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GuideforLaser Cutters
LaserCutterInformation
Max Sheet Size
MachineWatts
Pricing
ApplicableFines
Location
FileTypes
Materials
Access:
iCutsoftware:(cameraassistedcutting)RotaryAttachment
FiberLaser(betterformetal)
VacuumTable(Keeppaperflat)
TrotecSpeedy400
UniversalPLS6.150D
UniversalPLS6MW
39”x24” 32”x18”
120wCO2 150wCO2 75wCO2or40wFiber
$50minimumfineforirresponsiblecutting,damage,etcSeefinessectionformoredetails.
AdvancedOutputCenterlocation:SullivanRm1232
TwoinAOC
TwoinCDFS OneinCDFSOneinCDFSColumbusDigitalFabricationStudiolocation:ColumbusRm120
SeeApprovedMaterialsList
Illustrator(.ai)vectorfiles;AutoCAD(.dwg)files
Free
Self-serve,opentocurrentlyenrolledstudents,activefacultyandstaff;Usersmustbe authorizedpriortouse;Seeaccesssectionfordetails.
X(AOCONLY)
X(AOCONLY)
X
X
Special Features
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Accessing the Laser Cutter
Walk-ins• Allauthorizedusersareabletowalkinanduseeitherlasercutterwhenithasnotbeenreservedinadvance,orwhen
ano-showforareservationoccurs.Walk-inusersmustcheckinwithalabmonitorpriortocutting;additionally,itistheuser’sresponsibilitytocheckoutwiththelabmonitoraftercleaningup.
• Walk-intimeisgenerallydiscouragedforlongcutsasanyusercouldreservetime15minutesfromthetimeyoustart.• Walk-inuserscanuseanyavailabletime,uptowhenthenextreservationstartsor30minutesbeforethelabcloses,
whichevercomesfirst.
Reservations• Reservationsmustbemadeinpersonthroughalabmonitoratleast15minutesbeforethetimebeingreserved,and
nomorethan2weeksinadvance.• Reservationscanonlybemadein30-minuteblocks.Youcanreserveupto12sessionsof30-minuteseachperweek.
Thereisnolimitforwalk-inuse.• Reservationsarenon-transferablefromonepersontoanother.Youcanonlymakeandusereservationsforyourself.• Reservationscanberescheduledifyounotifylabstaffatleast15minutesinadvanceofyourreservedtimeslot.• Youwillbegivena10-minutegraceperiodtoshowupforyourreservedtimeslot.Afterthegraceperiodexpires,your
slotwillbecomeavailableforwalk-inusers.• Thereisa$10feeformissingareservation• Intheunlikelyeventthatyourreservedtimeslotmustbecanceledduetoequipmentmalfunctionorotherunforesee-
ableissues,youwillbenotifiedasquicklyaspossibleandgiventheoptiontomakeanewreservationattheearliestavailabletimeslot.
• Intheeventthatalasercutteristakenoffline,itwillnotbeavailableforreservationuntilitisoperationalagain.
Authorizations• Beforeusingthelasercutter,youmustfirstcompleteanauthorizationsession.Currentlyenrolledstudents,faculty
andstaffcanbeauthorizedforlasercutting.• Theinformationcoveredduringauthorizationswillchangeassoftwareandhardwareareupdatedorreconfigured.To
keepusersuptodateonlasercuttertechniquesandpolicies,authorizationsmustberenewedeverytwoyears.• Tosignupfortheauthorizationcourse,pleasevisitourwebsite.
Document Preparation
Set up your document in Illustrator
• InIllustrator,selectFile->New..
• FortheTroteclasercuttersetamaximum“Width”of39”and“Height”of24”.
• Sizessmallerthan39”x24”arecompatiblewiththe Trotecaswell.
• Set“ColorMode”toRGB
• ClickOK
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Turn on the Rulers:
• SelectView->Rulers->ShowRulers
Set the Guides:
• Setaguidelinetothebottomedgeofyourmaterialandtherightedgeofthematerial.
• Wealsorecommendyouplaceaguideata¼”inchfromeachedgeofthedocumentthatyourmaterialwilltouch.Thiswillinsetthedesignslightlysoitiscompletelycon-tained.
