205
 Appendix

Appendix
• A Discussion About OpenGL
• Recommendation
• Known Issues and Fixes
• FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

About Clearance Volume

Clearance Volume allows users of advanced machines to say to GibbsCAM, in effect, “Here’s
my part; don’t let the tool come too close to it except when cutting. You figure it out so I don’t
have to.”
Clearance Volume was devised to address situations where the traditional clearance plane
(CP1) is not a good match for machines of more than three axes, especially those with rotary
heads or tables, tools with right-angle heads (or any tool that is not Z-aligned), vices that can be
held at varying B-axis angles, and the like.
For turning, Clearance Volume is required for eccentric turning, where clearances must be
calculated from a CS that is not parallel to the base XZ axis.
The clearest example of where Clearance Volume is beneficial is Willemin 508MT and 508MT2
machines where vice and tool can be rotated independently, making it impossible to provide
legacy MDD settings for interop moves that are logical and reasonable. Any machine where tool
stations and part stations are independently rotatable can be a candidate for Clearance Volume.
Clearance Volume can also be useful for simple machines where more efficient clearances are
desirable for interop moves when the tool retracts to accommodate rotation, especially when
machining a tall part. This occurs on 5-axis table machines where the fourth axis is distant from
the part, and on B-axis mill-turns where the tool goes home between B-axis orientation changes.
In cases like these, if you can keep the tool near the part, you often get faster run times.
Generally: If it is very difficult to calculate the “right” CP1, or if there is no right CP1, then
Clearance Volume may offer a better solution.
Caveats: Interop moves generated by Clearance Volume contain 5-axis simultaneous moves;
thus it is best if the control has TCP capabilities, and it is unsuitable for machines that have
indexing rotary axes or rotary axes that must be clamped between moves.

User Interface
In the MDD, Clearance Volume should be implemented by Resellers and/or the Gibbs Post
Department. We do not expect end users to exercise Clearance Volume options in the MDD.

206
 Appendix

When the MDD implements Clearance Volume, a new command is available: Show
Clearance Volumes. You can find this command in the Customization dialog and customize the
user interface by placing it on a toolbar or menu group.

DCD. When an MDD

specifies Clearance
Volume, the DCD for a Mill
part changes: instead of
Clearance for a plane
positioned above the part
origin, it has Clearance (Δ)
as an incremental offset
from the default stock
definition.

Machine Space and Part Space

Machine space means “absolute; from the standpoint of the machine”; part space is relative to
the part, which may be moving with respect to the machine.
Example. When a vinyl record is played on a turntable, consider the path of the needle.
• From the standpoint of the machine, it makes a nearly straight-line traversal from the outside
of the disc to the inside.
• From the standpoint of the record, the needle traverses a very tight inward spiral, with
occasional small breaks. This follows the spiral tracks in the vinyl.

G-Code
All machines output G-code in machine space; some machines also have a mode that enables
part space instead of machine space. Machine Space requires accurate offsets (i.e., tool and
part and rotary positions in the MDD), and may be unsafe when inaccurate offsets are entered.
Part Space is more forgiving. But: Note that “Turning Enabled” causes Part Space to be ignored.
In most circumstances, the superior output takes advantage of the machine’s interpolation
capabilities to create smooth lines and arcs, instead of creating many tiny segments that
approximate a curve.

A Discussion About OpenGL

OpenGL enables several graphic features and provides enhanced rendering of solids. If you
have a fast video card with ample memory it can improve rendering performance, because
rendering is done by hardware and software (the driver) on the video card and not by your
machine’s CPU. Every make and model of video card is different. Performance, display quality
and display behavior will vary from card to card. In general, if you have a graphics problem when
using OpenGL, you have three options on how to proceed.

207
 Appendix

1. Use the software driver setting, eliminating the video card hardware and driver use. This will
use the generic Microsoft OpenGL implementation.
2. Disable OpenGL, which uses the GibbsCAM display software entirely for rendering. This
may be your only option when all else fails. However, the axis block will not display.
3. Leave OpenGL enabled and try a different combination of OpenGL and/or driver settings to
see if the display issues can be resolved.

Recommendation
• Modifying some of the Appearance options can adversely affect the display of GibbsCAM. In
particular, changing the title bar size and the associated font can make items illegible. We
recommend that you not change these items.

Known Issues and Fixes

• When dragging dialogs or windows there can be a “smearing” or after-images of the dialog.
This is a normal effect of Windows® settings and OpenGL. If you find this effect undesirable
it is easy to fix by turning off the “Show window contents while dragging” option. We recommend
this to all users.
- Right-click on the desktop and select Properties.
- Select the Appearance tab and click on the Effects button.
- Deselect the “Show window contents while dragging” option and click OK.
• If your system has an ATI video card moving the display trackball can cause the display to
flicker. This is an issue with ATI drivers and the operating system.

