Illustrator Laser Setup SOP

Step 01

Material & Power On

Size your material and bring the machine up before you touch the computer.

Cut Your Material to Size

Cut your material to 18” x 32” or smaller (or 18” x 24” for the smaller laser cutters).
Turn On the Laser Cutter

Turn on the laser cutter (if it is not already on) by flipping the wall switch behind the computer desk. You will hear the cooling fan and air assist turn on.
Ensure Ventilation Systems, if Any, Are On

Cutting materials often releases small traces of smoke; laser cutters often have ventilation systems to ensure you aren't breathing anything you might not want to.

Step 02

Starting a New Document

To start a new document on a Laser Lab computer, double click the RGB.ait file on the Desktop. If that file is unavailable, build the document by hand:

Open a New File

Open Illustrator. Choose File and click New…
Set the Units

Set the Units to Inches.
Set the Width & Height

Set the Width to 32” (or 24” for the smaller laser cutters) and the Height to 18”.
Set the Color Mode

Set the Color Mode to RGB, then click OK.

Illustrator New Document dialog with Width 32 in, Height 18 in, Units set to Inches and Color Mode set to RGB circled

Figure 1: New Document, Units in Inches, Width 32”, Height 18”, Color Mode RGB.

Step 03

Opening a Previously Created File

If you are opening a previously created file, confirm the color mode, units, and artboard size before you go any further.

Check the Document Color Mode

Under File->Document Color Mode make sure RGB Color is set.

Figure 2: File->Document Color Mode->RGB Color.
Check the Units

Choose File->Document Setup and make sure the Units are set to Inches.

Figure 3: Document Setup, Units set to Inches.
Check the Artboard Size

Choose Window->Artboards. Click the icon to the right of your artboard (see below). Make sure your Artboard Width is set to 32” (or 24”) and Height is set to 18”.

Figure 4: Window->Artboards, click the icon to the right of your artboard.

Figure 5: Artboard Options, Width 32”, Height 18”.

Step 04

Rulers, Panels & Swatches

Set your origin, open the panels you will need, and load the swatch library that drives the cut settings.

Turn On Rulers & Set the Origin

Turn on rulers by pressing Ctrl + R, or select View -> Rulers -> Show Rulers. Make sure the document origin is set correctly by dragging from the upper left corner until the crosshairs line up with the upper left corner of your artboard.

Figure 6: Drag from the upper left corner until the crosshairs line up with the artboard corner.
Turn On the Panels

Open the Window menu and make sure Control, Tools, Color, Stroke, and Swatches are turned on.

Figure 7: Window menu — Control, Tools, Color, Stroke, and Swatches turned on.
Load the LASER RGB Swatch Library

On the Swatches panel click the Swatch Libraries icon in the lower left corner. If you are working on one of the Laser Lab machines, choose LASER RGB from the list. This swatch gives you the eight colors you can assign cut values to for the laser cutter.

Figure 8: The Swatch Libraries icon sits in the lower left corner of the Swatches panel.

Figure 9: Choose LASER RGB from the list — or Other Library… if you downloaded the file.

Not on a Lab Machine? Otherwise, make sure you have downloaded the provided Laser RGB Swatch Library (e.g. from Blackboard), then select Other Library… from the Swatch Libraries menu (see above) and select the downloaded file.
Check Your Scale

Check to make sure you have the desired scale by comparing the size of your drawing against the rulers and the Artboard and visually inspect your file to make sure it is still drawn and laid out as you intended.

Step 05

Preparing Your Drawing

Line weight, color, and placement on the artboard are what tell the laser what to do.

Set Vector Line Weight

Make sure that any lines you intend to use for vector cuts have their line weight set to 0.01pt in the Stroke dialog box. Raster cuts can be any line weight.

Figure 10: Vector cut lines must be set to 0.01pt in the Stroke dialog box.
Assign Colors

Assign colors to your drawing from the LASER RGB swatch.

Figure 11: The eight LASER RGB colors you can assign cut values to.
Place Your Design Inside the Artboard

The laser cutter will only print parts of the drawing which have been placed inside the Artboard area, which is represented by the white-filled rectangle with the black border. Place the part of your design you wish to cut inside that rectangle, making sure that none of it is touching or overlapping the edges of that box.

