DXF / DWG to Gerber Conversion Guide

Converting a file from DXF or DWG to Gerber is simple, right? It can be if you follow the best practices in our DXF / DWG to Gerber Conversion Guide!

DXF / DWG Basics

DXF is short for Drawing Exchange Format and it is a format used to transfer drawings between Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems. DXF is widely used as the de facto standard in the engineering and construction industries and is a tagged data representation of all the information contained in an AutoCAD drawing file. Tagged data means that each data element in the file is preceded by an integer number that is called a group code. A group code’s value indicates what type of data element follows. This value also indicates the meaning of a data element for a given object (or record) type. Virtually all user-specified information in a drawing file can be represented using the DXF format. DWG is essentially a binary version of DXF which tends to be smaller and cause less parsing errors during conversions.

Why Convert DXF / DWG to Gerber?

When designing a printed circuit board (PCB) often times the only design software available may be mechanical CAD software such as AutoCAD. Mechanical CAD software packages are able to generate a DXF or DWG file which contains the required data to produce a PCB, however, the DXF or DWG format is not preferred by PCB manufacturers due to the extra time required to interpret these files and potential for errors to occur. Because the Gerber file format will ensure faster production and eliminate errors, it is preferred.

Our Conversion Guide explains best practices for creating designs in a DXF/DWG format that can be accurately converted to the Gerber format.

To Learn More About the 5 Fundamental Entities for Successful Conversion

Download the DXF to Gerber Conversion Guide

If you would like additional assistance with converting DXF to Gerber utilize our professional services.