Mechanical engraver file prep

[Margaret Turco]

Hi guys! I'm working with a company that has two Gravograph machines, an IS400 and IS900. They have asked me to try and replicate something a former employee did, to engrave photos. Coming from the laser world, this is becoming a pain in the neck since it all has to be vector files.

Does anybody have a suggestion about a relatively simple way for me to get results similar to the attached engravings on Rowmark? All the Youtube tutorials I've looked at presuppose that we have Photoshop or illustrator, or what-not, and we don't. I'm trying to get by with the machine software and Gimp. If there's just no way, would you just put me out of my misery so I won't waste any more time on this?

Thanks for your help! Engraved ornaments pic 2.jpg

[Kev Williams]

Very simple actually, provided the company with the Gravograph machines are using Gravostyle software and knows how to use it and the machines...

To run those as photos, they need the exact same vector file you'd use to laser engrave them. Gravostyle has 2 filling routines, a straight-line hatch fill and an island fill. To engrave the photos you tell Gravostyle which routine (hatch is always the most reliable), the cutting width of the tool you'll be using, enter an overlap (default is 50% and works fine), and go. Gravostyle has 2 ways to view the results, one is the 'wysiwyre' option which shows what the finished engraving will actually look like based on your tool and overlap choices, the other is the 'preview' button in the machining menu, which will show the exact tool paths that will engrave.

this took me maybe 10 minutes:

used corel TRACE, which left some detail out but ok for this demo, then separated the individual pics out, then imported them to Gravostyle.
Note this is the same graphics you'd simply paint black in Corel and send to the laser...
pics1.jpg

here I'm in the tool selection menu, after a few trials and finding that a .010" tool was narrower than necessary, and that a .015" tool was too wide, a .012" wide tool was my choice, along with a 90° hatch and the default 50% overlap...
pics2.jpg

This is the 'wysiwyre' view, and this IS what the engraving will look like- provided you use the correct tool!
pics3.jpg

This is the machining preview in default size, because of the narrow tool and the rather large pics (they're approx. 2" tall), the preview shows all black..
pics4.jpg

This is zoomed in on the center image, now you can see the actual tool paths...
pics5.jpg

That's all there is to it! These WILL take a long time to engrave, but it's the compromise between high detail and cutting tool width. By adjusting the original graphics, you can get to where a larger tool could be used, which will speed up the engraving time. However, the time you spend making the adjustments is probably equal to the engraving time saved, so why bother?

The beauty for YOU is, you don't even need to do any of this, that's THEIR job! All you have to do is supply the simple outlined graphics...

[Margaret Turco]

Thanks for taking the time to respond, Kev. That was a fantastic step-by-step through the whole process!
I'll post again when we have some more pictures engraved.