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Gcod Postprocesor

Gcod Postprocesor

The MegaCut reads from the Gcod information re. shape size and dimensions, including tool 

paths. The Gcod files should have the NC (*.nc) extension. They can be prepared in any text file 
editor or CAM software.

Supported Gcod commands:

G20

inch co-ordinates

G21

mm co-ordinates 

G0

Set movement speed (read from MegaCut Configuration)

G1

Set tooling speed as set in F parameter

G2

Set clockwise curve speed

G3

Set anticlockwise curve speed

X, Y

x and y co-ordinates

I, J, K

Circle center I=x, J=y, K=z (absolute adressing)

F

Working speed (limited by machine type)

S

Spindle rotation (limited by spindle type)

All other commands are ignored.

Working speed and spindle rotations are set in the Gcod file, while the movement speed is set in 

www.megaplot.com

 phone: +48 693 707 575  

[email protected]

Summary of Contents for XMD Series

Page 1: ...CNC Routers XMD series User s Manual ver 1 08 Manual last updated in April 2013 ...

Page 2: ...cts 13 DXF files 14 Drilling 14 Engraving single line font 14 Gcod Postprocesor 17 MegaCut 2D software 19 Machine start up procedure 19 Software settings 19 Language version 19 Control Window enlarged 20 Main window 21 Opening a drawing 22 Simulation 22 Configuration 23 Import tab 23 Sequence tab 25 Directions tab 26 CNC tab 26 Drilling tab 28 Ploter tab 29 General tab 30 www megaplot com phone 48...

Page 3: ...egaCut3D software 44 Machine start up procedure 44 First run activation 44 Software settings 45 Language version 45 Control Window enlarged 46 Main Window 47 Typical tooling sequence 48 Loading the 3D model 49 Loading a bmp file 50 Material 51 Location of the model in the material 52 Location of the model in the material vs bmp heights 53 Tools library 54 Operations 55 Output files 58 Tool measure...

Page 4: ...n 66 Move to and Move by 66 Configuration 67 Network connection ethernet 68 Router calibration 69 REQUIREMENTS AND LIMITATIONS 70 ALGORITHYMS 71 Lining algorithms 71 Overlapping shapes algorithms 73 MAINTENANCE RECOMMENDATIONS 74 www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 5: ...process by preparing a suitable drawing and setting required parameters in MegaCut configuration MegaCut3D is a full 3D application which generated the tool paths based on a three dimensional model and the parameters the operator sets for each operation Thanks to a user friendly interface and advanced algorithms working with MegaCut 3D requires only basic CNC knowledge and spatial imagination The ...

Page 6: ...in 5 000 mm min 5 000 mm min Weight 180 kg 380 kg 500 kg External dimensions 110x130x145 cm 162 5x230x145 cm 170x299x145 cm Working environment 0 40o C Standard package includes CNC router electronic controller spindle cooling system automatic tool length measuring system control software MegaCut and MegaCut 3D material holders two types of tool holders ER20 type diameter 3 and 6 mm sample tooling...

Page 7: ...ine in any axis or adjust the working parameters during the cutting process tool cooling system necessary when working with metals Consists of a cooling liquid container a regulator and connecting tubes This tool cooling system needs to be connected to an air compressor which is not included www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 8: ... that the power line is properly grounded Before you plug the machine to the power source please connect all the labeled plugs between the machine and the controller as well as the USB cable between the controller and the machine All the plugs and cables are suitably labeled To turn the machine on please turn the main switch clockwise To turn the machine off press this switch all the way down www ...

Page 9: ...nected If there is a problem with the controller PC connection the display will read Disconnected Below the controller s main display there is the spindle inverter s display Both the display and the small keyboard below are used for diagnostics and servicing only and the customer should not be making any adjustments unless clearly instructed by a MegaPlot technician www megaplot com phone 48 693 7...

Page 10: ...in each axis turn the spindle rotations on and off or set the project s starting position It can also be used to adjust the spindle rotations and cutting speed during the cutting process The remote control features a display which shows the current XYZ co ordinates in relation to the project s starting position not the machine absolute co ordinates please see following sections for details current...

Page 11: ...ementally Set the speed to 100mm min Set the speed to 5 000mm min press and hold Start the cutting process of the drawing currently opened in the software short press Continue the cutting after it had been stopped press and hold Set the current location as the project s starting position short press Go back to a previously set project s starting position www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 offic...

Page 12: ...page 12 of 73 Stop the cutting process www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com STOP ...