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

• How do I eliminate empty spaces in a list?
Using a Shift+double-click on the empty space will clear the space.

• My entire screen just went black and I can't see any geometry. What happened and how
do I fix this?
In all likelihood, you accidentally zoomed in on the part using a mouse drag. There are three
ways to fix this.

1. On the View menu, select Unzoom.

2. On the View Control palette, select Unzoom.

3. Press Ctrl+U.

208
 Appendix

• Why can’t I access posting?

Operations must be created before accessing Post dialogs. If you need to get to the Post
dialog before creating your part, make a dummy operation (such as drilling a point). This can
be done very quickly and can be deleted later.
• I can't drop my Operation tiles on my Process List. Where are they?
Operation tiles can not be moved away from the Operation List. They can be sorted and
reordered. To edit an operations process information, double-click the operation to load its
process to the Process List.
• The Chamfer Radius button is not working!
Turn on labels (Ctrl+L) to identify possible overlapping points. You may also have input an
edgebreak value that is too large.
• When I draw an element, it does not appear
Elements drawn outside of the stock boundary described in the Document Control dialog
may not always be visible. Try zooming out or increasing stock size. Using the Shrink Wrap
command (Ctrl+‘) will automatically adjust the window to fit all geometry (including
geometry in hidden workgroups or the Body Bag). Shrink Wrap Visible (Ctrl+]) adjusts the
window to fit visible geometry only.
• GibbsCAM has become corrupted and will not restart!
Installed in the same folder as the GibbsCAM software is an application named Recovery.exe.
Instead of having to reinstall GibbsCAM, try running the Recovery.exe application. This
should repair most damage done to GibbsCAM. It is also possible that Windows caused a
corrupted process that was not fully able to close. Using the Windows Task Manager
(Ctrl+Alt+Delete) you can verify that GibbsCAM (virtual.exe) is not still running. If the process
is still in the list you may try to End Process and if this fails you may need to reboot your system.
• Where do I install my hardware key?
Keys can be inserted into any USB port in the computer or connected USB hub.

209
 Conventions

Conventions
GibbsCAM documentation uses two special fonts to represent screen text and keystrokes or
mouse actions. Other conventions in text and graphics are used to allow quick skimming, to
suppress irrelevancy, or to indicate links.

Text
Screen text. Text with this appearance indicates text that appears in GibbsCAM or on your monitor.
Typically this is a button or text for a dialog.
Keystroke/Mouse. Text with this appearance indicates a keystroke or mouse action, such as
Ctrl+C or right-click.
Code. Text with this appearance indicates computer code, such as lines in a macro or a block
of G-code.

Graphics
Some graphics are altered so as to de-emphasize irrelevant information. A “torn” edge signifies
an intentional omission. Portions of a graphic might be blurred or dimmed to highlight the item
being discussed. For example:

Annotations on a graphic are usually numbered callouts (as seen above), and sometimes
include green circles, arrows, or tie-lines to focus attention on a particular portion of the graphic.

210
 Links to Online Resources

Links to Online Resources

Please contact your reseller for support.

Link URL Action / Description

Go http://www.GibbsCAM.com Opens the main website for GibbsCAM.

Opens Gibbs Online page to download

Go https://online.gibbscam.com
GibbsCAM and all supported material.

211
 Index

Auto Tool Size 14

% Axis block
about 196
% of Body’s Chord Height 26 pop-up 201
showing/hiding 20

# Axis Limits 160

Axis Marker in Sim 20
2D Rotate 74
3D Real Time Cut Part Rendering 149 B
508MT (Willemin)
and Clearance Volume 206 Background Tab, Appearance
2016 PDFs 101 Settings 19
Balloons 102
A Bitmap 167
Block Numbers 140
About GibbsCAM 104 Bodies (Graphics) 23
Absolute 2d Rotate 74 Bodies, Select 63
Absolute or Incremental, in post 47 Body Chord Height 26
Absolute Translate 75 Bolt Table
Activate Dialog on RMB 16 Preferences dialog 39
Active Content 107 Bookmarks, online help 106
Air geometry 78
Alloy Group 54 C
material 55
Alloys 55 Calculate
Feed 58
Ambient 18 RPM 58
Ambient, Material Properties 18 Cascade Dialogs 89
Angle, 2D Rotate 75 Change CS (HVD) 73, 80
Angular Resolution 26 Change CS (XYZ) 73, 80
anonymous usage statistics 33 Change Intersection, Geometry
Apply Value to Selected Expert 66
Managers 96 Check
Arc segments 79 Body Validity 83
Face Validity 83
Attribute Manager Op Gouges 84
menu item under Features 87 Self-Intersect Loops 82
Trimmed Surface Edges 84

