PCM >> DXF

[robertspark]

I got a favour to ask.....

Could someone draw me a simple shape (say a square with rounded corners, size is unimportant)

Save it as a PCM (i.e. do it in plasmacam).

Then export the same file as a DXF.

I'm just looking for the simpilest of files please. (Im looking at something for the file conversion).

Sure I can find complex files that have been converted but I'm looking for something REALLY simple in both file formats please.

[adbuch]

square with rounded corners image.jpg

square with rounded corners pcm.pcm

square with rounded corners dxf.dxf

[robertspark]

thanks very much

[adbuch]

thanks very much

You are welcome! Are you trying to figure out a way to open pcm files without Design Edge?
David

[robertspark]

yes, I was trying to be a smart @r£$ and ask ChatGPT4 if it could provide a solution in python from an input and output file......

it didn't work..... file was too long.

I've asked it for other python file format conversions and it worked great. (simple stuff). basically give it an input and output file format and it will provide a conversion code

I don't have any PCM files (other than the ones I've seen on plasma spider).... so I don't really have a need but it's just one of those things that I'm curious about

I've had a few goes on it over the years but it's defeated me..... everyone likes a challenge....

at least I've now got a pcm and DXF file with the most simple primitive shapes of a line and arc.... and they are the most basic blocks of gcode (G1, G2, G3) and there are only a few of them, not like a complex file.

all for fun really

(like I said, I don't have any PCM files and don't have a plasma am table or design edge software, just a Linuxcnc and sheetcam hobby user, nothing commercial)

[djreiswig]

Sheetcam has a reverse post processor that can take the gcode & turn it into a drawing. I wonder if it could be modified to use pcm files.

[Joe Jones]

I am not a coder. so I have no CLUE what constitutes one file format or another. To me, ALL files are 1's and 0's. I know that there are 6-bit, and 7-bit and 8-bit files, and some have a one or two digit code appended to each byte for whatever reason, but I do not understand how a .jpg file is different from a .bmp, or any other format.

God must have known what I would do with that knowledge, so he arranged for me to have an accident that destroyed my memory retention, so that I would not take over the world Believe me! If I have the level of knowledge about computers that some of my friends have, we would all be driving flying cars by now!

PlasmaCam has done something to make their vector files proprietary. I wish I had the skills to look at a .pcm file and say, "Oh! Those guys at PlasmaCam think they are so clever! You only need to change (x) to (y) to convert them into .dxf format!" I know it has to be something simple, because a file that contains a video (images and audio) can be converted from one format to another in seconds.

The file manipulation programs like PhotoShop and Illustrator, and Vector Q and Inkscape seem to change files from one format to another effortlessly.

Kudos to the guy (or gal ) who finally figures out how to convert .pcm files into other formats, or other file formats into .pcm files that DesignEdge can read and use.

Joe



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