This step includes bringing your own personal ideas to life! In order to fill the requirements for the assignment, such as having a image like design with lettering, it is very helpful to draw out on paper some original ideas about what you envision. Along with your original drawing there should be dimensions, and a precise idea of how all aspects of the drawing will be connected and continous. Once you have a clear idea of what you want to create, you drawing can be transferred to Adobe Illustrator. 

This step includes using the curvature tool to outline the chosen photo. Insert a reference image if necessary and outline it using the tool using a computer's trackpad or mouse. For my personal design, I used mostly straight lines and not curved so that my wood cut outline was consise. The amount of anchor dots should be limited for clarity. After the ‘image’ part of the design is completed, add a text box with your desired font to add lettering to the sign. Combine all aspects of the design using the shape builder tool.

This step includes moving your design to Fusion 360 to finish the designing process. When your design in Adobe Illustrator is complete, export the newly finished file as a dxf. Open the file in Fusion 360 from your downloads. Start off imy importing a sketch on the x - y plane. Once your sketch is visible, use the extrude tool to your desired depth of wood (0.5 inches).  At this point in the project your design is digitally in 3D form. 

This step includes designing a stock to be sent to the CNC machine. Right now the 3D design is simply a digital idea and the software doesn’t know that it is cutting a sign. Therefore, to mimic the wood, add a rectangle the size of the wood you will be cutting on and put in equally over your design in Fusion 360. Extrude this rectangle to the depth of your wood as well.

This step includes adding the appropriate bit to cut your design on the CNC machine. All available tools are able to be accessed via the Dawson Portal and this is where you will download the bit you will be using (in our case bit 6). Once imported into Fusion 360, you can run the job and verify that the bit will successfully cut the entire design. In my case, my lettering font was very intricate so I needed to go back to the tool library and also download a smaller bit for those aspects of my design. 

This step includes changing final settings in Fusion 360. Before sending your finished design to the CNC machine verify that all the settings are correct. Go to the setup tab, then geometry. Verify that it is on silhouette, select your outline at the bottom and finally move to the “passes” tab and be sure it is on multiple passes. Finally, go to the post processing tab and verify that your project is named and is on 1001. That completes the design process in Fusion 360, so save the design to your computer and email the file to the computer that is connected to the CNC machine.