Re: gEDA-user: PCB+GL+3D Packages??

["Bert Timmerman" <bert.timmerman@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Peter and all, 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: geda-user-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
> [mailto:geda-user-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Peter Clifton
> Sent: Monday, November 15, 2010 3:37 AM
> To: geda-user
> Subject: gEDA-user: PCB+GL+3D Packages??
> 
> An actual rendering from PCB+GL with some code I've been 
> playing with...
> 
> http://www2.eng.cam.ac.uk/~pcjc2/geda/pcb+gl_3d/pcb+gl_3d_pack
ages_mockup.png
> 
> 
> Not currently pushed to any repository, this hard-codes a 
> search for ACY400 footprints (as used on this board), and 
> renders a 3D model for each resistor. (The 3D model is 
> defined in C code, not a generic format at the moment).
> 
> I have been playing with 1D texturing to put stripes on the 
> resistors - albeit not actually with the correct value at 
> this stage.. but it IS possible ;)
> 
> 
> Questions:
> 
> 1. Does anyone care about seeing this land in PCB?
> 2. Will anyone bother to make 3D models for packages?
> 3. What format would people like to make models in?
> 
> I'm thinking VRML (perhaps as output by Wings32) might be a 
> good choice, as I believe this is what KiCad uses.
> 
> --
> Peter Clifton
> 
> Electrical Engineering Division,
> Engineering Department,
> University of Cambridge,
> 9, JJ Thomson Avenue,
> Cambridge
> CB3 0FA
> 
> Tel: +44 (0)7729 980173 - (No signal in the lab!)
> Tel: +44 (0)1223 748328 - (Shared lab phone, ask for me)
> 
> 
> 

The screenshot looks nice ;-)

Some questions come to mind:

1) Are the resistors modelled with 3D- primitives like spheres/cylinders, or
are they modelled with 3D-faces ?

2) Are "we" (the pcb-devs) going to teach pcb to do the modelling, or do we
just export the information for creating 3D-views to a separate
utility/application ?

I'm testing the feasibility of coding/using an OpenSCAD exporter for the
above purpose, this looks promising, but at this moment I can give no 100 %
guarantee of this becoming a viable solution.

However, OpenSCAD seems to have some (user) momentum in the MakerBot &
Thingieverse culture, and the OpenSCAD code resembles to be a small subset
of the C programming language.

At least one nifty thing OpenSCAD can do is extrude a geometry defined in a
2D DXF-file (made with QCAD for instance), this would allow for arbitrary
shaped boards.

I don't know weather OpenSCAD --> stl file --> G-code is a desirable work
flow to get G-code files for a plastruder to create a 3D-mock-up of a
"non-electrically working" pcb with components (plastruders by definition
extrude (possibly non-conductive) plastics).

OTOH, there is Blender, BRL-CAD, HeeksCAD to name a few.

3) I there any insight where to place the bet for our pcb monies (and coding
time) ?

Kind regards,

Bert Timmerman.



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