Page 13: ... of different projects starting locations anywhere on the machine It is especially useful when the machine is used to produce a set of different elements and the material is always placed in the same spot on the machine In this case the customer can switch between the previously saved starting locations as needed If the machine is turned off and back on the last saved project s starting location i...

Page 14: ...ed differently will be interpreted as standard curves to be cut The drawing below illustrates the way in which the software will interpret similar shapes which were prepared differently The left one shows a proper drilling cross and in the software is visualized as a circle with a given diameter The right one is not correct as it was drawn as a Bezier curve and consists of a large number of nodes ...

Page 15: ...ceros 3D or AutoCad To prepare a 3D dxf file suitable for MegaCut 3D software please draw your shape using such objects as 3D Face or 3D Polyline polyface mesh surface mesh All 3DSolid objects as well as other objects not representing surfaces Arc Line Circle will be ignored When desiging a 3D model make sure to place it in the first quarter of the co ordinates system as close to the 0 0 position ...

Page 16: ...y of your PC For any 3D work in MegaCut it is recommended your PC has at least 4GB of RAM and a fact CPU A slow configuration PC will result in very long time it will take to calculate the tool paths BMP grayscale bitmaps The software will calculate the depth of tooling based on the depth values you set for the white and black colors It is important to keep all color changes smooth Note your BMP m...

Page 17: ...rdinates G0 Set movement speed read from MegaCut Configuration G1 Set tooling speed as set in F parameter G2 Set clockwise curve speed G3 Set anticlockwise curve speed X Y x and y co ordinates I J K Circle center I x J y K z absolute adressing F Working speed limited by machine type S Spindle rotation limited by spindle type All other commands are ignored Working speed and spindle rotations are se...

Page 18: ...0 Y20 Z5 N60 G0 X0 Y0 Z5 N10 G90 G21 N20 G0 X15 Y15 Z5 N30 G1 Z 1 N30 X20 N40 Y20 N50 Z5 N60 G0 X0 Y0 Z5 Groups of contradicting commands in a single line N10 G0 G1 X15 Y15 F1000 In the above example both G0 and G1 are set The software will only change the G1 to F1000 However in the following example N10 G1 G0 X15 Y15 F1000 G0 will be set Both absolute and incremental addressing can be used in a s...

Page 19: ...ks to the simulation feature it is possible to preview on the PC screen the exact tooling sequence prior to starting the actual cut Machine start up procedure Machine start up procedure When turning on the machine please always follow this sequence of steps turn the electronic controller on turn the red main switch clockwise turn on the spindle cooling pump turn on the PC ensure the proper control...

Page 20: ...Control Window enlarged The control window can be switched to a special touch screen friendly mode See Manual Control window While the functionality remains the same the modified look with larger buttons etc is better suited for operation with fingers instead of a mouse To force the modified view you will need to modify the software shortcut again as explained above when changing the language vers...

Page 21: ...st often commands e g open a file tooling process commands project zoom There is also a status bar at the button showing current information on the machine status Each opened file has a handy pop up window available under a right button mouse click with the following options Info shows project s dimensions estimated tooling time scale setting tool diameter www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 off...

Page 22: ...ed by e g using a different length unit in the graphics software e g inch instead of mm errors in the export procedure in the graphics software e g when exporting to plt from CorelDraw 11 in this particular case setting the scale to 101 6 fixes the problem Alternatively you can re export from CorelDraw 11 to dxf which will have no such error The estimated cutting time shown in this window is based...

Page 23: ...e Configuration window go to Configuration Main The various available parameters are available under different tabs and should be adjusted and saved prior to opening a file The title bar of the Configuration window shows the location of the configuration file You can save a number of different configuration settings and then open them as needed If you have a problem with cutting a particular shape...

Page 24: ...r the tooling will be done on different depths layers Layers are indicated by different colors and each layer color has a corresponding tooling depth For more details please go to Multi layer drawings Depth multiplier this only applies to multi layer drawings in the plt format The depth of each layer in automatically preset as the pen width depth multiplier Prior to starting a cut please double ch...

Page 25: ... G codes Absolute co ordinates of arch centers I J will be interpreted as absolute co ordinates in relation to the project s starting location When off relative addressing will apply in relation to the last location Sequence tab Shape within shape set the sequence of cutting of shapes consisting of smaller shapes inside e g letters O or P Keep original sequence keep the sequence from the drawing I...

Page 26: ...able optimization for a given project Directions tab The direction of tooling is a very important parameter which may have an impact on the quality of the cut CNC tab This tab consists of the most important tooling parameters www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 27: ...rly based on the material being tooled as well as the tool It can be adjusted during a cut via the Manual Control window or the remote control The set speed may not be reached when cutting small objects or curves Spindle rotations any value between 3000 and 24000 rpm It can be adjusted during a cut via the Manual Control window or the remote control Move above material the height over the material...

