Engraving Software

[The Wizard]

Hi Folks,

I joined this forum about a week ago and have been avidly going through *all* the information on here......WOW what a wealth of knowledge!

I am about to start building my first home CNC router/engraver and while waiting for parts to arrive I have been playing with LOTS of software packages to see what works best for my needs. I will primarily be using the machine to route/drill circuit boards but would like to use it for engraving and wood carving too.

I think I have found software I can use for the circuit boards and to control the steppers but I am having trouble finding suitable software for the engraving projects I have in mind. I have downloaded the trial versions of both 'DeskART' and 'MeshCAM' but don't seem to be having much luck when it comes to generating the G code to make the parts.

I have a project in mind that would require reverse engraving on clear plexiglas but for the life of me I cannot seem to get a decent G code out of anything. Either the software wants to produce a 'relief carving' (great if I was machining it out of wood but no good for the job in question) or it generates a 'flat plane' G code that does not cut the required pockets/shapes.

I was wondering if anyone on here is reverse engraving/carving plexiglas and if so what steps/software are you using to get your G codes. I have numerous software packages available to me to generate dxf, bmp, gif, wmf files etc. so that is not a problem but I don't seem able to find a way of just engraving the 'pockets' I require. Some of the CAM software also wants to machine the entire top surface too which is obviously not what I need on plexiglas as it would destroy the 'see through' properties I require.

Any suggestions/help would be greatly appreciated. BTW cost of software is a big issue to me as I am now medically disabled and on a very fixed budget so cheap is good! A good friend is actually paying for 95% of the building costs of the machine on the condition I make his parts for him (LOL). I guess I should also say that way back in the early 80's I obtained qualifications as a CNC programmer (all hand coded in those days) but never worked in that field so I am familiar with G codes and CNC machines in general but modern CAM software is something new to me.

Thanks for any help,

Larry Green

[HuFlungDung]

Hi Larry,

You might want to review OneCNCXR Mill Express.
http://www.onecnc.net/products/products_index.htm

This should permit you to machine either simple stick fonts, or raised relief fonts. Other wireframe shape machining will also then be possible for you.

In the past, I used a very simple to use, but dedicated engraving program, called MillWrite, developed by Endpoint software. I haven't kept up with the progress of this software any longer, but I think it has evolved into more than engraving. It might allow more artistic licence when creating artwork for machining, too.

[ger21]

http://www.sheetcam.com

Free right now during beta, and should do what you want.

[ynneb]

Hey Gerry, I notice you always recommend sheetcam. When I go to the site all I see is the download section. There is no other information. Who is sheetcam made by? Is there an instruction pdf I can see regarding sheetcam?

[The Wizard]

Thanks for your help and suggestions guys. I downloaded SheetCam and had a working G-Code file of what I need in about an hour (including working through the tutorials!) The software is very intuitive and the tutorials well written, although you can tell it's a beta version as some of the screen shots do not exactly match the actual screens (I am a former technical writer/illustrator and can't help noticing these things )

Now I need to build the machine and finally decide on which one of half a dozen demo controller packages I am going to use to actually run it. Then I can start making chips/dust .

Larry Green

[ger21]

Benny, you'll be glad to hear that there is a Yahoo group for SheetCAM.
It's being written by the same guy who wrote the Keygrabber utility for Mach2. When you download it there are tutorials included. I played with it a little a while back, it worked pretty good. He's added a lot of features since I last looked at it. Anyone who needs a 2.5D CAM package should really take a look at it. He's filling the void of low cost 2.5D CAM.

[imserv]

Originally Posted by The Wizard I think I have found software I can use for the circuit boards and to control the steppers but I am having trouble finding suitable software for the engraving projects I have in mind.

Larry, DeskCNC will provide both Cam programming and CNC machine control using a Windows 98 or later computer.

It includes Gerber and Excellon to G-code, DXF for contours, pocketing and drilling, engraving of tru-type text, and image processing with editing, tracing around colors, and depth carving for 3D, and 3D .stl surface machining.

