Interest in FreeCAD Development & Path Workbench Limitations

[Baptou88]

Dear @sliptonic,

My name is Baptiste Mathieu, and I'm writing to you today because I'm very interested in contributing to the FreeCAD project. I must admit that I could not find any other direct way to contact you, so I hope this message finds you well.**

I have 10 years of professional experience as a CNC Machinist and Programmer specializing in milling and programming Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines. While my career has focused heavily on CAD/CAM and manufacturing, I am also deeply interested in software development and programming in general.

if you happen to come across this GitHub repository, please be aware that it is currently just my personal sandbox where I am experimenting with code in a very naive way.

Why FreeCAD's Path Workbench is Currently Limiting

While I appreciate the progress of the Path Workbench, I've found it challenging to use in my current professional work due to a few key limitations:

1. Missing Cutter Compensation (G41/G42): A major limitation is the lack of a robust implementation of the G41/G42 functions (Cutter Radius Compensation). This feature is essential for fine tool paths directly on the machine control, allowing for precise tolerance adjustments.
2. Inefficient Pocket Clearing: When machining a pocket, the current method forces the tool to take its depth cuts (Z-step down) by retracting and plunging on the Z-axis between each pass. In a production environment, it would be far more efficient and preferable to have a strategy that allows the tool to transition to the next depth cut without a full clearance move (no major Z retraction and plunge), essentially staying closer to the work surface to save time and reduce wear.

Technical Inquiry

I would love to start contributing to FreeCAD by developing new features that address these and other CAM deficiencies. I want to be fully transparent: I am still a beginner when it comes to software development for a large-scale project like this.

On a more specific note, I'm very curious about your process when developing complex features for the Path Workbench. For example, regarding functionalities like the "cutter radius compensation" algorithm or the methods used for pocket clearing:

• Did you rely on specific documentation, PDF standards, or technical papers to develop these algorithms?
• Do you have a recommended source for the underlying mathematical or geometric principles used in these advanced CAM features?

Could you point me toward any current tasks, documentation, or starter projects that would be suitable for a developer who is just starting out? I am eager to learn and dedicate time to making useful contributions.

Thank you for your time and guidance.

Sincerely,

Baptiste Mathieu

[sliptonic]

Hi Baptiste,
It's good to hear from you and I'd be happy to have the help and to help you get started.

Would you be up for a video meetup? That would be easier for me to understand your technical capabilities and interests. From there, I'm sure I can help you find plenty of places to contribute. I can also explain some of the challenges and ongoing efforts.

Email me at sliptonic "at" freecad.org and I'll send you a link to set up a meeting time.

It's pretty easy to find programmers interested in CAM. It's also easy to find people who know something about CNC. It's really hard to find someone who does both. I look forward to chatting.

[Baptou88]

Hello @sliptonic ,
I'm contacting you again because I wanted to know if you received my last email.
It took me a long time to reply to you and for good reason, your last message arrived in my spam. In addition, I've been working a lot lately to continue developing my project, and I had a lot of fun coding a class path, which allows me to view gcode (for the moment I only support the G 0,1,2,3,90,91 commands and repeat commands and labels). Everything I've coded remains very archaic and naive, but I'm making progress little by little. Best regards, Bapt