OpenNest/docs/cincinnati-ci-fiber-post-output.md

Cincinnati CI Fiber Post Output Reference

Project-written summary of OpenNest.Posts.CincinnatiCIFiber, not a vendor manual or a machine-operation guide. For the separate CL-series post, see Cincinnati output.

Controller reference used during development: Beckhoff TF5200 | TwinCAT 3 CNC Programming manual, version 1.33, May 19, 2026 (TF5200_programming_manual_en.pdf). Obtain the applicable documentation from Beckhoff and Cincinnati. Vendor PDFs and full-text extracts stay outside source control; redistribution permission has not been established.

Output contract

The current writer uses the Cincinnati machine-sample convention, not a generic TF5200 laser API:

• Header: nest/configuration/material comments; V.E.MATERIAL, V.E.THICKNESS, V.E.X_SIZE, V.E.Y_SIZE, and V.E.UNIT. Sheet weight is omitted by default.
• Startup: G90, L PROGRAMSTART.NC, then P3=V.E.R3, $GOTO NP3:, and N0:.
• Parts follow plate order. V.E.R4 identifies the part within its sheet; numbered contour labels and V.E.R3 continue across sheets for restart lookup.
• Each contour: /L "L0", restart number, rapid to pierce, then interior /L "L2" with G41 or exterior /L "L4" with G42; linear lead-in, /L "L6", cutting moves, and /L "ZHSOFF".
• Tail: /L "L0", L PROGRAMEND.NC, M50, M30, and %.
• Motion endpoints are sheet-absolute XY. Arc I/J are offsets from the arc start, matching the G162 convention; the post does not explicitly emit G162.
• Sheet cut-offs post after every part on their sheet. Each segment is an open line with no lead-in: rapid to its start, /L "L4", /L "L6", the G1, and /L "ZHSOFF". No G41/G42 is selected, because the line is the beam centreline and has no inside or outside. Whether the L4 macro runs correctly without a following lead-in move has not been confirmed on the machine.
• Hole subprogram geometry is inlined. Suppressed moves and, by default, wholly scribe contours are omitted.
• Files use UTF-8 without a BOM and CRLF lines. Default accuracy is three decimal places: coordinates trim trailing zeros; dimensional header values retain them.

Configuration and boundaries

See CIFiberPostConfig for macro names, material mappings, unit codes, precision, and table limits. The post is named for the machine family; table size belongs in configuration.

• Assign linear lead-ins before posting, including circular holes. The writer rejects missing or arc-first lead-ins. Its conservative rule cites the G238 compensation-selection restriction in TF5200 §13.2.4.1; do not generalize it to every controller compensation mode.
• /L calls are skippable; L PROGRAMSTART.NC and L PROGRAMEND.NC are not. Macro bodies, process settings, restart handling, and compensation cancellation belong to the machine configuration. The post does not emit an explicit G40.
• InchUnitCode defaults to 1; MetricUnitCode defaults to 0 but remains unconfirmed. Table limits compare directly with nest dimensions, without unit conversion. Do not assume changing the unit code establishes metric support.
• Multiple nonempty plates are written sequentially, but dimensional header values come only from the first plate and the pallet-change tail occurs once. This is not proof of a qualified multi-sheet machine cycle.
• Validation can throw after output has started. Discard any output from a failed post; it may be incomplete. Successful generation and tests do not establish that a program is safe to run on a particular machine.

Verification

Output-contract tests cover a square with a hole, coordinate transforms/formatting, lead-in rejection, cut-off ordering and output, table bounds, and suppression/scribe handling. Run:

dotnet test OpenNest.Tests/OpenNest.Tests.csproj --filter FullyQualifiedName~CincinnatiCIFiber

Keep this summary aligned with the implementation and tests. Cite the relevant manual section for controller rules and distinguish those rules from Cincinnati-specific macros and behavior observed in a machine sample.