Preparing Laser Cutting Files in Rhino

Choose your laser cutter

Choose the right laser cutter for your material type and size:

Type	Quantity	Dimensions	Materials	Location
Trotec SP500	1	1245 mm x 710 mm	Strawboard (1 and 2mm), plywood (3 and 6mm)	418 Makerspace
Trotec Speedy 400 Flexx	1	1000 x 610mm	Strawboard, plywood, acrylic, mylar, fabrics, and other materials.	202 Digital Modelling

See more detail at Laser Cutting.

Download the template

Download the Rhino Laser cutting templates (3dm).

Job setup

Import your work

Import your work into the template.

Ensure that your objects are at the appropriate scale.

The Laser Cutter cuts at 1:1 scale. For example, if you need your models at 1:100, they should be scaled down by 0.01.

Try a scale converter:

https://www.ginifab.com/feeds/cm_to_inch/scale_converter.html

Assign layers

Layers are pre-set in the template for the different machines. You should hide or delete any layers you don't need.

Assign parts of your design into the appropriate layers.

Select the desired element - Right click the layer e.g. RASTOR ENGRAVE, VECTOR ENGRAVE, FILL or CUT.

In the dropdown menu choose change object layer.

Nest objects

Move elements to fit within the boundaries of your chosen material size. If you need to use multiple sheets, make a copy of the material boundary to prepare separate sheets.

Arrange the parts of your design inside this boundary, favouring the left side. This saves money and reduces material waste.

Nest your design, placing each element close together (2mm minimum distance between parts) or if possible, sharing cut lines.

Line weights

This is pre-set in the template

In the Layers panel:

Set Print width to Hairline.
Set Line type to Continuous.

Remove duplicate lines

To remove duplicate lines in Rhino:

Select your work and the material boundary.
Use the Make2D command and input the settings shown below.
Make2D will make its own layer group. You should Hide or Delete the original layer group to avoid duplicates.

Explode

Use the EXPLODE command on text and line based pattern hatches.

Do not explode solid hatches

Then use the Join command to reduce the number of lines.

Export to PDF

1) Go to File and select Print, or type in Print into the Command Line.

2) Under Destination, select Rhino PDF. Under Size, scroll down to select Custom.

3) Set Width and Height to match selected material size.

Make sure Units are set to Millimetres

Make sure that the following are selected: Output Type: Vector Output, Output Color: Display Color.

Under View and Output Scale, select Window and click on Set which will bring you back into the model page.

4) In the model page, select the area to print, which should be the rectangle that has been previously set up to match the selected material sheet size.

If you are using multiple sheets, only select one and repeat the PDF export for each sheet.

Press Enter to go back to the Print window.

5) Back in the Print window, make sure that scale is set to 1:1

All Margins should be set to 0.00

Select Print to finish and save file as PDF.