SINUMERIK 810/840D: Resolving Canned Cycle Line Deletion Errors

Overview

SINUMERIK 810D, 840D, 840D sl, and SINUMERIK ONE operator panels running ShopMill or ShopTurn present a line-editing model that differs fundamentally from Fanuc, Haas, or Heidenhain controllers. Operators who have spent years on a Fanuc-style panel will reflexively highlight a line, type its block number, and press Delete or Backspace to remove it. On a SINUMERIK OP 010, OP 010C, OP 012, OP 015, OP 015A, or OP 019 panel, that reflex is almost always wrong. The most common symptom is a single rogue block that survived a soft-key accident, often generated when the operator reached for the Set Work Offset button while editing a work-offset call by hand, and now refuses to be deleted by any of the standard keys.

The rogue block is almost always a cycle block (a ShopMill/ShopTurn canned-cycle graphical representation) rather than a text-mode G-code line. Cycle blocks are stored internally as parameter sets, not as free-form text, and the editor must be in the right mode before the standard clear/delete keys will accept a deletion. When the block contains a probing cycle (CYCLE981, CYCLE982, CYCLE996, CYCLE997, or CYCLE998) the symptom on the next cycle start is an alarm along the lines of "Install probe" or "Probe not in spindle," which clearly identifies the rogue block as a probing cycle that the program is trying to execute.

This reference documents the correct deletion procedure for both text-mode G-code lines and cycle-mode blocks on SINUMERIK ShopMill/ShopTurn, explains the math/edit-insert mode required for offset and tool-table arithmetic, and provides a recovery checklist for the Set Work Offset pitfall and the related probing alarms.

Problem Description

During normal program editing on a ShopMill or ShopTurn panel, an operator is reorganizing a subroutine that calls a fixture offset (for example G508) and includes a rapid lift (G0 Z7.) followed by an absolute programming command (G90). The operator wants to split the subroutine so that a fixture offset call that was inside the routine is moved to the top of the program, leaving the routine callable from multiple positions on a tombstone. The natural G-code edit is to insert the lines manually, but the operator accidentally presses the Set Work Offset soft key (or the equivalent on the OP) because the existing text line begins with the word "offset." The soft key opens the work-offset table, and on confirmation commits a new line that expands into a multi-line cycle block referencing the active settable frame.

After recognizing the error, the operator attempts to delete the line. Backspace highlights the line but does not remove it. The Delete key is not present on the OP in the same form as on a PC keyboard. Re-entering the line and re-saving has no effect. On the next program start, the control raises an alarm that points at the rogue block and references a probe or measuring cycle, because the inserted block defaults to a probing or measuring cycle when the soft-key operation is interrupted without parameter values.

The line cannot be deleted by any single key press because the editor is still in cycle-edit mode. Standard text-edit operations are not valid in that mode; only cycle parameter edits and a structured clear-line operation are valid. The operator must switch the editor out of cycle-edit mode and then invoke the clear-line function at the program level.

Root Cause: Why Cycle Lines Behave Differently from G-Code Lines

A SINUMERIK ShopMill/ShopTurn program is composed of two distinct types of line block:

When the cursor is positioned on a cycle block, the editor switches to cycle-edit mode automatically. In that mode the Backspace key highlights the active cycle parameter (RTP, RFP, SDIS, DP, DPR, FDEP, FDPR, DAM, DTB, DTS, FRF, FFP, SDAC, MIDA, AP1, AP2, etc., varying by cycle) rather than deleting the block as a whole. Pressing Backspace again only moves to the previous parameter. The block is removed only when the editor is in the program-level view of the block (the high-level representation, not the parameter table), and the proper clear function is invoked.

Siemens calls this the cycle calling convention and it is documented in the SINUMERIK Operate Programming Manual (basics and cycles volumes). A single HMI screen often presents three to four views of the same block: the program-level view, the cycle input screen, the help/graphic view, and (for some cycles) the simulation preview. Each view is a different editor mode; only the program-level view accepts clear-line operations.

