FlatCAM9NeoS2

Repositorio de FlatCAM 9 Neo S2, Fork basado en FlatCAM 8.994 Beta Autor: Dr. Luis Enrique Yacupoma Aguirre Lanzamiento: 01/06/2026

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 (Shapely 2.x Friendly Edition) “De la necesidad, nació la evolución”

Todo comenzó cuando necesitaba un software para diseñar PCBs y fabricarlos en mi CNC 3018. Descubrí FlatCAM, una herramienta increíble que me ayudó muchísimo… pero también me dio muchos dolores de cabeza al intentar instalarlo. Las dependencias no eran compatibles entre sí, los errores eran confusos y, tras invertir tiempo en entender su ecosistema, me dije: “Si yo tuve tantos problemas para hacerlo funcionar la primera vez, seguramente no soy el único.” Así que, aprovechando el tiempo libre en la universidad, me propuse un reto: arreglar el código para que la instalación y ejecución fueran más limpias, libres de warnings molestos y compatibles con entornos modernos.

Punto de partida: FlatCAM 8.994 Beta

Mi viaje comenzó con la versión 8.994 Beta, desarrollada por Marius Stanciu. Esta versión ya fue una primera modernización importante del proyecto original:

• Migró el código base de Python 2.7 + PyQt4 a Python 3 (compatible con versiones >=3.5) + PyQt5. • Incorporó herramientas clave como ToolQRCode.py, ToolPaint.py y muchas otras.

Sin embargo, al trabajar con ella, detecté que su ecosistema seguía siendo delicado: dependencias conflictivas, dependencia frecuente de scripts heredados que aún asumen Python 2.7, y una versión antigua de Shapely (1.8.5.post1) que limitaba el rendimiento y la compatibilidad futura.

Un obstáculo adicional: durante el proceso, me topé con la librería rasterio, necesaria para importar archivos BMP a Gerber. Su instalación resultó ser muy problemática. Por ello, decidí dejarla como opcional (no obligatoria) para que el programa pudiera ejecutarse sin errores, aunque sacrificando momentáneamente esa funcionalidad específica.

Mi trabajo: La segunda modernización

Decidí ir un paso más allá y llevar FlatCAM a un nuevo nivel. Sobre la base de la 8.994 Beta, realicé lo siguiente:

• Actualización a Python 3.8 — Entorno más robusto, sin romper compatibilidad. • Adaptación extensiva del código base para compatibilidad con Shapely 2.0.7. Esto fue un desafío mayúsculo: tuve que reescribir partes del código para adaptarme a la nueva API (por ejemplo, el manejo de geometrías multiparte con .geoms, corrección de importaciones como shapely.geometry.base, y la inmutabilidad de las geometrías). El resultado es un rendimiento notablemente mejor y una base sólida para el futuro. • Mantenimiento de PyQt5 — Asegurando compatibilidad amplia sin forzar el salto a PyQt6 (al menos por ahora). • Corrección de decenas de pequeños bugs surgidos al modernizar las dependencias. • Pruebas exhaustivas sobre la mayoría de las herramientas (ToolPaint, ToolQRCode, ToolNCC, ToolCopperThieving, etc.). Todo funciona establemente.

Mejora de exportación Film PCB También se modernizó el pipeline de renderizado de la herramienta Film PCB: • Corrección de exportación PDF. • Centrado automático en hojas A4 vertical y horizontal. • Reemplazo de la antigua ruta: SVG → svglib → renderPM → PNG por una nueva arquitectura basada en: SVG → QtSvg → QImage → PNG Esto eliminó corrupciones, imágenes incompletas y artefactos visuales presentes en la exportación PNG. Esto no solo eliminó artefactos visuales, sino que también reemplazó la dependencia de renderPM para la generación PNG por una solución basada en Qt, haciendo la exportación más estable y compatible con entornos modernos.

Estado actual FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 ya está funcionando con:

• 🐍 Python 3.8 • 📐 Shapely 2.0.7 • 🖼️ PyQt5

La experiencia de instalación es mucho más limpia, la mayoría de advertencias iniciales han desaparecido y el rendimiento ha mejorado significativamente. Uno de los mayores objetivos de este fork ha sido construir un ecosistema estable y reproducible.

