Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Made by Autodesk, this is the best option for working with DXF files.
gsmith
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Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by gsmith » Sat Sep 08, 2018 11:19 am

Fusion360 is a very powerful CAD/CAM software. I use it for my cnc mill, but it also has a cutting function on the CAM side which has many great features. Probably the best feature for plasma cutting is it lets you set your lead-in/lead-out arch diameters and lengths and you can set where you torch fires, either from outside the part or inside. So if you have holes to cut, you can set it to start the cut inside the hole and arch into the outer diameter for cleaner cuts. If you want to cut the flimsy parts first then cut the more massive portion last, you can set that as well. Ryan and Lindsey, I hope you guys can get Fusion360 figured out with your machines, it would be a great feature.

I've tried simple rectangles and holes so far with it and simply can't find a gcode to work with it. If anyone knows how to do the post processing/gcode for Fusion360, please share.

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Dave
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by Dave » Sun Sep 09, 2018 2:19 am

Can you post the gcode file that comes out of Fusion 360?

Also, the cut styles on the tablet has an "add pierce points" option that does what you want with offsets and pierce points when it isn't bugged (current release it's not working, but a fix is on the way), but it defaults the "arc in" length to 3x the cut width and arc out to 1.5x the cut width and automatically shortens the arc length for small inside holes. Would you want to be able to specify arc in and arc out? It also automatically detects inside edge and outside edge and sorts cuts by part and by distance (cuts all the inside holes on a part then cuts the outer cut of the part, then moves to the next closest part), and "Reverse Offset Side" is useful if you want to cut holes into an existing part. It's mostly to deal with random stuff that comes out of Inkscape so it ignores the start/stop points and handedness of the cut on incoming gcode and moves the starting pierce point to wherever the best place for an arc-in is. It's not perfect. Sometimes it puts pierce points on the wrong side and sometimes it gets the inside vs outside cut wrong, so you have to check the results. 90% of the time when it gets it wrong, you can rotate the pattern a little and it will get it right. Still trying to figure that one out.

When it works it looks like the attached snapshots.
Attachments
Screenshot_20180908-210820.jpg
Screenshot_20180908-210724.jpg
Screenshot_20180908-210631.jpg

gsmith
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by gsmith » Fri Sep 14, 2018 6:52 am

Here's the actual gcode that fusion 360 spat out when selecting the "Generic Burny Plasma" option from the drop down menu in F360. The screenshots from F360 are listed below also.

%
N10P00001001
N11G70
N12G90
N13X0.9252Y0.8317
N14M04
N15G41
N16X0.9397Y0.8066F39.3701
N17X1.0755Y0.885
N18G03X1.165Y1.04I0.986J1.04
N19G03I0.79J1.04
N20G03X1.0755Y1.195I0.986J1.04
N21X0.9397Y1.2734
N22G40
N23X0.9252Y1.2483
N24M03
N25X1.3002Y1.4982
N26M04
N27G41
N28X1.3147Y1.4731F39.3701
N29X1.4505Y1.5515
N30G03X1.54Y1.7066I1.361J1.7066
N31Y3.54
N32X5.54
N33Y0.54
N34X1.54
N35Y1.7066
N36G03X1.4505Y1.8616I1.361J1.7066
N37X1.3147Y1.94
N38G40
N39X1.3002Y1.9149
N40M03
N41X0.671Y2.822
N42M04
N43G41
N44X0.6558Y2.7973F39.3701
N45X0.7894Y2.7151
N46G03X0.9684Y2.7101I0.8832J2.8676
N47G03I0.79J3.04
N48G03X1.0622Y2.8626I0.8832J2.8676
N49X1.0665Y3.0194
N50G40
N51X1.0375Y3.0202
N52M03
N53X0.2798Y2.944
N54M04
N55G41
N56X0.2653Y2.9691F39.3701
N57X0.1295Y2.8907
N58G03X0.04Y2.7356I0.219J2.7356
N59Y0.04
N60X6.04
N61Y4.04
N62X0.04
N63Y2.7356
N64G03X0.1295Y2.5806I0.219J2.7356
N65X0.2653Y2.5022
N66G40
N67X0.2798Y2.5273
N68M03
N69M79T1
N70M30

