¶ 1. Canvas Overview
The canvas—also called the workspace—is where you create, edit, and preview your engraving designs. It visually represents your machine’s working area and provides precise tools for positioning, measuring, and zooming.
¶ 2. Working Area & Coordinate System
- Default Working Area: The canvas size automatically matches the maximum working area of the connected device.
- Coordinate System: The workspace uses a coordinate system with the top-left corner as the origin (0, 0).
- X-axis: Values increase to the right.
- Y-axis: Values increase downward.
- Object Coordinates: An object’s coordinate refers to the position of its bounding box’s top-left corner in the coordinate system.
When the object rotates or moves, this reference point stays relative to the object, but its absolute position changes accordingly.
- Units & Precision:
The default unit is millimeters (mm) with two decimal places of precision.
If you prefer inches (in), you can switch units in the software settings.
- Reference Point:
An object’s position is always defined by the top-left corner of its bounding box.
¶ 3. Rulers & Grid
To help you align and position your design with precision, the canvas includes horizontal and vertical rulers along with a background grid. You can toggle them on or off from the right-click menu.
- Rulers: Shown along the top and left edges of the workspace.
- Grid: A background network of lines that provides visual alignment cues.
- Show/Hide: Right-click any blank area on the canvas and select the ruler or grid options to show or hide them.
¶ 4. Objects on the Canvas
Each object, or group of objects, is outlined by a rectangular bounding box when selected.
- The bounding box is highlighted in purple.
- The width and height of the selected object’s bounding box are displayed in real time.
¶ 5. Red Crosshair
When your device is connected and idle, a red crosshair will appear on the canvas.
This indicator reflects the real-time physical position of the red positioning laser inside the laser module.
The red crosshair is a low-power alignment beam only—it is not used for engraving or cutting.
¶ 5.1 How the Red Crosshair Works
- The red crosshair will not appear if the device is disconnected, busy, or if its position cannot be retrieved.
- You can toggle the red crosshair on or off in the software settings.
- A small area near the top of the canvas cannot be reached by the red crosshair.
This is because the red alignment beam is emitted from a point slightly in front of the main laser output, which prevents it from reaching the very top edge of the workspace.
This limitation is purely physical—the main laser can still operate across the entire working area, including the region the red crosshair cannot reach.
Positioning Note:
During setup and design, you can treat the red crosshair as the target location for your engrave or cut.
Although the red positioning beam and the main laser exit from slightly different positions, the device automatically compensates for this offset during both processing and “Frame” (outline) runs.
This ensures the main laser fires exactly at the location indicated by the red crosshair.
¶ 6. Navigating the Canvas
The software includes several tools to help you move around the workspace efficiently.
¶ 6.1 Manual Zooming & Panning
¶ 6.1.1 With a Mouse Wheel
Windows Laptop:
- Zoom: Hold Ctrl and scroll the mouse wheel.
Zooming is centered on your cursor. Range: 20%–4000%. - Pan: Hold Shift and scroll to move left or right.
Scroll normally to move up or down.
Mac Laptop (Apple Mouse):
- Zoom: Hold Cmd and swipe up or down on the Apple Mouse.
Zoom is centered on your cursor. Range: 20%–4000%. - Pan: Swipe in any direction on the Apple Mouse—no modifier key needed.
¶ 6.1.2 With a Touchpad
Windows Laptop:
- Zoom: Hold Ctrl and use a two-finger pinch gesture.
- Pan: Hold Shift and use two-finger swipe to move left or right.
Without modifiers, two-finger swipe moves up and down.
Mac Laptop:
- Zoom: Hold Cmd and use a two-finger pinch gesture.
- Pan: Swipe directly on the touchpad—no keys required.
¶ 6.2 Quick Zoom Options
For fast and repeatable zoom control, click the zoom percentage in the bottom-right corner of the canvas to open preset zoom levels.
-
Fit to Canvas:
Adjusts the zoom so the entire working area and all objects are visible with slight margins.
This is the default view when the software starts. -
Fit to Selection:
Zooms in on the currently selected object(s).
If nothing is selected, this option does nothing. -
Preset Levels:
20%, 50%, 100%, 200%, 400%, 800%, 1600%, 4000%. -
Zoom In (+) / Zoom Out (–):
Click + or – to snap to the next preset level.
For example, at 95%, + snaps to 100%, while – snaps to 50%.
These adjustments center on the canvas view.