Figure 12: Only artwork inside the artboard rectangle will be cut.

Cut Order

Rasters First, Then Vectors

Remember that the laser will cut colors in order starting with black and ending with orange but that it will also cut rasters before vectors, regardless of color. As a general rule, it works best to assign your raster or “scoring” cuts first, and your vector or “through” cuts last, so that you are not trying to score or engrave into loose pieces which may move or be blown around.

Step 06

Cut Settings & Printing

Cut settings live in the print driver. Pull the numbers off the sample cut card for your material and enter them color by color.

Find the Sample Cut Card

Once you have positioned the drawing you wish to cut, look through the box of sample cut cards next to your computer, and find the card which most closely matches the material you are going to cut. Take note of specific settings on that card, and of which colors you want to assign each setting to.

Figure 13: Sample cut cards list the power, speed, and PPI settings for each material.
Open the Laser Settings

To access the laser settings, go to File -> Print

Figure 14: File -> Print opens the print dialog box.
Click Setup…

Click Setup in the lower left corner of the Print dialog box.

Figure 15: Setup… sits in the lower left corner of the Print dialog box.
Click Preferences

Click Preferences when the Print Setup dialog box pops up.

Figure 16: Preferences opens the Laser Settings view.
Confirm the Laser Settings View

You should now be in the Laser Settings view and should see a list of the same eight colors in your LASER RGB swatch (at left).

Figure 17: The Laser Settings view lists the same eight colors as the LASER RGB swatch.
Set Mode, Power, Speed & PPI

For each color you used in your document, the Mode needs to be set to Vect (typical) or Rast (less often used) and the Power, Speed and PPI values need to be set according to the sample cut card for the material you are cutting.
Select the first color you used in your document, then use the boxes at right to configure the cut for the lines in that color. Be sure to click the big Set button to save your changes.

Figure 18: Configure the color, then click the big Set button to save your changes.
Skip the Colors You Do Not Want to Cut

For each color you do NOT want to cut, make sure to set the Mode to Skip. Then click OK.

Figure 19: Unused colors must be set to Skip.
Close the Print Setup Box

Click the Print button at the bottom of the Print Setup dialog box.

Figure 20: Click Print at the bottom of the Print Setup dialog box.
Set the Media Size

In the Print dialog box, under Media Size, select User-Defined LANDSCAPE.

Figure 21: Media Size → User-Defined LANDSCAPE.
Set the Orientation

Then for Orientation, click the button for portrait orientation (the first of the four). Counter-intuitive, but it fixes the orientation.

Figure 22: Click the first of the four Orientation buttons — portrait.
Set the Placement

Under Options click the top left corner of the square in the Placement box.

Figure 23: Placement, click the top left corner of the square.
Send the File

Click the Print button at the bottom of the Print box. After a few seconds, you should see your filename on the screen on the control panel of the laser cutter in a format like “301 OF 301 MY CLASS PROJECT.” If you do not, ask a staff member for help.

Figure 24: The filename appears on the control panel screen of the laser cutter.

Step 07

At the Laser Cutter

Load your material, open the Control Panel, and focus the machine before you run the file. Please ensure any ventilation systems that your system supports are on such as an exhaust fan or hood vent.

Load Your Material

Open the lid of the laser fully, making sure it does not drop when you let go of it, and place your material in the bed of the laser, making sure

That it lines up with the steel rulers on the top and left sides of the bed,

That the height of your material will not interfere with the nose cone of the laser,

That it does not hump up in the middle of the sheet or curl up sharply on the edges.

Warning: All of these situations will cause the nose cone to catch on your material and ruin your work.
Open the Control Panel

Click the Universal Laser Systems Control Panel icon in the lower right corner of the screen to open the Control Panel. The Control Panel displays a virtual view of the laser cutter bed and allows for calibration and cut control.

Figure 25: The Control Panel icon is in the lower right corner of the screen.

Figure 26: The Control Panel shows a virtual view of the bed and your file.
Move the Focus Carriage

Click the Focus icon on the right hand side of the screen, then click on a location over your material. The laser focus carriage will move toward the location you clicked.

