LPKF Workflow
1. Install the CAM processor for LPKF
Download file "gerberForLPKF.cam"
copy this file to the cam directory of Eagle application folder. (ex: Applications/EAGLE-7.1.0/cam)
2. In EagleCAD
1. You should already have a complete schematic and board layout complete in Eagle.
2. Print your layout to check the layout and component fit.
a. in the board view, select File->Print, and make sure you print at scale of 1
3. Export from Eagle CAM processor
a. in your board view, click CAM icon or File->CAM Processor. CAM popup appears
b. In the main menu bar, select File->Open->Job:
1. gerberForLPKF.cam. process job.
2. excellon.cam. process job.
4. This results in a bunch of files. .BOR, .CMP, .CRM, .DRD, .GPI, .PLC, .SOL, .STC, .STS, .VSC (10 total). These are your "Gerber Files". Some define images and some of them are drill hole information (excellon).
a. If you want to view them, zip them to one .zip archive, and upload them here: http://circuitpeople.com/. There are other gerber viewers you can download or build on your own system, but I haven't found an easy solution on OS X. Let me know if you do.
b. you can also test gerber files on your local machine with gerbv, an open source X-11 based gerber viewer. on OS X you can install this with homebrew.
c. What is a gerber file: http://circuitpeople.com/Blog/WhatIsAGerberFile.aspx
5. Thumb drive to transfer files to E:/Projects/YourFolder on LPKF machine*.
*From here on we will only be using the computer connected to the LPKF ProtoMat S100.
3. In CircuitCAM
1. Files->New->default.cat
2. File->Import:
a. find your local folder and select the following four files to import.
b. In "Import" window, specify Layer/Template for each file. See laminated reference sheet.
1. .BOR -> BOARDOUTLINE
2. .CMP -> TOP LAYER
3. .DRD -> DRILLS PLATED - in "Digits m,n" field, change the n value from "4" to "5"
4. .SOL -> BOTTOM LAYER
c. Import.
3. Save your file as a CircuitCAM project (.cam).
4. Create traces for TOP and BOTTOM
a. Edit->Insulate
b. Under "Job", select "Bottom (Solder Side)"
c. Select Advanced tab. Delete the text in Rubout-1 and Rubout-2 fields.
d. click Run.
e. Repeat steps a-d for "Top (Component Side)"
5. Cut out board outline (with breakout tabs).
a. click Edit->Contour Routing. Make sure you are cutting "Outside".
b. select "Automatic" under Breakout. This will create breakout tabs to secure the board.
c. under "Used Tool" select a cutting from the drop down menu under "Tool". Make sure you have the tool you select is actually available from the drawer.
d. Run.
e. you should see a deep yellow line around the outside of the board contour. It should have a couple of gaps where the breakout tabs will be left.
6. Save your file again so you don't have to repeat this all.
7. Export for BoardMaster: File->Export->LPKF->LPKF Circuit Board Plotter.
4. Check Air and Turn on Machine
1. The pressure gauge should be set to 6 bars (black numbers on dial) or ~90 PSI (red numbers on gauge). If the gauge is displaying a different pressure, lift up slightly on the black plastic knob above the dial gauge to unlock the regulator adjustment knob. To increase the air pressure, turn the regulator adjustment knob clockwise or counter-clockwise to decrease the air pressure.
2. Switch on LPKF machine. (the power switch is on right side of stage inside the enclosure lid).
5. In BoardMaster
1. Open BoardMaster
a. Answer the "Where is the tool?" prompt. There seems to be no way to answer this question correctly, just click "ok".
b .IF the program just crashed, and a tool is stuck in the clamp, you can answer it correctly. Fill out the "free tool position".
2. File->Import->LMD. select your exported file from CircuitCAM.
3. All of your operations (marking drills, plated drills, top milling, bottom milling, etc.) are listed in a drop-box in the upper left of the BoardMaster window.
4. Check each operation and look individually and look for the time-duration (actual time will be much longer!). This is indicated in the upper right.
5. Save after you do your project setup in case the software hangs. This happens frequently.
6. Confirm placement of work material in the software.
a. Click the "Pause" icon (blue P) to move the machine head to the back right and slide the work platform forward.
b. Place a predrilled sheet of copper onto the mounting pins on the stage.
c. Manually move the head over the lower left corner of the work piece. You can move the head with the mouse, "click-to-move" button for rough movement, then the icons to move up-left-down-right until it is at the desired location. You can also use the up and down arrows to lower the spindle to get a better angle.
d. Select Configuration->Material->low-corner in the menu to store the lower-left position.
e. Move the head to the upper-right corner, and select Configuration->Material->High Corner to store the upper-right position.
f. You should now see a dark gray rectangle in the BoardMaster view that corresponds to the stock material. It is allright if your markings are approximate so long as the piece you are going to cut fits within the stock.
