Change: When a user edits values inside the Absolute LRA menu and the "Automatic Calc Cut Length" switch is ON, VTube will display a notice and then change the switch to OFF.

This is the dialog that displays.

The cut length value is usually predetermined for entering Absolute bender data. It should not be recalculated when using this menu because the calculations rely on a known and fixed cut length.

Fixed: Automatic switch from scanner to tactile when exiting shallow bend measuring

New: HEXAGON RA8 arms automatic switching between scanner and tactile

RA8 HEXAGON ScanArms scanner selection is now controlled by VTube-LASER - just like for FARO and Kreon arms.

New: The Toggle Laser button is now available for the HEXAGON RS8 arms.

Fixed: End Scan Flier Filter will always return at least one point for end scans.

In previous versions, the End Scan Flier filter could return zero endpoints, confusing and stopping the VTube-LASER measure process. This has been changed so that at least one point is always returned.

New Notepad++ 8.5.4

New: Control the setup for automatic switching between laser and ball probe during shallow bend measure. (This feature is useful for FARO and Kreon arms.)

The new value is controlled inside the Measure Setup Laser menu.
See row 24 in the Laser menu.

This new setup value is helpful for scan arms that allow the program to switch between laser and ball probe modes - like FARO and Kreon.

This build has a fix for the Part Setup Default Tolerance value copy. All the intersection columns now receive the value (X, Y, Z, and 3D columns of the intersection deviations.

When the default tolerance changes in Part Setup, VTube will ask if the changes should be copied to every straight tolerance in the tube like this:
This was the before-fix result of the copy:This is the after-fix result of the copy:

This was the before-fix result of the copy:

This is the after-fix result of the copy:

VTube-STEP can now import Tracto-Technik PIPEFAB B CTI files.

This file format includes centerline XYZ and bend radii. No diameter is included in the import.

Note: The CTI file structure is very complex. We are still determining if every CTI file will import.

We fixed a bug for Path Manager where the path selected was not being used when exiting the Path Manager.

This bug started in build 1262 and was released on June 1, 2023.

We changed the default report templates so that reports that show rotation corrections clearly state if they are using CCW-positive or CW-positive rotation corrections.

VTube-LASER now has separate +/- default values for the end tolerances in the Inspection menu.

It is now possible to preset the end length default tolerances in cleared projects - then save the setup to the default project in System Options.

(click the image to make it larger)

Other notes:

1. To gain screen space, the Tan/Mid tab menu was redesigned.
2. When VTube-LASER changed from no centerline points to two or more centerline points, the end length default values were preset to the tangent default tolerance. This has been fixed so that the end default tolerances are propagated to the End length tolerance cells.
3. The new default values are stored in VTube project files.

A change was made to the installation file to allow it to test for the correct Visual C++ Redistributable library.

This change should fix the error some users see (see the image) when installing VTube-STEP and VTube-LASER.

If you still get this error during installation, then use File Explorer to browse to the VTube folder (c:\Program Files (x86)\VTube..., then manually run the "vcredist_x86.exe" program. (You can also contact us by clicking on the Contact Us button at the top of this page.)

The FARO mode toggle laser button no longer disappears at the start of a measure.

The user guide window shows a more specific message when Dual Cylinder Fit measures are out of tolerance.

Old message:

New message:

VTube-LASER now adds a suggestion to the user guide window when the DCF fails and the bend angle is very near the threshold programmed.

The suggestion is to increase the threshold angle and try again so that VTube will treat the issue as a shallow bend angle.
There are now three user inteface clues for shallow bend handling: (click the image to make it larger)

The Dual Cylinder Fit Shallow Bend Handling Threshold is now increased from 1.0 to 5.0 degrees.

We changed this value based on recent experiments on parts with shallow bends defined with very short straights.

The CRIPPA SVNET communications protocol was fine-tuned to fix a recurring issue where the CRIPPA control would not respond to commands from VTube-LASER.

This update impacts VTube-LASER customers with CRIPPA benders.

When VTube-LASER sends commands using the standard Supravision protocol, it builds two files. One file is a command/data file, and the other is an event log called netsvNN.log that records the type of command or data file VTube-LASER is building.

CRIPPA technicians discovered that the CRIPPA control sometimes stops Supravision communications when it sees the netsv file being built by VTube-LASER. Therefore, we modified the CRIPPA SVNET protocol in VTube-LASER so that the netsv file is no longer built during communication with the control.

This is an example folder with a non-CRIPPA SVNET command/data and netsv event log files:

This is an example with a CRIPPA SVNET command/data file only. No netsv file is built for the CRIPPA protocol.

VTube-LASER: MOVE THE PART is enhanced so users can move a part with only one or two bends

VTube-LASER: The MOVE THE PART window is redesigned for clarity

The window was redesigned to show the “Start At” straight number to clarify to the operator which straight should be measured after the part is moved.
(click the image to make it larger)

VTube-LASER: New open file dialog controls were added for the User Turbo screen setup.

These controls allow more flexibility in how open file dialogs display for users on that screen.

The UAC controls are in System Options in the UAC menu.

The redesigned File Setup menu inside System Options has new options for more choices in how VTube opens projects or imports files.

The new choices are:

1. Use the Path Manager
2. Choose the open dialog type to use
3. Use a single folder in Quick Load
4. Set the default open file path

The values are set separately for both Open VTube Projects and Import VTube Files.

(click the image to make it larger)

The Pass/Fail Attributes variables in the Inspection menu are now included in the Measure Setup Batch Change.

Find this window in the System Options / Project Setup. This window lets administrators change the measure and inspection setups in thousands of VTube project files.

New Notepad++ 8.5.3