Fusion Pro: Laser Cutter & Engraver

Specfications

• max cutting size: 1219 x 914 mm
• max material thickness: 6 mm
• integrated air assist: YES
• preview camera system: YES
• materials: acrylic, plywood, cardboard, paper, glass (engrave), cotton fabric, full material list (including permitted/prohibited materials)
• offical technical specfications

Health & Safety

Laser Cutters, when used incorrectly and without sufficient exhaust, can be a fire risk. You must understand and abide by all our health and safety rules and procedures in order to safely operate the machine. We have a NO MAINTENANCE POLICY so never attempt any maintenance operations by yourself. Ever. If you suspect there is something wrong with the laser cutter contact a technician.

• DO NOT's:

• Do not operate the machine when alone in the lab
• Do not do any maintenance
• Do not use your own materials without checking with us! If you bring your own materials - YOU MUST check with technician first.
• Do not run the machine without Air Exhaust AND Assist
• Do not engrave or cut Vinyl/PVC EVER
• Do not use the computer next to the laser cutter for designing, only use for sending files to the laser cutter.

• DO's:

  • Do prototype and first test using cardboard
  • Do ask questions! If you ever feel unsure or notice something not right ask one of the technicians. There are no stupid questions!!

• Machine Safety:

  • NEVER EVER LEAVE MACHINE UNATTENDED DURING OPERATION. NOT EVEN FOR 5 SECONDS.

• In Case of Fire:

  • hit the EMERGENCY STOP button
  • shut down air assist and air exhaust
  • hit the emergency door open/fire alarm located next to the door to G11
  • tell others to leave without endangering yourself
  • call security on ext. 666 from any campus landline or 0207 896 2121 BUT if they don’t pick up then call 999
  • leave the building and meet at the assembly point: Loring Hall

  Machine Operation

  This section goes through preparing the laser cutter to prototype our file in cardboard, and then cut & engrave our chosen material.

  Safe Laser Cutter Operation

  To operate the laser cutter safely we need to extract the dangerous fumes that emit from burning materials. We use an extraction system next to the laser cutter which extracts and filters the fumes. There is an integrated air assist in the laser cutter which blows away small pieces of debris/ cut material that could get between the laser and your material. This next step is the most important, always run the laser with extraction and air assistance!

  1. Turn on exhaust
     

  Preparing the Laser Cutter

  1. Make sure laser bed is clean and empty.
  2. Turn on the machine.
  3. Wait for calibration/initialisation routine to complete.
     
  4. VERY CAREFULLY load your material in. Always prototype in cardboard first! This way you can make mistakes without wasting your acrylic/ plywood etc.
  5. On the Display Panel on the laser cutter select the Jog Menu
     
     
  6. Use the joystick to move the Plunger (located next to the laser carriage) over your material.
     
     
  7. Ensure the plunger is over your material.
     
     
  8. Click Auto Focus.
     
     
  9. Click Park Axis
  10. Click Done

  Adobe Illustrator

  1. Open your design in Adobe Illustrator.
  2. Check our article on designing your file for a detailed step-by-step on how to prepare your file for cutting vs. engraving. These a summary of the settings needed to cut/ engrave:
  • cutting (or vector)
    • stroke width: 0.01mm
    • fill: none
      
    • position things as top left as possible/ close together to save space and material.
  • engraving
    • stroke width: 0.01mm
    • fill: black/ any colour
  3. Click File > Print or ctrl + p
  4. Make sure the Printer is set to Laser Cutter & Engraver
  5. Click Print

  Epilog Dashboard

  We first need to laser cut our design in cardboard to ensure the scale/ path/ number of cuts is correct. This way we don't waste time/ expensive materials such as acrylic if there are mistakes/ issues with our file/ settings.
  
  Note: the jargon for 'cutting' and 'engraving' is different inside the Epilog Dashboard:

  • Vector = Cutting
  • Raster/ Engrave = Engraving
  
  
  
  1. Close the laser cutter door gently
  2. Select your objects and move them inside of your material.
  3. In the Processes pane, click the import button (see image below) next to Vector to import the material settings
     
     
     
  4. Select Cardboard from the material settings and click Import
     
     
     
  5. In the Processes pane, click on the Engrave process. Select Process Type: Off
     
     
     
  6. Click Print to send the file to the laser cutter

  Operating the Laser Cutter

  Triple-check the extrator is on, you have correctly focused your material and there’s nothing obstructing laser head moving for example, the hold down weights are not in the way of the laser's path.
  1. Press the Go/Stop button to start your job (and pause it!)
  2. WATCH THE JOB UNTIL COMPLETION
  3. Once the job is done - wait 10 seconds before turning off the exhaust to allow fumes to be properly removed
  4. Open the machine and VERY CAREFULLY remove your pieces
     
  5. Carefully place your chosen material into the laser cutter
  6. Return to the Epilog Dashboard and reposition your object inside your material if necessary
  7. Import the Vector and Engrave settings for your material e.g 3mm Acrylic settings are imported below:
     
     
     
  8. Click Print with the new material settings.
  9. Repeat all the previous steps from this section on "Safe Laser Cutter Operation"
  10. Put your RECTANGULAR offcuts under the workbench with the same materials, and put all other rubbish in the appropriate material bin.
      

  FAQs

  Q: My job is 0 seconds long. What’s up?
  A: Check the “Job Type” in print preferences & the stroke width of your vectors. If the “Job Type” is set to “Vector”, the laser cutter will not receive information on images or vectors with a stroke width greater than 0.01mm . If the “Job Type” is set to “Raster”, the laser cutter will not receive information on vectors with a stroke width of 0.01mm or smaller.

  Q: The laser hasn’t cut fully through my material!
  A: DO NOT TOUCH THE MATERIAL, leave it in the laser cutter so that it is still aligned and then run the job again, potentially on a faster setting. TIP: One way to tell whether materials have cut all the way WITHOUT touching them is to see if objects ‘fall’ slightly/ through the grid of the bed.

  Q: The Laser Cutter isn’t turning on after an emergency stop?
  A: Twist the emergency stop button to release. Turn on the Laser Cutter with key set.

  Q: There’s lots of burn marks on my material
  A: If the material does not come with a protective seal (or has been taken off) cover it in masking tape. There is a large real of masking tape next to the laser cutter on the cutting table. If there is none there inform a technician.