Need someone with gerber file experience

[bancika]

As you may know, I'm the author of DIY layout creator app. I'm looking for somebody to give a sanity check to the super-dooper brand new feature that allows you to export PCBs from DIYLC directly to gerber files - will drill layer, silk screen and all. The only issue is that I'm not confident with the output

Anyone interested, I can provide a beta version of the app.

Thanks in advance

[stallik]

I'm no expert in gerber files per se, but I'm happy to create the same layout in DIYLC and KiCad, generate the gerbers and compare them if it would help. Might also be fun to send both sets of files to a fab house and see what comes back

[DrAlx]

Having written a Gerber exporter myself, I found one problem was with how the fab house ends up processing the files.  A fab house can have their own software for taking the Gerbers and processing them into another format suitable for their machines, and that software can be fussy about certain things.  One early fab house I tried (I can't recall which one) ended up producing boards that had some holes missing, while another one didn't have a problem.  Presumably it was something to do with how I formatted the DRL file, and that was causing their translation software a problem.  In the end I decided to just use JLCPCB and tweaked my Gerber export as necessary when I got test boards made until I had problems ironed out.

Some things I found out with JLCPCB:

1) If you give them Gerbers with non-metric units, they end up converting them to metric before further processing.  So you may as well just use metric (MM) format.

2) They expand the "holes" in the solder mask layer.  So with them, I found it best to make each "hole" in that layer match the size of the pad that I want to have (i.e. zero solder mask margin), because JLCPCB add a margin that fits their process.  I don't know if other fab houses handle that layer the same way.

Tips:

1) Use the Ucamco reference Gerber viewer to test your output.  They write the standard after all.
https://gerber-viewer.ucamco.com/

2) Best tip I can give would be to simply use metric (mm) units and give 6 decimal places.  Include trailing zeros in the DRL file, and omit leading zeros in the layer files. Try and keep the DRL format consistent with the Gerber layer format (i.e. mm units for both.  Same number of decimal places for both).  See example zipped Gerber's in this post ...

https://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?msg=1295566

3) Fab houses will have constraints on minimum track sizes, track separations, pad sizes, etc.
So it is important to consider that as part of the process of producing the Gerber output, and then warn the user accordingly about problems.

[Jarno]

Haven't used DIYLC myself, but it is awesome that you created this!
I have done a whole lot of board layouting and ordering of boards using Gerbers (using Cadsoft Eagle), and there are some Gerber viewers that you might use as a sanity check, IIRC Seeedstudio, Oshpark, Itead, and probably others have them implemented in the ordering process so you can see the graphic representation of the file you just uploaded.
That might be a start.
Not sure if Gerbers from boards I successfully ordered and built might be interesting for analysis, but let me know if you want them.

[bancika]

I'm no expert in gerber files per se, but I'm happy to create the same layout in DIYLC and KiCad, generate the gerbers and compare them if it would help. Might also be fun to send both sets of files to a fab house and see what comes back

Sent you a p.m

Having written a Gerber exporter myself, I found one problem was with how the fab house ends up processing the files.  A fab house can have their own software for taking the Gerbers and processing them into another format suitable for their machines, and that software can be fussy about certain things.  One early fab house I tried (I can't recall which one) ended up producing boards that had some holes missing, while another one didn't have a problem.  Presumably it was something to do with how I formatted the DRL file, and that was causing their translation software a problem.  In the end I decided to just use JLCPCB and tweaked my Gerber export as necessary when I got test boards made until I had problems ironed out.

Some things I found out with JLCPCB:

1) If you give them Gerbers with non-metric units, they end up converting them to metric before further processing.  So you may as well just use metric (MM) format.

2) They expand the "holes" in the solder mask layer.  So with them, I found it best to make each "hole" in that layer match the size of the pad that I want to have (i.e. zero solder mask margin), because JLCPCB add a margin that fits their process.  I don't know if other fab houses handle that layer the same way.

Tips:

1) Use the Ucamco reference Gerber viewer to test your output.  They write the standard after all.
https://gerber-viewer.ucamco.com/

2) Best tip I can give would be to simply use metric (mm) units and give 6 decimal places.  Include trailing zeros in the DRL file, and omit leading zeros in the layer files. Try and keep the DRL format consistent with the Gerber layer format (i.e. mm units for both.  Same number of decimal places for both).  See example zipped Gerber's in this post ...

https://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?msg=1295566

3) Fab houses will have constraints on minimum track sizes, track separations, pad sizes, etc.
So it is important to consider that as part of the process of producing the Gerber output, and then warn the user accordingly about problems.

Thanks!