Measuring Coping

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This article discusses how to measure a coping along with the tube shape in VTube-LASER. The method is to find a way to measure the coping as if it were an additional straight on the end of the tube.

In order to do this, the pipe straight that joins the main pipe at the coping can be treated like and extra end-straight on the pipe in VTube-LASER

Idea: Design a Coping Adapter in a Solid Modelling Program

In this example, we designed an adapter in SOLIDWORKS that simulates the joining pipe to the main pipe. This adapter acts like an additional leg on the end of the tube (see the red section). Remember that, because VTube calculates diameters on the fly, it never matters if the adapter diameter is the same as the main pipe. VTube-LASER will be able to find the centerline of this geometry - which is exactly what you need to check the coping.

Import a Supravision Part in VTube-STEP

Import Supravision files into VTube-STEP using the Import/Export button in the navigation pane. Click on Import Supravision in the Import section of the menu.

About Supravision Files

Supravision files usually have a filename extension of $$$. They are text files that contain part setup, XYZ, and LRA data usually. They were used by Supravision software to save and load Supravision project files - so they contain a lot of data that VTube understands. (Supravision software was retired a few years ago by ROMER. It was one of the standards in the industry for decades.)

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