Engraving on a diameter

[BNFab]

I am having trouble setting up some engraving on a diameter... Basically it is 30" round layed flat on a horizontal and I need to run engraving on the diameter. I figured out how to roll the engraving around the diameter (sort of) but it makes the geometry like 7000 entities and I cannot select it.. Is there a different way other than using the roll function?

[BOATDUDEGUY]

I havent done it in a while bur there are several ways

Easy enough that I figired it out once just by playong around with it for a but

You can create the letters on an arc

Like when you go to make the letters it will ask if you want it to be on an arc so you just tell it the size you want

You can get it I mean If I figured it out on my own with no book or anyone to help me then its not that complicated

[BNFab]

I am thinking of wrapping around a diameter though, whenever I do it with the letters tab it just does in arc on a flat surface....

 

Say you are in top view looking down at ther 30" diameter. Part is 2" thick, when you go to front view, and see the "side" of the round, that is where I need to wrap the engraving around..

[ajmer]

draw the letters in the front plane

then do a 2d contour, use the rotary axis tab, enable axis sub, for a horizontal it should be set for x axis

then enter the diameter you want to wrap around,make sure you draw the letters at z0

hope that helps

[BNFab]

I attatched a pictutre of what I am talking about.. When I wrap it around it is no longer 2d and it makes a ton of entities and my geometry is crazy. Is there a way to keep it changed together?

 

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img692/2684/engp.png

[BOATDUDEGUY]

Ya looks wild when I get off in the am if no ones helped you correct this by then ill do one and be able to give you more accurate instructions of what im trying to explain

[BNFab]

draw the letters in the front plane

then do a 2d contour, use the rotary axis tab, enable axis sub, for a horizontal it should be set for x axis

then enter the diameter you want to wrap around,make sure you draw the letters at z0

hope that helps

I tried this, and it backplots in reverse.. Like inside out, I tried switching the tabs around but it still doesn't seem right...

[Roger]

Have a look at this file. I hope it helps...........

ENGRAVING.MCX-6

[BNFab]

Have a look at this file. I hope it helps...........

 

Thanks, still not quite sure what I am doing wrong. I can make it backplot correctly if I flip the engraving 180 from my view. Then it looks correct but I tried to post and it says : Error-Axis substitution is setup for HMC with -Y zero position...

 

EDIT: Here is my test file and what it is doing.. Can anyone tell me what I am doing wrong?

TEST.MCX-6

[cadman2112]

I took your geometry and to place it in the exact position you had it, I translated on the X axis (dia x pi) /2 for the correct chordal positon

 

Then rechained, I also set your direction to CW which in 99.9% of all uses will be correct, it really should be the default setting

 

hth

CADMAN_TEST.MCX-6

[BOATDUDEGUY]

A simple solution the way i always did it cuz i did alot of 4th axis engraving

 

draw the letters in the position how you want

toolpath, contour

then just axis substitution on y enter your part dia and boom

 

ya the backplot and toolpaths look like that but thats the way i always did it

and it always worked for me atleast.

 

prety much like aimer said

dont worry about wrapping

keep it simple cuz its just that

[RayD]

Here is a good file that shows how to position the ID labels at your desired rotary position, basically

 

360deg/Desired Angle= "X"

 

Circumference / "X"= position along axis

ID BANDS.MCX-6

[mx247]

I ran into this same issue the other day. The other programmer I work with walked me thru it, but it's good to have a couple other examples to reference.

[The_kid]

you could also create letters in front view. in the postion you want. then x form roll onto the diameter then contour in 3d mode. it gives more flexablity to play around with settings while creating the letters.

[SledGeek]

Nice Rush quote cadman ; ) used it plenty of times !

[BNFab]

you could also create letters in front view. in the postion you want. then x form roll onto the diameter then contour in 3d mode. it gives more flexablity to play around with settings while creating the letters.

 

This is how I originally did it... My real issue is that when I do this and roll it, it breaks up all my lettering into tiny little splines or whatever... Then when I chain the geometry it is a few hundred chains... That makes my code super long, and gives me a lot of unneccesary Z retracts... I ended up just leaving it how I had it and did a 3d contour like you said.. It worked perfectly, I just want to figure out how I can keep the letters chained when I roll them.... My engraving code made my program 3 times longer.. ...

 

Thanks for the examples though guys, it helped me a lot to see different ways of doing things...