Planes a futuro Seguiré modernizando el código paso a paso, incorporando buenas prácticas y, si la comunidad responde, quizás integrar algunas de las características más interesantes de los forks activos (siempre respetando las licencias y los créditos).

En cuanto a rasterio: estoy evaluando dos caminos. El primero es retomar la integración de rasterio pero buscando una forma más estable de empaquetarlo. El segundo es reemplazarlo por una librería alternativa más ligera y fácil de instalar que permita convertir archivos BMP (y otros formatos de imagen) a geometría Gerber. Si conoces alguna opción interesante, ¡te escucho!

¿Encontraste un bug? ¡Por favor, házmelo saber! Tu feedback es fundamental para seguir mejorando. Juntos podemos mantener vivo este gran proyecto.

Gracias por tu interés y por darle una oportunidad a FlatCAM 9 Neo S2. “De dónde vienes, sabes. A dónde vas, lo decides tú.”

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 fue validado específicamente con: Python 3.8 PyQt5 5.15.11 Qt 5.15.2 Shapely 2.0.7 matplotlib 3.5.3 numpy 1.21.6 VisPy 0.9.0

Link de descarga: https://github.com/ProgLuis/FlatCAM9NeoS2/releases/tag/V9

Archivos principales modernizados y adaptados para compatibilidad con Shapely 2.x

Bin

• app_Main.py
• appPool.py
• camlib.py
• Common.py
• FlatCAM.py
• FlatCAMExcellon.py
• FlatCAMGerber.py
• FlatCAMGeometry.py
• FlatCAMObj.py
• PlotCanvas.py
• PlotCanvasLegacy.py

appCommon

• Common.py

appEditors

• AppExcEditor.py
• AppGeoEditor.py
• AppGerberEditor.py

appGUI

• GUIElements.py
• PlotCanvas.py
• PlotCanvasLegacy.py
• VisPyTesselators.py
• VisPyVisuals.py

appObjects

• FlatCAMCNCJob.py
• FlatCAMExcellon.py
• FlatCAMGeometry.py
• FlatCAMObj.py

appParsers

• ParseGerber.py
• ParsePDF.py
• ParseSVG.py

appTools

• ToolAlignObjects.py
• ToolCopperThieving.py
• ToolCorners.py
• ToolCutOut.py
• ToolDistance.py
• ToolDistanceMin.py
• ToolEtchCompensation.py
• ToolFiducials.py
• ToolFilm.py
• ToolInvertGerber.py
• ToolIsolation.py
• ToolNCC.py
• ToolOptimal.py
• ToolPaint.py
• ToolPanelize.py
• ToolPDF.py
• ToolProperties.py
• ToolQRCode.py
• ToolRulesCheck.py
• ToolSolderPaste.py
• ToolSub.py

locale\es\LC_MESSAGES

• strings.po

preprocessors

• Paste_1.py

⚠️ Nota FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 es un fork comunitario e independiente. Este proyecto no pretende reemplazar ni competir con otros forks, sino ofrecer una alternativa enfocada en la compatibilidad moderna y la estabilidad. Todo el crédito del trabajo original pertenece a sus respectivos autores.

New Features in FlatCAM 9 Neo S2

18/06/2026

SVG Proteus Compatibility MVP

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 includes improved compatibility with SVG files exported by Proteus.

Implemented features:

• Correct SVG scaling using viewBox dimensions
• Improved SVG polyline parsing
• Support for inherited stroke-width from SVG groups
• Conversion of SVG strokes into solid geometry
• Automatic extraction of drill locations from Proteus SVG files
• Automatic creation of Excellon objects from detected Proteus SVG drill information

Workflow:

Proteus SVG → Geometry Object → Excellon Object → CNC Job → CNC3018

Validation example:

• Prueba2.SVG:
  • Proteus original
  • Geometry OK
  • Excellon OK
  • 6 drills
  • Drill diameter: 0.6400 mm

19/06/2026

SVG Source Advisor and Adobe Illustrator SVG Compatibility MVP

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 now includes an experimental CAM-oriented SVG import workflow.

