PDA

View Full Version : Raster engraving with AutoCad and GCC



James Fillmore
04-02-2007, 10:04 PM
Tried everything! Been laser vector cutting for over a year. Trying to raster engrave some lettering and cant. Can anyone raster with Autocad (I'm using 2000) and a GCC or Pinnacle laser?

Joe Pelonio
04-02-2007, 10:32 PM
I thought autocad was vector only, for pen plotting. If that's true, you'd have to import into Corel or A.I. and add a .5 point or larger outline to be able to vector it, You can't engrave vectors (hairlines) on any laser that I know of.

James Fillmore
04-02-2007, 11:06 PM
I have a Universal Laser at work and do raster. Works just like a laser printer, lasing a strip at a time. With ULS you set the line width to zero and tell it a particular color is to be RASTER. The GCC driver LOOKS like it should work that way.

William Desrochers
04-03-2007, 7:43 AM
I think it's possible, by changing the line color to, say Red instead of black. (or white depending on if Autocad inverts the color prior to printing.)

Mike Null
04-03-2007, 11:35 AM
Some laser engravers have the option of raster only and will raster vector lines at vector widths. I believe ULS and Trotec both offer this in their drivers.

Dave Jones
04-03-2007, 4:15 PM
Epilog has that too. It will raster vectors if you select raster only in the driver.

James Fillmore
04-27-2007, 2:10 PM
Ayone else?

Still trying to see if anyone knows how to raster engrave using AutoCad. Can vector engrave with the best of them. Was quite a learning curve cause of the Chinesse manuals but somehow got it figured out. But can NOT get it to raster. have tried EVERYTHING. I guess I could use Corel but hate to have to switch back and forth. I am more proficient with AutoCad.

William Desrochers
04-27-2007, 2:26 PM
Ayone else?

Still trying to see if anyone knows how to raster engrave using AutoCad. Can vector engrave with the best of them. Was quite a learning curve cause of the Chinesse manuals but somehow got it figured out. But can NOT get it to raster. have tried EVERYTHING. I guess I could use Corel but hate to have to switch back and forth. I am more proficient with AutoCad.

Try in Autocad, hatching with the pattern SOLID.

Dave Jones
04-27-2007, 3:03 PM
Have you tried with something like polylines?

Is there a raster setting in the driver for the laser to force it to raster?

Autocad is not a mixed bitmap/vector program like CorelDraw or Illustrator. Autocad is only vectors. So it would be up to the laser driver to create raster data from the vector data.

Michael Kowalczyk
04-27-2007, 5:17 PM
Tried everything! Been laser vector cutting for over a year. Trying to raster engrave some lettering and cant. Can anyone raster with Autocad (I'm using 2000) and a GCC or Pinnacle laser?


James,
It may help if you attach the file or at least a sample of it so we can see what you are starting with. I bring DXF files into Corel X3 often and can raster or vector them by defining the fill and converting to a bitmap or changing color and the power and velocity settings to get the depth or effect I want. The more info you can supply the easier it is for a Creeker to assist:).(238)

Mike Mackenzie
04-27-2007, 6:55 PM
James,

Are you trying to raster "Vector Lines" try using a true type font and see if it rasters. If it does then change your pen assignment for the red color to something larger than 0.001. or the color that you are trying to raster. By the way the epilog website states vector only driver
for autocad maybe GCC works the same.

Jerry Allen
04-28-2007, 10:28 AM
James,
Did you try setting the driver, Advance tab, Vector function, to All Raster?

Rodne Gold
04-28-2007, 12:13 PM
You need to assign a pen width for raster engraving in Acad to the GCC and set text fill on.
Even if its a vector you sending , if you set the pen width , it will raster engrave it to that width.
Using SHX files will also guaranteee text engraves (albeit it might not be raster if you havent set lpen width) , you get a lot of filled SHX files you can use for solid lettering.
Acad is not the most elegant interface , we used acad from the VERY early days (ver 1.x or so) for our other cnc stuff and were loathe to switch , but COREL is way better as an interface to the GCC.
What we do is design in acad if its not easy in Corel and import the DWG file (we save as ver 14 and import into X3) but have moved big time to Corel as the design end for our lasering. It just makes life a lot easier.

Ed Newbold
05-02-2007, 10:27 AM
Tried everything! Been laser vector cutting for over a year. Trying to raster engrave some lettering and cant. Can anyone raster with Autocad (I'm using 2000) and a GCC or Pinnacle laser?
It's been pretty easy for me. I export the AutoCAD file to .EPS format, then import that into Coreldraw. Works perfectly for me everytime.

Ed in Columbus, OH