Keychain

1/25/18: Screenshots. 1/26/18: Text

Open up Adobe Illustrator and go to File, then click New (or Ctrl+N)

Name it whatever you want, and enter in the size and unit settings, as shown below.

Hold down your mouse on the square icon on the left side of the screen. Select the Rounded Rectangle Tool.

Click in the top left corner of the page. A box should appear. Make the dimensions what you want for your keychain. I chose width 1 in, the height 2 in. Leave the corner radius as is. Click OK.

The Rectangle should appear as shown below. Click the border of the rectangle, and it should highlight the shape in blue.

Go to the top of the screen and change the stroke amount to 0.001 pt.

Hold down on the rounded rectangle icon and select Ellipse Tool.

Click on the left edge of the rectangle you've already created. A box should appear. Make both the width and the height 0.2 in. Click OK

Position the circle as shown below. Make sure there is enough space on the left edge so the material doesn't break. Click on the border of the circle. It should highlight the shape in blue.

Go to the top of the screen and change the stroke amount to 0.001 pt.

Add any image you would like. Make sure the image is black and white, with a white background. It is okay if the image expands outside of the rectangle, as long as there is no black outside the rectangle. Arrange the image how you would like.

Insert a hard drive into your computer, so you can transfer the file to one of the laser cutters.

Go to File, and click Save As (Or Shift+Ctrl+S)

Select Removable Disk (E:)

Name the file something you can recognize easily, then click save.

Unplug the hard drive and come over to the room with the laser cutters. Select a piece of either acrylic or wood for your keychain.

Come over to one of the laser cutters, like the Helix one shown below. Plug the hard drive into the computer next to the laser cutter.

Open up the printer and put your material in the top left corner of the printer, or wherever there is room on the piece

Plug the hard drive into the computer next to the laser cutter. Go to Computer in the top left and open up the Removable Disk section. Select your file.

Open up your file and make sure everything is there that you want.

Go to file and click Print (or Ctrl + P)

A box should appear. Click Setup in the bottom left corner of the box.

Select the correct printer in the top box. Epilog for the smaller cutters, Fusion for the larger cutter.

Click setup again, then select preferences. A blue box should appear like the one below. Make sure to select "Combined" below "Vector" and "Raster." this will engrave and cut your design at the same time. Also make sure that "Auto-Focus" is selected, and the Piece size is changed to 24 inches horizontally, and 18 inches vertically.

Grab one of the sheets next to the computer, which should have all the types of materials listed on it.

Once you have a good measurement of the thickness of your material, refer to the sheet. There are individual settings for each type of material. There should be settings for the Raster and Vector sliders. Input the percentages for speed and power of raster, as well as the speed, power, and frequency for vector. MAKE SURE ALL THE MEASUREMENTS ARE CORRECT BEFORE YOU PRINT! Hit Ok and you're ready to go.

1/29/18

Walk over to the laser printer and hit the green button. MAKE SURE YOU STAY WITHIN ARM'S REACH IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY. The laser will print your design, and will beep when done.

Open the printer up, and make sure the material is cut all the way through. Remove your keychain and the extra material. Place the extra stuff back where you found it.

Add a keychain ring and you've finished!!! Congratulations!!