- 212 -
 Index: Check for Updates – Don"t Preload Subspindles

Trimmed Surface Polyline 84 Create Facet Body 167

Check for Updates 103 CS Preferences
Geometry References 44
Check Out, NLO seats 34
Out of Plane Rotation 45
child operations 194 Self Definition 44
Set New CS Visible 45
Chord Height 23, 26, 79
Toolpath References 45
Circles, Select 62
All Circles 62 Current CS, Select 64

Clear Bodies’ History 85 Current Display box 151

Clearance (Δ) 207 Current Interface Level 30

Clearance Volume 206 Curves, Select 63

Closest Hole Next, sort 78 Customizing the User Interface 173

Collision events 159-160 Cut Color Mode 158

Color Button 22 Cut Part Rendering 14

Colors Appearance Setting 17 Cut Type 56

material 55
Comment 55-56
Cut Width 37
Comment, select by 65
Cut XY Depth 55
Common Appearance Settings 16
CutDATA 53-54
Communication dialog 12
Cutdata Path 41
Communication Set-Up 48
Protocols 49 Cutter Radius Compensation
Change 49 Preferences dialog 36
Remove 49 Cutting Options, Op/Tool Sim 26
Communications 12
Condition 55 D
Configurations, system display option 16
data collection 33
Contents, Help 100
Date and Time, in post 47
Contents, online help 105
Default Color 22
Context Sensitive Help 101
Delete Row 66
Contouring 37
Depth, select by 64
Conversion
Solid to Facet Body 39 Diagnosing problems in solids 82
Coordinate Systems Dialogs Follow Application 29
Creating and Modifying Options 44
Dialogs Roll-up 29
Copilot 103
Dialogs, control over 88
CPR
Digitizer Calibration 34
Current Display 151
Next Operation 152 Dimensions, Select 63
Play 151
Dimensions, Show 70
Speed Control 152
Display Lists 20
CRC
Preferences dialog 36 Display Settings option 15
CRC Type Do It 73
Preferences dialog 36
Don"t Preload Subspindles 168

- 213 -
 Index: Drag Rectangle – Grid Brightness

Drag Rectangle Feed Status, Toggle 78

Appearance Settings 16
File Extension 42
Draw Axis 20
File Extensions 139
Draw Points 70
File Launch Behavior 41
Drawing
Filter Selections 61
Print 12
Finish Bore 37
Drill Hole 86
Finish Profile
Driver Info... 22
Preferences dialog 37
Driver, OpenGL Settings 21
floating toolbars
Duplicate 76 transparency 30
Duplicate And 76 Floor Angle Tolerance 31
2d Rotate 76
Force Depth 73
Force Depth 76
Mirror 76 Format Code 46
Scale 76
Format Name, in post 46
Translate 76
Freehand rotation and translation 200
E From Tool Edge
Preferences dialog 37

Edges 23 FromPos 75
Edges, Select 64 Front View 68
Edit Appearance Settings... 15
Edit Material 55 G
Edit menu 59
G-code 37
Enable Caption 28
G-Code Editor Choices, in
Enable OpenGL Acceleration 16 Preferences 51
Enable toolbar transparency 30 G-Code Editor Preferences 50
Engraving fonts 41 G-Code Output 46
Extend Lines 70 GCStatsAdmin.exe 33
Extended Characters, in post 46 Gen 2 Engine 83-84
Geometry Expert 59, 66, 85
F Geometry, moving 200
Geometry, Show 70
Facet Bodies
Preferences dialog 39 Getting Started 101
Facet Body Opacity 21 Gouge Tolerance 27
Facets 23 Gradient Background 19
Family, Material 54 grandchild operations 194
Favorites, online help 106 Graphic Part Face Distance 168
Feature Manager Grid Brightness 24
menu item under Features 87
Features menu 86

- 214 -
 Index: Halo Thickness (Color Appearance Settings) – main menu

Invert Selection 61
H IPR 56
Isometric View 68
Halo Thickness (Color Appearance
Settings) 18
Halo Transparency (Color Appearance J
Settings) 18
Java Runtime Environment 107
Hardness 55
Hardware OpenGL 21
Help Button 101
L
Help menu 100 Labels 64, 70, 77
high degree spline curves 24 Launch New Application on File 41
History 85 Length in Characters, in post 47
Holder Class Menu Items Length in Feet, in post 47
Preferences dialog 39
Length in Meters, in post 47
Hole Data
Preferences dialog 39 Level 1 Interface 30
Hole Manager Level 2 Interface 30
menu item under Features 86 License Options 34
Hole Wizard Lights Appearance Setting 17
menu item under Features 86
Preferences dialog 39 Line segments 79
Home View 68 Lines drawn for high degree curves 24
Lines, Select 63
I linked operations 194

