cutting using registration marks

[raw191]

ok. This is probably basic to everyone, but I'm not clear as to how to do it. I've got a Roland CM-300 cutter. I've got it figured out how to orgin the machine to the piece being cut, but I'm having trouble getting flexi to cut from the same point. I'm a cut vinyl guy, so this is a little new to me going digital. How do you cut from registration points in flexi, basically?

 

[DRPSignsNGrafix]

More info is needed. First did you print from Flexi? Also make sure registration marks are turned on in PM

 

[GARY CULY]

your flexi manual has all that in there on the steps to print and then take it to the cutter to contour the decals ....
if your just cutting a piece of vynle [letters,etc] then just load it ..click "the knife" up on top bar not "the printer" button ..set up the width in p.m. push remote button on plotter ,,then push send in p.m ...its not real complicated sir

 

[Bradster941]

ok. This is probably basic to everyone, but I'm not clear as to how to do it. I've got a Roland CM-300 cutter. I've got it figured out how to orgin the machine to the piece being cut, but I'm having trouble getting flexi to cut from the same point. I'm a cut vinyl guy, so this is a little new to me going digital. How do you cut from registration points in flexi, basically?

Are you saying your printing, then want to cut what you've printed?

If so, use the Contour feature.


.

 

[raw191]

No. I manually applied reg. marks from the shapes toolbar, exported it into illustrator, printed out of that, and now want to countour cut it back in flexi. It's a transfer for a dark colored t shirt. I located the points manually and entered them in, it's just that I'm used to picking up an edge and not a point. I didn't know if you had to pick something different in pm. to get it to cut right.

 

[GARY CULY]

o.k.
let me ask ...why are you putting register marks in the drawing in illy? why not import the drawing into flexi ...let the production manager place the marks when it prints ..then the plotter will "see those marks and p.m. will know where to cut ...be the same as something drawn in fllexi ..be sure the send"as separate job" box is turned on in p.m. so flexi will split the files automatically for you ...print file/cut file
i also asuume you have a plotter with a one those laser eyes that detct the marks? right?
im really trying to help here not poke any fun ,and with the way flexi splits the files automatically for you i cant see why any problems should occour doing a print /contour cut job

 

[bob]

ok. This is probably basic to everyone, but I'm not clear as to how to do it. I've got a Roland CM-300 cutter. I've got it figured out how to orgin the machine to the piece being cut, but I'm having trouble getting flexi to cut from the same point. I'm a cut vinyl guy, so this is a little new to me going digital. How do you cut from registration points in flexi, basically?

I can tell you how to do it with a Graphtec but I'm not sure how much of that will translate into the Roland world. I do this all the time, use my own registration marks, in Flexi. There's no need to have Flexi even aware of a contour path if you go about it right.

With a Graphtec FC7000 it works like this...

Set your type 1 or type 2, depending on what you like, registration marks at the 4 corners of a known rectangle that bounds the image to be cut. On a Roland, use whatever registration marks that Roland wants.

Create a path the is the contour cut. Make it such that this path does not print. There are many ways to do this.

Print the job and load the print into the plotter.

On the Graphtec u\you invoke the 'Auto Reg' feature. I assume that Roland has something similar. The plotter reads the marks and, after reading the 4th mark, pauses and displays the X and Y distances it detected and allows you to set each of them to the size of that known rectangle you used to position the marks back in step 1.

Send just the registration marks and the contour path you created in step 1 via Flexi. Specify lower right orientation, that should be the default, 0 panel margin, 0 offset from bottom left, no weed box, and send all colors. The only thing you want to cut is the contour path and the registration marks. You don't even have to cut the registration marks if you send the known rectangle from step 1. But you have to cut one or the other.

That's how it works with a Graphtec, I assume you can figure out how to do the same on a Roland.

 

[WhiskeyDreamer]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgwKh5NrAa4

see the red and white squares...thats the registration....cut in the sample place on both colors and used to line up the design

 

[raw191]

I'll give these ideas a shot tomorrow. My cutter doesn't have auto reg. so I jog the machine manually and enter the points into the machine that way. The reason I print out of illustrator is because my sublimation printer is an epson c120 deskjet printer, which isn't in flexi's drivers (obviously). I don't have a vinyl printer yet, so I can't print/cut from the same machine. I just wondered how to tell it in flexi to cut from the same point I picked up with my machine. I'm sure it's easy, I just have never done it. I wonder if I could paper "print" out of flexi to the epson and it would attach registration marks that way . . .

 

[GARY CULY]

well heck i was trying to help your problem and you dont have a plotter with OPUS on it ,to see the registration marks ...sorry for bad information from me ...i was just trying to explain how it work on my flexi and mimaki machines . again sorry for bad info

bob , so you set up all your files with reg marks drawn in? now you do this because your plotter dont have OPUS to read the marks flexi automatically creates when files are sent? im just stumped on the reason for "creating the marks and not having the software do it auto. it may be a good thing for me to pick up on in case the OPUS ever craps out ,cant detect the marks one day sir.

 

[bob]

...deletia...
bob , so you set up all your files with reg marks drawn in? now you do this because your plotter dont have OPUS to read the marks flexi automatically creates when files are sent? im just stumped on the reason for "creating the marks and not having the software do it auto. it may be a good thing for me to pick up on in case the OPUS ever craps out ,cant detect the marks one day sir.

I do it on larger prints. Flexi/Graphtec often have a problem auto registering stuff much larger than 30-40 inches. If the auto registration fails, there's seldom any way to save it. Most often you end up scrapping the print and have to try again. The problem is that Flexi doesn't publish the dimensions of the bounding rectangle of its registration marks. If it did you could save it using the plotter's auto or manual registration feature. But it doesn't so you're screwed.

Doing it manually it really can't fail. Even if the plotter's auto reg feature fails to find all 4 marks you can manually position the carriage over each mark in manual mode. As long as you know the dimensions of that bounding rectangle you can't miss.

Even if the Flexi/Graphtec combo never missed, it's still good to know how to do it another way.

 

[GARY CULY]

i see !...appreciate you explaining that sir .ill put this on the weekend saturday morning schedule. thank you Bob.