Electronic – howto align mount holes in 2 pcb the right way

eaglegerberorcadpcbpcb-design

I'm tring to make some sort of shield board (it's not an arduino):

  • first board was made in orcad, I have source files gerbers and so on…
  • I'm making a 2nd board in eagle.

When trying to align the 2 boards mount holes and connectors I am having some trouble.

I tried exporting pdfs of each board and importing into gimp and inkscape, but the boards get rezised and im afraid it doesnt work.

Sometimes I get huge files and computer crashes…

I would apreciate ideas on how I could align the boards. What would be the right way to do this?

Best Answer

Use DXF... (it's designed for this)

DXF is a file format. It stands for Drawing Exchange Format... as in exchanging CAD data between systems.

  1. Export your OrCAD PCB outline and drill holes as a DXF drawing
  2. Import your new DXF as a layer into your EAGLE layout
  3. Use the new layer to align your EAGLE parts (you may need to do this inside of a part if you are footprinting a shield template)
  4. Remove or disable the drawing layer (it's just a reference, EAGLE can't do anything else with it)

DXF import in EagleCAD

Try the importdxf ulp that's up on www.cadsoftusa.com -> Downloads -> User Language Programs

All you have to do to use it is type RUN followed by enter in one of the editors. Browse to the ULP and hit open. The ULP will now run and present you with an easy to follow dialog.

Alternatively...

...use an in-between format. I found that inkscape (freeware) is good at reading DXF and can convert to HPGL format. HPGL format is easily converted to EAGLE script format.

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