A simple plugin to convert Inkscape vector graphics to Gcode for DIY laser engravers
The version found in the folder v1.0 is intended to be used with v1.x of Inkscape. This Version is work in progress. Please feel free to test it, but don't rely on it in production.
The version found in the folder v0.92 is intended to be used with v0.9x of Inkscape. (Tested with Inkscape 0.92)
This project is based on the Gcodetools extension.
Watch this Video for a tutorial:
<img src="http://img.youtube.com/vi/F2U58onWOFM/0.jpg" alt="Detailed Youtube Video" width="240" height="180" border="10" />
Watch this Video for some Backgrund:
<img src="http://img.youtube.com/vi/NhUvRJsa4D0/0.jpg" alt="Detailed Youtube Video" width="240" height="180" border="10" />
step by step instructions:
If you work from a picture (.png, .jpeg ...):
If you work from a svg file:
Hint: If you end up with very complex paths (paths with thousands of points) you can simplify the path before exporting it to Gcode. Use the function Path/Simplify. The amount of simplification can be set under Edit/Preferences/Behavior. A value of 0,0002 should work for most applications.
As of now, the first method seems to be more reliable.
Make sure the specified directory exists. Calculating the Gcode can take quite some time on larger engravings. I would advice to test with a small engraving.
Copy the .py and .inx file from /v0.92 for Inkscape 0.9x or /v1.0 for Inkscape 1.x into the Inkscape extentions folder.
Hint:
If you get an error on execution similar to:
"ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'lxml'"
make sure to install the dependencies mentioned aboth.
On Linux for v1.0:
sudo apt-get install python-lxml
or
sudo pacman -S python-lxml
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY Without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
License text: https://github.com/nevir/readable-licenses/blob/master/markdown/GPLv2-LICENSE.md
If you find bugs or want to implement a feature, please feel free to commit a change to the project.