{"id":446,"date":"2016-10-26T14:45:39","date_gmt":"2016-10-26T21:45:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/?page_id=446"},"modified":"2019-09-16T13:51:09","modified_gmt":"2019-09-16T20:51:09","slug":"using-the-laser-cutter","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/using-the-laser-cutter\/","title":{"rendered":"Configuring the Laser Cutter"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Here we&#8217;ll walk you through the process of configuring the laser cutter with the proper settings.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Prepare your file using the guidelines found in the <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/file-preparation\/\">Laser Cutter File Preparation<\/a> page.<\/li>\n<li>Copy your file to the desktop of one of the two computers in the Digital Fab room and then open it in Adobe Illustrator.\u00a0 If that happens then you may want to open up the <a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/1-KPeiF_wVsaeRR2SGegUlkWIyuWtt6EO\/view?usp=sharing\">Laser Cutter Template<\/a> found on the desktop of the computer and copy your artwork into it using the Copy and Paste commands.<\/li>\n<li>The laser cutter connects to the computer like a traditional printer.\u00a0 To continue, select <strong>Print<\/strong> from the <strong>File<\/strong> menu.\u00a0 You should see the Adobe print pop-up window appear.\u00a0 The Rayjet Engraver should be selected as the printer by default but, if it isn&#8217;t, select <strong>Rayjet Engraver v2.4.0<\/strong> as the printer from the pull-down menu.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/OriginalPrintMenu.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-452\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/OriginalPrintMenu.png\" alt=\"originalprintmenu\" width=\"683\" height=\"706\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>In the Adobe print window choose <strong>RayJet Print Preset &#8212; Use This!<\/strong> from the <strong>Print Preset<\/strong> pull-down menu (at the top of the window). \u00a0 The <strong>Print Preset<\/strong> may revert back to <strong>Custom<\/strong> after you select <strong>RayJet Print Preset &#8212; Use This!<\/strong> but the settings will be preserved.\u00a0 If you like you can select it again and it&#8217;ll remain as <strong>RayJet Print Preset &#8212; Use This!<\/strong>.<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PrintPresetSelected-2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-463\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PrintPresetSelected-2.png\" alt=\"printpresetselected\" width=\"682\" height=\"706\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PrintPresetSelected-2.png 682w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PrintPresetSelected-2-290x300.png 290w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 682px) 85vw, 682px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>To continue configuring the laser cutter click the <strong>Setup<\/strong> button in the lower left corner of the Print window.\u00a0 Another Print pop-up window will appear.\u00a0 Click the <strong>Preferences<\/strong> button to continue.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PrintPreferences.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-454\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PrintPreferences.png\" alt=\"printpreferences\" width=\"463\" height=\"418\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The Rayjet laser configuration menu will appear.\u00a0 It&#8217;s where we&#8217;ll set up the laser for our particular material and operation. The first page is titled <strong>Materials<\/strong>.<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/RayJetMain1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-451\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/RayJetMain1.png\" alt=\"rayjetmain1\" width=\"665\" height=\"624\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/RayJetMain1.png 665w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/RayJetMain1-300x282.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 665px) 85vw, 665px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>In the <strong>Material Selection<\/strong> pane click through the various material options to find the one that most closely describes your material.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/MatSelection.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-465\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/MatSelection.png\" alt=\"matselection\" width=\"302\" height=\"271\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/MatSelection.png 302w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/MatSelection-300x269.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 302px) 85vw, 302px\" \/><\/a> Once you&#8217;ve selected a type of material then you&#8217;ll have to select a sub-type of material in the drop-down menu that comes up below the material images.\u00a0 If you forget to do this the software will revert back to whatever materials was in use in the previous laser project.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Submaterialsel-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-467\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Submaterialsel-1.png\" alt=\"submaterialsel\" width=\"298\" height=\"395\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Submaterialsel-1.png 298w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Submaterialsel-1-226x300.png 226w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 298px) 85vw, 298px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>We don&#8217;t have auto focus so we&#8217;ll ignore the sections on <strong>Thickness<\/strong> and <strong>Auto Focus<\/strong>. In the right-hand pane (titled <strong>Intensity<\/strong>) you&#8217;ll set the laser power and speed for your application.\u00a0 These settings are empirical and our suggested settings can be found on the <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/laser-power-and-speed-settings\/\">Laser Power and Speed Settings<\/a> spreadsheet.\u00a0 The colored tabs at the top can be configured separately either as <strong>Cut<\/strong> or <strong>Engrave<\/strong>.\u00a0 You can have multiple cuts and engraves (with more than two tabs) but for now we&#8217;ll focus on one engraving color (black) and one cut color (red).<\/li>\n<li>Click on the black tab and then select <strong>Engrave<\/strong>.\u00a0 After you&#8217;ve done that, check to see that the <strong>Air assist<\/strong> &#8220;switch&#8221; is set to <strong>On<\/strong>.\u00a0 Air assist helps keep the lens clean and should always be set to <strong>On<\/strong>.\u00a0 Set the <strong>Power<\/strong> and <strong>Speed<\/strong> settings according to our <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/laser-power-and-speed-settings\/\">suggested settings<\/a>.\u00a0 Ignore the slider underneath the <strong>Power<\/strong> and <strong>Speed<\/strong> settings.