Trotec Laser Settings Guide

[In Libman]

Youwill find a wide selection of pre-tested laser parameters in the Trotec laser software. Save time testing for optimum parameters by choosing from 50 different materials. For each product group, we offer 2 different parameter sets: optimized for time, and optimized for quality.

"Quality" parameter sets are recommended for engraving applications with fine details, small font sizes and high contrast. Thus, the laser cut is also optimized e.g. glossy, flame-polished edges with acrylic.

"Speed" parameter sets are recommended for time-optimized applications that include simple shapes and designs with fewer finer lines and details.

All of the laser parameters in the material database have been carefully determined. Depending on your application, small adjustments to the parameters may be required to achieve your desired result. For example, increasing the power value introduces more energy onto the material resulting in a darker and deeper engraving on the wood wood. The reverse is also true. Reducing the laser power results in a lighter engraving. We recommend making adjustments in small increments to find your ideal parameters.

Tip: Always change only a single parameter during a test process. For example, start with the power by testing different values in 5-10% increments. Then repeat the same process with the speed. Only then should you combine both parameter settings. This will allow you to isolate variables and determine how individual parameters affect results.

With laser processing, different colour intensities can be achieved on the material by means of various parameter settings. You can quickly and easily determine the desired colour intensity by using the grayscale matrix.

The following graphic is a good reference for testing cutting parameters. The rectangle with two differently rounded corners offers the advantage that both straight cutting lines and more complex shapes are possible with the tested settings. Send the graphic to the laser. Start again with lower power and a higher speed (we recommend a start speed of 5-10%) and find your desired cutting quality.

All laser parameters in the material database have been carefully determined. Depending on the individual application, small adjustments to the parameters in the material database may be required in order to achieve visually different results. For example, if you increase the power value, more energy is introduced into the material, which leads to a darker engraving in wood. The engraving is thus also deeper. The reverse is also true -- reducing the power results in a lighter engraving. To find the perfect parameters for your application, we recommend making adjustments in small increments.

Tip: Always change only one parameter in a test process. For example, start with the power by testing different values in 5-10% increments. Then repeat the same process with the speed. Only then should you combine both parameter settings. This will allow you to isolate variables and determine how individual parameters affect results.

With laser processing, different color intensities can be achieved on the material by means of various parameter settings. You can quickly and easily determine the desired color intensity by using the grayscale matrix.

Trotec has carefully determined each and every laser parameter in the material database. Depending on the application itself, minor adjustments to the parameters within the database may be required to achieve visually different results. As an example of such variances; if you increase the power value, more energy will be introduced in the material, resulting in darker and deeper engraving in the wood. Conversely, reducing the power results in lighter engraving. We recommend making small incremental adjustments to find the perfect parameters for your application.

Tip: We advise changing only one parameter in a test process. For instance, start with testing power in 5-10% increments, and then repeat the same process but with speed. Only then should you combine both parameter settings. By doing so, this will allow you to isolate variables to determine how individual parameters affect results.

The graphic to the left is a great reference for testing cutting parameters. The smaller rectangle with two differently rounded corners provides the advantage that more complex shapes and straight cutting lines, which is possible with the tested settings. Send the graphic to the laser, and start again with higher speed (5-10% recommended) and lower power. Then find your desired cutting quality.

Next, I select the print Properties to set my Vector settings, which I would expect to apply to the rectangle curve on the outside, and settings for my Raster settings, which I would expect to apply to the hatch in the center.

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This could potentially be replicated without a laser cutter by installing the Epilog laser drivers and Epilog Job Manager, which is an intermediary program that you can send print jobs to and then send those jobs on to Epilog laser cutters, which are located here Fusion Driver and Firmware Updates, and then viewing the settings that were passed on to Job Manager. My sample file is the same as above.

laser settings test.3dm (43.7 KB)

Kevin - I was able to get this setup The epilog driver can be a bit finicky on interpreting our output. Most of it is controlled by output color not line width. And then combining that with hatch patterns can also throw it off a bit.

So lines are vectors and Solid hatches specifically are engraves. Other hatches that are clearly lines should stay vector? (I seem to remember that we output solid hatches as close together diagnal hatch)

Tape Dispenser Wings was sent from Rhino 8 and while I had set the settings to the same values, they reset to the default settings. I did double check that by default Rhino 8 was printing lines using hairline as the line width default and it was.

The Speed and Power are set in the printer Properties which is where this screen comes from, and I can set the settings that all raster engraves should use and all vector cuts should use.

image1172745 46.6 KB

Output Type: Vector Output

Output Color: Display Color

View and Output Scale: Extents, 1:1

Margins are all 0

Position is not centered, with an offset of 0 from the Upper Left

Linetype: Match Pattern Definition

Line Width Scale by 1

Default Line Width: Hairline mm

Can confirm that the Epilog is mainly interpreting line weight as the determinant for Cut vs. Raster. (I believe that by default saturation is mapped to raster strength, seem to recall playing with gradients to modulate raster depth)

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CO2 lasers are outstanding for laser cutting and laser engraving acrylic. They offer optimal conditions for producing illuminated signs, displays, decorative objects, toys and more. Here are some guidelines for selecting the right materials and laser settings to achieve the best results.

Acrylic is produced through two different methods, it can be cast (GS) and extruded (XT). Each method produces its own set of material properties.In principle, both versions can be processed very well, however, they behave differently during the laser processing. It is useful to have basic knowledge about the differences when deciding on a suitable acrylic material for your application.

Cast acrylic is poured as a liquid mass between two glass plates. The result is a homogeneous, tension-free material with equal mechanical properties in directions x and y. Due to this manufacturing process, however, the thickness tolerance is significantly higher and is approx. 15%, which must be observed for applications with plug connections. The manufacturing process for cast acrylic is more expensive which is why it costs more than extruded acrylic.Laser cutting cast acrylic creates burr-free cuts on both sides. Laser engraving also yields better results than with extruded acrylic - a perfectly white engraved image results.Currently, the Trotec material assortment only contains cast acrylic sheets.

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