[keelhauled]

Apologies I've posted this query on another forum and on the Alphacam website. We cut out a lot of signs for a local sign shop. He designs them in CorelDraw and gives them to me as a DXF. When I Input CAD it comes in as splines and I convert them to geometries. I tool them and set tool directions but when I do rough/finish some tool paths are always missing. When I try to rough/finish the parts that have no toolpaths seperately I get a 'Offset cannot be found' message. I click on views and then Show Breaks and there is usually lots of breaks in the text, but 99% of it will cut Ok. Is there a handy way of cleaning up these mistakes or am I doing anything wrong during importing, I've tried different tollerence values during converting from splines. Thanks in advance.

Mick
Advanced Router V7

[loko]

Hi Keelhauled,

As you have discovered, sending CorelDraw files to AlphaCAM is a nightmare, but all is not lost. When you open in V7 and convert from splines, turn on ghost tools to see how many geometries you have. The letter O should have two geometries only , for example.

Your problem is common lines, where lines or arcs are "stacked" on top of each other, but it looks like there is just one geometry. If you have two identical lines drawn in the same direction on top of each other, then the ghost tools will cancel each other out, and it will look like a geometry has no ghost tool. If the identical lines are drawn in opposite directions, then it will look like one geometry has a ghost tool at both ends.

A quick solution to your woes is available under UTILS - ADD INS - FREE OPTIONS: scroll down a little bit in the list untl you see COMMON LINE REMOVAL. Tick the check box and hit OK

This adds a command under UTILS - SPECIAL FUNCTIONS to do just what you are looking for.

Have fun.

PS Am based in Tullamore, where are you?

[ger21]

This should help with your Corel export problems.
http://www.candcnc.com/DXFTOOLDetails.htm

[keelhauled]

Thanks to you both for your input, I have found a foolproof solution in the meantime I just converted the cdr file in Corel to a dwg file and when I import into Alphacam it cuts like a dream. I have to scale up by a factor of 10 everytime as somehow the file 'shrinks' during transfer between programmes.

I have a small shopfitting company in Enniscorthy and we done a restaurant in Tullamore a few years ago. It was owned by an Italian called Paulo and his wife. He was killed shortly after in a car crash. Anyway I saw a photo of her standing knee deep in flood water in the Independent newspaper earlier this year. I rang to offer my help but she was sorted.

Thanks again to you both!