Implemented features:

• SVG source detection:
  • Proteus Design Suite
  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Unknown SVG sources
• SVG Source Advisor messages during import.
• Physical scale reliability detection.
• Warning when SVG files do not contain reliable physical scale information.
• Physical scale recovery from Illustrator XMP MaxPageSize metadata.
• Detection of recommended Illustrator export settings:
  • SVG Tiny 1.2
  • Presentation Attributes
  • Include XMP Metadata
  • Coordinate decimals: minimum 3, recommended 4
  • Do not preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities
• Coordinate decimal precision inspection for Illustrator SVG files.
• Warnings when observed coordinate precision is too low for CAM/CNC work.
• Added compatibility with Proteus SVG files reexported from Adobe Illustrator.
• Automatic extraction of drill locations from Illustrator SVG files exported with recommended settings.
• Automatic creation of Excellon objects from detected Illustrator SVG drill information.
• Preserved compatibility with the existing Proteus SVG workflow.

Validated workflows:

Adobe Illustrator SVG recommended profile → XMP physical scale recovery → Geometry Object → Excellon Object → CNC Job

Recommended Illustrator export profile:

• SVG Profile: SVG Tiny 1.2
• CSS Properties: Presentation Attributes
• Include XMP Metadata: Yes
• Working units: millimeters (mm)
• Coordinate decimals: minimum 3
• Coordinate decimals recommended: 4
• Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities: No

Validation examples:

• Prueba2d.SVG:
  • Illustrator without XMP
  • Geometry OK
  • Excellon detected
  • Scale warning shown
  • Physical scale not reliable
• Prueba2g.SVG:
  • Illustrator with XMP
  • Physical scale recovered from XMP MaxPageSize
  • Geometry OK
  • Excellon OK
  • 6 drills
• Prueba2h.SVG:
  • Illustrator recommended profile
  • SVG Tiny 1.2 OK
  • Presentation Attributes OK
  • XMP Metadata OK
  • Coordinate decimals = 4 OK
  • Geometry OK
  • Excellon OK
  • 6 drills
  • Recommended reference profile

Limitations:

• SVG import remains an experimental CAM-oriented workflow.
• Native Gerber + Excellon files remain the preferred manufacturing workflow.
• Illustrator SVG files without width/height and without XMP MaxPageSize cannot provide reliable physical scale.
• Low coordinate precision, such as 1 decimal, may introduce small geometry or drill diameter deviations.
• Users must verify dimensions, geometry, Excellon drills and CNC paths before manufacturing.
• Manual Illustrator-created drill conventions still require future validation.

21/06/2026

Adobe Illustrator SVG Tiny 1.2 Compatibility Suite

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 expands its experimental CAM-oriented workflow with broader support for SVG Tiny 1.2 files exported from Adobe Illustrator.

This update supports both of these workflows:

Adobe Illustrator drawing created from scratch -> SVG Tiny 1.2 -> FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 Geometry -> Excellon drills -> CNC Job

Proteus SVG -> Adobe Illustrator editing and customization -> SVG Tiny 1.2 -> FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 Geometry -> Excellon drills -> CNC Job

This compatibility applies to Illustrator-exported SVG files, not native .AI documents.

Main improvements:

• Broader support for common Illustrator tools:
  • Lines and stroked paths
  • Rectangles and rounded rectangles
  • Circles and ellipses
  • Polygons and Pen Tool paths
  • Compound Paths with contained holes
  • Pathfinder Unite and Minus Front
  • Flattened clipping masks
  • Expanded symbols
• Multi-layer Illustrator SVG support.
• Hidden layers, hidden groups and hidden objects are ignored.
• Visible overlapping objects from separate layers are consolidated into CAM geometry.
• SVG matrix, translate, rotate, scale and skew transformations are handled more reliably.
• Physical SVG scale can be recovered from Illustrator XMP MaxPageSize metadata.
• Manual Illustrator drill detection is supported experimentally.
• Valid white circular drill markers create an Excellon object automatically.
• Proteus SVG and Proteus SVG reexported or customized through Illustrator remain supported.

Manual drill convention in Illustrator:

• Draw a true circle, not an ellipse.
• Use white fill.
• Use a visible dark or black stroke.
• Set the geometric circle diameter to the desired drill diameter.
• Supported drill diameter range: 0.2 mm to 6.0 mm.
• Stroke width is only a visual/detection aid and is not added to the drill diameter.