It's all in one package, with inexpensive stepper and servo drivers available for smaller machines.

http://www.imsrv.com/deskcnc

Fred Smith - IMService

[The Wizard]

Thanks for the info Fred.

I downloaded the demo (I already had the demos of DesKam and DeskArt) but I don't think my computer of choice for this project will be able to drive it. I plan on doing the design/conversion work on this one and then transferring the G code file to another computer to run the machine.

I was recently given three old laptops (none working) and I am hoping to get at least one back on its feet and use that as a dedicated unit with the CNC router/engraver/mill. One is a 486 B/W with an intermittent screen problem, one is a P1 (colour) which apparently does run but needs a HD and adapter tray (none installed at the moment) and the third is only good for parts as it is missing the HD, processor chip, CD drive and power supply.

This is CNC on a budget...lol....I haven't had to resort to dumpster diving yet but if I see anything I can use it will come home

Larry

[imserv]

Shoot for at least a P200 and Windows 98 for a machine controller with DeskCNC.

Anything slower/older and Windows 98 probably won't run or there may be wierd things with drivers, displays, ports, etc. especially with laptops.

The 3D surface calculations are fairly math intensive. Plan on a faster computer if you want to scan surfaces and create 3D files and/or toolpaths to re-machine them. Same with the image processing portions of DeskCNC.

I currently do a lot of my testing on an Athlon 900. All the functions work fairly fast at that speed. However the hard drive is 30 times larger and at least 5 times faster than a P200, and it has 8 times the system RAM.


Fred Smith - IMService

[The Wizard]

Hi Fred,

Shoot for at least a P200 and Windows 98 for a machine controller with DeskCNC. Anything slower/older and Windows 98 probably won't run or there may be wierd things with drivers, displays, ports, etc. especially with laptops. The 3D surface calculations are fairly math intensive. Plan on a faster computer if you want to scan surfaces and create 3D files and/or toolpaths to re-machine them. Same with the image processing portions of DeskCNC. I currently do a lot of my testing on an Athlon 900. All the functions work fairly fast at that speed. However the hard drive is 30 times larger and at least 5 times faster than a P200, and it has 8 times the system RAM.

My main computer is also an Athalon 900 and that is the one I will be using to design parts, generate toolpaths and G code etc. Once I have the checked and verified G code file I hope to transfer that to the dedicated computer I will use for the CNC machine. It is physically impossible for me to use this one as it is located in a different part of the house and tied into a network.

I had hoped to use a laptop as I have space constraints to deal with and have several control software demos that will run on slower computers (in DOS if necessary).

Larry

[foamcutter]

Larry,
A while back I did some reverse engraving for some plaques in clear acrylic. This is how I did it actually two ways. #1 generated the words to be engraved in corel draw and reversed them and printed them on paper: Scanned the paper words and drawing into corel trace, and traced them on the centerline or outline if you want a two line image: zoomed in on each part and cleaned up the extra little lines the trace created: saved as a DXF file; opened file in Turbocad 2d freeware and placed it where I wanted on the plaque and saved as DXF file: opened in gcode 2000 to generate the gcode. Saved as a text file and cut the image and letters in Desknc. That was a labor intensive way. Now method #2 generate type in Deskengrave (freeware) save as DXF; open in Turbocad 2d combine with any artwork, size and reverse: save as DXF: generate gcode with gcode 2000: cut on router with desknc. There are much faster methods than I used but I already had the software and I didn't want to buy any new until I found out if these were going to sell around here- they did not so I didn't spend a lot of money to test with. Just my pennies worth. I will probably go download sheetcam and see what it's all about, sounds easier than my method. Ron

[Mr.Chips]

Originally Posted by ger21 Benny, you'll be glad to hear that there is a Yahoo group for SheetCAM. It's being written by the same guy who wrote the Keygrabber utility for Mach2. When you download it there are tutorials included. I played with it a little a while back, it worked pretty good. He's added a lot of features since I last looked at it. Anyone who needs a 2.5D CAM package should really take a look at it. He's filling the void of low cost 2.5D CAM.

Could you give us the link to that Yahoo Group for SheetCAM?

Thnaks
Hager