![Alignment with Offset Plane](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6637a184a65dba34166447d8/1715203685278-OQIMGTL8TMDLN16Q6D3B/offset+Plane+1.png)
Alignment with Offset Plane
The offset plane can be used in an alignment construction. A good example of an offset plane is cast datum points, where they are rarely on the same plane.
![Form Datum - Calypso](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6637a184a65dba34166447d8/1719253592964-V0UOV129E6VLNVNVHXSN/form+datum.png)
Form Datum - Calypso
What the Form Datum does is establish a FUNCTIONAL Datum Reference Frame coordinate system, similar to if you were setting up the primary, secondary, and tertiary datums on a functional checking gage. This is ONLY for a datum reference frame and does not modify how the base and secondary alignments evaluate their respective coordinate system. In the screen shot below, you can notice the different origin points are for a base alignment and datum reference frame.
![Cartesian Distance Video](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6637a184a65dba34166447d8/1715289981688-AM3LDPHQRRUG585I4CWE/Cartesian+Distance.png)