Page 28: ... The before end setting determines the depth at which this polishing operation begins Polishing depth the distance the cutting path is offset in relation to the drawing during the spiral movement i e the amount of material which will be tooled right before reaching the required milling deoth Polishing speed speed during the polishing operation Before end depth at which the polishing operation begi...

Page 29: ... depth and pad thickness need to be set prior to the measurement procedure When measuring on the top of the material the material thickness may be set to 0 Ploter IP hidden by default as the ethernet module is an optional custom component It becomes visible only when the ethernet parameter is properly set details Network connection ethernet Ploter IP button sets the router s IP in the controller t...

Page 30: ...lders there is a danger of the spindle hitting those holders Load current location a button to set the X and Y values to the current spindle location Tool measurement Tool measurement The tool length needs to be measured every time a new tool is installed It determines the distance between the tool and the machine table The tool length measurement may be done either on the machine table the pad un...

Page 31: ...and repeat the process Ensure the measuring plate works properly apples to automatic measurement Touch the spindle with the measuring plate If the small letter t turns into a capital T it means the automatic tool length measurement is working properly Automatic tool length measurement The automatic tool length measurement is done with the measuring plate described above The spindle will slowly mov...

Page 32: ...nd the measuring process To avoid this put a thin piece of isolation on the bottom of the measuring plate Make sure you remeasure the plate thickness and insert the correct value in the configuration CAUTION Always place the plate with the insulated side down Otherwise the measuring process will not work properly and may result in breaking the tool damaging the router or injury Semi automatic tool...

Page 33: ...will first move to the project s starting position and then the spindle rotation will turn on Spindle rotation and cutting speed may be adjusted during the cutting process You can stop the cutting process at any time by clicking STOP If it is necessary to clean the tool you can move the spindle to any location on the machine and once the tool is clean press CONTINUE or Shift F2 and the router will...

Page 34: ...awing go to Configuration and in the Import tab select the project type to Multi layer Once selected the milling depth setting in the CNC tab will be deactivated as instead of one milling depth you will now need to specify the depth for each layer separately To set the parameters for each layer open the Layers window by either right clicking on the drawing or going to Configuration Layers www mega...

Page 35: ...of a given color will be skipped Deactivated layers will be crossed out in the example below the green layer is inactive The layers which have been turned off will be displayed with dotted lines Even after you deactivate an entire layer it is still possible to turn back off selected elements of a layer Simply select an object right click on it and activate it Once a multi layer drawing is opened t...

Page 36: ... pen width can be specified in the CorelDraw plt export window DXF the initial depths are based on the milling depth setting from the CNC tab in Configuration When back in the main window you can select any shape you wish and confirm the settings by checking the milling depth as displayed on the bottom status bar Multi layer drawings requirements www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megapl...

Page 37: ...e of a closed shape go to Functions Lining You can modify the lining operation by specifying the distance between the passes as well as the required angle Prior to performing the lining operation it is important to select as required the Cut the negative and Skip the frame parameters as they influence the lining operation insides vs outsides Select Allow for tool diameter if required The following...

Page 38: ...s with the multi layer drawings described above Manual Control window Manual Control window The manual control window allows for a number of manual operations including the control of the machine in each axis as well as activating and deactivating spindle rotations always make sure the spindle cooling www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 39: ...control window shows the machine co ordinates in relation to its absolute home position as well as the project s co ordinates in relation to its starting location Note the remote control display only shows the project s co ordinates This window can display in the alternative touch friendly mode as described earlier Control Window enlarged www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 40: ... the obstacle In this case home the machine to bring it back to its original home position To ensure the homing process is performed properly and precisely ensure the proximity switches as well as the lead screw covers are clean and allow for free movement see MAINTENANCE RECOMMENDATIONS Project s starting location The difference between the machine home position and the project s starting locatio...

Page 41: ...elow Before you execute the movement please make sure to bring the spindle up so the tool does not run into the material or the material holders You can use this to check the location of last project s starting location Simply select To project s co ordinates and insert 0 for all three axes Network connection ethernet Network connection ethernet The standard controller PC is done via USB connectio...

Page 42: ...r tab enter the ploter IP for the machine it needs to be unique on your network press the ploter IP button The IP should now show up on the controller s display activate the network connection ethernet setting confirm by clicking OK close MegaCut disconnect the USB cable from PC and the controller connect the controller to your ethernet network open MegaCut if the connection works properly Etherne...

