Full Spectrum Laser MUSE 3D - Section VII. Operations; General Functions; Engraving; Vector Cutting

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SECTION VII. OPERATIONS
This section will guide you through using your Muse 3D laser cutter. To get started, it is important
to understand the meanings of “Vector Cutting” and “Raster Engraving” and their associated file
types.
VECTOR RASTER
Project Examples
Signs, Logos, Parts, Gears Image Engraving, Surface Marking
File Types
PDF, SVG JPEG, GIF, PNG, TIF
Preferred File Type
PDF JPEG
File Composition
Geometric Formulas Pixels
General Functions
Vector Cutting
Figure 7.1
Vector cutting is the most common feature of a laser cutter. Vector cutting with a laser means “to cut a
line or shape”. When vector cutting, the laser follows the “vector lines” embedding in the vector image
to cut out the design. The laser starts at a designated location and follows the vector lines until the
shape is cut out. This process is highly accurate and requires no resolution adjustments because of
the properties of a vector image.
Vector Images
In Vector Cut mode, the software receives information from the print stream and interprets it as a
series of paths for the laser head to follow. For the print stream to have vector information, the file
being printed must be a vector image. Vector images are more flexible than raster images. These
images are created using mathematical equations rather than pixel blocks. PDF’s work great as
vector files and are easy to resize without losing resolution. Company logos and branded graphics
are usually vector images.
Engraving
Engraving is the process by which complex designs are etched into a workpiece. Engraving
can range from a simple surface mark all the way through deep material removal. Engraving is
differentiated from cutting in that cutting is the process of burning a closed contour completely
through a workpiece. Engraving is also known as “Raster Engraving” or “Rastering”. For engraving, a
laser has two states: on and off. Every black pixel or “laser dot” is the result of the laser turning on
and firing at that location. This location is controlled by the input image, which can be thought of as a
Section VII. Operations
General Functions
This section will guide you through using your Muse 3D laser cutter. To get started, it is important to under-
stand the meanings of “Vector Cutting” and “Raster Engraving” and their associated le types.
Vector cutting
The most common feature of a laser cutter. Vector cutting with a laser means “to cut a line or shape”. When vector
cutting, the laser follows the “vector lines” embedding in the vector image to cut out the design. The laser starts
at a designated location and follows the vector lines until the shape is cut out. This process is highly accurate and
requires no resolution adjustments because of the properties of a vector image.
Vector Images
In Vector Cut mode, the software receives information from the print stream and interprets it as a series of paths
for the laser head to follow. For the print stream to have vector information, the le being printed must be a vector
image. Vector images are more exible than raster images. These images are created using mathematical equations
rather than pixel blocks. PDF’s work great as vector les and are easy to resize without losing resolution. Company
logos and branded graphics are usually vector images.
Engraving
Engraving is the process by which complex designs are etched into a workpiece. Engraving can range from a simple
surface mark all the way through deep material removal. Engraving is differentiated from cutting in that cutting is the
process of burning a closed contour completely through a workpiece. Engraving is also known as “Raster Engraving”
or “Rastering”. For engraving, a laser has two states: on and off. Every black pixel or “laser dot” is the result of the
laser turning on and ring at that location. This location is controlled by the input image, which can be thought of as
a “map” of on and off pixels. The laser res individual pulses corresponding to pixels in an image. When the laser
is operating in raster mode the head moves rapidly from left to right and slowly from top to bottom, engraving your
image pixel by pixel and line by line.