## Creating Auto Features: Introduction

PC-DMIS provides a library of functions and routines to facilitate the automatic measurement of parts. These functions and routines allow PC-DMIS to easily program for measurement a variety of part features, adding them into the part program as "Auto Features". In many cases this automatic feature recognition is as simple as single-clicking with your mouse on the appropriate feature in the Graphics Display window. While auto features have their history in measuring sheet metal or other thin-walled materials using PC-DMIS's Direct Computer Control (DCC), today you can use them in both DCC and Manual mode to measure parts constructed from a variety of different materials.

To work with auto features, select the appropriate item from the Insert | Feature | Auto submenu. The Auto Feature dialog box for the selected item will appear. You can then interact with this dialog box to create the necessary auto features.

The main topics in this chapter include:

- Quick Ways to Create Auto Features

- The Auto Feature Dialog Box

- Inserting Auto Features

- Auto Feature Field Definitions

- Setting Up Relative Measure

Note: Depending on your specific version of PC-DMIS, the Auto Feature functionality may only be accessible as an added option to your basic PC-DMIS geometric software package. Consult your PC-DMIS vendor to determine if your version supports this functionality.