Greetings fellow makers - Need help with ideas on how to register and zero this oversize design for engraving, (~48" x ~96"). This project will require multiple sessions, over 2000 entities to engrave across several days. I plan to use quarter inch hard pins to register the panel to the machine. I will need two work piece origins for zeroing each 48" x 48" section of the panel. (see attached for detail) I understand how to resolve zeroing the work piece for the lower section - not sure how to address the zeroing operation when I slide the panel down to complete the upper section? Any ideas? While writing this - perhaps I can set the zero at the bottom left corner for the lower section and use the upper left corner for the upper section - just need to move the upper section into the lower quadrant of CAM program so X is positive and Y axis negative?? I am open to suggestions - thanks in advance for your time and attention.
When I do a tiling job I use the front, left corner. After doing the first tile I jog the machine the distance of the tile and use it to mark the workpiece. If you are using dowels for alignment you could set up a workplace coordinates system for the dowels (doesn't have to be the same wcs as the job if that makes it more convenient) and use the machine to drill the holes for the dowels. Hope that makes sense - on my phone or I would have done a drawing. Alex. PS - I also usually fix a fence on the left (use the machine to take a skim off it so I know it's perfectly parallel to the Y axis) to slide the workpiece against.
Thanks for the tip about a fence running along the Y-Axis - with this High Z-mod - I should be able to place a 60" x 2" wide ruler. I can run an indicator along this path to locate and secure the ruler in place. I will need to read up on setting up a work coordinate system.
Just sharing the results of the ruler/guide addition along the left edge of this machine. Milled slots to allow for adjustment if and when needed. Thanks again for the tip.
