December 11, 2024 20:00

This article outlines the necessary steps in laser cutting or engraving with xTool P2S

What is laser cutting?

Laser cutting is a manufacturing process that uses a high-powered laser beam to precision-cut and shape various materials, such as metals, plastics, woods, and fabrics. The laser beam vaporizes or melts the material, creating a precise cut or design. For xTool P2S, it can cut wood, acrylic, leather, MDF, rubber and fabric. These are the incompatible materials due to evolved toxic vapor: PVC, ABS, Polycarbonate, Polystyrene and Polypropylene foam, HDFE, Coated Carbon fibre, Galvanized material.

What is laser engraving?

Laser engraving is a process that uses a high-powered laser beam to remove or alter the surface of a material, creating designs, patterns, or text. Unlike laser cutting, which separates materials, laser engraving changes the material's surface. For xTool P2S, it can engrave on glass, ceramic, slate, coated metal and anodized aluminum.

How to setup xTool P2S?

Download the xTool Creative Space (XCS) from the xTool website. Stroll to the bottom of the website to find the right installer to download. Once your device is installed with XCS and you add project, you can create/import your design and artworks into the project environment. However, do ensure that you have completed filling the mode which is only "Process on slats" and material selection before proceeding to use snapshot preview. Unless you are very certain of the thickness of your material, you should not proceed on. Do borrow out the vernier calipers from us to measure. The maximum thickness of the material is 22 mm or 2.2 cm.

How to view the material placed inside xTool P2S?

Open the lid and place a material no larger than A3 within the border of the honeycomb. Launch XCS in your device and connect wirelessly to the laser cutter. Once you set the mode and material selection, click snapshot preview, you would be able to see your live streaming of your material inside the P2S chamber on the screen. Subsequently, you can add design or artworks over the material to engrave. For more information about laser cutter materials, refer to this page.

How to configure Wifi for xTool P2S?

This cannot be done using smart phone or tablet. Please use proper Mac or Window PC. First, download the xTool Creative Space (XCS) from the xTool website. Stroll to the bottom of the website to find the right installer to download. Next, connect xTool P2S to your computer via the USB cable included in your laser device package. In XCS, establish a connection via USB. In the top-right corner of XCS, click the Gear icon to access the "Device settings" panel. In the "Basic Info" tab, locate the "Wi-Fi setting" section before clicking on the "Setting" button. (Do ensure that your laser device is connected to your computer via a USB cable before proceeding with the Wi-Fi setup.) For more complete step by step instructions with photos, refer to xTool support website here.

How to validate and calibrate the close view camera for xTool P2S?

For more complete step by step instructions with photos, refer to xTool support website here.

How to clean the Laser Mirrors, Filter Screens, and Smoke Exhaust Fan of P2S?

For more complete step by step instructions with video tutorials, refer to xTool support website here.

How to cut the material by the outline of the image

First, import the image onto the XCS. Then, navigate to the Edit in menu to remove the background of the image using image wizard. Finally, navigate Trace to get the outline of the image. Before cutting, you need to remove the original image separately.