#### $# Importing and Printing an HPGL File

A common use of CAMCAD for HP Test, in addition to generating board and board_xy files, is to load an HPGL file generated by Board Consultant or Fixture Consultant and print it to any Windows-supported printer. These files are given the extension ".p" from the HP3070 generate plot command in the BT Basic environment. The normal files are board_xy.p, board_xytop.p, probes.p, inserts.p, wires.p and alignment.p.

CAMCAD is expecting an extension of .hp or .hpl for the import file selection filter. You can rename the import file extensions or simply change the Import Filter to *.p so the files are visible in the Open File dialog box.

To import and print the HPGL file:

1.Select File > New to open a new CAMCAD document.

2.Select File > Import, then click HPGL/HPGL-2 Read). The Open dialog box appears.

3.In the Open dialog box, locate and select the HPGL file to be imported.

4.Click OK on the HPGL Import File Format dialog box. For a description of the options on this dialog, see the Standard CAMCAD Help file.

CAMCAD reads the file and a dialog box with file placement options displays.

5.CAMCAD reads the file and a dialog box with file placement options displays. Click Place at ORIGIN and FIT PAGE to Image.

6.Zoom to the area of the display that should be printed. If the entire image is to be printed, you may skip this step.

7.Select File > Print. Select the appropriate options in the Print dialog box, then click OK.

See the CAMCAD Help Reference file for a description of all Print options. Normally, Print to Scale should be selected and the scale set to 1 (default).

A Print to Scale with the scale set to 1 provides a 1 to 1 plot that can be overlaid against the PCB for testing to verify the validity of the fixture design.

Use the Print Preview command to ensure both the proper orientation of the print and the correct number of pages.

8.A second Print dialog box displays which displays printer choices. Select the appropriate printer, then click OK.

The file will be sent to the selected printer.

You may print at any scale. If the scale is too large for the selected output device, CAMCAD automatically separates the plot into multiple sheets.