Recommended Illustrator export profile:

• SVG Tiny 1.2.
• Presentation Attributes.
• Include XMP Metadata.
• Working units: millimeters.
• Coordinate decimals: minimum 3, recommended 4.
• Do not preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities.

Known limitation:

Complex Compound Paths made by partially overlapping shapes may not match Illustrator's visual fill-rule behavior. FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 warns the user in the Shell and reports the problematic layer when detected.

For PCB/CAM workflows, use Illustrator Pathfinder operations such as Unite, Minus Front, Exclude or Intersect instead of overlapping Compound Paths. Expanding or flattening the geometry before SVG export is also recommended.

Compound Paths with normal contained holes remain supported.

Important:

• SVG import remains experimental.
• Native Gerber + Excellon is still the preferred manufacturing workflow.
• Always verify dimensions, geometry, drill diameters, drill positions and CNC paths before manufacturing.

22/06/2026

SVG Tiny 1.2 Workflow Completed (June 2026)

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 now provides a complete SVG Tiny 1.2 workflow for both Geometry and Gerber import operations.

Supported workflows:

• Import -> SVG as Geometry Object
• Import -> SVG as Gerber Object

Compatibility has been significantly improved for SVG files generated by Proteus and Adobe Illustrator, including better handling of Compound Paths, partially overlapping contours, winding rules and complex filled geometries.

The improvements completed on 22/06/2026 also strengthen the Geometry import workflow by providing more accurate interpretation of complex SVG geometry.

These improvements provide a more reliable CAM workflow from SVG artwork through Geometry, Gerber, Isolation Routing and CNCJob generation.

28/06/2026

DXF Compatibility Completed

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 now includes a completed DXF compatibility workflow for the validated project profiles.

Supported DXF workflows:

• Import -> DXF as Geometry Object
• Import -> DXF as Gerber Object

This update adds intelligent DXF source and export profile detection for:

• Adobe Illustrator
• KiCad
• Inkscape
• Proteus/ARES outline-only DXF
• Unknown DXF sources

DXF Drill Recognition is now controlled by the detected profile:

• Adobe Illustrator DXF can offer circular DXF geometry extraction as Excellon drills.
• KiCad Copper DXF recommends the dedicated .drl Excellon file and keeps DXF drill extraction only as a fallback.
• KiCad Drill Map DXF does not offer automatic drill extraction.
• Inkscape DXF does not offer drill extraction; SVG is recommended for filled copper, pads and drill-related work.
• Proteus/ARES outline-only DXF does not offer drill extraction and recommends Gerber + Excellon or SVG instead.

The DXF system also includes optional first-quadrant normalization for imported Geometry. This operation only translates the geometry when needed; it does not mirror, scale, rotate or change dimensions.

Protected workflows were preserved, including Open Gerber, Open Excellon, SVG as Geometry, SVG as Gerber, CNCJob and exporters.

29/06/2026

PDF Compatibility Suite Completed

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 now includes a PDF Compatibility Suite for vector PDF workflows.

Supported PDF workflows:

• Import -> PDF as Geometry Object
• Import -> PDF as Gerber Object

The PDF importer was reorganized so both workflows can evolve independently:

• ToolPDF.py remains as the historical compatibility wrapper.
• ToolPDFGeometry.py handles PDF as Geometry Object.
• ToolPDFGerber.py handles PDF as Gerber Object.
• PDF analysis, source guidance, page selection, preview and crop assistance are now shared through the new PDF helper architecture.

Validated vector PDF sources:

• Adobe Illustrator
• CorelDRAW
• Proteus

Raster PDF import remains under investigation. Future work includes raster PDF vectorization and automatic detection of spreadsheet-like or Excel-style table information inside PDF files.

Current CAD/CAM Compatibility Suites:

• SVG Compatibility Suite
• DXF Compatibility Suite
• PDF Compatibility Suite

This continues the evolution of FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 toward a more consistent CAD/CAM import platform for common design interchange formats.

11/07/2026

Advanced PDF and Excellon Workflow

FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 now includes an expanded PDF and Excellon preparation workflow built on top of the PDF Compatibility Suite completed on 29/06/2026.

The Import -> PDF as Geometry Object workflow was extended for more robust CAM-oriented PDF recovery and preparation. The validated vector PDF sources include:

• Adobe Illustrator.
• CorelDRAW.
• Proteus.

