• Compact Cutting Router
    In this video, we will explain opening the DXF file, showing and hiding the layers, toolpath operations, creating drilling and machining, using the compact cutting page, calculation, reporting, and saving as DXF.
    1. Opening the DXF File
    DXF files can be loaded into the program and processed.
    Select the DXF file from the File > Open menu path.
    Determine its position on the coordinate plane.
    After opening the DXF file, you can zoom, pan, and rotate on the graphic screen.
    2. Showing Layers
    You can show the layers of the opened DXF file.
    Similarly, you can show or hide the groove layer according to the usage situation.
    3. Toolpath Operation
    Start the toolpath operation by pressing the 2D line machining button.
    Settings need to be adjusted according to the needs of the machine.
    Template selection, speed settings, and depth settings for Z Max and Z Min are done here.
    Select the cut from the templates, choose the tool and operation type.
    Then select the geometry.
    You can select the geometry by clicking the desired layer from the tree tab or manually one by one.
    Once the geometry is selected and confirmed, operations will be added.
    For the groove lines, go to templates and select the groove.
    If you want to set different values for Z Max and Z Min from the template, you can change them here.
    You can change the Z Max and Z Min values for folding ease. If folding is difficult, you can set it to 0.4.
    When Z Max and Z Min values are different, it will decrease and cut by the stepdown value until it reaches the Z Min value.
    When Z Max and Z Min are the same, the stepdown does not matter.
    After selecting the settings, choose the geometry.
    To show all toolpaths, right-click on the operations and press 'Show all toolpaths'; you will see all the operations.
    4. Adding Holes and Creating Machining
    Press the add hole button.
    Enter the hole properties.
    Select the cut from the templates in the 2D line machining menu.
    Change the machining side to inside. Depending on the operation you want to perform, you can change this setting to left, right, inside, or outside.
    Create the type information, for example, hole.
    Select the geometry manually from the graphic screen.
    If the hole diameter and the tool diameter are the same, it will perform a drill motion, that is, in-out.
    You can simulate the operation on top and save it as a new template.
    5. Automatic Placement and Optimization
    Open the compact cutting page.
    Enter the plate dimensions.
    Different plate sizes can be entered at the same time.
    Indicate whether the plates are required as needed or limited and enter their numbers.
    Press the auto-fill button. The pieces to be cut will be listed.
    The pieces you click in the list are shown on the graphic screen.
    You can change the name, quantity, and rotation permission.
    Quantity and name can be entered manually or selected from the screen.
    6. Calculation and Reporting
    Press the calculate button.
    You can determine the processing order from the multi-plate printing page.
    By pressing the report features button, you can change the settings, group row, column number, and distances between them.
    You can group equal plates and view them on the graphic screen.
    Specify the folder to be output and enter the file name and print.
    7. Saving the Project as DXF
    You can save the created project as DXF and see what operations you performed on the file.
  • Compact Cutting: Creating a Template
    If you want to create a template for 2.5-axis operations, you need to create a simple drawing, generate a toolpath, and save it.
    1. Add a rectangle to the screen.
    2. Open the Contour 2D Dialog page.
    3. Enter the parameters for the operation.
    We will enter a few important parameters here. For detailed explanations of the parameters on this page, please refer to the 2D Profile Machining page video.
    Select the tool.
    Define the type.
    Enter the Z heights.
    Enter the cutting speed and spindle speed.
    4. Use the Select Geometry command to create a toolpath for the rectangle we added to the screen.
    5. Right-click on the toolpath in the list and add it to the templates.
    These settings are permanently added to the template list under the specified name.
    6. You can delete unnecessary templates.
    You can back up the templates to disk and load a backup.
  • How to groove text
    1. Import a drawing by a DXF file.
    In this drawing position info text should be added inside every individual part boundary.
    2. Explode position info text to curves.
    Under edit menu there is a command. Cliclk Explode text to curves- command.
    Pick text entities to convert into geometric elements and apply selection.Alternatively you may double click the link node which comes from drawing layers to select text.
    After selecting the text will be converted to geometric entities like lines, circles.
    3. Make toolpaths by machining geometric entitie:which were formed from text.
    Open 2D contour cutting page.
    To machine text curves select an operation template which was defined before. If there is no such template you can use grooving tool and make a new operation. 3mm Zmax and Zmin values may be used to groove text on a 4mm thick plate. Type name may be entered as positionInfo Text.
    Press-Geometry selection-button and select the text geometries.
    After you approve the selection new operations will be added in the list. The names will come from your type name entry as positionInfoText1, positionInfo Text2 and so on.If you want to record page settings as a template, right click on one of these operations in the list. There will be a context menu command as Add to templates.
    4. Form other operations for contour cutting, grooving or hole cutting and jump to compact cutting optimisation.
    Text operations which are inside contour cutting toolpath of the part will be added to part sorting list
  • Engraving 2D Text:
    In this tutorial, we will initially write and convert some text to geometric entities. We can make milling toolpaths using geometric entities in SolidCNC.First, we will make simple contour paths that walk on these curve entities After that we will make 2 dimensional area cleaning paths that will engrave inside the text curve boundary.
    1. Make text by menu command path Insert, Text.
    2. Explode text to curve elements by menu command path Edit, Explode text to curves.
    3. Add cutting operations by using Contour2D Dialog.
    Form single paths that follow boundary curves that do not have any cutter diameter compensation.
    Form area cleaning paths that raster the area inside boundary curves
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