Owner`s manual

1. CUTTING WITH THE LASER CUTTER: There are two modes of operation, vector and raster. In
raster mode, the head sweeps back and forth, ―filling in‖ the shape, a (fat line, a filled polygon, or a
bitmap image). In vector mode, which creates thin lines, the head traces the vector path. Use raster for
engraving and vector for cutting. The vector mode will cut only along thin lines of near-zero width,
whereas the raster mode will try to fill everything in that color, including filled areas, alphanumeric
characters, and thick lines.
2. With material that is clear or translucent, you‘ll know you‘re cutting completely through the material
when you see the aluminum honeycomb cells fill up with smoke. You also will see short, bright flashes
of light when the laser hits the honeycomb edges after cutting through a clear or translucent piece. If you
don‘t observe either of these, you‘re probably not cutting completely through.
3. When cutting completely through material placed atop the honeycomb, a faint but permanent outline of
the honeycomb might be visible in the vicinity of the cut line on the bottom of the piece being cut. If you
don‘t want this, elevate those pieces with scraps or leave the protective paper or film on. Make sure the
elevated objects aren‘t in the cutting path. Don‘t crash the head into the elevated piece. If you don‘t cut
completely through the piece but have to break plastic (especially acrylic) to release the part, the broken
edges should be filed down, because they can be as sharp as broken glass and cause injury if not
removed.
4. The energy used to cut or engrave is a function of laser power and inversely to the speed set in the Print-
>Properties dialog box. There is also a direct relation to PPI though it‘s probably best to use 1000 PPI
when cutting. Use just enough energy to do the job. These notes and the ULS manual provide a starting
point for some materials. Laser pulses are metered synchronously to the head‘s position, so multiple
passes will yield the same spatial pulse pattern.
5. The laser-cutting order, from first cut to last, is:
a. All rasterized engraving operations first, as drawn from back to front, then in color order,
as listed in the laser Properties setting. For example, black areas will be engraved before
red areas. Overlapped engraved regions will receive only one pass.
Ghosting of other layers, both vector and raster, can occur within an engraved area. It‘s best to
engrave with only one type and color per area—no overlapping raster or vector objects within
an engraved area—to be safe.
b. Vector, cutting operations follow, from back to front, then in color order as listed in the
Laser Setting. For example, all black lines will cut before any red lines. Multiple
overlapping lines will receive multiple passes.
Part cutouts should be done after all internal part operations are completed. Otherwise, a slight
offset from part movement may result. Sometimes, the gases produced accumulate in the
honeycomb cells, and small explosions might occur, popping the part up, and sometimes over,
if it is completely released. Cut the part out last.
6. Importing your data into Microsoft Office Visio
®
::
You can use virtually any 2-D drawing package that outputs files in the following formats: .igs, .dwg,
.dgn, .ai, .emz, .cmx, .cgm, .cdr, .eps, .emf, .png, .ps, or .wmf. Visio might have problems with .dxf
files, see below for more information. Visio will import most bitmapped files, or you can use the
CorelTRACE program, part of CorelDRAW, to produce a vector outline as a .wmf file from a bitmap.
7. Printer settings:
a. The Visio Print Setup must be set up for a 24‖ x 12‖ printer and drawing size:
i. Choose the M-300 printer.