LaserCut Ebook V1

Don’t look at
Only use materials

the laser for an
approved by BeAM
extended period
Stay for the

ENTIRE TIME you No PVC or Teflon –
use the cutter they release
harmful gases!
In case of fire:
Grab fire blanket Open the door Lay blanket on bed Close the door Get a staff member
BeAM provides the following materials for free:
Plywood (⅛" and ¼"

Cardboard
thicknesses)
Clear acrylic (⅛ " and

Bristol paper
¼" thicknesses)
You can bring in other materials (paper, natural rubber, felt)

but you MUST get them approved by BeAM staff.
No PVC or Teflon Laser cutter will not cut metal
Cannot be bigger than bed of laser cutter:

Consult with BeAM staff about any material
Murray: 32" by 18" not provided by BeAM
Hanes: 48" by 24"
Illustrator and Photoshop are both part of the Adobe Creative Cloud Suite.
Don’t have the Adobe Creative Cloud Suite? Download it for free: adobe.unc.edu
• Open Adobe Illustrator and start a new document
• Always choose ‘Art and Illustration’
• Set the unit of measure to INCHES
• Murray: Set the size to 32in wide and 18 in tall.
• Hanes: Set the size to 48in wide and 24 in tall.
• Under pre-sets, click ‘advanced options’
• Color mode: RGB
• Resolution: 300 pixels/inch
OR use the template provided at

www.beam.unc.edu/resources !
Cuts all the way through Thinly etches or “scores” Etches graphics with
the material the material gradients onto the material
Vector: things that will score or cut Raster: things that will etch back and forth
• Line thickness = .001 in • Line thickness ≠ .001in

• Line colors = RGB red, blue, green, • Line colors = anything other than those 8
yellow, black, cyan, magenta, orange RGB colors (e.g. CMYK, RGB purple, etc.)
Digital image made of paths determined by mathematical
statements
BOTH of these things must be true:

It uses only the following colors:
Its line
thicknesses
RGB red, RGB blue, RGB green, RGB
are equal to
yellow, RGB black, RGB cyan, RGB
.001”
magenta, RGB orange
Made of squares of solid color called pixels
At least one of these things is true:
Its line It uses colors from outside the

thicknesses laser cutter’s list (e.g. CMYK
are not equal colors, RGB brown or RGB purple,
to .001” etc.)
Power = a percentage
of the laser’s
maximum output
Speed = how fast the

laser carriage is
traveling
Vector images: cutting vs. etching Raster images: lighter vs. darker etching
Power and Speed boards can be found on the wall
next to the laser cutter in the Makerspace as well as
on the following pages for you to access at home
Top output is for raster at that power/speed RASTER
Bottom output is for vector at that power/speed

VECTOR
Some speeds are not recommended because of how

long they will take.
In order to save time, determine your
initial power and speed settings before
you get on laser cutter.
You can do this using the Power/Speed

Boards from previous pages or use the
boards in the Makerspaces next to the
Laser Cutters.
You can decide what order to cut or etch
things by choosing what order the colors go
in.
1⃣ Black: Power
It is better to raster or etch things before
cutting. Cutting can cause pieces of material 100, Speed 60
to move around, affecting later rasters.
2⃣ Green: Power
For example: If you were to cut out the red 100, Speed 80
part of the keychain on the right before you 3⃣ Red: Power
etched the BeAM logo and wording, the
100, Speed 8
keychain would be separated from the
larger piece of wood and can move around
while the rest of the design is cut.
Record the order for yourself so you

remember it!
To get to Power and Speed settings:
• Open Illustrator file on
laser cutter computer
• File → Print
• Click ‘Setup’
• Click ‘Preferences’
ULS = Universal Laser System Software
Access step-by-step instructions on downloading the

ULS Software from BeAM using the following link:
https://beam.unc.edu/files/2019/01/LaserCutter_So
ftwareSOP_01012019.pdf
Zoom View
Zoom View:
-Can magnify specific part of design
-Can be helpful for small details
Focus View:
-Controls the x and y position of the laser carriage.
-Click on a point on the screen and the laser
carriage moves to that point on bed.
-When laser cutter door is open, a red light will
show where the laser is pointed
-Helpful for determining where your design will
actually cut on the material.
-Click on all corners of your design to make sure
your design fits on the material.
Relocate View:
-Allows you to adjust placement of your design.
-Helpful in conjunction with the nozzle tool – if you
find your design doesn’t line up on the material,
click and drag it with the relocate view.
L-ook at rulers on both the screen and the laser
cutter to make sure design is placed where you
want it to be.
-Can choose ‘To Pointer’ button to snap design to
location of the laser carriage.
Duplicate View:
-This tool allows you to duplicate your design.
-Put in how many times you want to duplicate
along the x axis, and how many times along the y,
and it will do so.
-For example: 3 along x and 3 along y means you
will get 9 of your design arranged in a 3 by 3
square.
Estimate View:
-Predicts how long your job will take to run.
Remember there is a 90 minute limit for all
students using the laser cutter.
-Required that you click ‘Start’ on the timer
before each job to check the time.
-If colors are greyed out at any point in any
of these views, something’s wrong
• Before you can use the laser cutter you must have
your Illustrator file approved by a BeAM Staff member.
• Verifying the illustrator file will reduce common errors

associated with laser cutting to save time using the
laser cutter.
• Reminder once you are on the laser cutter there is a

90 minute time limit on the machine per person
• Make sure to check out our Laser Cutting FAQ page

MURRAY HANES
Focusing the laser makes sure the laser is right Using the calibration tool, slide it under the
height for working with your material the way front of the laser cutter carriage until notch
you want it to. rests just under carriage.
Make sure to close glass door properly before beginning your cut. If the door is not properly
shut the laser will not cut, it will outline the path in safe-mode using the red laser as an outline.

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Don’t look at

Only use materials

Stay for the

Plywood (⅛" and ¼"

Clear acrylic (⅛ " and

You can bring in other materials (paper, natural rubber, felt)

Cannot be bigger than bed of laser cutter​:

OR use the template provided at

• Line thickness = .001 in • Line thickness ≠ .001in

BOTH of these things must be true:

At least one of these things is true:

Its line It uses colors from outside the

Speed = how fast the

Top output is for raster at that power/speed RASTER

Bottom output is for vector at that power/speed

Some speeds are not recommended because of how

You can do this using the Power/Speed

Record the order for yourself so you

Access step-by-step instructions on downloading the

• Verifying the illustrator file will reduce common errors

• Reminder once you are on the laser cutter there is a

• Make sure to check out our Laser Cutting FAQ page

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Cannot be bigger than bed of laser cutter: