Tag Archives: badog

Clarification of importing DXF of files into Badog CAD

Hello everyone and welcome back to our blog today we will be dealing with the import of DXF files. Simply put we are getting more and more demands on our importation and treatment of dxf file formats into our machine Software interface in Badog CAD. This blog entry is designed to clarify little problems that most of our customers are having with the importation of these file formats. Firstly the program Badog CAD cannot import DWG files; you must change these formats into DXF information so that we can get rid of the AutoCAD headers and unimportant information that could cause problems when using your CNC. So save your Dxf that you have made into AutoCAD’s DXF format.

One the files are saved as DXF file format R12 and with the scale of 1:1 they are safe to import into the Badog Cad interface. (Make sure the scale is actually 1:1 when the DXF is saved. It is not enough that the file is drawn in 1:1. Not respecting this will block the importer into a loop and the file will not be imported)

With the right file format the interface in Badog Cad needs at least 1 path and 1 block for it to drawn upon. See the image below that illustrates where the make block and path buttons are located.

Once the block has been created, you can open the translator window by clicking the dxf import from the file menu at the top of the Cad interface. This opens the dxf import window with the options for DXF import. Here you can select the file change scale, flip, change degrees and radians and preview the dxf on the draw area. First thing to do is to choose the file that you saved as DXF into the Badog CNC folder in your program files folder. It will instantly give you a preview of the dxf that you have chosen. If there is no preview, you have not imported the correct format.

Now you can select the options for size and dispositions from the open window that suit your project. Of course you will not be able to import complex irrelevant geometries that are not usable to the Badog Program: like measurements, annotations and text comments.

There is nothing really more that i can think to say about that the import is done and then now we can use the geometry as a trace layer to choose the specific lines and operations that we need to make our cut lines in order to send them to our milling machine in gcode format

 

The new adjustable Badog anti backlash nuts and blocks

The new adjustable Badog anti-backlash nuts and blocks history

Since a 2009 ago we have introduced and been using anti-backlash nuts and bearings as options on many of our products and, in turn, have eliminated the need for ball screws and belts altogether on our Badog X brand of machine router. We have been well aware at the beginning that the trapezoidal axis was not the first choice in drive (movement) in order to guarantee a precise CNC machine. We have tried many systems over the years but each drive system had its own unique problem that contributed to in precision. The 2 original options of the ball screw and belts were quickly found to be unusable if we wanted to Assure a rigid machine without free play and still save our customers money in the process. We had to find a solution reliable and secure.

 

The studied were costly and really didn’t go anywhere for example: we had purchased ball screws from china and Switzerland to compare the difference and the difference was absolutely amazing. The Swiss quality was about 20 times better and didn’t have to be sent over by UPS with a large delay but the price was absolutely impossible to integrate into our machine. This is the difference between quality verses quantity and if we wanted to have a machine that costs less than 6000 but still mill aluminium with precision we needed to eliminate the ball bearings and use a fresh idea. In summary we found that a hobby CNC machine with a ball screw that costs 1400 for one axis from Switzerland would mean that the machine would have to cost double!

When we started to compare trapezoidal axes and balls screws in the same price range, we have found that the ball screws that we tested initially for our cnc machines were up to 20% less accurate than the precision Swiss made trapezoidal axes that we use for our machines to this day. This discovery gave us an advantage on the market and gave us a low cost powerful solution and the capacity of the machine to be maintained.

Now the practical part:
I mentioned the anti-backlash system before in our blogs and many of our clients have asked how it works and it was possible to adjust it. We have worked hard on the idea since March and came up with an adjustable free play anti-backlash nut for our machines that allow the user (not only the dealer) to compensate easily for wear to allow a greater lifetime on our line of machines. So here it goes:

The anti backlash system

The new TRC anti-backlash system and how to adjust for free play in the axes

From the image above we see that the system is contained completely in the pillow block (5) with 2 snap rings. The front side is metal (5) and the rear side (5) is a hard slippery polymer (like Teflon) that pre charges the axes movement against the trapezoidal nut. Essentially q plastic pushes the axe against the nut to eliminate the free play. There is an anti-rotation nut (2) installed like a spring in-between 2 other adjuster plugs. (3) The front screw holds the nut in place while the rear (1) screw adjusts for backlash (there is another on the other side)

The adjustment is rather quite simple, in order to eliminate the free play between the axis and nut, you just unscrew the 2 adjuster plugs until they turn freely then tighten them until they block the movement of the trapezoidal shaft. Then unscrew each one out a half a turn and install the blocking nut onto each respective screw.

Never remove the trapezoidal shaft when adjusting the free play. 

Done! The Badog machine is built so that access to this adjuster is possible without taking apart the machine, but it is always a good idea to work in the open.

I hope this helps you and if you would like to buy anti-backlash nuts we sell them as a pair in our shop.

500 CNC machines and products in 6 years! Badog CNC still serving switzerland!

Happy birthday Badog CNC!

It has been a heck of a ride for us since we opened our doors 6 years ago but we still continue with our guaranty of quality and unparalleled after sales support and service. What once seemed impossible has become our particular speciality in turning the market of high quality router into an everyday too for customers who have usually had no experience before with CNC machines. Regardless that we have sold to hundreds of Swiss business from Michelin to EPFL, we have never raised the price of our machines and have continued to target the small business and local businessman of Switzerland. We even opened a club to help people understand what CNC is and every month we invite everyone to come play with our machines in our famous Soirée CNC night classes.


We may have grown incredibly quickly, but we have never turned our back on the essentials and even though we cannot spend as much time as we wish on the phone with each of our 30000 clients we guaranty that we will never leave any question unanswered and that is what sets us apart. So we thank you the hobby user, craftsman, weekend warrior and of course multinational corporations for your support in buying and trusting our Badog products.

Welcome to our new clients Frima Formations in Fribourg

welcome to our new friends at frima formations in fribourg who has purchased on of our Artisan badog machines  and we had the honor to meet with the whole team there

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Thanks to all for coming to July Soirée CNC @ Badog CNC

Thanks again to all who attended or free night classes!!

We at Badog CNC would just like to thank the participants of the last soirée CNC here in our shop in Romont last month in July. This month there was great food, fun and for the first time fireworks as well as some informative topics on gear cutting. We would also like to thank the town of Romont for their unexpected participation in supplying the fireworks to add to the ambiance.


 

 

Topics this month included how to use our gear designer to manufacture wood gear sets for movements in wood clocks, how to work our coffee machine and was the official launch of our ever anticipated Badog Swiss Artisan 22 model of milling machine.

The software gear designer makes gear cutting easy by using simple information and even without understanding about modules or development of a circle, the program outputs automatically a dxf file that you can import directly into the cutting interface and begin to cut. Great software and its now free with all of our machines.

anyway thanks again to all who came and hopefully we will se you all again next time.

We will be taking a break in august to catch up on some work but our famous soirées cnc will return again in the fall!

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