Preparing your graphics in IllustratorCut Type Graphics Requirements Single/Multipass Order End Result
RasterEngraving
• FilledShapesortext• Images(jpg,bitmap,etc)• Lineswithheavystroke
weights(+0.1pt)• Gradations
Multi-pass(likeaninkjetprinter)
BeforeVectorLinesfollowingcolor
table
Engravedarea(Powerislimitedtopre-ventcuttingthrough)
VectorEngravingLineswiththeseproperties
• 0.1ptstrokeweight• Alignedtocenter• Nobrushstrokes• Nodashedlines
• Nocompoundpaths• Noclippingpaths
Singlepass(followingvectorpath) Dependentoncolor
Engravedline(Powerislimitedtopreventcutting
through)
VectorCutThrough-cutline(Power
isincreasedtocutthrough)
Thelasercuttercanmakethreedifferenttypesofcuts;seethetableaboveforanoverviewofeach.AllcutscanbesentfromthesameIllustratorfile.Graphicsinthefilearegroupedintodifferentcolors,whichallowsthelasercuttertodistin-guishdifferentcutsfromoneanother.Colorarealsousedtodeterminetheorderinwhichvectorcutsandengravingstakeplace.Whendesigningyourfile,itisbesttoskipthosecolorsunlessyouknowyouwillusethatmachine.
NOTE:UsetheexactRGBcolorvalueslistedinthetableabove,andmakesureyourIllustratordocumentisintheRGBcolormode(NOTCMYK)whenfilepreppingforthelasercutter;otherwisethelasercutterwillnotreadyourfile!
Color Order Red Value
GreenValue
BlueValue
Black 1st 0 0 0Red 2nd 255 0 0Blue 3rd 0 0 255Navy 4th 51 102 153Cyan 5th 0 255 255Green 6th 0 255 0
IvyGreen 7th 0 153 51ForestGreen 8th 0 102 51
Brass 9th 153 153 51Tan 10th 153 102 51
Brown 11th 102 51 0Purple 12th 102 0 102Violet 13th 153 0 204
Magenta 14th 255 0 255Orange 15th 255 102 0Yellow 16th 255 255 0
TROTECCOLORS
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Whenthelasercutterrunsafile,itautomaticallyprocessesrasterengravingfirst,beforevectorengravingsandvectorcuts.Itwillthenprocessallvectorcutsandvectorengravingsasonegroup--thisiswherecolorshouldbeusedtocontroltheorderofcuts.Intheexamplebelow,blackhasbeendesignatedforrasterengravings,redforvectorengraving,andgreenforvectorcutting.
(Thecolorsusedhereareonlyanexample;thesamecutscouldbemadewithdifferentcolors.)Bysettingupthevectorandrasterengravingstogofirst,we’llkeepthematerialstationaryuntiltheoutlinecutismade.Whenthefileisrun,thecutsandengravingswillhappeninthisorder.1. Rasterengraving(black)2. Vectorengraving(red)3. Vectorcut(green)Whensettingupafileforlasercutting,useadifferentcoloranytimeyouwanttoassigndifferentsettingsoraffectthecuttingorderofagroupofcuts.
Fig.1:SourceFile
Fig.2:FinishedCutNOTE:Agoodtechniqueforkeepingyourcutsinorderistoassignyourlastcuttothelastcoloronthelist,andworkyour
waybackwardstowardsthefirstcut.
Power Settings
Term Explanation for Power Settings
Usethelasercuttercontrolpaneltoassignpowersettingsandcuttypestothecolorsinyourfile.
Assigning Power Settings
• InIllustrator,selectFile-->Print...
• Makesurethe“Printer”issetto“LaserCutter”
• Inthelowerleftcornerofthe“Print”dialogbox,clickthe“Setup...”button,then“Preferences”.
• Thelasercuttercontrolpanelwillappear.Nowyoucanassignthepowersettingsforthedifferentcolorsinyourfile. Powersettingsareavailableonlineonourwebsitelistedatthebottomoftheguide. Samplesarevisiblenexttothelasercutters.
• Pen/ProcessMode • CUT=vectorcutsANDvectorengravings • ENGRAVE=rasterengravings • SKIP=ignorethiscolor • POSITIONING=TrotecOnlyforiCutSoftware
• Power:Thepowersettingforthelaserbeam,rangesfrom0-100%.Morepower=deepercut;lesspower=shallowercut.Youcanusedecimalplacesinthisrange.
• Speed:Thespeedofthelaserhead,rangesfrom0-100%.Lessspeed=deepercut;morespeed=shallowercut.
•Speedsover4%maycausewavycutsinsmallor intricatelines.DO NOT EXCEED 10% FOR VECTOR! • CutOnly-Hz(Pulsesperinch):Spacingbetweenlaserpulses • LowHz(1000-2000)=notmuchburning • MediumHz(2000-4000)=smoothercutresolution,some
burning • HighHz(4000-5000)=smoothestresolution,moreburning
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NOTE:It’sagoodideatohavealabmonitordoublecheckyoursettingsbeforesending.Whilethewon’tguaranteeyou’llgettheexactcutresultsyouwant,itwillhelppreventfileswithdangeroussettingsfrombeingsent!