Page 43: ...ach line should have the calibration value for the given axis X Y and Z np Kalibracja txt 1 003 increases movement by 3mm in X axis 0 999 decreases movement by 2mm in Y axis 1 000 no calibration in X axis For axis not requiring calibration set the value to 1 0 This calibration files should be placed in the main MegaCut folder where the frez_mdi exe is located The calibration must be within the ran...

Page 44: ... proper controller PC connection controller display should read Ready USB connected if it says USB disconnected it means the PC failed to recognise the machine properly start MegaCut 3D software Possible problems in controller PC communication are explained in the following section Błąd Nie znaleziono źródła odwołania First run activation First run activation MegaCut 3D is supplied with each XMD r...

Page 45: ...ot available it defaults to English Should you require MegaCut software in any other language please do not hesitate to contact MegaPlot To force the MegaCut application to start in a different language provided it is available you need to modify the MegaCut shortcut icon located on your PC desktop At the end of the Target element line add a space and the required language code US PL www megaplot ...

Page 46: ...he functionality remains the same the modified look with larger buttons etc is better suited for operation with fingers instead of a mouse To force the modified view you will need to modify the software shortcut again as explained above when changing the language version After a space add TouchPanel so the line looks like this C Program Files Megaplot MegaCut3D MegaCut3D exe touchPanel www megaplo...

Page 47: ...preview the output files tool paths Below the model you will see three lists tool library operations list and output files list The bottom bar displays current information as well as a progress bar indicating the process of generating output files On the right side the name of the project is displayed www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 48: ...on Manual Control Set Project s starting postion 2 Open MegaCut 3D 3 Create a new project Project New CTRL N 4 Open a previously prepared 3D model Model Open CTR O 5 Set material size Menu Material 6 Define the tools you will use for given operations Tool library 7 Define the operations you will perform and set their parameters Operations 8 Select the operations you will perform 9 Generate the out...

Page 49: ...n CTRL O double click on the black preview section CTRL O Depending on the model dimensions and resolution file size the file should open within 5 15 seconds Once it loads you can view it in various ways rotate it with the right click move with the left click zoom in and out mouse roll or CTRL right click To go to the initial view select Model Restore original view To preview information about the...

Page 50: ...need to specify the height values for the black and white colors And the software will automatically determine the heights for all grays in between If for example you set 5 for white and 0 for black the lighter shades will be above the darker ones and the letter T from the example above will be convex At this point you can also scale your bmp file both length and height Material Material Material ...

Page 51: ...l the location of the model in your material see Machine home position vs the project s starting position Location of the model in the material Should your material be much higher than the height of your model you can control the height at which the model will be cut By entering the total material height as its Z height the model will be cut at the button of your material In this case the roughing...

Page 52: ...s It is recommended a 1 mm layer is left on top Location of the model in the material vs bmp heights The bmp files give you even more choices as you can additionally modify the values for black and white www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 53: ...l Flat tools are mostly used for the roughing operations as well as for surfacing operations Ball tools are most often used for the finishing operations and the conical tools are mostly used for very fine details only On the right side of the tool library there are buttons which allow to add edit and delete tools from the library When adding a new tool make sure you specify all of its parameters N...

Page 54: ...fferent types of operations roughing always used as the first operation to get rid of excess material as quickly as possible Typically after this operation you will have a thin layer of material left for the following finishing operations lining a finishing operation in which the tool moves in parallel lines over the 3D model Distance between the lines as well as the required angle is set in param...

Page 55: ...itable surface a finishing operation for surfaces often used to compliment the layering operation The algorithms qualify surfaces to be tooled based on their area in relation to the area of the entire model Hence small surfaces of a large model may be skipped in this operation mixed a finishing operation similar to the layer operation as it moves from top to the bottom However here the tooling pat...

Page 56: ... material tool type thickness and depth of layers This setting can be adjusted during the cutting process in Manual Control or with the remote control Movement speed speed at which the machine moves over the material can usually be st to the max machine speed Drilling speed speed at which the tool enters the material Rotations spindle rotations any value in the range 3000 24000 rpm This setting ca...

Page 57: ... only be tooled one way Output files Output files Output files are the tool paths generated by the software based on the operations Once an operation or a number of operations is defined click Generated output files or select Tooling Generate output files F4 When generating new output files all previously generated output files will be lost Since the output files generation can be a time consuming...

Page 58: ...y time a new tool is installed It determines the distance between the tool and the machine table For 3D tooling it is recommended the tool length is measured on the table level Measuring the tool length on the material is not a good idea as after the first operation the top layer of the material will be taken off and there will be no reference for subsequent measurements Note the table level here ...

