Hello All,
i am trying to find a way to stack PCBs one on top of the other. I’ve managed to export them FreeCad but i don’t how to stack each PCB.
How does every go about it ?
There are a lot of ways to go about it. In general assemblies in 3d CAD software are done in so called assembly workbenches. Freecad might not ship such a workbench out of the box but there are at least two different versions of the assembly workbench out there.
I personally used assembly 2 a while ago. With that option you would save every PCB in a separate freecad file and make a new file for the assembly. You then add the other freecad files to the assembly (via a tool of the assembly workbench) and use the constrain system to put everything in place.
Another possibly simpler option is to just fuse the 3d models of your board and then manually place the boards where you need them. I do however not really remember how that worked as i personally always use assembly for such tasks.
you can use Aligner of Manipulator WB which I designed exactly for PCB alignment and enclosure designing;
it does handle single objects as well as hierarchy parts (like pcb and components)
3 Likes
I’ve installed the Manupilator WB and i’ve imported the PCB as an STEP file. All the components on the pcb and the pcb are individual componets. How can i group them into one and move the all at once.
It doesn’t matter which workbench you use, you can stack the imported PCB’s and other (the complete board with it’s parts) by adjusting the ‘Z’Position (Placement).
Thanks figured it out.
@BlackCoffee this simple approach can give you an approximate way to align parts.
To have a precise alignment i.e. with the pcb mounting holes and the enclosure’s mounting supports, a tool like Aligner is the way to go for an optimal result.
I’m sure others will find your suggestion useful. I prefer doing it my way and I always get exactly what I need.
I read somewhere others complaining about dimensions being off by values around 0.1mm, or so…
Most folks (mostly younger IMHO) don’t realize 0.1mm is the thickness of an average human hair. How exact does a design need to be? I have stuff flying in outer-space, I designed 40 yrs ago and worked out O.K…
And, 3D printing my enclosures is only accurate, at best, to the printer’s published/spec accuracy of 0.3mm.
this is simply in accord with my pov
and the result will depend on user’s internal requirements
I’ve been using the ManipulatorWB quite a lot recently. I liked it very much because it can precisely join faces. Is it possible to do this with vrml files ? I’ve tried but it does not seem to be working, i guess the vrml files do not have any lines to click on.
File 1 -> https://www.dropbox.com/s/0mje5cdypaeryjq/CD_Spotwelder_ALD801xxx1.wrl?dl=0
File 2 -> https://www.dropbox.com/s/go9u551ng8iofzo/CD_Spotwelder_ALD801xxx2.wrl?dl=0
1 Like
nice 
wrl files are not for mechanical integration and FC doesn’t interact a lot with vrl models.
1 Like
I had a feeling it would not be possible because i was not able to select any lines from the workbench but its best to ask.
Thanks for confirming it.
This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.