perforated sheet

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a3bksll47
Posts: 197
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2018 3:42 am

perforated sheet

Post by a3bksll47 »

I want to punch a pattern like this into a sheet.

Usually I would've used a 3D Studio opacity map (I think it's alpha map in Blender), but wanted first to see what kind of overhead that modeling it in FreeCAD would encounter. This is a 1.196 MB FCStd file, and generating just these filled circles took several minutes to output into the viewport, at least on my increasingly obsolete notebook. Which leads me to worry that if I start trying to apply 1278 cylindrical booleans to a rectangular panel,....

Question: Does the sheet metal feature in FreeCAD provide for a more efficient way to this?
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NormandC
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Re: perforated sheet

Post by NormandC »

It doesn't. The Sheet Metal addon only creates bends and unfolds sheets.

Quite frankly, computing this type of operation is quite intensive on any CAD package, that being said FreeCAD is not as optimized in that regard as commercial programs.
a3bksll47
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Re: perforated sheet

Post by a3bksll47 »

Thanks.
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easyw-fc
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Re: perforated sheet

Post by easyw-fc »

a3bksll47 wrote: Fri Dec 07, 2018 7:39 pm I want to punch a pattern like this into a sheet.

Usually I would've used a 3D Studio opacity map (I think it's alpha map in Blender), but wanted first to see what kind of overhead that modeling it in FreeCAD would encounter. This is a 1.196 MB FCStd file, and generating just these filled circles took several minutes to output into the viewport, at least on my increasingly obsolete notebook. Which leads me to worry that if I start trying to apply 1278 cylindrical booleans to a rectangular panel,....

Question: Does the sheet metal feature in FreeCAD provide for a more efficient way to this?
When importing a kicad Pcb in FreeCAD we can face to make a cut of thousand of drills... and this can be done in just less than a minute... everything depends on the way in which you do the boolean operation... if you do a single multicut instead of thousand of repeated cuts, the operation would use multi-threading and will be much faster...
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meme2704
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Re: perforated sheet

Post by meme2704 »

Hi
I just tested on a sheet of 300 x 300mm, 1741 holes of 6mm (30 rows of 30 + 29 rows of 29)
I test 30 add 29 repeated 30 times with fuse with each array, and subtraction Boolean, after more than an hour I unplug the plug to stop the ordeal
I test 30 x 30 and subtraction booleen = less than 30s, and 29 x29 and subtraction booleen less than 30s too
amazing no :lol:
No question, just test
a3bksll47
Posts: 197
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2018 3:42 am

Re: perforated sheet

Post by a3bksll47 »

Fusion from Cube is precisely how I interpreted easyw-fc's suggestion too. I tried it so far using several cylinders, works great.

Now I need to rewrite the loop for Parts. Then I can fuse those. Cylinders also appear, at least with the limited array count I've tested so far, to drop into the viewport faster than faced Draft circles.

Thanks all!
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easyw-fc
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Re: perforated sheet

Post by easyw-fc »

An other suggestion would be to create a sketch with a square filled with circles. Then extrude it.
This should be very fast.
a3bksll47
Posts: 197
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2018 3:42 am

Re: perforated sheet

Post by a3bksll47 »

I've never used the sketch wb before. That may be a good opportunity to familiarize myself with it.
Bance
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Re: perforated sheet

Post by Bance »

There is an array feature in sketcher also.....
a3bksll47
Posts: 197
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2018 3:42 am

Re: perforated sheet

Post by a3bksll47 »

Oh cool.
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