PDF as Geometry Object now includes:

• PDF Content Analyzer diagnostics.
• PDF Source Advisor guidance.
• Page selection for multipage PDFs.
• Preview and interactive crop support.
• Full Page and cropped import paths.
• Vector import through PyMuPDF drawing extraction and Shapely geometry construction.
• Safe fallback behavior when the legacy parser cannot process a PDF.
• Preservation of the original PDF file.
• Independent processing from PDF as Gerber Object.
• Flip Horizontal and Flip Vertical support for compatible vector PDF content.
• Complexity limits with warnings above 4000 vector operations and safe blocking above 6000 operations.
• Stabilized preview behavior so crop selection does not visually displace the page.
• Improved stroke and fill consolidation to avoid duplicated geometry and triple borders.
• Subpath reconstruction and classification for complex PDF drawings.
• Preservation of Geometry circumferences that are not accepted as drills.

An experimental raster PDF pipeline also exists for clean software-generated black and white artwork:

• PDF raster rendering.
• Binarization.
• Potrace vectorization.
• SVG Tiny 1.2 bridge.
• Geometry Object creation through the existing SVG parser.

This raster path remains experimental and should be verified carefully before CAM use.

The Import -> PDF as Gerber Object workflow remains a separate branch. It supports page selection and crop through safe prepared inputs, keeps the original PDF untouched, and creates Gerber Objects suitable for Isolation Routing when the PDF vector content is compatible. Its architecture remains separated from PDF as Geometry Object so improvements in one branch do not destabilize the other.

PDF as Geometry Object can now optionally detect conservative Excellon drill data from vector PDF artwork:

• White circular vector geometry can be recognized as possible drill holes.
• Ellipses are rejected.
• Accepted diameters are limited to the conservative 0.2 mm to 6.0 mm range.
• Page and crop selection are respected.
• Results are grouped by diameter.
• An optional separate Excellon Object can be created.
• Accepted drills can be removed from the main Geometry output.
• Rejected or preserved circumferences remain available as Geometry.
• Raster PDF content is excluded from automatic white drill recognition.

This recognition is intentionally conservative. Users should always verify drill diameters, positions, isolation paths and CNC jobs before manufacturing.

The Extract Drills Tool was expanded into two clear sections:

• A) Convert Gerber Objects to Drills.
• B) Convert Geometry Circumferences to Drills.

The new Convert Geometry Circumferences to Drills section allows manual or assisted Excellon declaration from Geometry Objects. It supports:

• Geometry Object selection.
• Automatic diameter measurement from selected circumferences.
• Manual diameter assignment from 0.2 mm to 15.0 mm.
• Individual canvas selection.
• Temporary highlight overlays.
• Selected circumferences and Tools counters.
• Undo Last Selection.
• Clear Selection.
• Remove original geometry circumferences after conversion.
• Deferred Geometry cleanup only after successful Excellon creation.
• One generated Excellon Object grouped by diameter.

This makes it possible to recover or declare drill data from Geometry produced by PDF, SVG, DXF or manual editing.

A new independent tool was also added:

• Merge Excellon Objects.

The tool is available in the Tool menu below Extract Drills and has its own Tools toolbar button. It works from Project panel multi-selection with Ctrl + Click and displays a read-only Selected Excellon Objects list.

Merge Excellon Objects:

• Requires at least two Excellon Objects.
• Rejects non-Excellon selections.
• Keeps all source Excellon Objects intact.
• Rebuilds the tools table by real diameter instead of copying original tool IDs.
• Detects duplicate drill centers.
• Detects physically overlapping drills.
• Allows tangent drills within tolerance.
• Rejects slots in this first version.
• Creates a new merged_excellon object with unique names for repeated merges.
• Remains open after a successful merge.
• Uses a Close button that removes only its Tool tab content while preserving Project and Properties.
• Includes a dedicated light and dark icon related visually to Extract Drills.

These improvements strengthen FlatCAM 9 Neo S2 as a recovery, preparation and validation environment for PCB designs received in PDF, SVG, DXF, Gerber and Excellon formats.

Native Gerber and Excellon manufacturing files remain the recommended workflow when they are available.