Export For CAM software

dedmin

We are currently working on a project to export data from SUP to the 2020 Shopware software Product Planner. We are also beginning work on a reporting program to generate PDF and text files, but having trouble finding a solution that will work on both PC and Mac. Future plans do include SUP plug-ins for defining and exporting CNC machining operations to a DXF file.

I checked some of yours plugins and dynamic components and they look promising. We badly need reporting plugin and CNC connection. It is a shame that all the power of dynamic components cannot be used for calculations, cut list and reporting!

yvan

@dedmin said:

@sketchdata said:

We are currently working on a project to export data from SUP to the 2020 Shopware software Product Planner. We are also beginning work on a reporting program to generate PDF and text files, but having trouble finding a solution that will work on both PC and Mac. Future plans do include SUP plug-ins for defining and exporting CNC machining operations to a DXF file.

I checked some of yours plugins and dynamic components and they look promising. We badly need reporting plugin and CNC connection. It is a shame that all the power of dynamic components cannot be used for calculations, cut list and reporting!

Do you have a link to your plugins?

dedmin

@yvan said:

@dedmin said:

@sketchdata said:

We are currently working on a project to export data from SUP to the 2020 Shopware software Product Planner. We are also beginning work on a reporting program to generate PDF and text files, but having trouble finding a solution that will work on both PC and Mac. Future plans do include SUP plug-ins for defining and exporting CNC machining operations to a DXF file.

I checked some of yours plugins and dynamic components and they look promising. We badly need reporting plugin and CNC connection. It is a shame that all the power of dynamic components cannot be used for calculations, cut list and reporting!

Do you have a link to your plugins?

See my post above - the first link.

dedmin

I'm not very familiar with the CAM technology, but could the way SketchUP handles the geometry be a problem? That everything is just a bunch of lines, instead of real curves?

dedmin

I know this, but the question remains.

yvan

@dedmin said:

I'm not very familiar with the CAM technology, but could the way SketchUP handles the geometry be a problem? That everything is just a bunch of lines, instead of real curves?

Sketchup is a mesh modelling software. you can find more info about mesh modelling here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polygon_mesh.
Smooth curves can be achieved by increasing the number of segments.
With a CNC flatbed router we currently export faces as DXF polylines with [url=http://www.guitar-list.com/download-software/convert-sketchup-skp-files-dxf-or-stl:lzs2i8uh]skp_to_dxf plugin[/url:lzs2i8uh] and then import these dxf files in the CAM software for tooling and G code generation.

yvan

I will not give-up!
SU's dynamic components architecture is so powerful that it would be a shame if it cannot be used for manufacturing.
My wish is to find a script that would let you select a face in each components as primary face to be sent to the CNC.

Then,

Then all parts should be exported as individual dxf polylines in a specified folder ready for import in a CAM/nesting package.

dedmin

Fully agree with You!! I wonder why nobody did this already - there are so many fellow woodworkers ready to pay for this!! But when You export a 5mm circle from SketchUP as .dxf it is not a circle anymore - that is why I asked above if this is a problem with CAM?

dedmin

And there is need for a hole drilling plugin like this one - http://www.smartmachining.com/

sketchdata

I think holes will work better if a component is used, that way center point is easy to determine, and overall number of entities is reduced. Thinking there would be a component for 5mm system holes, 8mm construction holes, etc, and an attribute for export DXF layer. For routing paths, I think a DXF Export Layer attribute should handle tool diameter, depth of cut, any cutter compensation, and lead in/outs, depending on the CAM post. So the plan is to create a script that writes a DXF for each face thats defined for machining and create any routing and/or drilling on that face.

yvan

@dedmin said:

Fully agree with You!! I wonder why nobody did this already - there are so many fellow woodworkers ready to pay for this!! But when You export a 5mm circle from SketchUP as .dxf it is not a circle anymore - that is why I asked above if this is a problem with CAM?

It is not a problem. If you place the holes in a layer called a certain way ex: "DV_5" you can then set your CAM software to automatically use a 5mm bit to drill to the centre of any geometry placed in the layer "DV_5". no matter what shape the geometry is.
For curved free form shapes, increasing the number of segments will produce an acceptable result.

dedmin

That is good news - I was wondering for a long time can this be a problem!

TIG

Note that you can extract a DC's 'attributes' and use them in your 'reports'... there are several threads about this already...

dedmin

Still, there isn't a clear solution for exporting DC options.

TIG

Since an 'option' is itself an attribute can't you use that to 'filter' the other attributes as needed ?
http://code.google.com/apis/sketchup/docs/tutorial_attrreporting.html

dedmin

Maybe I could give You an answer if I know anything about Ruby programing Downloaded the book "Automatic SketchUP" and I'm even more confused!

TIG

Can we recap on the issues under discussion here...

Someone wants a tool that lets you export a selected DC as a 2D DXF - you pick the face to be 'up'.
So the tool needs to find the picked face in the DC and then make a 2D DXF from it ?
Perhaps the DC options are only needed for other reporting and not the DXF making ??
The DXF is made a report is made referencing the DXF and containing certain info extracted from the DC ?

Please could the 'requester' post a step-sheet with images, results etc on how this is currently done 'manually' so that the automation is then clearer... I must be readily doable ?

dedmin

I can comment only on exporting DC options, not attributes! Here we put all the valuable information that is visible and usable in SketchUp and in SketchUp Pro. We can make different components and put the info we need - for legs, doors, panels, handles and etc. that have the same options - we can select all the legs and change their options at once - for instance color or price. Then we need to export all this for reporting - the best as cvs so we can import in Excel or Calc and combine all the elements to get this

TIG

The the options are the attributes. You need a [new] attribute reader customized to your needs...

dedmin

Does SketchUP holds all the attributes and the options in the same dictionaries? If so then the reader needs to export only the options of the selected components from that table.