IDs 103 M
Ignore Lathe Max Feed Moves
Preferences dialog 39 Machine Definition Document (MDD)
Ignore Lathe Maximum Feedrate defined 11
Moves 39 Machine Sim
Import 11 preferences for Display settings 15

Import Material 56 Machine Sim Path 41

Inches to mm 75 Machine Space
Clearance Volume 207
Index, online help 105
Machining Face Check 83
Insert Comments, Posting 140
Machining Preferences 36
Insert Row 65
Macros menu 97
Interface
Level 2 24 main menu
Preferences 30 Edit 59
Features 86
interop moves Macros 97
Clearance Volume 206 Modify 73
interpolation Plug-Ins 97
using Clearance Volume 207 Solids 82

- 215 -
 Index: Managers – Options button

View 68 New Part Interface Level 30

Managers Next Operation
accessing 90 Render 152
customizing headers 94
data types 90 NLO 34
editing data 92 Non-Cutting simulation 158
right-click context menus 93
Number of Parts, in post 47
Material
Alloy Group 55 NURBS 79, 83
changing 55
importing 56
O
Material Database 53
Material List 55 Offset 37
Preferences dialog 37
Material Properties 17-18
Color (Appearance Settings) 17 On Item, help 101
Material, part 53 Online Help 100
Material.txt and CutDATA.txt 41 Op Color Mode 158
Materials Op Manager
Cut Type 55 accessing 90
customizing headers 94
Materials Database file 41 data types 90
Maximum Feedrate editing data 92
ignoring in Lathe 39 right-click context menus 93
MDD Op Sim
defined 11 Cutting Options 26
Display Options 22
MDD Path 41 Lighting 17
Minimize, Posting 140 Performance 25
preferences for Display settings 15
Mirror 73
Op Sim display
MM to inches 75 Transparency 19
MMPR 56 Open Part Interface Preference 30
Modify menu 73 OpenGL 20
Mouse Drag, Select/Deselect 61 Operation Comment, in post 47
Mouse Position 69 Operation Manager
Move Part Origin 81 accessing 90
customizing headers 94
MTM data types 90
posting 139 editing data 92
Multi-Level Sort 93 right-click context menus 93
Multi-Pass Stitch 84 Operation Manager Window
Operation Groups 91
Operation Number and Type, in post 47
N
operations
linked 194
Name, select by 65
parent/child 194
NC program 96
Optional Stops, Posting 140
Network Licensing Option 34
Options button 15

- 216 -
 Index: Palettes, lock – S pattern sort

Printing 171
P Printing Preferences 23
Process Manager 89
Palettes, lock 30
accessing 90
Panning the Part 131 customizing headers 94
data types 90
parent operations 194
editing data 92
Part Space right-click context menus 93
Clearance Volume 207
Program Comment, in post 46
Partial Updates 20
Program Name, in post 46
Paths
Program Number 140
for VMMs, MDDs, and Machine Sim 41
pseudoholder display 24
P-Buffer Open GL 21
Performance, Op/Tool Sim 25
Performance, Rendering 20
R
Plane Opacity 17 Radial 80
Play (CPR) 151 Rapid Geometry 78
Play button 151 Rebuild Solid 82
Plug-Ins Guide 97 Recent Files 12
Plug-Ins menu 97 Record Video
Pocketing, Offset 37 button in Simulation palette 152

Points, Select 63 Redraw 69

Pop-up axis block 201 redrawing toolpath 35
(illustrated) 201 Reload Simulation 168
Post Remove Unneeded Topology 83
Selection 138
Render 167
Post File Overwrite 41 Play 151
Post Processing Comments 46 Render Loop 168
Post Processor button 137 Rendering colors 159
Post Processor dialog 137 Rendering Options 20
Posted Output 46 Reverse All Rows 66
posting Reverse Arc 73, 78
MTM considerations 139
Reverse pattern, sort 78
Preferences 13, 170
Rotary Hints in Sim 169
Pre-selection Properties 18
Rotating the Part 131
Previous View 69
Rotation
Prim 1 159 freehand 200
Prim 2 159 Rough Bore 37
Print
Black on White 23
GE to Text File 85 S
Post 12
Screen 23 S pattern sort 77