Assigning Power Settings• Clickthematerialsettingsbuttonmarkedas#1intheimagetothe
right.• Inthe“MaterialDatabase”window,selectthedesiredrowandassign
yourPOWER,SPEEDandHz/PPIforyourdesiredmaterial.YoucanusethepowersettingavailableontheAOCwebsite.
• Whenyouarefinishedassigningsettingsforthatcolor,setyour “ProcessMode”.
• Click“OK”inthelasercuttercontrolpanel.• Beforeleavingthiswindow,ifyouselect“minimizetojobsize”,thelaser
cutterwillonlysendcuttabledatavstheentireartboard.Thisallowsfor greaterfreedomwhenplacingyourdesign.Thisstepisoptional.
• Click“JC”,then“Print”intheseconddialogwindow.
Trotec Laser Settings
• Inthefirstprintdialog,makesurethattheAuto-Rotateisselected,andthatthepreviewlooksrotated90degreescounter-clockwise(don’tworry,itwillcutcorrectly).
• ClickPrintandswitchtotheJobControlsoftware• Findyourfilenameontherighthandsideunder“Jobs”
anddragthefileintotheworkspace.Ifyouprintedyourfilewithminimizetojobsize,placeitwhereyouwant,otherwiseplacea39”x24”fileat0,0
• Togglevisibilityusingtheeyeicon(#2inimage)
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Focus Settings and Printing on Trotec Laser Cutter
Afteryouhavepreparedyourfile,themachineandyourmaterialmustbepreparedforcutting.Sincethelaseractuallyburnsthroughthematerialitcutsandengraves,itisveryimportanttoonlyuseapprovedmaterialsandtowatchthecutteratalltimesduringtheoperationincaseoffire.Cuttingthewrongmaterialsorusingthecutterirresponsiblycanresultinharmtoyou,thelasercutterandthelabstaff,aswellasgeneratefinestoyourstudentaccount.
1
3
5
2
4
Turnonthewallswitchnexttotheventilationpipe.
Turnkeyonthemachinetothe“On”position.
Remembertosetthefocusanytimeyoustartusingthemachine,aswellaswhenyouswitchtoamaterialwithadifferentdepth.
NOTE:Beforeusingthemachine,havealabmonitorchecktomakesurethecuttingtableisalignedproperly.
Printing the file• Makesurethelasercutteristurnedon• Beforeprintingyoushouldhavealabmonitorcheckyourfocusanddriversettings• Onceyoursettingsarechecked,click“Print”tosendthefiletothelasercutter• SyncthelasersoftwarewiththelasercutterusingtheUSBiconinthe
lowerrightcorneroftheJobControl(seeimage)• Withtheenclosurelidraised,pushingstartwilltraceoutthepathwithoutcutting.
Makesurethecutsareintheproperarea;adjustthefileifneeded.• Nowhit“Pause”andclosetheenclosure.• Withthelidclosed,hitting“Start”willcausethelasertoactuallycutthefile.• Youmustwatchthecutteroutputyourentirefile.
DONOTLEAVETHECUTTERRUNNINGUNATTENDED!• Ifyouneedtotemporarilystopcutting,hitthe“Pause”buttonandWAITFORTHELASERTOSTOPCUTTING.The
cuttermustfinishthelastlineitstartedbeforepausing;ifitisalonglineoraslowcut,itcantakeseveralminutesforthecuttertostop.
MovetheprocessingheadoverthematerialtobeengravedbymeansofthepositioningkeysX/Y.
Hangthefocustoolonthe externalringoftheworkingheadsothatthefocustoolcanmoveunhindered.
Movetheworkingtable upwardsbypressingtheZpositioningkey.Whiledoingthiscarefullyobservethefocustool.Beforethefocustoolreach-estheworkpiece,movetheworkingtableupwardsonlyveryslowlyandstepbystepbybrieflytappingthe positioningkey,untilthetooltiltstothesideorfallsoff.