Affected Controls and Software Versions

The deletion behavior described here is consistent across the following SINUMERIK platforms:

• SINUMERIK 810D with CCU1/CCU2 modules, HMI-Embedded and HMI-Advanced, software versions 3.x through 4.5 SP4.
• SINUMERIK 840D and 840D sl with NCU 561.x, NCU 571.x, NCU 572.x, NCU 573.x, NCU 573.5, and the latest NCU 1740 architecture, software versions 4.4 SP2 through 4.95 SP3 and SW 6.15.
• SINUMERIK ONE (NCU 1740 / NX10.x controllers) running SINUMERIK Operate V6.15 or later, with the ShopMill/ShopTurn workflow active.
• SINUMERIK 805 and FM-NC legacy controls (840D precursor): cycle support is more limited, and clear-line operations are sometimes reachable only through the program-list view rather than the editor screen.

The relevant HMI software is SINUMERIK Operate (formerly HMI-Advanced), build 04.05.05 and later. Operator panels OP 010, OP 010C, OP 012, OP 015, OP 015A, OP 015T, and OP 019 all share the same key semantics for Clear word, Clear input, Alter word, and Insert; only the physical key labels vary.

For the complete SINUMERIK Operate documentation set, including the Programming Manual (basics and cycles volumes) and the Operator's Guide, see the Siemens Industry Online Support portal and the SINUMERIK product page.

Deletion Procedure: G-Code Lines

For a standard G-code block (no cycle, no program-control statement) the deletion path is text-edit mode only:

1. Use the cursor keys to position the cursor anywhere on the line. The editor will be in text-edit mode because the block is free-form text.
2. Press Clear word to remove the active word — the smallest selectable token, usually a single address/value pair such as X0, Z7., or G510. Repeat until the line is empty.
3. Press Clear input to remove the empty line from the program.
4. Press Enter or Input to commit the change to the program buffer.

On OP 010 and OP 010C panels, Clear word and Clear input sit in the upper-right horizontal key group, immediately left of the Enter key. On OP 015A and OP 019 panels they are part of the same OP key cluster but may be labeled Erase word and Erase input on localized variants. The functionality is identical.

On HMI-Advanced and SINUMERIK Operate builds that provide a Delete line soft key (extended editor soft-key bar, present from HMI-Advanced 4.4 SP3 onward), an alternative single-press path exists:

1. Position the cursor on the line.
2. Press the Delete line soft key (sometimes labeled with a trash-can icon).
3. Confirm with OK if prompted.

The Delete line soft key works on text-mode blocks and on program-level cycle blocks; it does not work when the cursor is inside a cycle parameter view.

Deletion Procedure: Cycle Blocks (ShopMill/ShopTurn)

For a canned-cycle block (drilling, tapping, milling, pocketing, probing, or measuring cycle) the deletion path requires a mode switch first:

1. Position the cursor on the cycle block. The editor enters cycle-edit mode automatically; the cycle's parameter screen fills the right-hand portion of the display.
2. Press the Toggle soft key (labeled << / >> in the cycle screen) repeatedly until the cursor is on the program-level representation of the block — typically a single line such as CYCLE83 ( 50 , 0 , 5 , -25 , ) or a ShopMill graphical summary.
3. With the cursor at the program level, press Clear word to clear the block's address token, then Clear input to remove the line.
4. Press Enter to commit the change to the program buffer.

If the editor will not exit cycle-edit mode — a known behavior on SW 4.4 with the CYCLE981 / CYCLE996 measuring cycles and on a few ShopMill pocketing cycles — use the recovery path:

1. Press Cancel to abort any in-progress cycle edits. No partial changes are committed.
2. Open the Program Manager view: Program → Workpieces → Programs → select the workpiece → select the program.
3. In the program-list view, use the Mark soft key to mark the offending block, then Delete (or the trash-can icon on HMI-Advanced 4.5 and later).
4. Select Reload in the editor to refresh the program buffer from the program file.

This second path works on all SINUMERIK ShopMill/ShopTurn builds and is the recommended path whenever a rogue cycle block resists deletion from within the editor screen.

