G-BASHWARE CamerAim

G-BASHWARE CamerAim is a camera positioning plugin for Universal Gcode Sender Platform. It places a precise crosshair over a live USB camera image and moves the CNC tool from the camera target to the calibrated tool position.

The current release targets UGS Platform 2.1.6 and Java 17 or newer. The camera connects directly to the computer running UGS.

The published UGS plugin is v2.2.1. Development of the local monitoring system now lives in the same repository:

• shared/ — versioned API v1 contract and fixtures
• server/ — ASP.NET Core/.NET 10 local server with SQLite
• simulator/ — deterministic CNC job and retry simulator
• android-app/ — Kotlin/Jetpack Compose monitoring prototype

These monitoring components are pre-release companion services.

Features

• Windows camera discovery and live preview through the MediaCapture API
• Resolutions populated from the selected camera's actual Windows-reported formats
• Selectable 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 FPS preview limits with exact output-resolution verification
• Camera capture isolated from UGS so a failed or crashed camera helper cannot terminate UGS
• Exact output-resolution verification and copyable camera diagnostics
• Centered 1×, 2×, and 3× digital zoom
• 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270° clockwise display rotation
• Crosshair with an uncovered 3 × 3 pixel opening at its exact center
• Persistent X/Y camera-to-tool offset, units, and jog feed
• Exact relative XY movement from the crosshair target to the tool
• Live machine coordinates and calculated tool target
• A separate command to set the current work X/Y zero
• Aim Height: rehome Z to maximum height and lower by a configurable distance (default 50 mm) for consistent optical focal distance
• Movement lockout unless UGS is connected, Idle, and able to jog
• Built-in G-BASHWARE update-center registration

Version 2.2.1 requires Windows 10 or 11. It no longer loads the legacy OpenIMAJ/videoInput native camera library into UGS.

Install

1. Download the latest G-BASHWARE-CamerAim-2.2.1_for-UGS-2.1.6.nbm from Releases.
2. In UGS Platform, open Tools → Plugins → Downloaded.
3. Choose Add Plugins, select the .nbm file, and complete the installer.
4. Restart UGS if requested.
5. Open Window → Plugins → G-BASHWARE CamerAim if the panel is not already visible.

The first installed release registers the G-BASHWARE CamerAim update center. Later tagged releases are then available through the UGS plugin manager.

See Installation and calibration for the offset convention and first-machine test procedure.

Camera-to-tool offset

Place a reference mark under the crosshair. Enter the relative move the tool must make to reach that mark. The plugin sends the entered signs exactly as shown:

• X +12.000 mm moves the tool 12 mm in positive X.
• Y -3.500 mm moves the tool 3.5 mm in negative Y.

Raise Z to a verified safe height and check the full XY path before accepting the movement dialog. CamerAim never starts the spindle and never changes Z.

Build

The repository keeps UGS source and local Maven artifacts out of Git. On Windows, prepare .upstream/ugs and .m2/repository, then run:

.\build.ps1

GitHub Actions performs the complete clean build against the UGS 2.1.6 source and distribution. Every push and pull request runs the tests. A v* tag creates the NBM, an installer ZIP, checksums, a GitHub Release, and the NetBeans update-center catalog.

The local server requires the .NET 10 SDK:

dotnet build server/CamerAim.Server.csproj
dotnet run --project server/CamerAim.Server.csproj
dotnet run --project simulator/CamerAim.Simulator.csproj

Android build requirements and device-test limitations are documented in android-app/README.md. The shared wire contract is in shared/README.md.

Roadmap

Planned and in-progress work includes:

• live job duration, elapsed time, remaining time, feed, and progress
• the local monitoring server and Android notifications without ntfy or Firebase
• G-code toolpath overlay on the camera image
• automatic full-table image capture by moving through a calibrated grid
• lens-distortion calibration, cropping, and image stitching similar to LightBurn camera calibration

The detailed working plan is in PLAN-UGS-plugin.md.

License

Copyright © 2026 G-BASHWARE. Licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0.