Laser Cutter User Guide and Manual. Laser Cutter Operations Material Guide Design Tips

Transcription

1 Laser Cutter User Guide and Manual Laser Cutter Operations Material Guide Design Tips Frisco Public Library 12/21/2018

2 Table of Contents Approved Materials... 2 Unapproved Materials DO NOT USE... 3 Material FAQs... 4 Laser Engraving on Metal... 5 Engraving an Image- How To... 6 Vector Cutting How To... 6 Engraving Photographs... 7 Rotary Attachment... 8 Connecting Rotary Attachment... 8 Rotary Engrave Cylinders How To... 9 Rotary Engraving Settings... 9 Tips and Hints Raster Engrave Finishing Touches Clean Up Vector Cutting File Type Help PNG/JPEG to SVG Inkscape Not Opening.EPS Inkscape Design Tips Convert Images to SVG: Trace Bitmap Outline Images Using Inkscape Embedding Graphics Line Width:.001 Inches (I Can t See Any Lines) Exact Dimensions: CorelDraw to Inkscape Troubleshooting Connection: IP Address all Zeros Pre-Flight Check Safety Page 1

3 Approved Materials Material Engrave Cut ADVICE: All materials can vary and can require significant deviations from these suggested settings. Material Engrave Cut Speed Power Speed Power Speed Power Speed Power Wood 1/8" 1 100% 5% 60% 100% Matte Board 100% 1% 100% 20% Wood 1/4" 1 100% 5% 40% 100% Cork 1/8 100% 5% 100% 25% Wood 1/2" 1 Vector cut may not be successful. Wood 3/4" 1 Vector cut not recommended. 100% 5% 50%* 80%* 100% 5% 50%* 80%* Pressboard 100% 1% 100% 20% Paper No No 100% 1% Cardboard 1/4" 100% 1% Note 100% 10% Delrin TBD TBD TBD TBD Melamine TBD TBD TBD TBD Mylar or Dura-Lar 100% 10% TBD TBD Slate 100% 100% No No Ceramic or Stone 5% 100% No No Glass 100% 2% 250dpi No No Metal (Spray) Coated Metal # 15% 100% 80% 15% No No PLA plastic 100% 1% TBD TBD Leather 1/8 100% 10% 90% 100% Anodized Metals 15% 80% No No Acrylic 1/8" 100% 1% 50% 90% Natural Fibers Note 100% 5% 100% 10% Cardboard Engrave: Try vector cut at 1% power Fibers: Tight weave, no fuzzy or terry cloth * Multiple Passes: try making 2 passes, rest, then make 2 more passes. Repeat as necessary. 1 Wood: Includes MDF, Plywood, & Masonite Depron Foam TBD TBD TBD TBD 1/32 = /16 = /8 = /4 = /2 = 0.5 Spray = CerMark Spray # Powder Coat / DuraCoat # Painted Silicone: See page 4. Page 2

4 Unapproved Materials DO NOT USE Material Reason Not to Use Material Reason Not to Use Food (Chocolate) Since the machine can produce toxic vapors, food will be contaminated PETG Does not cut. Can look very similar to polycarbonate and acrylic. Make sure you know which material you are buying. Vinyl Contains chlorine; will produce hydrogen chloride gas. ABS Can produce HCN (hydrogen cyanide) gas. PVC Contains chlorine; will produce hydrogen chloride gas. Polymer clay Contains chlorine; will produce hydrogen chloride gas. Foam core board Contains chlorine; will produce hydrogen chloride gas. Risk of flash fires. Fiberglass Emits fumes. Styrofoam Risk of flash fires. Unpainted or unanodized metals This type of laser cannot cut metals. Risk of damage to optics. Polycarbonate; also known as Lexan Thick smoke, very inconsistent. Instead use acrylic. HDPE It just melts into goo. This is commonly used as milk bottle plastic. Rubber Many types contain chlorine. All produce dense sooty smoke. Polyurethane: HCN (hydrogen cyanide) gas. Carbon Fiber: Requires a Fiber Laser. Page 3

