A² Fab Lab

This page contains essential instructions for using the laser cutters.

Choose Your Material

The lasers can cut or engrave paper, chipboard, museum board, mdf, wood, masonite, cotton fabric, leather, acrylic and Plexiglas. Glass and stone can be engraved but not cut.

DO NOT USE: trace paper/similar thin paper, vinyl, lexan, polycarbonate, PVC or other synthetic materials that may have chloride in them. If your plastic is unlabeled or you cannot confirm that it is acrylic or Plexiglas, do not use it.

If you want to use a material that is not listed, please consult a fab lab staff member first.

Use flat materials only. Surfaces that are not flat may block the movement of the laser head assembly or the airflow of the nose cone, both of which may damage the laser cutter.

File Preparation

Cutting and scoring along clean lines is accomplished with vector images (Illustrator or CAD). Raster images can be used for scoring/engraving; the process takes much longer.

To cut and/or score line art from Illustrator:

Create a file exactly 32"x18" in RGB color mode. This is the size of the laser cutting bed. Use rulers and guides (under View menu) to help visualize placement on the size of your particular material.

Use Live Trace options to vectorize scanned drawings, etc. Always enable Ignore White in Tracing Options.

Set all fills for score and cut lines to transparent (no color).

Set all stroke weights for score and cut lines to 0.0001 pt.

Set stroke color of cut lines to pure RGB red.

Set stroke color of score lines to pure RGB blue.

To score an area rather than a line, set stroke color to transparent and fill color to pure RGB black.

Clean Lens

Check and clean the lens as demonstrated at orientation. If you notice a damaged lens, immediately notify Fab Lab staff.

Turn On Ventilation System

Open valves on wall next to computer by turning the small red handles inward to parallel the line. Switch on both red suction machines on floor next to lasers.

Send File to Print Queue

Login to UFAD on the computer with your GatorLink ID. Open your prepared file and choose Print. In the Print dialog, change the Media Size to User-defined Landscape (should be 32"x18"). Make sure the selected printer is VLS660 or PLS660.

Open the Universal Laser Control application by double-clicking its red icon near the bottom right corner of the screen. Click Settings. In the Materials tab, choose your material from the list and enter the correct thickness. Click OK. Open Settings again. In the Manual Control tab, you can adjust the laser's power, speed, and resolution (PPI). These numbers vary depending on material and job type (cut or score). Each color is adjusted independently. Always click Set after adjusting a color's settings, before moving to the next color, or your changes will be lost. For reference, card stock paper can be scored at 10% power/100% speed (blue), and cut at 50% power/100% speed (red). Cutting thicker materials may call for full power and lower speed. For example, plexiglas may require 100% power/20% speed (or slower) to cut all the way through. Finding the right setting for your material may take some time. Be sure to bring extra material.

Focus The Laser

In this step, you will adjust the height of the bed using the up/down ("Z") controls on the front of the laser unit itself. Open the lid and place your material on the cutting bed, making sure to match its position to the layout of your digital file. If the material is thick (higher than the rulers on the edge of the cutting bed), lower the bed until you are sure the surface is below the nose cone of the laser. You don't want the nose cone to hit the material. In the Universal Laser Control application, change from Basic View to Focus View. Click on any point in your image and the laser head will move to that point in the machine. Using the focusing jig found to the left of the cutting bed, adjust bed height so the notch in the jig matches up with the ridge on the nose cone. There is a poster on the wall for reference. Put the focusing jig back where you found it.

Start The Job

DOUBLE CHECK TO MAKE SURE THE AIR SYSTEM IS WORKING. Once the ventilation system is on, the laser lens is clean and focused, and the lid is closed, you may execute the job by clicking the green "play" button on the Universal Laser Control screen. You can pause the job at any time. To resume, hit pause again. To start over, hit play.

NEVER LEAVE THE ROOM WHILE THE LASER IS RUNNING.

DO NOT ALLOW THE COMPUTER TO GO TO SLEEP. Move the mouse every couple of minutes or your job will not be completed.

Once the laser is finished, remove your materials and any scraps from the bed. If no one else is waiting to use the machine, turn off the air assist machines, close valves, and clean the lens again. Log out of the computer.

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