CAD Design

CAD Design Tutorial

Follow the steps below using CAD to design your layered laser engraving files.

Using Google Images, find a good image to use as a reference for your project. Remember to use search words like PNG, Vector, or Logo to get a "cartoon" style image that you can easily distinguish layers.
When you find a good image, right-click and select save-as.
Your image needs to be a .jpeg or .png file type. It will not work if it is anything else.
Save the .jpeg or .png to your H:Drive in a "Layered Laser" folder.

In Inventor, create a new part file.
Start a 2D sketch on the XZ plane.
Select the Image tool from the ribbon.
Find your image and click open. (if your image does not appear, if most likely isn't a .jpeg or .png file)
Click to place your image.

On the same sketch you inserted your image, use the 2D sketch tools you've learned to trace your entire image.
Click finish sketch when done.

*YOUR IMAGE AND THE 2D SKETCH TOOLS YOU ARE USING TO TRACE YOUR IMAGE SHOULD ALL BE ON SKETCH 1

Using the extrude tool, click in each shape you traced to extrude your entire image. This will be your bottom base layer.
It does not matter how much you extrude this, try to get it to look as thick as the image to the right, this may not be .1" for you, that's fine.

In your Layer 1 file, click the "+" next to Extrusion 1
Click and drag "Sketch 1" above Extrusion 1 to bring your image and 2D trace back.
Right-click and delete Extrusion 1. You should be have your image and 2D trace back.
Use the extrude tool to extrude everything except for what you want your base layer to show.
Use SAVE AS to save this as Layer 2. Do not just click save, that will save over your Layer 1.
Repeat these steps for each of your layers but using save as to name each new layer a different number (Layer 2, 3, 4, etc.)

New Layers.mp4

Create a new Assembly file.
Place each layer that you've created. Remember to ground the first part you place (rick-click, select grounded).
Use the Mate and Flush constrain tools to assemble your project.

Create a new part file.
Start a new 2D sketch.
You will be designing some sort of stand for your project to sit in. Your stand does not need to look identical to the one pictured to the right, it does however need to be functional in displaying your finished project. Depending on how many layers your project is where you will have your stands attached will determine the size of the opening. Each layer of your project is .125". For example - if your stand is going to attach to the the bottom of this Pokemon ball that has 3 layers, the stand opening would have to be .375" (.125" x 3).
Extrude your design .125".
Save as "Laser Stand"

Create a new drawing sheet.
Right-click on sheet 1 in your model browser and select edit sheet. Change the sheet size to "custom size (inches)". Make the height 9.5" and the width 11".
In the model browser, right-click and delete the titleblock and the boarder. You should just be left with a blank sheet.
Use the base tool to insert all of your layers and your stands. Make sure to flip these to the front view. The laser is going to cut the black lines, make sure your layers are all on the page and not intersecting with eachother.
Leave the stand scale 1:1 but double click on the other layers and edit the scale of them to fill out as much of the page as possible. All layers must be the same scale - keep the layers consistent.
Save this file in your layered laser folder.
Export this file as a PDF.
Submit your PDF to Google Classroom to be lasered!

Laser Sheet.mp4

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