What's new
By:
Advanced search…

How to change Z of bottom most object to be the new zero?

R

ReedMikel

Member
Newbie designing a cribbage board and started with just the extruded B area. As a last minute change, I added a rectangle - extruding it downward from bottom of the B. Since bottom of B is the current Z0, the extruded rectangle is now in negative Z space. How can I redefine Z0 to be the bottom of extruded rectangle?

TIA,
-Mike


B cribbage bd.jpg
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
DavidJ

DavidJ

Administrator
Staff member
You can't easily do that if your sketch defining the B is on the XY plane.

Do you have Atom3D or a higher level? A part Boolean could be used if you have higher version. Or in Atom3D, place the part in an assembly at the desired position - then export as ACIS, then re-import.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
R

ReedMikel

Member
DavidJ said:
You can't easily do that if your sketch defining the B is on the XY plane.

Do you have Atom3D or a higher level? A part Boolean could be used if you have higher version. Or in Atom3D, place the part in an assembly at the desired position - then export as ACIS, then re-import.
Click to expand...
I have Atom3D. I think I know an easier solution: I will delete my rectangle that was drawn on the bottom surface of the B. Instead, I'll draw it right on the XY plane (Z0)...
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
DavidJ

DavidJ

Administrator
Staff member
Does it actually matter if the rectangle goes negative? In CNC machining, your CAM should allow you to set the part up in the machine.

YES - you can extrude the rectangle in +Z direction (either from base of B or from XY plane). You could go back and add height to the B extrusion if needed to keep it proud of the rectangle.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
R

ReedMikel

Member
DavidJ said:
Does it actually matter if the rectangle goes negative? In CNC machining, your CAM should allow you to set the part up in the machine.

YES - you can extrude the rectangle in +Z direction (either from base of B or from XY plane). You could go back and add height to the B extrusion if needed to keep it proud of the rectangle.
Click to expand...
The Snapmaker Luban software that comes with my A350 machine doesn't seem to like the negative Z space. So thought it would be a simple change to reorient and try again...

I am using MeshCAM Pro to generate the g-code file for my A350's CNC toolhead. MeshCAM did show the rectangle in negative Z space, so thought that might be an issue. Total CNC newbie here :)
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0 Downvote
Ex Machina

Ex Machina

Senior Member
ReedMikel said:
The Snapmaker Luban software that comes with my A350 machine doesn't seem to like the negative Z space. So thought it would be a simple change to reorient and try again...

I am using MeshCAM Pro to generate the g-code file for my A350's CNC toolhead. MeshCAM did show the rectangle in negative Z space, so thought that might be an issue. Total CNC newbie here :)
Click to expand...
I have not used MeshCAM at all but in every CAM system I have used (ProEngineer, HSMWorks, EdgeCAM, SolidCAM, etc.) you can set the coordinate system realtive to the part or the stock.

Sure, for a single part it'd be nice if the coordinate system already matches the desired one, but when you're doing an assembly and using top-down design techniques you need to be able to set the coordinate system in your CAM.

It'll be a very useful tool in your skills toolbox to figure out how to do it in your system.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
R

ReedMikel

Member
Ex Machina said:
I have not used MeshCAM at all but in every CAM system I have used (ProEngineer, HSMWorks, EdgeCAM, SolidCAM, etc.) you can set the coordinate system realtive to the part or the stock.

Sure, for a single part it'd be nice if the coordinate system already matches the desired one, but when you're doing an assembly and using top-down design techniques you need to be able to set the coordinate system in your CAM.

It'll be a very useful tool in your skills toolbox to figure out how to do it in your system.
Click to expand...
I think my problem was that the MeshCAM file format I saved my project to was not compatible with my Marlin-based Snapmaker machine. Changed file format from MACH3 to TURBOCNC V3 and it milled perfectly. I would have thought MeshCAM and Alibre would have accumulated a database of what file formats work with what machines - but not so :(. Even if they at least could say “for Marlin-based machines, use the TURBOCNC V3 file format “. Instead, newbies are left to figure it out on their own - oh well…
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top