I’ll be amazed if i get any answers on this but as there are a few cnc guys on here as well as auto cad type users i thought i may as well ask…. Basically i am trying to convert our tooling output to run on an old heidenhain tnc150 controller and cannot find a post processor to do this. We use a specialist software for our cam outputs and can output seib meyer, excellon , gerber and also DXF files. I would be great if we could put one of these outputs into a processor and get a file which our cnc could read…. up to now i cant find one. has anyone got any ideas?, i dont hold out much hope but you never know…. cheers anyway

what do you mean by tooling output? do you have cam software?

you have an iso g code program which you need to convert to heidenhain? you can run heidenhain as iso g code, well on a tnc2500 you can, so the manual tells me.

most cam software has a heidenhain post processor, and if not they have a post wizard which you stuff all the info in and it write one for you – presumably you have an old as the hills interact you are running?

has the interact (im guessing) got an rs232 port? or maybe a floppy disk? you need a way of pushing the data into it.

Yeah on the newer tnc units i know you can, We can probably output as an iso g code but the software we use is specifically for the manufacture of printed circuits so is limited to the equipment used by that industry. interaction is ok through an rs232 (baud 2400!!) or microcassette!!!. what cad/cam do you use and do you know of any free stuff i coould try out?
cheers.

Not sure about your bit of kit but I use cambam for creating G-code. It’s free for the first 40 goes then it’ll let you do a short amount of code without paying. Lots of post options. Its has basic drawing functions but I tend to import DXFs. It’s worth getting the layers set up in a proper CAD package before importing, eg group holes on one layer, outside cuts on another, etc

Cheers, i think thats what our front end guy just found!, as ever there is NOTHING that STW cannot answer*
*well maybe not, but still its pretty impressive all the same!