PointKit: Scan - Command Line Interface¶

Basic Workflow¶

The Command-Line Interface (CLI) built in to PointKit: Scan (PKS) provides some basic functionality for interacting with the tool and its features.

While the CLI options are separate from PKS's automation and scripting features, it does provide a limited method for interacting with PKS using external scripting methods (e.g. bash).

Please note that this guide assumes that you have a basic understanding of the terminal, running executables, and using command-line arguments.

Starting PK:S¶

Starting PKS from the command-line can be an easy way of launching the software from a script or other application. In order to do so, you need to know the directory on your workstation that contains the PKS executable. If you used the standard installer, this would likely be in your Program Files directory.

After locating the directory containing your executable, navigate to it from a terminal session and run .\PointKit Scan.exe. Voila! You have now opened PKS via the command-line.

If you use the CLI flags incorrectly, a new instance of PKS should still open. However, it may not load or run your data as expected.

Starting PK:S with a File(s)¶

PKS does not require the use of a flag when loading a file, or files, via the command-line interface. Instead, you can pass in as many files as you wish so long as they are separated by a space.

For example: .\PointKit Scan.exe scan1.pbn scan2.stl scan3.ply will load all three scans into the same new instance of PKS.

Running a Deviation Analysis¶

It is also possible to run a deviation analysis from the command-line using the -d, or deviation, flag. Unlike loading files, the parameters must be comma-separated: .\PointKit Scan.exe reference.ply,target.ply

Provided that your scan data is valid and PKS is able to locate it at the given paths, it will load and run your deviation analysis immediately and present the results to you in the Deviation window.

If your deviation analysis does not look how you would expect, be sure to check that your settings are correctly configured prior to closing PKS and re-running your command.

Running a PointKitPy Script¶

As a way of extending the functionality of PKS' CLI, we have also provided integration to PKS' Scripting engine. You can now run a PointKitPy script from the command-line using the following syntax: ./PointKit Scan.exe -s myScript.py

So long as your script file contains valid PointKitPy Python code, you should see the output of the script running as soon as PKS boots.