Say for example you have a configuration for a Makino vertical machining center. This setting can be set to point to a folder where the G-Code programs for this particular machine configuration are stored. The Lathe type also has a check box that allows the direction of G2/G3 arc commands to be reversed.Īlso on this tab is a setting called "Default Program Folder". This setting determines how NCPlot interprets the X/U axis command values. If you selected Lathe, you now have the option to select between Radius Coordinate values and Diameter coordinate values. If you selected Mill, you now have the option to select between Vertical spindle and Horizontal spindle. Choosing one or the other will change or enable/disable other settings on the dialog. You must first select between Mill and Lathe. This tab has settings that define the basic setup of your machine. This dialog is made up of several tabs, the first tab you see is labeled "Machine Type". To open the machine configuration dialog, click the menu "Setup", then click "Machine Configuration". Even so, you should check that these settings match the way your control works. These configurations represent the most common settings for a CNC control and should be good enough to get you started. NCPlot comes with a handful of predefined machine configurations.
NCPlot doesn't recognize every G or M Code that your control does, but it should still be able to give you a good representation of your programs toolpath. Since there are many different types of machines and CNC controls, NCPlot has options that allow it to mimic the way your particular CNC control reads G-Code. In order for the graphics viewport to properly display your G-Code program, it must first know a few things about the machine you intend to run it on.