Is there a way to change the starting point from the bottom left of a PCB to a top left offset of my choosing and obtain the (new) coordinates for all other part points within a Gerber file? This would all be used for a surface mounting machine.
PCB Editor / Place / Drill/Place File Origin
The reference point (red circle, near the N) has coordinates dx = 500, dy = 7250. These are what I was trying to make my new zero. Then build the new point coordinates for the other positions from there. Tried both of the options listed but no success
I think Place / Grid origin is what you want.
I tried that earlier and again just now - the value isn’t changing (x,y). Maybe I need to start fresh? Not sure if this works for anyone else.
Before Grid Origin:
After:
I’m trying to show a video of my process but it won’t let me.
Within PCB editor - I go to “Place - (and select) Grid Origin”. I then select the point I want to start, although the coordinates remain the same. This is the 3rd day I’ve been doing anything in this software, so, I’m obviously doing something wrong.
There are two different origins.
- Drill / Place File Origin ( Red Circle and cross)
- Grid Origin (White circle and cross)
In V8 you can select which of 3 origins is used for X,Y display in status bar:
and I assume also when you set any position by writing a number.
As in all previous versions the all positions were referenced to top left sheet corner I just (since 2017) work around it to have symmetric positions being symmetric.
This bug report is about something else but it shows this aspect of my work:
After some time of thinking about origins…
I remembered that with new version (V8) the absolute origin you will be able to set as you want.
So I supposed that we will get the fourth origin that we will be able to set somewhere.
Now I see that we only move X,Y count position from Page origin to Drill/place origin or to Grid origin.
I was thinking which one of them to chose if I will decide to leave used by me till now Page origin.
Dril/place file origin.
I think it is a kind of tradition to have it at bottom left of PCB to have all coordinates in gerber files positive. May be only tradition. But as in many cases I want to have my absolute 0,0 in the PCB center and Drill/place file origin at bottom left so they both should not be the same.
Grid origin.
For some untypical positioning you can use grid origin shifted relative to coordinate you typically use so making it being the same as your coordinate origin is also not what you want.
I have never tried how it is with origins in V8, but now I see that as we didn’t got the fourth origin than I think I will stay with my work around Page origin what lets me to have absolute in PCB center while gerber origin at bottom left and grid shifted as I need.
Edit.
I forgot.
We have fourth origin set by Space bar, but this don’t change what I have written.
This did it! I was stuck on Page Origin so that’s why the Grid Origin never converted over to 0,0.
Now, if I can only get a pick file to show the updated location points with the new reference point, I’d be set!
Edit - Also, thank you!
During: **PCB Editor / File / Fabrication Outputs / Gerber:
And also when you are generating the drill files:
And when creating the placement files:
It’s a bit unfortunate these are different steps (and thus can accidentally have different settings). For some future time it’s planned to make a “cam manager” in which settings for different types of output can be saved, and I guess this will be addressed then too.
I have never seen this Message.
Do you have footprints at your PCB that should be inserted in Placement File?
If you attach your project it will be probably checked by someone (not me as I am writing from Win7 PC and since V6 KiCad needs Win10) what can be the fastest way to find the problem source.
The original folder comes with a separate place_txt document, but after putting in a new reference point my goal was to create a new placement document with the updated coordinates of the parts included throughout.
It won’t let me add attachments on here yet, as I just joined a few days ago.
You can promote yourself: