10.02 Laser Cutting
On this page
Laser cutting is a precise method of cutting a design from a material using a digital file as a guide. It uses a high-powered laser to slice materials such as wood, plastic, glass, metal, and paper into custom shapes and designs.
The general steps to create a laser cut design using 3D Modeling software include:
- Sketching out design ideas
- Selecting 3D Modeling software such as Fusion 360
- Model the parts of your design paying attention to joints and how thick the material is
- Lay all of the parts flat
- Prepare a tool path that takes into account the width or kerf of the laser
- Export a DXF file for cutting
- Prepare the DXF file according to the instructions of a particular laser cutter.