7. Position your circuit on the gray board rectangle.
a. In the Placement window (Edit->Placement) adjust the X and Y Origin values until the board is well positioned.
b. you can click the "Center" button to center the circuit on the material, and work from there.
8. Check drill/cutting depth. As far as I can tell, our best option for checking cutting depth / cut width is to pick one of your main bits (say the 0.2mm / 8 mil universal cutter), and do some test cuts on your material. You can manually adjust the height of the cut-guard with the large disk on the head of the cutter. Rotating the disk from right to left makes the cut deeper, rotating the disk from left to right makes the cut more shallow. Adjust the cutter until it just barely penetrates the copper layer on the board you are cutting. This means it is giving you the narrowest possible channel/cut it can make.
a. Too check the cutting depth you will manually control the router. There is a four-way controller (up-down-left-right) and up/down z-axis icons to move the head. There is a "lower bit to board" button
. And a "spin up spindle" button
.
b. load the small universal cutter into the spindle. (select from drop down list in upper left corner)
c. move the spindle to an open spot on the board.
d. start the spindle by clicking on the Start Spindle icon in toolbar.
e. lower it to the board by clicking the "Head's position" icon in toolbar.
f. manually scoot the mill to the left or right to cut a short path.
g. raise the spindle.
h. stop it.
i. move it out of the way. (You can use the "Pause" button (P icon) to move it to a pause position. Or you can use the "Home" icon).
j. check your depth. adjust if necessary and repeat.
9. Select the first set of operations in the drop-down list in the upper-left above the workspace view. This will most-likely be "Marking Drills".
10. Check tool library. Click "Open Toolbox Dialog" icon to see what tools are required for the current operation.
a. Be sure the tool listed under "Wanted for current job (phase)" is present in the tool positions list on the left side of the window.
b. Be sure that the tools in the tool holders at the back of the stage correspond correspond to their description in the tool list in the software. This involves checking the actual tools in the tool holders at the back of the stage against the tools listed in the toolbox dialog.
11. Click the "All+" icon in the upper-right to add all operations of the current type to the current job. Duration field should increase to something more than 0:00 if there are any operations of the current type.
12. Save your project file. The program may hang when you click start.
13. Click "Start."
a. if there is a window saying "HF Spindle warming up time...", everything is working. Let it warm up.
b. If there is a window saying "Waiting to Transmit", the software has most likely hung.
1. Close the program. Click through any popup boxes.
2. Restart the program and load your project. Thank god you saved your file. Go back to step 11
14. Move to the next set of operations in the the operations drop-down list. You will do the following operations, which correspond to the layers imported:
a. "1. MarkingDrills"
b. "2. DrillingPlated"
c. "5. MillingBottom"
d. "7. MillingTop"
e. "10. CuttingOutside"
f. If you are switching from Bottom-Side to Top-Side operations, flip the board over vertically (keeping the left on the left and the right on the right), push it down on the mounting pegs again, and continue.
15. repeat steps 9-14 until you have finished all machining operations.
If you want to get more help on this, please watch the Tutorial Videos on the training DVD from LPKF. They are very useful, and should be sitting in a CD case next to the LPKF machine with the other software and manuals.
Drilling Reference Holes for Board
1. Start the machine and move the head to the Pause position.
2. Remove the reference pins from the spoiler board / mill table. These are the metal pins in the board. Pull them out with flat-ended pliers.
3. Put at 3.0mm spiral drill into the machine.
a. In the Toolbox Dialog select the tool you want to remove (for instance Tool #10, 2.0mm Contour router) and select the new tool (3.0mm Spiral Drill) from the dropdown menu.
b. Set the old Tool #10 aside.
c. Quit out of the Toolbox Dialog.
4. Select Tool #10, 3.0mm Spiral Drill, from the drop down menu in the upper left corner of Boardmaster. The LPKF should pick up the spiral drill.
5. Send the machine to Home. (this is 0,0)
6. Set the jog step size to 80, and click the right arrow icon to move 80 to the right. This is reference hole #1 for a small board. Consult laminated board layout card for the larger board.
7. Start the drill.
8. Lower the drill to the board. This drills reference hole #1.
9. Raise the drill.
10. Set the job size to 140, and click the right arrow icon to move 140 units to the right. This is reference hole #2 for a small board. Consult the laminated board layout card for larger boards.
11. Raise the drill. Turn off the spindle. Send the carriage back to the Pause position.
12. Remove Tool #10 to the tool holder. Replace it with the old Tool #10 (2.0mm Contour router), and update the toolbox dialog to reflect this.
13. Remove the newly drilled plate and restore the refernce pins. Use the spring-loaded circular pin thingy to do this. Make sure the pins are very low down in the holes, so the tops are even with the top of the copper board you are going to cut.