1gcode.PNG
1gcode.PNG
1gcode.PNG
Attachments
4gcode viewer.PNG
2gcode.PNG

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Dave
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by Dave » Sat Sep 15, 2018 4:34 pm

I checked out that gcode on the tablet and on ncviewer.com and saw pretty much the same thing -- a bunch of circles -- so the problem isn't on the tablet. I know folks use Fusion 360 with GoFab tables, but I don't know what their process is, and I'm a Fusion 360 noob, but my guess would be to try a different post configuration.

One of the reasons I went with GoFab was so I wouldn't have to deal with overly complicated software just for cutting out 2D shapes :lol: . I'll reach out to a buddy that uses 360 all the time with his router and see if we can't nail down a work flow.

GregSmith
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by GregSmith » Wed Sep 19, 2018 9:41 pm

Thanks, I tried most of the post processes in 360.

If I use the “trace” function in the CAM set up. And use EMC or Linux post process it will transfer the design perfectly to gofab app. But it won’t fire off the torch or anything (unless I have a problem with my cutter, it just blew air after touching off again today using a simple inkscape design).

Here’s my notes so far, I think its a good start.
2D39F04C-81BD-4181-BFD6-0A3DD1D31023.jpeg

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Dave
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by Dave » Wed Sep 19, 2018 11:40 pm

Sounds like you got the gcode figured out. If it's going down for a pierce point and then firing air, it's sending the signal to the cutter to turn on but it's not getting a good arc. If you've got "Wait for ARC OK" enabled, the torch will just sit there an keep trying over and over. That could be a few things:

- Bad tip/loose electrode: try a fresh pair of consumables
- Torch clamp too tight: you should be able to twist the torch in the clamp without too much effort. This is a surprisingly common cause of failure to fire.
- Air pressure too low: the torch won't fire if the air pressure drops. Turn the "test air flow" switch on and set your regulator to 75psi while the air is running.
- Bad ground. Try attaching your ground directly to the metal being cut. If that fixes the problem, there's a gap in the circuit between where you're putting your ground on the table and the metal being cut.
- Ignite height too high or too low: if the gap between the torch and the metal is too big or too small, it won't get a good arc. If the torch looks like it's sitting on top of the metal, increase the ignite height, if it's backed off quite a bit, decrease the ignite height.

If none of that works, post the gcode and I'll try it out over here on a piece of scrap to rule that out.

GregSmith
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by GregSmith » Mon Sep 24, 2018 12:45 am

It was all in the torch, got it clamped right and firing nice. As for the Fusion360 Gcode, the Trace function does just what it says, trace. It will fire 1 pierce, retract, torch off, then trace the part out. Check out video.

https://youtu.be/_AdftinGS2o

wolfman86
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by wolfman86 » Thu Sep 27, 2018 10:30 am

Hi Greg I've tried contacting you on youtube. so the torch not arcing was due to a clamping issue?

GregSmith
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by GregSmith » Mon Oct 01, 2018 8:00 am

Yes, definitely. However, I know my air is not dry. I was popping the drains on two of my simple air filters/moisture bowls manually during torch operation. My electrode recently melted. I’m pretty sure its due to wet air. Next project is drying up the air.

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Dave
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Re: Anyone Have the Gcode to Make Fusion360 Work with GFCNC?

Post by Dave » Mon Oct 01, 2018 11:06 pm

I've got a water separator on my compressor and one of these just before the plasma cutter:

https://www.amazon.com/Cleaner-Dryer-Ca ... +air+dryer

Water trap on the cutter stays dry. Not sure if the desiccant that comes with it can be reactivated, but you can buy reusable desiccant on amazon pretty cheap.


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