- 217 -
 Index: Sample – Steps Per Update

Sample 170 Show Time 167

Save Shrink Wrap 81
A Copy 11
Shrink Wrap Visible 81
Save Size 41
Shrinkage 79
Scale 75
Side View 68
scrollwheel 130-131
Sim
Search, online help 106 Display Options 22
Segment Spline 79 Sim Appearance Settings 18
Select Sim tab 18
Circles by Full Diameter Range 62
Simplify 83
Circles by Full Radius 62
Lines, All 63 Single Click Behavior
Lines, Feeds 63 Tab 35
Lines, Rapids 63 Tile 35
Select machine assembly 165 Skip Interop Moves 168
Select/Deselect Skip Pecks 168
filtering 61
Skip unselected Op 162
Selected Op to
Skipped Ops, in Sim 169
Lightwork File 85
Screen Points 84 Slider 26
Splines 85
SMPM 56
Text File 85
Soft Shadows 21
Selected Ops, Posting as a Complete
Program 139 Software OpenGL 21
Self-Intersect Loops 82 Solid Edges (Color Appearance
Settings) 18
Semi-transparent Drag Rectangle 16
Solids
Sequence From, Posting 140
converting to facet bodies 39
Set Font Directory 41
Solids menu 82
Set Op Start/Stop #s 166
Sort, points and circles 77
SFPM 56
Special Functions, in post 47
Sheet Side, Toggle 80
Specular 17
Sheets, Select 63
Specular, Material Properties 17
Shininess 18
Speed Control slider 152
Shininess, Material Properties 18
Splines 79
Show
Start At Op 166
Stock & Origin 70
Start Maximized 28
Show Clearance Volume
Customization 207 Starting Program Number, Posting 140
Show Op 167 Starting Tool State, in post 47
Show Rotary Hints 169 Statistics for Op/Tool Sim 27
Show Skipped Ops 169 statistics on usage 33
Show Spinning PartSpinning Part Step Forward (CPR) 151
Show in Sim 169
Steps Per Update 20

- 218 -
 Index: Stitch Utilities – View menu

Stitch Utilities 83 Tool Sim display

Transparency 19
STL 167
toolbars
Stop (CPR) 151, 156
transparency 30
Stop Before Load/Unload 167
toolpath
Stop Before Op 166 redrawing 35
Sub Number, in post 47 Toolpath Display 36
Suggest 58 Tools sub-menu 82
System, Appearance Settings 20 Tooltips 102
Top View 68
T ToPos 75
Trace From Run 163
Tablet 34
Trace Operation 163
Tap Table
Preferences dialog 39 Trackball
Customizing 173
Tapered Tools 37
Translate 76
Targeting pixel tolerance 30, 35
Translation
Test Frame Rate 22 freehand 200
Text, Select 63 Transparency, Material 19
Tick Delay 103 Transparent Dialogs 29
Toggle Wall/Air 78 turning toolholders
Tolerance, of collision settings 27 previewing 24

Tool
Material 56 U
Size, relating to material 55
Tool Center 37 Unwrap Geometry 80
Preferences dialog 36
Unzoom 68
Tool Comment, in post 47
Unzoom on View Change 16
Tool Edge
Updates
Preferences dialog 37
one-time check 103
Tool Manager
usage statistics 33
accessing 90
customizing headers 94 Use Op Start 167
data types 90
Use Op Stop 167
editing data 92
right-click context menus 93 utilities
GCStatsAdmin.exe 33
Tool Motion on Target Body 158
Tool Number and Type, in post 47
Tool Sim
V
Cutting Options 26
Display Options 22 Vertex Arrays 21
Lighting 17 Video, outputting 152
Performance 25
preferences for Display settings 15 View Animation Speed 17
View menu 68

- 219 -
 Index: Visible WGs – Zooming the part

Visible WGs 73
VMM Path 41

W
Wall Angle Tolerance 31
Wall geometry 78
Walls From Selected Edges, Select 64
Watches 169
WFO GUI
explained 140
WFO icons 140
WFOs
locking and unlocking 142
right-click context menu 142
WG Manager
accessing 90
customizing headers 94
data types 90
editing data 92
right-click context menus 93
Willemin 508MT
and Clearance Volume 206
Window Size 28
Window Snap Positioning 29
Wire Drawing 23
Wire Frame 23
Work Fixture Offsets (WFOs) 140
icons 140
locking and unlocking 142
right-click context menu 142
Workfixtures tab 140
Workgroup Comment, in post 47
Workgroup Manager
accessing 90
customizing headers 94
data types 90
editing data 92
right-click context menus 93
Wrap Geometry 80

Z
Zoom 69
Zooming the part 131

- 220 -