Photoengraved Menu Card

Make your own photo-engraved menu card out of the Trotec TroLase material.

Preparation

Required material:

• 1/4 sheet TroLase, Pink/White, 1/16" (available at Trotec)
• 1/4 sheet TroLase Thins with self-adhesive back, Black/White, 1/32" (available at Trotec)
• a binding screw
• paper for content

Machine used:

Speedy 360, 80 Watts
1.5" lens
vacuum table with acrylic cutting grid table

You can also create this sample using any machine from the Speedy series.

Important:

for a detailed engraving of a photo we recommend using the 1.5" lens
for the best cutting result we recommend using the acrylic cutting grid table

Step by Step

Step 1: Cover Sheet

You can start by creating your own design, or by using our template. With the integrated Photo mode, our JobControl Laser Software supports you perfectly when engraving photos. Get more detailed information, tips and tricks for photo-engraving here:

Tips & Tricks photo engraving

Send your design to the laser using the following settings:

Process	Resolution	Cut line
Photo optimized	600 dpi	none

Halftone	Others
Ordered dithering	enhanced geometries, inner geometries first

Step 2: Laser process cover sheet

Set the parameters as described below. The laser parameters may vary depending on the type of laser machine you are using and the available laser power.

Laser Parameters

Color	Process	Power (%)	Speed (%)	ppi/Hz
black	engraving CO₂	50	80	600
red	cutting CO₂	6	5	1000
blue	cutting CO₂	60	1.2	1000

Passes	Air Assist	Z-Offset	Advanced
1	on	1 mm	-
1	on	-	-
1	on	-	-

Info:

Run the engraving from bottom to top so that the dust can be perfectly exhausted. (This minimizes cleaning.)
For cutting, we used the JobControl® standard parameter for quality
You can download the JobControl® material parameter from www.troteclaser.com

Step 3: Material Handling

Remove the protective foil from the pink TroLase material and place it in your Trotec laser. Run the engraving (black) and the cut jobs (red and blue).

Step 4: Rhombic pattern

For an eye-catching card, we combined two different materials for our menu card. Send the second graphic, the rhombic pattern, to your Trotec laser by using the following parameters:

Tip:

We use the JobControl® standard parameter optimized for quality.

Print settings

Process mode	Resolution	Cut line
Standard	600 dpi	none

Halftone	Others
color	-

Step 5: Laser process rhombic pattern

Put your TroLase Thin material in your Trotec-Laser. Remove the protective foil, run the engraving job from bottom to top, and cut the job.

Important:

Because of the size, it is important to have a very good vacuum. You can increase your vacuum power by covering the rest of your working area with paper.

Laser Parameter

Color	Process	Power (%)	Speed (%)	ppi/Hz
black	engraving CO2	60	80	600
red	cutting CO2	30	1.5	1000

Passes	Air Assist	Z-Offset	Advanced
1	on	1 mm	High Quality
1	on	-	-

Step 6: Post-processing

Clean the surface and the edges of both TroLase-materials with a damp cloth. Take the rhombic pattern and apply it to the photo-engraved cover. Finally, add your content to the menu card and clip it with the binding screw. Voilà! Be proud of your unique menu card.

Tip:

You can print the content-sheets of your menu card and cut it with the laser. Our JobControl® Vision laser software will then support you in cutting out the printed sheets with the highest precision.