Changing holes not PAD in Protel 2004

[thunderandlightning]

Could someone help me....Im trying to change the hole shape which is set as default as a circle. I want to change the hole shape to a rectangle. I am not talking about the pad shape but the hole shape.....the hole shape is what the manufacturers drill. I am using Protel 2004 could someone help me please.

Thankyou
Cade

 

[uWaveFDL]

Try using arc's connected by tracks.
Then change the 4 components of the slot to "Keep out" layer and line width to zero.

 

[thunderandlightning]

Thankyou for that....yeah i have tried that and it didn't work.....i tried looking at the pads categorie but there was nothing related either :-(

 

[uWaveFDL]

I'll see what method our LPKF guy uses.
We regularly cut slots in test fixture components we make from board material.
I'll try to get back tomorrow and post the method.

 

[CarlPugh]

?Can the PCB manufacture drill a square hole?

 

[SteveSmith]

No CAD package that I know of can do anything but round holes. Slots and notches need to be documented in the fabrication drawing. By the way there is an Altium: Protel forum here that you may want to use in the future.

Steve Smith, C.I.D.
Product Engineer
Staco Energy Products Co.

http://www.stacoenergy.com

 

[Comcokid]

In all the CAD packages I worked with, including Protel, pads had round holes. Slots or other non-drilled items had to be handled through other means and documented as to size/location by other means - usually by placing text and diagrams on the drill drawing layer.

Pads have round holes as this kind of object is directly interpreted to create the drill file output from a CAD package.

Maybe some of the higher end$$$ packages have the ability to generate routing/milling output, but I don't know if there is even a industry standard format to use such an output.