Edit/Insert Math Mode and the Diamond Key

The "math mode" (also called "calculator mode" or "edit/insert mode") is required for incremental offset and tool-table edits, and is the correct analog to a Fanuc +input key. The mode is entered by pressing the OP key marked with a diamond symbol containing a rotating rectangle. On OP 010 the key is labeled Insert; on OP 015A and OP 019 panels the same key may be labeled Calculator or =.

While in math mode:

• The cursor in any numeric field is treated as a position in an arithmetic expression rather than as a text-editing cursor.
• Pressing +, -, *, or / queues the operation; the next numeric entry is applied to the original value.
• Pressing = evaluates the expression and writes the result back to the field.
• Pressing Input or Enter commits the change to the field's underlying tag (settable frame, tool offset, magazine table, etc.).
• Pressing Cancel or Esc exits math mode without committing.

Math mode is the correct way to perform a Fanuc-style +input increment. The operator types the increment, presses +, types the new absolute or relative value, and presses = to compute. The "preview before commit" behavior of a Fanuc +input does not have a direct equivalent on SINUMERIK: the operator must rely on the active field's value display in the lower-right corner of the editor (the field's pending value, sometimes called the calculator line) to verify the result before pressing Input. This is one of the most common causes of an off-by-one fixture offset on a SINUMERIK retrofit, and the safe practice is to verify the value in the calculator line, then press Cancel if the value is wrong, then re-enter.

Work Offset Handling: G508, G510, and the Set Work Offset Pitfall

The settable frames on SINUMERIK are addressed by $P_UIFR[n] in NC syntax and by the G-codes G500 (deselect all), G501 through G599 (select frame n − 1, where the G-code number is 500 + n), and the rotated equivalents G500.1 through G599.1. G508 therefore addresses the 9th settable frame ($P_UIFR[9]), G510 the 11th ($P_UIFR[11]), and so on. The range in practice is normally G500–G599 across 99 settable frames, though the G-code range is theoretically up to G599 on controllers with the full frame set.

To avoid the rogue-block problem entirely, the following practices are recommended when working with fixture offsets in a ShopMill/ShopTurn program:

• Write the work-offset call as a plain G-code line: G508 or G510, or the explicit form $P_UIFR[9]=X100.Y50.Z-25.. A plain G-code line is fully text-editable and will not produce a cycle block.
• Avoid the Set Work Offset soft key when writing a one-line offset call. The soft key opens the offset table for editing and can commit a partial entry that expands into a cycle block if the operator accepts the dialog.
• If a soft-key operation creates a stray block, press Cancel before OK or Input to abort the operation cleanly.
• After editing work-offset calls, run the program in Single Block (SBL) mode with Dry Run (DRY) enabled to verify the offset sequence before executing real motion.
• Stamp the physical fixture surfaces with the active offset number (G508 → "9," G510 → "11," etc.) so that an offset mismatch is visible during setup and not only on the first cut.

The practice of stamping offset numbers is especially important on tombstone fixtures where the same fixture is used in mirrored orientation on opposite faces; an offset that is correct on one face is geometrically wrong on the other, and a visible marking catches the mismatch before the cut.

Alarm Diagnostics: Probing and Tool-Present Alarms

The "Install probe" or "Probe not in spindle" alarm raised by the rogue probing block is a class of alarms generated by the SINUMERIK measuring cycles when they expect the touch probe to be present in the spindle and the active tool is not the probe. The most common alarm numbers in this class are:

Clearing the rogue probing block removes the alarm at the next program start, because the cycle call is no longer present. If the alarm persists after the line is deleted, perform an NC reset — on the OP this is the dedicated Reset key; on the MCP it is the Reset pushbutton in the channel-control group. After reset, select Reload in the editor to re-read the program file from the NCK's persistent storage. If the alarm still persists, perform an NCK cold restart via the menu Commissioning → NCK → Restart, which clears all transient alarm state.

If the alarm is genuinely a missing probe (the probe really is not loaded) and you want to bypass the cycle once for setup or dry-run purposes, the correct path is to comment the cycle line out using the leading ; (semicolon) comment character — Siemens supports mid-line comments in G-code. The cycle will be parsed but not executed. This is a setup-time workaround, not a production-time workaround, and the comment must be removed before the program is released for production.