5 Material FAQs I have a material that I looked up and found that it was safe to laser cut but is not on your list. Why? There are CO2 Laser Cutters and Fiber Laser cutters. Here is a short list from a trusted manufacturer of what each type of laser cutter can do: Some laser cutters vent all gases out of the work area. Our laser cutter does not vent out of the work area and not all gases are not absorbed by the industrial filter. The list of approved materials is list of safe materials that factors in both the type of laser cutter and the work environment. I have no idea what my material is can I try it anyway? Plastic or plastic like: No. Metal: If you don t know if it is anodized aluminum, then we can use the CerMark spray. Man-made Fiber: Cotton/Natural fiber with polyester blended in are okay to try engraving. Note: All man-made / polyester type of fibers typically only cut, not engrave. Rubber: No. Some rubber contains chlorine. All produce dense sooty smoke. Silicone: Ok on trial basis. We likely will need to stop due to dense smoke. (trial small jobs) Start test cuts with 100% speed, 10% power and adjust accordingly. Those settings didn t seem right. Why? Variations especially among plywood and MDF (variety glue, variety of substrates used, etc.) and variations among other materials can require significant deviations. Where can I buy plastics that are safe for laser cutting? Johnson Plastics online or at their location at 2707 Realty Road, Suite 300, Carrollton TX Laserbits.com Where can I buy the cool materials I see from engraving shops? JDSindustries.com Max-gift.com Laserbits.com Rockler: 2930 Preston Rd #850, Frisco, TX Page 4

6 Laser Engraving on Metal If you are engraving a metal surface that is not powder coated, painted, or anodize aluminum: then you are going to want to use CerMark Spray to treat the surface. CerMark Spray will allow the laser to mark the following types of metal: Aircraft Grade Aluminum Brass Bronze Chrome Pewter Stainless Steel Titanium Tool Steel NOT TO BE USED WITH METALS THAT HAVE A PROTECTIVE COATING OR ADDITIVE ON TOP OF THE METAL. This spray will react with the laser to leave a permanent high contrast black mark on the metal. 1. Spray CerMark [Outdoors / Ventilated Area] a. even coat b. cover entire area the laser will touch 2. Wait 5 Minutes to Dry 3. Laser Engrave 4. Wash Surface (Water) Page 5

7 Engraving an Image- How To 1. Open RetinaEngrave and wait for connection. 2. Open the image you want to engrave. Set size / dimensions 3. In the image viewing software: Select print to Full Spectrum Engineering Driver Image will import into RetinaEngrave. The RetinaEngrave software automatically removes any excess white space. 4. Select Raster Engrave tab 250x250dpi or 500x500dpi for most text/images Half-Tone Dither typically produces the best results (or Simple Dither) Small text (as small as 4pt) can be engraved at 500dpi. 1000dpi is only used special cases. Set Power and Speed for each section 5. On the top toolbox verify: Select ProLF 24x16 laser. 6. On the laser, move the head of the laser to the initial position where you want the laser to start engraving (use the jog buttons). It is important to leave a 1 clearance on both the left and right side of the laser while engraving (the head moves 1 more away from the engraving area). 7. Press the perimeter button (square with blue arrows) to verify the work area. 8. Press the Start button to start your job. Vector Cutting How To 1. Start the RetinaEngrave software and wait for connection. 2. Open your vector graphic:.ai.cdr.eps.dwg.dxf.pdf.svg.xps [File type page 10] 3. Print to the Full Spectrum Driver 4. Verify the ProLF 24x16 laser is selected 5. Select Vector Cut tab 6. If you have lines with different colors, you can set the speed, power and number of passes for every colored line. You can scale the object, move it, or set different colors for different lines. 7. On the laser, move the head of the laser to the initial position where you want the laser to start engraving (use the jog buttons). 8. Press the perimeter button (square with blue arrows) to verify the work area. 9. Press the Start button to start your job. Page 6

