[CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] SuperCam & PCB Trace Milling Software

My problem has been getting DXF files to Gerber format mostly.

I wonder how complex a PCB you are trying to fabricate? My intent was to
make it feasible to engrave simple single sided circuits. I wanted to make
it so a user could us a TAIG micro mill to do PCB engraving, I think I have
accomplished the mission.

In the past few months I have added TRIM, EXTEND, OFFSET and EDITI commands
to SuperCam. There is has been a new pinout configuration added to drive
the NIST EMC style controllers.

SuperCam also works well with HPGL files.

One of the quirks to using wide poly lines and SuperCam is to first execute
the SETCORDS command to set the number of cords for arcs and circles to
minimum value of 32. Other wise all the corners will have far too many
segments to effectively edit any thing other than an extremely simple
design.

Dennis
SuperCam Demo at http://www.super-tech.com/root/scdemo.htm
Taig Mill at http://www.super-tech.com/root/minimill.htm

----- Original Message -----
From: Alan Marconett KM6VV <KM6VV@...>
To: <CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@egroups.com>
Sent: Monday, October 16, 2000 12:30 PM
Subject: Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Help: PCB Trace Milling Software


> Dennis,
>
> Sounds interesting. Getting the traces into .DXF is still a problem. I
> was planning to use ViewCompanion, but .DXF output won't be in until
> 2.0. And that also depends on what they do with the HPGL files. If
> they realize that four or five pen lines side by side are a "trace" and
> generate a .DXF line with width, we may have it. Eagle (PCB layout) and
> ViewCompanion can also generate Gerber files, which might be easier to
> convert into "objects" that a CAD/CAM program can generate tool paths
> for.
>
> Well, at least that's my observations for now. I would think there
> would be a market for low cost CAD/CAM software that can create
> "objects" from either Gerber or HPGL plots of small boards. Ztrace
> looks like it might do it, I'm checking it now (well, it didn't like
> THAT file), and Deskam2000 is a definate possibility! And yes, I'd like
> to checkout SuperCam!
>
> Alan
>
>
>
> Dennis Bohlke wrote:
> >
> > If you can create a DXF file with polylines that have width. SuperCam
can
> > read them an then the OFFSET command can be used to create the tool
offsets.
> >
> > The Demo version will G-code files.
> > http://www.super-tech.com/root/scdemo.htm
> >
> > I just got this part working.
> >
> > Dennis Bohlke
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Jon Elson <jmelson@...>
> > To: <CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@egroups.com>
> > Sent: Monday, October 16, 2000 9:22 AM
> > Subject: Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Help: PCB Trace Milling Software
> >
> > >
> > >
> > > Alan Marconett KM6VV wrote:
> > >
> > > > So how do we get from Gerber files to CNC files? As you observe,
the
> > > > Gerber "plots" each trace, what we want is contours AROUND the
traces!
> > > >
> > > > I examined an HPGL PCB plot file (see View Companion), and studied
how
> > > >
> > > > multiple pen lines were combined to draw a trace.
> > >
> > > I figured out a VERY crude algorithm to do this, if anyone wants to
try
> > > it.
> > > First, you map the extent of the drawing onto a bitmap. You then draw
> > > in the
> > > traces and pads, with the actual width or dimensions of the object.
For
> > > instance,
> > > if the grid is 1 mil, then a 50 mil trace would be drawn by filling in
a
> > > 50 bits wide
> > > track from start to finish.
> > >
> > > After this is all done, both traces and pads, you could raster through
> > > the thing,
> > > identifying all points where you cross from one 'color' to another.
You
> > > have to do
> > > this in both axes to make sure you completely surround the traces and
> > > pads.
> > > This should define a 'border' as a closed pattern of border bits.
> > >
> > > A second pass could define all separated borders by starting randomly
at
> > > the
> > > first border seen and following all the way around its edge until you
> > > get back to
> > > the starting point, and numbering all these bits as part of border #
1.
> > > You then scan for the next unmarked border, and follow it, marking it
> > > #2.
> > > You repeat this until there are no unmarked border bits left in the
map.
> > >
> > > You can now check each border to see which side it encloses from some
> > > starting
> > > point, and create offset tool paths to cut them out.
> > >
> > > This actually doesn't sound so difficult, now that I have kind of
> > > figured
> > > out how it can be done. It could be a memory hog for large boards,
> > > however.
> > >
> > > Jon
>
>
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