CadShot Preferences
User Interface
Theme can be set to Light (white) or Dark (black).
Length Units is the units CadShot will use.
Tooltip Delay controls the time delay between hovering the mouse over a tool and the display of the tooltip. A new user may want to set it to 0 ms. An experienced user might want to set it to 800 ms or more.
Change how often CadShot will check for updates using the Check for Updates dropdown.
Marking
You can change the desired color for Patterns, Notches, Holes, and the Background marker.
Perimeter Point Color will change the color of the perimeter points. Choose a color that best contrasts the colors of the patterns and background.
If Automatically Place Background Marker is checked, after taking a picture, CadShot can automatically place a background marker in the place that was previously marked as a background. If the image has an area that is always part of the background, this can save time when marking patterns.
Output
CadShot can output finished files in these file formats:
- DXF (.dxf): Output a standard 2D DXF file to the CadShot Output Directory
- CadShot (.cadshot): Output a file that can be opened directly by PatternSmith. It will contain the geometry captured along with the scaled image in the background.
- PDF: Output a vector-based PDF file of the captured geometry.
- Ask: Will prompt the user to select the desired file type for each image capture.
set the Default File name to use with the selected OutPut File Type. Select the Append Current Date to File Name to give the files a unique name.
When outputting as DXF or PDF, CadShot will automatically thin points in the found perimeters. The tolerance is the minimum allowed distance between points. The higher the number, the fewer points will be preserved, potentially yielding more optimized cutting, but a less accurate perimeter. You can specify the Thinning Tolerance by moving the slider bar or entering a number in the input box.
You can change the location where files will be stored from CadShot by changing the CadShot Output Directory.
If Automatically Load Newly-Created CadSht Files Into PatternSmith is checked, when a CadShot file is launched from within PatternSmith, newly-created CadShot files are always loaded. This applies only when CadShot is launched stand-alone.
Vision System
The IP Address displays the IP of the Vision System. Additionally, you can configure the vision system by clicking on the IP address. There are more details for this in a later section.
Use the Calibrate button to calibrate the Vision System. There are more details for this in a later section.
Projector
When Turn On Projector When Taking a Picture is checked, the projector will turn on if a photo is being taken. This can aid in the photo capturing process by providing a light source.
You can choose what color the projector displays by pressing the Choose Projector Display Color.
Scanner
Here, you can Make adjustments to help improve the speed at which these images scan and load. Use a higher DPI only when necessary for high detail. Most patterns will scan well in the 300 to 600 DPI range.
Perimeter Detection
Sensitivity is how aggressively perimeter detection will look for patterns. At a higher sensitivity, perimeter detection can find features with less contrast between the background and pattern but can create more jagged lines.
Select Include Notches In Perimeter to allow CadShot to automatically detect notches.
Specify the average width and depth of the notches in the perimeter of the pattern with the Notch Width and Notch Depth input boxes.
Shortest Segment Length is the desired polyline segment length in the output element(s). The smaller this value, the more points will be included in the perimeter.
Shortest Feature Length is the shortest distance between two corners of the input element(s).
Update Boxes
When these boxes are checked, this value will be updated whenever it is changed elsewhere in the program.