Re: gEDA-user: Comments on pcb's g-code exporter & HeeksCAD/HeeksCNC FOSS program for pcb milling

[dfro@xxxxxxxxx]

Markus,

Thanks for the note.

On 11/14/2010 05:55 AM, Markus Hitter wrote:
> Am 14.11.2010 um 10:38 schrieb dfro@xxxxxxxxx:
>
> > I have figured out how to add your 24 patches with git, I recompiled
> > 'pcb', and I am trying out the new version.
>
> That's great. Just a second before I sent further comments :-)

No problem. I learned a lot about git, while trying to get your patches 
working. Now I am going to use git on a dozen other personal projects I 
have going. So, thanks for writing those juicy patches that forced me to 
RTFM:

http://progit.org/book/

The explanation of 'git am' in there was enough to get me back in business.

> > Adding a tool table might be cool.
>
> As far as I understand, this is done in pcb on a different level:
>
> http://pcb.gpleda.org/pcb-cvs/pcb.html#Vendor-drill-mapping
>
> Didn't test it yet, though.

Vendor drill mapping is a great feature. I did not know it was there. I 
will definitely use it, now that I know about it. A tool table would 
contain a lot more information, though, and have a very different 
purpose than "quantizing" the holes in a pcb design.

An EMC2 .tbl file in "mill format" contains a table with a "Pocket" 
column, and "FMS" column (the T numbers which coincide with a user's 
machine), a "TLO" column representing tool length offset, a "Diameter" 
column, and a "Comment" column - i.e. "1/16 end mill"

If you are interested, check out section 9.4 of the EMC2 User Manual:

http://linuxcnc.org/docs/EMC2_User_Manual.pdf
http://wiki.linuxcnc.org/cgi-bin/emcinfo.pl?EmcKnowledgeBase

Having said this, The drill grouping and comments in the 'pcb' generated 
g-code make it very easy for a user to find the drill bit/end mill 
changes and add the M06/Txx lines for their machine by hand.

> > In regards to cutting the board outline:
> >
> > What I am noticing is that the global board dimensions set in
> > Preferences get turned into a xxx-outline.cnc file. Correct?
>
> If there is no "outline" layer, yes.
>
> > I think there should be an "outline" layer in the main window (along
> > with the "solder", "component", and other layers in 'pcb') where you
> > can draw your outline with a trace line.
>
> Sure, go ahead and create it. You create layers somewhere in
> preferences. I hope the exporter's behaviour is correct for both, adding
> the outline layer to the component side as well as adding it to the
> solder side. In the later case, general milling is mirrored, just like
> isolation milling.
>
> Not that mirroring an x-y-aligned rectangle changes anything, but with
> some luck somebody will find the time to implement milling of complex
> outlines one day.

I agree. Milling of complex outlines would be a great feature.

I will have to play with this more to figure out how it currently works. 
I tried to draw an outline in an 'outline' layer and 'pcb' just turned 
the trace lines into an isolation routing outline.

I must not be getting your explanation. Do I use a rectangle in the 
'outline' layer to define the outline?

> > Also, a box to input the feed rate (F) would be nice.
>
> Yepp, that's on the to do list. Five feedrates: isolation milling
> approach, isolation milling work, drilling approach, general milling
> approach, general milling work. Many tools prefer different feedrates
> for vertical vs. horizontal movements.

Great!

Thanks,
Dave


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