8 Engraving Photographs The image will be converted from color to grayscale by the software. Photographs with heavy black backgrounds and field often present challenges to successfully engrave. Best candidates have a single object in focus and a white or very light colored background. You will want to resize your photograph in the photo editing software of your choice. Microsoft Word often will work for simple resizing and editing. Example Starting Photo and Finished Engrave: Dark colors are etched. Light/Bright areas the laser does not etch. Print to Full Spectrum Engineering Driver (Retina Engrave software): The software converts it to a black and white image. No shades of gray. Apply Halftone Dither The halftone dither brings allows a grayscale to be applied. Test with very light engraving settings: Speed 100% Power 1% TIPS: You can also lower the DPI to 250 before applying the halftone dither if the test comes out too dark. You can also adjust the Raster Power slider to 1% to further reduce the intensity of the etching. Page 7

9 Rotary Attachment Engraving Cylinders The rotary attachment requires disconnection of the Y-Axis motor from the motor driver. The attachment effectively replaces the Y-Axis by rotating the object as the laser fires. To connect or disconnect, the laser cutter must be completely powered off. Raise the jack (see image) until the work piece is level. Use a level to check the surface. Level Adjust Connecting Rotary Attachment The rotary attachment has a round 4-pin connector that is designed to mate with the Y axis plug on the right side of the work area (see images). 1. Power off the laser 2. Unscrew the ring securing the connection. 3. Disconnect the motor driver cable. 4. Connect the rotary attachment cable in the same fashion. To reconfigure the laser for normal operation: 1. Power off the unit 2. Disconnect the 4 pin rotary connector. 3. Reconnect the 4 pin Y axis cable. Page 8

10 Rotary Engrave Cylinders How To 1. Laser Off 2. Connect the rotary attachment to the laser cutter. 3. Turn your laser on and connect to it with RetinaEngrave software. 4. Print artwork to Full Spectrum Engineering Driver. 5. Use jog left/right to check square alignment. Laser pointer should touch each center bolt. 6. Level material in rotary attachment. Adjust jack on left using knob. 7. Manual set Z height focus using L shaped tool. 8. Click on the Rotary button and check the Enable Rotary checkbox. 9. Change* DPI setting. Glass: 250 DPI Metal: 500 DPI a) Click on Rotary Button (SEE BELOW) a. Steps per Inch is pre-set do not modify. b. X Sweeps per Inch is automatically set based: The two numbers should match. 10. Use jog slow up and down to test for slippage. 11. Set the power and speed (SEE BELOW). 12. Click on the Start button to rotary engrave. * Change Due to a quirk in software, it is necessary to change the DPI setting. If you require the default setting of 500 DPI. Change it to 250 DPI, and then change it back to 500 DPI. Not making this change will result in an engraved image that is distorted. Rotary Button Friction Wheel Rotary Tool Numbers must match. Rotary Engraving Settings Material Engrave Speed Power Dither DPI Glass 100% 2% No 250 Metal 20% 80% No 500 Page 9

11 Tips and Hints Raster Engrave Finishing Touches Clean Up Clean Up Wood Engravings: Good: Remove the extra soot with a little soap and water. Makes details visible and improves the overall appearance especially with photograph type images. Liquid hand soap with pumice (ex: Gojo) and toothbrush give nice results. Better: Use denatured alcohol and white (no dye) rags to clean up the surface. Using a spray bottle and small circular motions with a dye-free cotton cloth helps to remove the burn marks. Toothbrush can be useful for engravings that leave lots of corners that cause snags. Best: Use a low-tack masking tape over the area being engraved. Afterwards remove the tape and use a little denatured alcohol to clean up any unwanted discolored burn marks. Glass Putting a small amount of soap over the surface of the glass to engraved and covering the soap with a small amount of paper held in place with masking tape many types of glass used for drinkware can sometimes improve the results. Dithering: When working with photographs try in this order: Halftone dither and 250 dpi Halftone dither and 500 dpi Simple dither and 250 dpi Simple dither and 500 dpi Vector Cutting Priority of Cuts: Inside First, Outside Second Set interior cuts to complete first. Assign color and order in RetinaEngrave software. As shapes are cut out from the blank material, the cut shapes can change position as they free to fall. By first cutting the interior shapes, this prevents any repositioning from altering the final fit and finish of the completed piece. Settings Small detail cuts may require a slower speed or second pass to fully cut than larger less detailed shapes. Always test cut your settings first. Factors such as the direction of the grain, moisture in the material, naturally occurring oils, and variant types within a species of wood, density changes (wood knots) can require different settings. MDF and plywood often vary in the materials used in this manufactured product and can require fine tuning your settings. It is not uncommon for what worked one day to not work the next. Vector Cut a PNG/JPEG Embedding a PNG/JPEG and saving it as a PDF or SVG will not give you a vector cut file. See the notes on using Inkscape to trace an image to create an SVG you can vector cut. Page 10