Page 59: ...page 59 of 73 Before you measure the tool length make sure correct pad thickness is set in Configuration Configuration Ploter Pad www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com ...

Page 60: ...measuring plate works properly apples to automatic measurement Touch the spindle with the measuring plate If the small letter t turns into a capital T it means the automatic tool length measurement is working properly Automatic tool length measurement The automatic tool length measurement is done with the measuring plate described above The spindle will slowly move down until it tool reaches the p...

Page 61: ...ation on the bottom of the measuring plate Make sure you remeasure the plate thickness and insert the correct value in the configuration CAUTION Always place the plate with the insulated side down Otherwise the measuring process will not work properly and may result in breaking the tool damaging the router or injury Semi automatic tool length measurement Alternatively you can measure the tool leng...

Page 62: ... position so it needs to be able to move above the material Once you set the project s starting location set the material size measure the tool length and generate the output files you are ready to start Select one of the output files and click Start Always start with the roughing operation followed by one or more finishing operations the lining operation usually proves most useful Usually you wil...

Page 63: ...during a cut by means of sliders in Manual Control or with the wired remote control see THE WIRED REMOTE CONTROL Manual Control Manual Control The manual control window allows for a number of manual opperations including the control of the machin in each axis as well as activating and deactivating spindle rotations always make sure the spindle cooling system is on before you turn the spindle rotat...

Page 64: ...he proximity sensors It is recommended to perform the homing process when the machine was blocked while moving or the tool got stuck inside of material because of wrong cutting parameters If the machine gets stuck in the material or by hitting an object on its table you will hear the sound of the motors trying to overcome the obstacle In this case home the machine to bring it back to its original ...

Page 65: ...current machine location Note this location will be remembered even after the controller has been turned off and back on You can save any number of project s starting locations name them and go back to them in the future as required Just select the one you wish to set and click Set Move to and Move by Apart from manual movement in the Manual Control window you can also move the machine precisely i...

Page 66: ...sult in identical rotation of the output files Ploter tab Tool Lenthg Measurement Plate Pad Thickness real thickness of the measuring plater Set ploter IP saves the inserted IP into the electronic controller USB connection is required for this operation Network connection ethernet activates the network connection Notifications tab MegaCut3D can send a notification to another PC on the same network...

Page 67: ... via standard USB connection right click on the MegaCut shortcut icon on PC desktop and modify the path by adding a space at the end and adding the parameter ethernet The target path should now look as follows C Program Files Megaplot MegaCut frez_mdi exe ethernet start MegaCut go to Configuration and the Ploter tab enter the ploter IP for the machine it needs to be unique on your network press th...

Page 68: ...ely In order to calibrate the machine in this way create a text file named kalibracja txt The file should have three lines and each line should have the calibration value for the given axis X Y and Z np Kalibracja txt 1 003 increases movement by 3mm in X axis 0 998 decreases movement by 2mm in Y axis 1 000 no calibration in X axis For axis not requiring calibration set the value to 1 0 This calibr...

Page 69: ...ng in your PC all power saving modes screen saver Max drawing model size 2D the only limitation is the working are of the machine 3D limited by the PC hardware memory plus CPU If the PC is sufficiently strong and fast 3D models of up to 50x50 cm should work fine sometimes up to 1x1 meter It is highly recommended to equip the PC in as much RAM as possible at least 4GB when working with 3D models Th...

Page 70: ...he lining operation available under Functions Lining in MegaCut 1 There are four basic types of lining vertical HPATTERN_VERTICAL horizontal HPATTERN_HORIZONTAL forward slash HPATTERN_FORWARD_SLASH back slash HPATTERN_BACK_SLASH www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 ...

Page 71: ... first the machine will cut the lines and then the outlines If this feature is off first all the lines in the entire drawing will be cut and next the outlines as set in the Cutting Direction setting www megaplot com phone 48 693 707 575 office megaplot com 8 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 9 10 11 12 1 3 2 3 1 ...

Page 72: ... overlapping one and deleted it has to have the exact same number of nodes with the exact same values for each node They need to have the starting and ending nodes in the same spots Note that if the Connect the nodes feature is on the software will connect all the nodes prior to attempting the overlapping lines deleting This means all open shapes will turn into closed ones and as a result they wil...

Page 73: ...t is recommend it to clean the machine off with compressed air on regular basis Do not use a vacuum during the router s operation as the electrostatics may interrupt machine operation Use distilled water for the water cooling system The water pump should be completely underwater at all times Make sure none of the pipes feeding the water are bent or damaged To avoid overloading the spindle always u...

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