I spent a week or so playing with inkscape and inkscape g code tools
last month. It is not the most intuitive software to use but i ll give
you the quick and dirty version
- Open your file in what ever format it is and try and use from the
*Path* menu *Trace **Bitmap* . (I think you are getting this far and
your computer is hanging)
-If that is the case go to the *File Menu* and then *Export Bitmap*
instead. You can play with size and scale and all that jazz in the
window that pops up i don’t worry to much about it as long as it is
close. Save a bitmap version of your file.
- Open the bitmap file you just made with inkscape chose imbed file at
the pop up
- Now *Trace Bitmap* the default settings should work and we will get a
vector image over our bitmap image (if not you will have to read and
play a little).
All being well you can move on to the fun stuff.
- Add a layer*Layer**Menu* *Add Layer*
- Drag the vector trace off the bitmap image. (any where just so we can
see the 2 separate images)
- Now go to the *View Menu* -> *Display mode* -> *Outline* are original
image should now be a box with a red x through it and our vector trace
will just be lines with with no colour.
- Select the box with the red x and deleet it we dont need it any more
we are only concerned with the vector tracing you may need to go back to
*View Menu* -> *Display mode* -> *Normal* for it to show up and let you
delete it
- Now select the complete vector trace *control X *to cut select the
layer we made earler in the drop down menu on the bottom edge of the
screen directly below the Text Menu
- Now *control v *to past wile we are here delete any other layers you
have makes life easer later
- Drag the Vector trace to the middle of the worksheet or some where
easy to work
- Now go to *extensions menu -> gcodetools* -> *orientation points *Set
Z zero (i just leave it as 0 and touch off the surface of my stock)
we need to set Z depth (total depth we need to cut 1 inch or what ever
the total depth will be we will set are depth for each pass latter
- Select inches or mm (probably do this first ;-)
- the other settings you can play with latter but the defaults should
work for now
- click apply and we are done here
*- extensions menu -> gcodetools* -> *tools library *select cylinder or
cone and click apply
- this should put a square box with some defult settings on you work sheet
- select the box and drag it some where you can reed the settings we
will have to change some as the defaults are 2 fast if you are using inches
- to edit settings open *Text menu -> Text and Fonts* -> *text *tab now
click on the 400 in the feed rate and if you hold your tong just right
and click lots it will open and 400 will be displayed in the*text* tab
we can set it to 100 or what ever is needed for you machine click apply
and ajust the other settings as needed.
Diameter of tool
Depth step = how deep we will cut with each pass
Tool Cange G code ie (M6 T1)
Last steps open*extensions menu -> gcodetools* -> *path to gcode* then
*Preferences *tab:
-set file name
-place to save file
-z safe hight
-post possessor round to 4 digits (can play with other setting next
time)
*options* tab
-leave defaults for now
*Path to gecode* tab
- check preview box
- leave rest as default
click apply and it will grind away for a wile and spit out a file with
relevant g code and put some arrows on your drawing to show you witch
way it desided to send the cutter round.
Hope this helps never did figure out how to do pocket or area with G
code tools properly if some one has some scribble notes please share,
feel free to correct spelling typos and other blunders. I am using
inkscape 0.48 but think it should work for older versions to
linden
**
On 14-11-08 12:40 PM, Gene Heskett wrote:
> Greetings;
>
> The inkscape program can load and display this .eps file, looking about
> like the photographs of the parts it will make.
>
> However, any of the operations I would like it to, like edge detection as
> a first step toward the generation of the required gcode paths just sits
> there doing nothing for an hour or more after telling it to go do it. And
> while the buttons are ghosted, indicating its busy, the whole thing slowly
> falls off the front page of an htop session watching the system.
>
> Is there some preliminary operation I have to do to select the area to
> scan before the potrace like utility can do its thing?
>
> I also have all of gcodetools installed, so I have a fairly lengthy list
> of things that can be done under the extensions menu, but they also appear
> to be inoperable, but do tie the inkscape session up, requiring I do a
> sudo kill inkscape to stop that, but again it it using zero cpu when its
> hung.
>
> So I an puzzled. This is the inkscape V.48 in the 10.04.4 LTS repo's.
>
> Cheers, Gene Heskett
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
_______________________________________________
Emc-users mailing list
Emc-users@lists.sourceforge.net
https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/emc-users
