The ToolType is the representation of a tool. Tools are exchangeable components used in a machine tool to execute the production process and may for example be drills, ball milling heads, cutting inserts, pinching tools and so forth. It may also be a non-contact tool, for example a processing laser.

The ToolType is formally defined in Table 50.

Table 50 – ToolType Definition

Attribute	Value
BrowseName	ToolType
IsAbstract	False
References	Node Class	BrowseName	DataType	TypeDefinition	Other
Subtype of the BaseToolType defined in 8.5.3 i.e. inheriting the InstanceDeclarations of that Node.
0:HasComponent	Variable	ControlIdentifier1	0:UInt32	0:BaseDataVariableType	M, RO
0:HasComponent	Variable	ControlIdentifier2	0:UInt32	0:BaseDataVariableType	O, RO
0:HasComponent	Variable	ControlIdentifierInterpretation	ToolManagement	0:BaseDataVariableType	M, RO
0:HasComponent	Variable	LastUsage	0:UtcTime	0:BaseDataVariableType	O, RO
0:HasComponent	Variable	Locked	0:Boolean	0:BaseDataVariableType	M, RO
0:HasComponent	Variable	PlannedForOperating	0:Boolean	0:BaseDataVariableType	O, RO
0:HasComponent	Object	ToolLife		0:BaseObjectType	O

The components of the ToolType have additional references which are defined in Table 51.

Table 51 – ToolType Additional Subcomponents

Source Path	References	NodeClass	BrowseName	DataType	TypeDefinition	Others
Locked	0:HasProperty	Variable	ReasonForLocking	ToolLocked	0:PropertyType	M, RO
ToolLife	0:HasComponent	Variable	<ToolLifeEntry>	0:Number	ToolLifeType	MP, RO

The two components ControlIdentifier1, ControlIdentifier2 are to be interpreted depending on ControlIdentifierInterpretation (refer to 12.10). This reflects the main methods which CNC-based tool management approaches use. In a ToolNumberBased approach, only ControlIdentifier1 is provided and sufficient to identify the tool. In a system with a ToolGroupBasedManagemet, tools are identified by a group and an indexing number inside this group, which are provided as ControlIdentifier1 and ControlIdentifier2 respectively. Should yet another approach be present in a given system, this is indicated by the ControlIdentifierInterpretation being reported as custom. It shall be noted that this identification data is used to identify the tool in the reference frame of the tool management system inside the machine. In many applications the machine control system uses these identifiers to handle multiple tools which are equivalent and present in the machine as spares. For an identification of the tool inside the NC program or globally, independent of the machine management view, the properties Name and Identifier are provided by the BaseToolType.

LastUsage is the time, were the specific tool was the active tool on a tool carrier for the last time, while the machine was operating in an automatic mode (e.g. for CNC controllers: in Mdi- or Automatic-mode).

The property Locked represents whether the tool was locked from use in processing. If True, the tool was locked. It has an additional property as seen in Table 51, ReasonForLocking. ReasonForLocking is defined in 12.8.

The component PlannedForOperating marks tools which the machine tool control can already mark as being needed for the running NC program or process when being True.

The ToolLife reports on how the tool use and tool life is being currently managed and how far the use of the tool has progressed. If more than one measurement is provided as <ToolLifeEntry >, they shall show the same value as if only one entry was provided, so they shall not be accumulated by a Client.