Engraving / Rastering
Engraving, also called Rastering, is the process of creating a surface image on material without cutting through
the material entirely.
Setting Engraving Properties
Clicking an object (design image) in the workspace will allow you to access that object properties tab. The
Raster Properties will automatically open. For vector objects (basic shapes), it will open up the Vector Fill &
Rasterize tab. Select the icon next to Rasterize to open the Raster Properties.
Setting Resolution
The resolution of your engravings can be controlled by the DPI (Dots Per Inch). DPI options include 250, 500,
and 1000. The more dots per inch, the higher precision, and quality of your images, while a lower DPI will
process and engrave faster. Speed and power should be compensated for different DPI settings. The
software’s default resolution is set to 250 DPI.
Setting Passes
The passes setting dictates the number of times the selected shape is engraved. The passes range from 1 to
999. Increasing the number of passes will increase the amount of times the shape is rastered.
Setting Raster Power
Power will determine how much power the laser delivers. As with speed, power will vary depending on the
wattage of the laser tube and the material itself.
Setting Raster Speed
Speed settings determine how quickly the laser head will move. For faster engravings, 100% is ideal. Lowering
the speed will allow you to create deeper engravings, as it allows the laser beam to be in contact with the
material for a longer period of time.
Applying B/W Threshold
At this moment, the image is still displayed at the threshold. The black and white raster feature is great for
tracing logos, text, or simple high contrast images that only appear in a single color. You can adjust the
threshold of what’s considered black, and what’s considered white by selecting your image and clicking
“Threshold”. This will bring up a B/W Threshold slide bar, from which you can adjust B/W threshold to your
liking.
Halftone Dither
For images that have shadows and depth, it’s ideal to use Halftone Dithering. Halftone Dithering creates a
series of dots similar to newsprint. This effectively creates a grayscale that is ideal for photorealistic
engravings. To Halftone Dither an object, click the Halftone Dither button.
(Refer to images on the next page)
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