12 File Type Help File Type Open With Notes.ai Inkscape, Adobe Illustrator Edit Print.cdr Inkscape Edit Print.eps Inkscape, PowerPoint, Adobe Ilustrator Edit Save as.xps or.pdf.docx.dwg.dxf Word DWG True View (Autodesk) DWG True View (Autodesk).jpeg.jpg Photo Viewer, Word, Etc. Print.png Photo Viewer, Word, Etc. Print.pdf Adobe Acrobat, Chrome, etc.set RetinaEngrave Print.SVG Inkscape, Adobe Illustrator Edit Print.XPS XPS Viewer Print Edit Print (cannot vector cut embedded images) Print (aka Plot) Choose driver and then laser cutter size (24X18). Print (aka Plot) Choose driver and then laser cutter size (24X18). Print (cannot vector cut embedded images) Orange indicates a file type for vector cutting or engraving. Black indicates engrave only. PNG/JPEG to SVG Converting a photo or image from a pixel file such as a png, jpg, or jpeg to a vector graphic (svg) cannot be accomplished by importing the image into Inkscape and saving as an SVG. You will need to use the Trace Bitmap feature in Inkscape. This requires importing the image, use the bitmap trace, deleting the original image, and then saving the trace as an SVG. See Inkscape Design Tips section for detailed instructions to on converting to SVG. Inkscape Not Opening.EPS In order to enable Inkscape to open a.xps file, you need to add the Ghostscript. This is an involved process that requires changing some system properties on your machine. Detailed instruction can be found on the Inkscape website here: inkscape.org/en/learn/faq Ghostscript has been configured on the Library s laser cutter computer. Page 11

13 Inkscape Design Tips Convert Images to SVG: Trace Bitmap Importing a graphic that was originally a JPEG, PNG, or GIF image into Inkscape and saving that as a.svg will not convert the file to a vector graphic for cutting. To create a vector graphic you can use for vector cutting use the feature Trace Bitmap: 1. Import image file into Inkscape File Import 1 2. Select image with Arrows appear around imported image when selected. 3. Trace Image Path Trace Bitmap 4. Update Click update to see preview of trace. Make adjustment to threshold setting to improve results Click Ok This will send the tracing onto the page on top of the original image. 6. Move and Delete and Save Click and drag the original image out from under the tracing. Delete the original. Save Page 12

14 Outline Images Using Inkscape Need just an SVG outline that is unfilled? 1. Import and use the Trace Bitmap feature. Select Image Menu: Path Trace Bitmap (shift+alt+b) Use settings seen below. Update for preview. Click OK to perform trace. 2. Move tracing (top) to side and delete original. 3. Access the Fill and Stroke options: Select tracing Right Click Fill and Stroke Page 13

15 4. Remove fill. Fill Tab No Paint The image will likely no longer be visible on screen. 5. Add the stroke outline. Stroke Paint Tab Flat Color You should now have an outlined SVG file you can further manipulate or use with the Laser Cutter or CNC Mill! Embedding Graphics Can I just embed a.jpeg or.png and save it as a.svg or.pdf for vector cutting? No. Use the Bitmap Trace seen in the previous section to convert an image to a vector file. Page 14