Figure 27: The Focus icon on the right hand side of the screen.

Figure 28: Click a location over your material and the carriage moves to it.
Find the Focus Tool

Find the black and white plastic focus tool on the right-hand shelf inside the laser cutter.

Figure 29: The focus tool lives on the right-hand shelf inside the laser cutter.
Set the Focus Tool Against the Carriage

Place the focus tool on top of the material, near the laser focus carriage. Raise or lower the bed using the UP and DOWN buttons on the machine so that the notch at the top of the white part of the tool rests against the side of the focus carriage.

Figure 30: Raise and lower the bed with the UP and DOWN buttons on the machine.

Figure 31: The notch at the top of the white part of the tool rests against the focus carriage.
Fine Tune the Focus

Slowly raise the bed until the beveled edge on the focus tool touches the bottom edge of the focus carriage and you see the top of the focus tool start to tilt away from the focus carriage. Move the bed back down slightly until the tool sits perfectly flush with the carriage.
Pro Tip: Press the Select (checkmark) button on the machine to change move increment per press of the UP and DOWN buttons.

Figure 32: The machine display shows FOCUS and the current Z height.
Run the File

Close the lid of the laser cutter and press the green Play button when ready.

Figure 33: Press the green Play button when ready.

Step 08

Pausing & Tips

You can stop mid-cut to check your work, and a handful of habits will save you material and time. Just make sure that the cutter has stopped and you are also not directly looking into the machine without glasses until it returns back to its homing location.

Pausing Mid-Cut

If you need to examine your work or clear loose debris or dust from your sheet while the file is cutting, press the Pause button on the machine firmly or use the Pause button in the Laser Control Panel on the computer. It will sometimes take a second or two, but the laser will stop cutting and park in the top right corner. You may now raise the lid of the laser and inspect your work. Take care not to shift the sheet of material you are cutting, or the rest of the file will be misaligned. When ready to finish cutting, close the lid and press the Play button, and the laser will pick up precisely where it left off.

Figure 34: The Pause button in the Laser Control Panel on the computer.

Tips

Quick Reference

Nothing Happens When You Send the File

If you send a file and nothing happens or nothing shows up on the Control Panel screen, check your color mode, check your stroke weight, and check your line colors. This fixes most of students general problems.
Score With Vectors

Don’t forget that you can score with vectors as well as through-cut. This is usually much faster than scoring with rasters.
Organize by Cut Order

Recall that the lasers will always cut all your rasters first, and then all your vectors. Recall also that if you have, say, several vector cuts, the laser will cut them in order of color from black to yellow, just like in your LASER RGB color swatch. Use this to organize your drawing so that you cut your scores first and your through-cuts last. This will help keep you from losing small pieces and snagging your sheet on the nose cone.
Leave Yourself Enough Time

Remember to leave yourself enough time to cut your file. Bear in mind that the more complex your design, the lower your speed settings are, or the more rastered artwork you have, the longer you will need to cut your file. It is best to try and bring a file in ahead of time with the proper settings, and load them onto the computer you are using.
Split Very Large Files

If you have a huge file that you know will take a long time to run, such as a sheet with hundreds or thousands of parts, you can divide it into several areas with a margin in between each, and output them as separate files. Doing this will allow you to pull your sheet off the laser while only partially complete and come back to finish your work later without having to throw your material away and start over.
Tabs & Bridges for Tiny Pieces

If you have very tiny pieces you worry might blow away or fall through the honeycomb, you can put “tabs” or “bridges” on them: tiny gaps in the outlines of your pieces that leave them connected to your skeleton. The easiest way to do this in Illustrator is to simply make very small rectangles or circles with white fills and no stroke and position them over the perimeters of each shape in one or two spots. The laser will “see” a gap in your vector. As an added benefit, this allows you to quickly pick up your whole sheet and trim pieces off as you need them at your desk. This works very well for paper and cardstock, which is the biggest offender, but is slightly trickier when cutting acrylic.
Make a Test Cut

If unsure about your settings, or still becoming comfortable with the laser cutter, make a small test cut either on a part of your sheet you will not need, or on a separate piece of scrap of the same material you’re using for your finished file. Its typically safer to not waste material, "measure twice cut once".

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