This guide introduces the processing of curved surface material with your LX2 machine.
Curved Surface Angle Limitation
When using the curved surface engraving mode, the LX2 can only process smooth curved surfaces with a maximum angle of less than 15° relative to the horizontal plane, as shown in the diagram below.
Follow the steps below to measure a curved surface and start engraving.
Step 1: Place the Material
(1) Place the material to be processed on the Base Plate. When processing the curved measurement, the Distance Sensor will touch the material surface. To ensure the material is stable, you can use tape or Blu Tack to secure it and prevent any shift.
(2) On the right-side panel, set the processing mode to "Curved Surface".
Step 2: Select the Target Processing Area
(1) On the right-side panel, click the "Surface Measurement" button to perform surface measurement. As you can see in the animation of the Measurement Density window, to perform a curved surface measurement, we first need to select the desired processing area by marking the diagonal corners.
(2) Move the Laser Module and align the Red Crosshair with the top-left corner of the target processing area, then press the multifunction button to mark it as Point 1.
You can move the laser manually or by clicking the directional buttons in the software. When using the software buttons, you can also set the "Movement Distance" of each step.
(3) Move the Laser Module again, aligning the Red Crosshair with the bottom-right corner of the target processing area. Press the multifunction button to mark it as Point 2.
(4) Once both points are marked, click "Next."
Laser Module Position Function
Enable the "Laser Module Position" function. The software will display the laser's real-time coordinates and its position within the processing area. The Red Crosshair on the canvas indicates the laser's current location.
Step 3: Set Measurement Density
(1) Adjust the measurement density based on the size of the area and the complexity of the material's curvature. A higher number of rows and columns results in greater measurement density, more detailed modeling, and a longer measurement time.
(2) Click "Measure" and the laser will begin automatically measuring the height of each point on the curved surface. The LDS software will display the corresponding progress.
Make sure the Distance Sensor is not extended before automatic measurement.
(3) After the measurement is complete, the LDS will generate a 3D model of the selected curved surface area, which you can rotate and view by holding the left button of the mouse.
- White Area: Curvature is less than 15°, which is within the normal range.
- Yellow Area: Curvature is between 15° and 45°, indicating a large curvature.
- Red Area: Curvature is between 45° and 90°, indicating an extremely large curvature.
If any area in the model has a curvature greater than 15°, a warning will pop up at the top of the window, indicating that the engraving quality may be affected.
At the bottom, you can preview how the design will be engraved on the curved surface. Switch to 2D preview to see the curvature of the measured area more clearly. Click the grid button to choose whether to display the grid.
On the right, you can adjust the model's "Smoothness" and "Tension" to make it more closely resemble the actual object.
(4) Click "Finish" to complete the measurement. On the canvas, the measured processing area is shown in white, while other areas are gray.
Step 4: Design the Processing Objects
(1) The toolbar on the left side of the software can generate basic graphics, text, draw patterns, import images, or open cliparts, etc.
(2) Select the object in the canvas to bring up the editing panel and adjust its size and angle as needed. Place the object within the white area of the canvas. The gray area is unmeasured; do not place any processing elements within this area.
To preview the engraving effect on a curved surface, you must first import a design onto the canvas. Then, click "Surface Preview" and click on the preview button.
Step 5: Set Processing Parameters
Select the object to be processed and set the processing parameters on the right side.
Step 6: Preview the Processing Area
(1) Click the "Preview" button in the bottom right corner. Click "Preview", the red crosshairs of the laser will move along the edge of the processing object, and you can preview the processing area on the material surface.
(2) After confirming the processing area, click "End Preview".
(3) The icon to the right of the "Preview" button opens a panel that controls the preview speed, the Laser Module's position on the X, Y, and Z axes, and the movement distance per click.
Step 7: Start Processing
(1) Click "Process" in the bottom right corner.
(2) In the processing preview interface, clicking the play button in the bottom left corner allows you to watch the processing path simulation animation. On the right side of the button, you can turn on or off the "Laser Trajectory" function, adjust the animation speed, and zoom in and out of the interface.
(3) Click "Start" in the bottom right corner.
(4) Make sure the cover of LX2 is closed and press the device button on the LX2 to start processing.