Program Recovery: Reload, Undo, and Bulk Operations

When a program has multiple rogue blocks (for example, after a long editing session with several soft-key accidents), manual line-by-line deletion is slow. SINUMERIK provides three higher-level recovery paths:

1. Reload — discards all editor changes and re-reads the program file from the NCK. Available from the editor's File menu. Reverts all in-progress edits, including any in-progress cycle parameter edits. Does not affect the on-disk program file outside the editor session.
2. Undo — HMI-Advanced 4.5 SP2 and SINUMERIK Operate support a multi-level Undo soft key (counterclockwise-arrow icon) in the editor. Rolls back the last edit operation, including block insertion. Operators who reach for the Set Work Offset soft key by accident should immediately press Undo rather than attempting to delete the resulting block.
3. Bulk delete via program manager — the program manager view supports marking multiple blocks with the Mark soft key and deleting them in one operation. The selection persists across the editor view and back, which is useful when the editor refuses to scroll past a malformed block.

For the program-level deletion path, the recommended sequence is:

1. Save the current program to a backup file: File → Save As → enter a backup name with a date stamp (e.g., MYPROG_2024-12-19.MPF).
2. Open the program manager and select the program.
3. Use Mark to mark the offending blocks, Delete to remove them.
4. Select Reload in the editor to refresh the editor view.
5. Run the program in Single Block + Dry Run to verify.

Verification Procedure

After deleting a line, perform the following verification sequence before releasing the program for production:

1. Press the Reload soft key to refresh the editor from the program buffer. The deleted block must not reappear.
2. Scroll through the program line-by-line using the cursor down key. Confirm the line is gone and that subsequent line numbers (where displayed) are sequential.
3. Press Single Block on the MCP to enable step-by-step execution.
4. Press NC Start; the first block should be a safe motion (for example, G0 Z+100 rapid to a clear height) followed by a controlled approach.
5. Observe the active-block display on the lower-right corner of the OP. Verify that the deleted line is not executed.
6. Continue single-block execution through the edited section. Watch the active offset display (the $P_UIFR[n] value in the offset menu) at each G50x call to confirm the correct frame is being applied.
7. Run the full program in Auto mode after the single-block test passes.

If the program still raises the alarm after this sequence, check the Alarm soft key; many alarms include a navigation soft key that jumps directly to the offending line. Use the Search soft key (analogous to Ctrl + F on a PC) to locate the line by block number, and verify that the cycle parameter table was not corrupted by an aborted edit. In that case, recompile the cycle by re-entering the program manager and selecting Reload All.

Best Practices and Field Notes

• Treat ShopMill/ShopTurn cycle blocks as structured objects, not as text. Use the cycle's parameter view to edit values; use the program-level view to delete, reorder, or copy the block.
• Always press Cancel rather than OK when a soft-key dialog opens by accident. Cancel is the safe-exit path; OK commits the dialog state to the program.
• Use Single Block + Dry Run for the first execution of any edited program, and on the first execution of any program that has been dormant for more than a maintenance interval.
• Stamp physical fixture surfaces with the active offset number. A visible marking prevents offset-mismatch errors on tombstones and dual-fixture setups, especially on shop-floor operators who run a mix of part numbers on the same fixture.
• Periodically export the program as a text file (.MPF for main programs, .SPF for subprograms) and inspect the text in a PC text editor. The text view exposes graphical blocks that have been orphaned or corrupted by editing operations, and the diff between the original and the edited file is the fastest way to spot a rogue block.
• Enable the Undo soft key in the editor setup (HMI-Advanced 4.5 SP2 and later, and all SINUMERIK Operate builds). Undo is the fastest recovery path from a soft-key accident, and it is far safer than attempting to delete the resulting block from within the editor.
• Train new operators on the OP key cluster (Clear word, Clear input, Alter word, Insert) before they touch a production program. Fanuc-trained operators will reach for keys that do not exist on the SINUMERIK OP, and a 10-minute walkthrough of the OP keys prevents a year of accidental block insertions.

FAQ