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86 lines
3.1 KiB
Plaintext
86 lines
3.1 KiB
Plaintext
Drill file (Excellon) to gnuplot conversion
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===========================================
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drl2gp converts drill instructions in KiCad-generated Excellon files
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to tool paths in gnuplot notation.
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drl2gp should be integrated into "cameo" (../cameo) at some point in
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time.
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This work is distributed under the terms of the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC
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LICENSE, Version 2:
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This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
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it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
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the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
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(at your option) any later version.
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For your convenience, a copy of the complete license has been included
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in the file COPYING.GPLv2.
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Usage
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-----
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drl2gp reads a drill file and generates toolpaths for a specific tool.
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Instructions that cannot be executed with the specified tool, e.g.,
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holes smaller than the tool's diameter, are ignored.
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To facilitate iterative generation of toolpaths, drl2gp can generate a
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copy of its input file from which the instructions it has turned into
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toolpaths are removed. A typical workflow would then consist of a
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series drl2gp runs with drill, followed of a run with an endmill.
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drl2gp adjusts toolpath for the tool diameter. It is therefore not
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necessary to run "cameo" on the toolpaths.
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Usage:
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drl2gp depth drill_d_min drill_d_max <file.drl >toolpaths.gp
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drl2gp depth mill_d <file.drl >toolpaths.gp
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"depth" is the depth to which to drill. The tool can either be a drill
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or an endmill. A drill makes holes efficiently but cannot be moved
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sideways. An endmill can be used to cut holes wider than the tool
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diameter and it can cut slots.
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For a drill, the minimum and the maximum diameter of holes it should be
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used for is specified. For an endmill, the tool diameter is specified.
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All dimensions are in millimeters by default. The unit can be set to mil
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with the option -i and set back to millimeters with -m. -i and -m can be
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repeated any number of times and affect the parameters following them.
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If the option -f out.drl is given, drl2gp writes a copy of the
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Excellon file from which the drill instructions that have been accepted
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in this run have been stripped.
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Example:
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drl2gp 1 -i 10 15 <file.drl -f tmp.drl >drill-135.gp
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drl2gp 1 0.8 <tmp.drl >mill-08.gp
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Here, first generate toolpaths for a 13.5 mil drill. We use this drill
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for all holes with a diameter from 10 to 15 mil. Second, we use a 0.8
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mm endmill for the remaining drill instructions.
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Known bugs
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----------
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- most of the elements in an Excellon file are just ignored, without
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examining if some may have an effect
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- when encountering a slotting operation with a compatible tool diameter,
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drl2gp tries to process it even if the tool is a drill. This gets
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detected when trying to generate the toolpath and results in an
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assertion failure.
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As work-around, choose the endmill in a set of tools such that it is
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suitable for all slots, and only use drills smaller than the smallest
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slot. (drl2gp will then use the endmill for everything that's left
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after the drills.)
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- drl2gp should warn if any drill instructions are left for which no
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toolpath could be generated (if not using -f)
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