(Locatedinlower righthandcorner)
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Laser Cutter Safety
Themostcommonsafetyriskwhileusingthelasercuttercomesfromfire.Anyoneusingthecuttermustsitinfrontofitandwatchtheirentirejobuntilitisfinished.Failuretodosomayresultinfines,damagetothemachine,andpossiblebodilyharmtotheuserandlabemployees.Anyoneusingthelasercuttermustwearsuppliedprotectiveeyewear.NOTE:Ifatanytimeduringcuttingyounoticeanythingunusual,shutoffthemachineimmediately!Thisincludesfire,looseparts,warpedmaterials,oranythingthatlooksorsoundsstrangetoyou...WHENINDOUBT,SHUTITOFF!
NOTE:Wheneverthe“Pause”buttonishit,thelaserwillfinishwhicheverpathitisintheprocessofcompletingbeforestopping.Thiscan,insomecases,takeuptoseveralminutes.
General Safety
• Eye-protectionintheformoflaser-ratedsafetygogglesisrequiredbyallusers.Safetygogglesareavailableforcheckoutfromthelabmonitor.Pleasenoteregularglasses(evensafetyglasses)arenotadequate.
• Whenusingaflexiblematerialsuchaspaper,theedgesmustbehelddownsecurelywithtape.• Cellphones/texting, and laptop or desktop use are not allowed while monitoring a cut. Headphones and
reading a book are OK!• Afteryourjobfinishescutting,theenclosurelidmustbeleftshutforatleast10-15secondstoallowforsmokeand
fumestobeexhausted.
Responding to Small Fires/Flare-ups
• Watchyourjobcarefully.Ifyounoticeasmallflare-upwhileyourjobisbeingprocessed,hitthe“Pause”button,andwaitforthelaserheadtoclearthetable.Thewallswitchcanalsobeusedtoimmediatelystopthelasercutter.
• Opentheenclosurelid,andspraytheflare-upoutusingthewaterbottleonthesideofthemachineiftheflare-updoesnotgooutonitsown.
• Closethelid,andhitthe“Pause”buttonifyouwishtocontinuewhereitleftoff.• Ifyounoticethatyourmaterialisbeingscorchedorisproducingvisiblesmokeorflame,eitherlowerthepower
setting,increasethespeedsettingorre-checkyourfocus.
Excessive Fire/Smoke
• Ifyourjobbeginstoproducelargeflamesand/orexcessivesmoke,immediatelynotifythenearestlabstaffmember.• Thereisafireextinguisherlocatednearthedoorinsidethelasercuttingroom,aswellasoneontherightwall
immediatelyoutsidethelasercuttingroom.
Fines
Improper activity while cuttingCellphoneuseLaptoporcomputeruseWalkingawayfrommachinewhileoperatingCuttingwithoutcheckinginFailuretocleanmachineaftercuttingFailuretoventmaterialfor15secondsaftercuthasfinished
1st:Warning2nd:$153rd:$50
Unsafe laser practicesCuttingon-approvedorhazardousmaterialsImproperlasersettingsImproperlensfocus
1st:Warning2nd:$253rd:$50
Producingfireorexcessivesmokethatrequiresstaffintervention 1st:$252nd:$503rd:$100
Damagetomachine Costofrepair/replacement
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Laser Cutter Components & ControlsFamiliarizeyourselfwiththelasercuttercomponentsshownbelow.Beforecutting,allusersshouldhaveabasicunder-standingofhowthelasercutterworks,aswellashowtofocusthelaserandstart,pauseandresumecutjobs.
1. ZAxiscontrols-Usetoraiseandlowerthe bedforfocusing2. X/YAxiscontrols-Usetomovethelaser headaroundthetable3. Start/Pause/Repeat-Usetostartorpause ajob4. Standbymode-Switcheslaserintostandby5. Exhaust-(NOTUSED)6. Shift-(NOTUSED)7. Stop-Stopswholejob.8. StatusIndicatorLaserBeam-Alertswhen laserisinuse9. StatusDisplay-CurrentStatusofmachine10. Home-Willhomeallaxes
TimeEstimateIfyouwanttoknowhowlongafileisgoingtotaketocut,sendyourfileasnormal,dragyourfileintotheworkspaceandclick“Update”inthelowerlefthandwindowunder“Calculation”.Thetimewillupdatewithanestimation.
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Advanced Cutting Options
OntheTrotecyoucancontroltheDPIofrasterengravingimages.ThehighertheDPI,thesloweryourcutwilltakebutthebetterthequality.UsealowerDPItogetimagesengravedfaster.
150dpi=fastest,lowestresolution600dpi=defaultdpi1000dpi=slowest,highestresolution
Imagedpiissetinthedriver,alongwiththepowerandspeedsettings.
