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CNC Corner Joint custom feature (update of Board Corner Joint feature)

hendrik_kueckhendrik_kueck Member Posts: 11 ✭✭
edited January 2023 in FeatureScript
This is a custom feature for creating different types of CNC millable joints connecting two flat boards meeting at a 90 degree angle.
It is an update of Aaron Hoover's "Board Corner Joint" custom feature. 

Get the custom feature and read its documentation here

I was working on a custom stand for PowerBlock dumbbells I recently bought, with parts designed to be CNC milled from a plywood sheet. I was excited to find Aaron's FeatureScript and tried to use it to create the CNC compatible joints. However I found that it frequently failed if the boards where not extruded in a very specific way. This motivated me to learn FeatureScript and update and improve Aaron's script. 

The main differences from Aaron's implementation are:
  • It should be significantly more robust to the boards being extruded in different ways.
  • I added adjustable positioning of the overcuts (dogbones), which can be helpful for hiding them (see below).
  • Added an option to fillet the overcuts (for smoother CNC toolpaths)
  • Made finger joints symmetric (both ends are either tenon or mortise)
  • Fixed tenon and mortise being reversed for hammer joints.
  • Removed "fingertip tenons with key" joint type because it seemed broken to me. I didn't really touch the fingertip joint implementation otherwise. It definitely could be improved and made more consistent with the other joints in the future.
  • I simplified and modernized some of the code and removed all dependencies.
  • Added new PDF documentation
The new overcut positioning feature let's you control their placement relative to the joint's main axis using a value between 0 and 1:


I found that a value of 0 can be quite useful in practice for hiding the overcuts from the inside of the joint, or to completely hide them in the case of a joint between two boards in a T configuration.
I used this in the design of my weights stand to hide all of the overcuts. 

I hope others will find this useful. 

Comments

  • MichaelPascoeMichaelPascoe Member Posts: 1,698 PRO

    Fantastic! Thanks for sharing  B)


    Learn more about the Gospel of Christ  ( Here )

    CADSharp  -  We make custom features and integrated Onshape apps!   cadsharp.com/featurescripts 💎
  • hendrik_kueckhendrik_kueck Member Posts: 11 ✭✭
    I just updated the custom feature to version 1.2.

    I added the option to specify multiple tenon and mortise parts. Joints (of the specified type and using the same parameters) will be created between each pair of a tenon and mortise part. This requires each tenon part to intersect each mortise part at a 90 degree angle. Either at a corner, or in a T configuration. 

    I also added a new "Edge offset / margin" parameter that lets you control the width of the tenon or mortise bits at the ends of the joint:




    Finally I further improved robustness (fixed failure cases), especially for through joints and lapped and secret joint types. 

    Updated documentation is here
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