On 2010-07-19, Ignoramus21191 wrote:
On 2010-07-19, Pete C. wrote:
[ ... ]
You really need to spend some time with a CAD CAM system before you put
too much effort into doing G-code generation in an unusual way. CAD
systems design parts, not tool paths, and they do that job very well.
CAM systems take that part information, apply tooling information,
cutter compensation, feed rates, etc. and produce the G-code for the CNC
controller to run. A *lot* of people have been generating G-code for
decades, and just about none of them are doing it the way you're talking
about. There is a lesson to be learned in that.
Is there some CAD/CAM system that does not cost an arm and a leg and
that is not too proprietary?
Well ... there is a free CAD package called jDraft which is
written in Java -- and the author is working on adding CAM capabilities
to it.
Check out: http://www.sparetimelabs.com/ for downloading it.
(it is the blueprint and dividers to the left of the main page).
He has downloads for Mac's OS-X, linux, and Windows. (All are
the same program (in compiled java) with the exception of a wrapper
script to adapt it to the system.)
I've used the linux version on Sun's Solaris 10 with one caveat.
The wrapper script uses what it *calls* /bin/sh in a wrapper around the
Java, but it actually uses some features only found in some newer
shells.
If you have a *true* Bourne shell as /bin/sh (not really found
on linux systems, which use a link to /bin/bash or one of the other
Bourne shell equivalents), you will have to edit the wrapper script (use
emacs -- not any editor which has limits on the line length, because
there is a *big* binary in there) to change the #! /bin/sh at the top of
the script to "#! /bin/bash" or wherever the path to bash really is.
Latest versions of Ubuntu have a link to /bin/dash which works fine too.
Play with this for a while (you have to register to be able to
save files -- but the registration is free) to get familiar with it, so
you will be ready when he wraps the CAD functionality into it.
Enjoy,
DoN.
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