Adobe Illustrator is a program that can be used to cut something using a laser. We used Adobe Illustrator to help cut out and engrave keychains. We were able to create a shape for our keychains, make a hole on our keychains, and add designs to be engraved. On Illustrator you can insert text and change the font and import black and white images to be engraved. I ended up doing both of these things on my keychain. We also used illustrator to write our name to be cut out on the vinyl cutter.
My keychain on Illustrator, the outside and hole are hard to see.
To cut and engrave my keychain I first needed to load my file onto the computer. Then I needed to get my file onto the laser engraver program. I had to check to make sure my keychain was aligned with the acrylic and once it was I made sure the fan was on and then clicked the play button and closed the lid on the laser.
My finished keychain.
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My keychain being made in the laser, the reflection makes it hard to see. Once my key chain was done I lifted the lid back up, grabbed my keychain, and turned off the laser.
My illustrator file for the vinyl cutter.
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Once the vinyl was done being cut I had to weed my vinyl. Weeding means you take out all the vinyl that you don't want to use in this case I left only my name. Then I had to apply my decal to the transfer tape, once I had the transfer tape on I used a squeegee to stick the transfer tape to the decal. Then I took the original backing that was on the vinyl off so the transfer tape and decal were the only things left. The sticky side of the decal was now facing up and so I applied it to my folder. Once the decal was placed on the notebook I used a squeegee to stick the vinyl to the notebook before taking off my transfer tape to reveal my finished product.
In this introduction to illustrator, laser cutting, and vinyl cutting I learned how to use illustrator and the code that the laser reads. I learned that you can use illustrator to insert images, draw shapes, and write text. I also learned that the laser reads in code and a dark color like black means it will engrave and red means it will cut all the way through. In this project I also learned how to work with the vinyl cutter and apply a decal to something. When using the vinyl cutter you must always have the wheels lined up in a blue area which means the wheels can grip the vinyl. I also learned the importance of doing a good job applying your decal to the transfer tape and notebook as I had some problems with that. So through these projects I learned how to use illustrator, the laser, the vinyl cutter, and how to apply a decal.