Color Grouping Raster Engravings
Fileswithmultiplerasterengravingscanalsobespedupbystrategicallygroupingrasterengravingsbycolor.Rasteren-gravingsofthesamecolorareessentiallytreatedasasingleshapewhentheyarehorizontallyaligned.Thetwoidentical-lycolorcirclesbelow(Fig1)areengravedinthesamesetofpasses.Todothis,thelasermustspendagoodamountofextratimepassingovertheemptyspaceinbetweenthem;inface,thetwocircleswouldtakeexactlyaslongtoengraveastheelongatedcircle(Fig2),eventhoughtheyhaveamuchsmallerengravingarea.
Toavoidexcessiverasterengravingtimes,groupseparatehorizontallyalignedrastershapesintodifferentcolorswhenthereisasubstantialdistancebetweenthem(Fig3).Thiswaythelaserwon’thavetospendextratimepassingovertheemptyspacebetween.
Fig.3
Fig.1
Fig.2
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Laser Cutter MaterialsAllmaterialsusedonthelasercuttermustbeapprovedbythelabmanagementpriortocutting.Somematerialscanbeextremelytoxicand/ordamagingtothemachine.Reflectivematerialsshouldneverbecut,astheycancausethelaserbeamtoreflectandbounceoutoftheenclosure.Pleasedonotattempttocutanyunapprovedmaterials;thereisa$50fineforcuttingunsafematerials.Ifyouhavequestionsaboutaneworunapprovedmaterial,pleaseaskalabmonitor.
Approved MaterialsAnythinginthissectionissafetocutfromanyvendor.Noneedtospeakwithlabstaffbeforepurchase.Thislistisconstantlybeingupdated.For the most up to date list, please visit our website.
Material RasterEngraving VectorEngraving VectorCutCorrugatedCardboard OK OK OKUncoatedPaper OK OK OKChipboard/Matboard/Museumboard OK OK OKResaleAcrylic OK OK OKInteriorPlywood OK OK OKBalsaWood/Basswood OK OK OKHardwoods(DomesticOnly) OK OK OKArriesBoard(ResaleMDF) OK OK OKMasonite OK OK OKResaleCork OK OK OKResaleVegetabletannedleather OK OK OKResaleMuslin OK OK OKUnmountedLinoleum OK OK OKGlass OK OK NOTOK
Special Condition MaterialsMaterialslistedfromheremustbeboughtfromthevendorlistedorafterapprovalfromanlabmanager.Receiptsmustbepresenteduponrequestoryouwillnotbeabletocutthematerialinquestion.
Material RasterEngraving VectorEngraving VectorCutNon-ResaleAcrylic Vendor: Inventables, McMaster-Carr, Peterson’s Plastics OK OK OK
MirroredAcylicVendor: Inventables, McMaster-Carr, Peterson’s PlasticsOther notes: Material must be masked off and mirrored side face down during the cutting process.
OK OK OK
WoolFelt(GradeF10)Vendor: McMasterOther notes: Raster engraving can create very smelly cuts. Please bag off all materials after cutting. Extended ventilation also highly suggested.
OK OK OK
UnglazedPorcelainTileVendor: AnyOther notes: Engraving this material produces a very bright point at the beam. Do not look directly at the beam.
OK OK NOTPOSSIBLE
RowmarkPlasticsVendor: InventablesOther notes: The following Rowmark products are okay; LaserMark, LaserMax, Flexibrass/Flexicolor, Textures, ADA Alternative
OK OK OK
Non-ResaleFabricsOther notes: Material cannot be dyed unless proof of natural dyes.
OK OK OK
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Laser Cutter Materials Continued
Thematerialslistedherearebannedfromlasercutting.Ifyouattempttocutanythinglistedbelowyouwillbeissueda$50fine.Thislistisconstantlybeingupdated.For the most up to date list, please visit our website.
BANNED MATERIALS
Material BannedReasonPETG,PET Alongwithotheremissions,isknowntoemitBenzenewhichisknowntocausecancer.Polystyrene Knowntoemitstyrenefumes.ABS Emitscyanidegasandtendstomelt.PVC Emitschlorinegasduringacut.BendingPlywood Bendsintothepathofthelasercarriageduringoperation.TropicalHardwoods Alotoftropicalhardwoodshavetoxinsinthewood.Corian CreatesafinegritinsidethelaserbedandwillgrinddownequipmentCastingWax Meltsalot.Nylon Emitstoxicfumes.Vinyl EmitschlorinegasduringacutDelrin Alongwithotheremissions,isknowntoemitBenzenewhichisknowntocausecancer.Foamcore Foamcoreisanexpandedpolystyreneandisknowntoemitstyrenefumeswhencut.