Fusion360: DXF export with kerf compensation for laser cutting

Рет қаралды 14,206

Күн бұрын

In this video I describe how I use Fusion 360’s CAM module to adjust for kerf in designs that I intend to cut on my Glowforge Laser.
Autodesk DXF Post Processor: cam.autodesk.com/posts/downloa...
How to install a cloud post processor in Fusion 360: knowledge.autodesk.com/suppor...

Пікірлер: 34

@JeremyFry 4 жыл бұрын

Man I've been doing this manually in Illustrator for longer than I'd like to admin. You just saved me hundreds of hours!

@kurtb3367 3 жыл бұрын

If anyone is looking for the CAM menu option, it is now called MANUFACTURE. Also, the CUTTING profile is under the FABRICATION tab.

@tortillachief7770 5 жыл бұрын

Brand new to laser cutting and every single one of your videos has been easy to follow and tremendously helpful. You're the real mvp.

@BRadFPV 6 жыл бұрын

Follow up... Opening the DXF in AI was the secret to exposing layers. Your videos were key to the success of my project!!! Thank you :)

@HobbyistMaker 6 жыл бұрын

I've got quite a few more videos in the works, when I can get the time to edit them. Looking forward to the feedback on those.

@WastedHalo 4 жыл бұрын

Good info, thank you. I've always used a parameter for kerf which works just fine. Your way seems a little better if I can get used to doing it that way.

@MrEddyJacob 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot for your very usefull videos. I made my first box (a few times) and have it ready for my laser cutter (after resolving an error). Still need to learn certain functionalities of Fusion 360, but you certainly get me going on the right path. Keep on making these super videos ! KR, Eddy.

@danbir 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks you very much for your great work on these Finger Joint Boxes! I was able to integrate it into my own (first) Fusion project without any problem! Unfortunately I did also get strange paths on the .dxf especially on corners when importing into RDWorks (for Chinese Laser Cutters). I don't have AI and I haven't tried to clean it up in Inkscape but when I set "Output Polylines" to "Yes" in the .dxf postprocessor, then I get a much cleaner result! Some of the corners are still slightly rounded instead of 90° but there are no more strange half-moon artefacts on the corners. I did not cut it on the laser yet, but I think it should work fine. Thanks again!

@rdkoehn2330 3 жыл бұрын

THANK YOU SO MUCH finally someone that helped me out lol sorry bout that caps😁

@tommeyers7850 4 жыл бұрын

Thank you. Exactly what I needed today.

@HobbyistMaker 4 жыл бұрын

I'm glad this was helpful.

@alexiageorge2304 5 жыл бұрын

This is awesome! Thank you :-)

@PatternMusic 5 жыл бұрын

Great tutorial on Fusion's CAM module! But I find Fusion's CAM module is unnecessarily complicated for generating laser cutter output. There are a couple easier solutions. 1) create a sketch from the main face of each part you want to cut. Then do a Save as DXF for each sketch. Or 2) use the free DXF for Laser (DXF4Laser) add-in by Ross Korsky available from the Autodesk App Store. DXF4Laser outputs a DXF from a selected face in one operation eliminating the need to create a sketch file. DXF4Laser will also do kerf compensation if you find you need it. (I generally do not.)

@HobbyistMaker 5 жыл бұрын

The sketch method works well, as does DXF4Laser. But, the sketch method will become more difficult in a more complex model; especially when you are joining and combining objects, and will completely break under certain circumstances with parametric models. I haven't used DXF4Laser recently, but I find the CAM module to be a more robust alternative for saving and reusing settings. But, yes, it is more complex.

@cheesewhiz32 4 жыл бұрын

another great video!

@PRO3DESIGN 5 жыл бұрын

Nice one!

