Pegas Smart CAM – User Guide

Pegas Smart CAM — User Guide & Technical Manual

What’s new in v1.1: Production Reporting Engine & Printable Label Sheets. Generate comprehensive PDF Workshop Packs (with Pocket Maps, detail lists, and enlarged detail extra pages) and export custom A4/A3 label sticker sheets directly from your verified layout. Features component scope filtering, material thickness grouping, and printer calibration controls.

🚀 Version v1.1.0 Production📅 Last Updated: July 2026🛠️ Autodesk Fusion 360

What’s new in v1.1: Production Reporting Engine & Printable Label Sheets. Generate comprehensive PDF Workshop Packs (with Pocket Maps, detail lists, and enlarged detail extra pages) and export custom A4/A3 label sticker sheets directly from your verified layout. Features component scope filtering, material thickness grouping, and printer calibration controls.

1. Overview & Core Philosophy

Pegas Smart CAM is an automated geometry grouping, cut sequence optimization, and workshop documentation add-in for Autodesk Fusion 360 (Manufacture workspace).

Rather than operating as an unpredictable “black box”, Smart CAM introduces a staging workspace called Picked Items. You gather contours and pockets from 3D models using automatic recognition algorithms, review and reorder them in Picked Items, and selectively apply them to your CAM operations.

 [3D Model Geometry] ──> [Auto Add / Auto Similar] ──> [Picked Items Staging]
                                                             │
 [Workshop PDF & Labels] <── [Production v1.1] <── [Apply to Master CAM]

2. Launching the Add-in

Open Autodesk Fusion 360 and switch to the Manufacture workspace.
Navigate to the Pegas tab on the top ribbon bar.
Click Smart CAM.

The main palette opens with five core tabs:
– CONTOURS: Batch collect outer and inner part perimeters.
– POCKETS: Automatically find similar pocket features based on sample geometry.
– OPTIMIZE: Reorder cutting sequences to minimize rapid machine travel.
– PRODUCTION (v1.1): Export PDF Workshop Packs, Pocket Maps, and printable label sheets.
– SAVE/LOAD: Persist layout setups or extract geometry from existing CAM folders.
– Help: Diagnostics, license management, and support logs.

Click Open Picked Items to launch the floating staging window where you can filter, reorder, or delete items prior to CAM execution.

3. Automatic Document Units (MM / IN)

The palette header displays an active unit badge (MM or IN), automatically updated from your active Fusion 360 document settings:
– Tool diameter (Contours → Auto Add)
– Z tolerance (Pockets → Auto Similar)
– Similarity tolerance (Pockets → Auto Similar)

If your document is set to inches, enter values in inches. If set to millimeters, enter values in millimeters.

4. Contours Workflow

4.1 Master CAM Selection

In CONTOURS → Master CAM, click Select Master CAM and choose an existing contour operation in your Fusion browser tree. This operation acts as the template for toolpath strategies, feeds, speeds, and safety heights.

4.2 Auto Add Contours

Click Select zone edge and pick a boundary contour on your stock or sheet.
Enter Tool diameter (in active document units).
Select recognition mode:
IN+OUT: Detects both outer part perimeters and internal cutouts.
OUT: Detects outer part boundaries only.
IN: Detects inner cutouts only.
Click Add contours to populate Picked Items.

4.3 Applying Contours to CAM

All in one: Combines selected geometries into a single CAM operation.
Each one: Creates individual CAM operations for each contour item.
Use Apply selected to test on a subset, or Apply all contours after verifying the list.

5. Pockets Workflow

5.1 Auto Similar Pocket Recognition

Select a pocket master operation in POCKETS → Master CAM.
Click Select zone edge to bound the search area.
Click Pick sample and select a reference pocket face or loop.
Set Z tolerance (depth variation limit) and Similarity tolerance (perimeter shape variance).
Click Find similar.

5.2 Geometry Transfer Modes

As selected: Keeps original selection types.
Face as Pocket / Contour as Contour: Converts faces to pocket selections and loops to contour selections.
As contours: Converts all selected pocket features into 2D contour paths.

6. Cut Order Optimization (OPTIMIZE)

Reduce CNC machining time by reordering toolpaths directly within Smart CAM:
– Classic: Standard directional sorting along X or Y sweep axes.
– Smart: Advanced optimizer featuring Smart Reason cards explaining the sorting rationale for each part.
– Nearest: Nearest-neighbor path sorting starting from a designated corner (Start Corner).

Click Apply optimization to re-sequence items in Picked Items before committing changes to Fusion CAM.

7. Production Engine v1.1 (PDF Reports & Labels)

7.1 Layout Analysis & Scope Filtering

Fill in Production Batch fields (Material, Job, Revision / note) and click APPLY.
Click Analyze layout to process part count, material thicknesses, and pocket groups.
Click Change scope to open the component tree and filter out specific sub-assemblies or parts.

7.2 Workshop Pack PDF Export (REPORT)

Select document type (Workshop Pack, Detail List, or Pocket Map), paper size (A4 or A3), and orientation (Portrait or Landscape).
– Enlarge small details on extra pages: Automatically creates supplementary pages with scaled-up drawings for intricate or small cabinet components.
– Always print PDF reports at Actual Size / 100% scale (disable “Fit to Page”).

7.3 Printable Label Sheets (LABELS)

Switch to LABELS mode.
Click Edit sheet to set label grid rows, columns, margins, and page size (A4/A3 presets).
Select Label fields (Part name, Job ID, Material, Dimensions, Barcode/QR).
Run Calibration PDF to measure printer feed offsets, input X/Y offset values, and click Export PDF.

8. Save/Load & Diagnostics

Save picked items: Export layout configurations to reusable .json files.
Load from CAM: Extract geometry selections directly from existing CAM operations or folders.
Verbose Debug Log: Enable in Help → Support to record diagnostic logs to debug/debug.log when requesting technical assistance.