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PowerSpeed1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-470\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PowerSpeed1.png\" alt=\"powerspeed1\" width=\"300\" height=\"393\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PowerSpeed1.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/PowerSpeed1-229x300.png 229w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Click on the red tab and then select <strong>Cut<\/strong>.\u00a0 Again ensure that <strong>Air assist<\/strong> is set to On.\u00a0 We almost always only do on cut pass so set <strong>Passes<\/strong> to <strong>1<\/strong>.\u00a0 Then set your <strong>Power<\/strong> and <strong>Speed<\/strong> settings for your cut using the <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/laser-power-and-speed-settings\/\">suggested settings<\/a>.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/CutSet.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-472\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/CutSet.png\" alt=\"cutset\" width=\"300\" height=\"395\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/CutSet.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/CutSet-228x300.png 228w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Once you&#8217;ve completed these settings click the <strong>Next<\/strong> button at the bottom to proceed to the next page, titled <strong>Settings<\/strong>.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Next1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-474\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Next1.png\" alt=\"next1\" width=\"648\" height=\"618\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Next1.png 648w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Next1-300x286.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 648px) 85vw, 648px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>In most cases (outside of actually making stamps) the <strong>Standard Process<\/strong> is appropriate so click the <strong>Standard<\/strong> button to select normal operations.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Process.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-476\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Process.png\" alt=\"process\" width=\"300\" height=\"240\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>For your engraving select the appropriate <strong>Halftoning<\/strong>.\u00a0 In our <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/file-preparation\/\">example file<\/a> the image is black and white so clearly Black White is the proper choice.\u00a0 For most gray scale images the <strong>Error Diffusion<\/strong> setting looks most natural.\u00a0 <strong>Color<\/strong> is reserved for situations where you&#8217;re sending a color image to be engraved (like a photo).\u00a0 <strong>Ordered Dithering<\/strong> looks OK in some situations but default to <strong>Error Diffusion<\/strong> for most gray scale applications.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Halftone.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-477\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Halftone.png\" alt=\"halftone\" width=\"301\" height=\"140\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Halftone.png 301w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Halftone-300x140.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 301px) 85vw, 301px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Under <strong>Engraving Direction<\/strong> we recommend using the <strong>top-down<\/strong> setting (right hand side).\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Direction.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-479\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Direction.png\" alt=\"direction\" width=\"299\" height=\"87\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Resolution<\/strong> can be adjusted over a wide range for different applications.\u00a0 In most cases, at least 90%, we find that <strong>333 dpi<\/strong> is the appropriate resolution.\u00a0 Higher resolution choices (<strong>600 dpi<\/strong>, <strong>1000 dpi<\/strong>) slow down the engraving considerably so only choose those when really necessary.\u00a0 Resolutions lower than <strong>333 dpi<\/strong> may result in difficulty with making cuts so, leave it at <strong>333 dpi<\/strong> unless advised otherwise.\u00a0 Select your <strong>Resolution<\/strong> by either moving the slider.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Resolution.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-478\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/Resolution.png\" alt=\"resolution\" width=\"300\" height=\"142\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Disregard the <strong>Cutting Table<\/strong> and <strong>Rotary Fixture<\/strong> settings and click <strong>Next<\/strong> to go to the final page, titled Summary.\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/settings3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-480\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/settings3.png\" alt=\"settings3\" width=\"632\" height=\"618\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/settings3.png 632w, https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/files\/2016\/10\/settings3-300x293.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 632px) 85vw, 632px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>If you did everything correctly beforehand there&#8217;s no need to review anything on this page.\u00a0 Click the <strong>Process<\/strong> button (red arrow in lower right corner) to proceed.\u00a0 The settings will be saved.<\/li>\n<li>You have successfully configured the laser and are ready to cut or engrave your part.\u00a0 Follow the steps on the Operating the Laser page to complete your project.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here we&#8217;ll walk you through the process of configuring the laser cutter with the proper settings. Prepare your file using the guidelines found in the Laser Cutter File Preparation page. Copy your file to the desktop of one of the two computers in the Digital Fab room and then open it in Adobe Illustrator.\u00a0 If &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/laser-cutting-and-engraving\/using-the-laser-cutter\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Configuring the Laser Cutter&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1015,"featured_media":0,"parent":267,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-446","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","category-laser-cutting"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1015"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=446"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/446\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":607,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/446\/revisions\/607"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/267"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/digital-fabs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}