@madnat_ 2 жыл бұрын

Hi there - is there a newer version of this super helpful tutorial. Seems F360 CAM process has undergone a significant overhaul since 2018? Thank you

@joshrosenstock2798 3 жыл бұрын

This was super helpful, thank you. One question about an option in newer versions of Fusion360. In the 2D Profile Cut/Passes/Outer Corner Mode. I'm assuming for a laser this would be Keep Sharp? Thanks

@guritche 4 жыл бұрын

I don't have libraries. Only projects and samples. Has this changed in newer versions?

@ChiefBridgeFuser 6 жыл бұрын

Your videos on the finger joints were massively helpful to me in understanding how to use Fusion 360. This one on the CAM setup is how I got a grasp on how to do anything with CAM. I found the Autodesk DXF post frustrating for the laser cutter I have access to: separating operations into layers leads to lots of manual work to finish the setup. Also, the laser cutter in question uses color on the layers to categorize operations (speed, power, order). I modified the Autodesk dxf.cps to generate a better DXF for this one (LaserCut 5.3 on a Chinese laser). Would you be interested in trying it out?

@HobbyistMaker 6 жыл бұрын

Chief, I'm not sure I understand your statement/question. I'm glad the finger joint videos were helpful. The CAM video is focused on addressing my need to easily export the DXFs for cutting on my Glowforge laser, which uses colors for different purposes than other lasers. I separate each operation into a layer so that I can use one export operation from Fusion 360 and get everything over to Illustrator for final tweaks, and operation ordering. I'd be interested in seeing the tweaks you made to the default DXF post processor. I was considering some changes to it to see if I could reduce the amount of manual post-processing needed in Illustrator, but have had no time to look at it.

@ChiefBridgeFuser 6 жыл бұрын

Here's a link to where you can find the modified post processor: github.com/alexander-at/Fusion360Helpers/tree/master/Fusion360_to_ChineseLaserDXF The defaults are now like you set a couple of them. You'll need to adjust the X and Y step size to something larger than your largest part so that they don't overlap; that part needs some work in the post to make it less work for the humans.

@foodini 4 жыл бұрын

When I do the dxf export, making sure that "Put operations in separate layers" is checked, I get a .dxf with only one layer in it - at least, only one layer appears when I load it into RDCAM.

@HobbyistMaker 4 жыл бұрын

I haven't used RDCAM, so I'm not sure if I can provide any guidance that would help. Do you have any other software (e.g. Illustrator, Inkscape) that you could check the files with?

@L18mvw 6 жыл бұрын

My dxf has linking (yellow and green) lines. How did you avoid this? I think they are linking internal cuts? I have to ungroup the dxf and go around deleting all of them 🙄

@HobbyistMaker 6 жыл бұрын

If I recall correctly, the extra lines are caused by having lead-in enabled on the tool path.

@anacristinabarrinha1152 6 жыл бұрын

It's possible to render the lines of a sketch in fusion, like a laser engrave a mdf board? Example: images.tcdn.com.br/img/img_prod/426624/149_2_20180125180558.jpg

@BRadFPV 6 жыл бұрын

Getting very weird DXF paths exported. Corners of fingers have strange half moon paths. Lines are not horizontal or vertical. Got hours messing with this and unable to eliminate these artifacts.

@HobbyistMaker 6 жыл бұрын

This sounds like the tool setup is too large. Are you using the 2D Cutting operation, and what is the Kerf value that you are using? If the Kerf is too large, you will see rounded corners instead of sharp corners.

@BRadFPV 6 жыл бұрын

0.08mm kerf, found main problem... don't group paths in AI. Also, needed to join paths. BUT... still can't open DXF with layers from CAM post. Matching your settings. Using AI CS5. Maybe it is too old?

@HobbyistMaker 6 жыл бұрын

I have CS5 on another machine. I can try it tomorrow.

@BRadFPV 6 жыл бұрын

It would be nice to know if CS5 is causing issues.

@HobbyistMaker 6 жыл бұрын

Unfortunately, it looks like CS5 isn't working on my other laptop, but I found information that says the DXF import should work. Make sure that you are opening the DXF directly, or dragging it to AI. Don't use the File->Place function. forums.adobe.com/thread/998776#