16 Line Width:.001 Inches (I Can t See Any Lines) Laser cutters will try to draw over lines repeatedly to make them wider. By selecting all objects in Inkscape and setting the line width to.001 inches will make sure the laser cutter treats them as a single line. Menu: Object Fill and Stroke Tip: Change the line width once you have finished editing your design. A.001 inch line results in lines so faint in Inkscape you can t hardly even see them unless you zoom in very close. Exact Dimensions: CorelDraw to Inkscape Inkscape and CorelDraw use two different Pixels Per Inch standards. Lots of laser cutter users use CorelDraw and export to.svg. Inkscape uses 90 ppi CorelDraw uses 96 ppi This means if you are opening up a CorelDraw file (.cdr) in Inkscape, it might seem 6% too small. Resize by going to the menu Object Transform Scale tab % Page 15

17 Troubleshooting Connection: IP Address all Zeros Press FS/Z button until you see Network Either Static or DHCP will then appear. If STATIC appears: Press Green Checkmark o o o Press down arrow and you will get DHCP* setting Press the FS/Z button and press the Green Checkmark to save the changes The machine will reboot and be in DHCP mode If this doesn t work on the first attempt, try again. Make sure the computer is on and connected to the laser cutter. If the first two attempts at rebooting into DHCP mode do not work: o o o Turn the laser cutter off with the key. Wait 10 seconds. Turn the laser back on with the key. *DHCP: dynamic host configuration protocol: this is what generates the IP address Laser Cutter Does NOT Power On No lights or power to any components of the laser cutter. Check Emergency Stop: the emergency stop button might be engaged. Check Outlets: Is the air-compressor, water chiller, and other components turning on? If so, check the laser cutter plug connection at the power strip and in the back of the laser. If the other machines are also not powered, check to see if the power strip is turned off, faulty or unplugged. Also verify the wall outlet is good. Laser Does Not Fire Check to see if emergency stop is engaged Check IP address on software and machine match Check Lid is closed and well seated and for any any obstructions at the lid sensor Check Water Chiller for temperature, green light, & water level. Restart Machine: 1. Turn laser cutter off. 2. Turn off main power. 3. Close Retina Engrave software. 4. Turn main power on. 5. Turn on laser cutter. 6. Open Retina Engrave software. Page 16

18 If the three arrow buttons on the air purifier turn red, do the following: See if the indicator on the display panel is showing the filter is full and needs to be replaced. If the filter is showing it still has capacity remaining: 1. Press the button and hold until the lights flash. 2. Then, press the button until lights turn green. 3. Finally, press the button to stop flashing lights. This will lower the volume of air the unit is trying to move through the filter. The red lights indicate that it is unable to move the target volume of air through the filter (as the filter becomes full of solid debris, less air can move through the filter). Page 17

19 Laser Selected 3 Perimeter Check 2 Settings 1 Select Tab Auto Z 4 Start / Pause Connection Status Pre-Flight Check Turn on: Quick Start Overview Time Check Air Filtration Air Assist Compressor Water Chiller Laser Cutter (Key) On computer: Start RetinaEngrave and wait for connection. Open file in viewing software and print: select Full Spectrum Engineering Driver. Image imports into RetinaEngrave software. Home the laser. Load material Jog nozzle over material and set Z height using the L-shaped focus tool. Jog laser head to start position on material. The laser will begin at this point to cut/engrave the top left point of the design. Vector Cut / Raster Engrave Check for correct laser: ProLF 24x16 1: Select tab: Raster Engrave or Vector Cut 2: Enter Settings for Power and Speed, DPI, and dithering if engraving images [TIME CHECK] Page 18 3: Run perimeter check to make sure material is correctly positioned 4: Close Lid. Start

20 Safety Use the emergency stop button. Only use approved materials. Always turn on the air purifier ventilation. Always use air assist compressor. Always use the water chiller. Always measure focal (Z) height. Close RetinaEngrave during design work. Avoid Cntrl + Z ) Actively monitor the machine when in use. Keep lid closed and panels on during use. Use care closing lid and lower gently. Always clean up debris and clutter. Fire Blanket location. Never try to look into the beam of the laser. Try a test cut first. Know your material. Never guess Page 19