Easier way to create perfect shapes using formulas
How to create perfect shapes by utilizing variables and formulas that are built into Vectric software. This lesson applies to Vectric VCarve, Aspire, and Cut2D.
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Video Transcript:
In this quick tip, I'm gonna show you how to make a simple rectangle around your job, but to be exactly the same distance all the way around. And this is actually a project I just helped somebody with. They wanted to make different size cutting boards, with a juice groove, exactly three quarters of an inch away from the border of the cutting board.
And for his specific project, each board was a different size. So for each one, he had to remake the file. So I showed him a quick way to make this rectangle exactly the same distance. And that is by going to the rectangle tool. And in this case, we are zeroing off of the lower left corner. So that is our reference point for 0,0.
So for our anchor point, we're gonna make that the same lower left corner, and we want this line to be three quarters of an inch away in the X and Y. So we're gonna type in 0.75 inches for both of these numbers. That's gonna start our rectangle three quarters of an inch away from the edge, and we want square corners.
And for the width and height, this is where you're gonna be using a formula, instead of trying to manually calculate that number. So for our total width, minus the three quarter inch border on both sides would be our width minus one and a half inches. Also, if you had an odd size number for this three quarter, I will show you how to do that.
So for the width, you're gonna type in a formula here. So you can either type in the letter W for width, or the letter X for the X measurement. Both of those variables will give you the same result. So that's the first part of our equation. Our next part of our equation is we wanna subtract. The border times two.
So if your border is a simple number, like three quarters of an inch, we already know that times two is one and a half. So you would do X minus one and a half. But if that was an odd number and you didn't know exactly what double that was, you can do X and then do minus, and then in parenthesis you would do .75, which is our border times, which is the little multiplication sign the number two, and then close the parentheses. So that total formula is X, which is our width, minus the border times two. And then at the very end, you're gonna click equals. And that will give you your formula. So you can do that. Also for the height, you're gonna do the same.
So in this case, you would do the letter H for height or the letter Y for the Y dimension. And we could do that same formula we just did. Or like I said, if you knew the double number, which in this case three quarter times two is one and a half, you would do Y minus 1.5. And then the equal sign, and that will give you your answer.
And now if we click create, this rectangle is now exactly three quarters of an inch from the edge all the way around. So that is a very quick way to make rectangles exactly the size you want them according to the width and height of your shape. And I would also recommend putting them on their own layer.
And associate that layer with a toolpath if you can. So as you could see in this example, we made a Toolpath template that we just load in here, and this would be the top side. Click open and I'm gonna apply it just to this sheet and actually just have to recalculate these for this specific sheet. Click okay.
And now in the 3D view, you'll see it created our toolpaths that we were looking for, and once we click preview,
we could see that's exactly what he was looking for. So that makes it very easy, to do this when you have multiple projects that are all the same design but different measurements. And if you wanna learn more on how I set up those toolpaths with the layers, I will drop a link in the top right of this video.
You can click on that to watch that video. But if this quick tip helped you out, make sure you like and subscribe for more.
And for his specific project, each board was a different size. So for each one, he had to remake the file. So I showed him a quick way to make this rectangle exactly the same distance. And that is by going to the rectangle tool. And in this case, we are zeroing off of the lower left corner. So that is our reference point for 0,0.
So for our anchor point, we're gonna make that the same lower left corner, and we want this line to be three quarters of an inch away in the X and Y. So we're gonna type in 0.75 inches for both of these numbers. That's gonna start our rectangle three quarters of an inch away from the edge, and we want square corners.
And for the width and height, this is where you're gonna be using a formula, instead of trying to manually calculate that number. So for our total width, minus the three quarter inch border on both sides would be our width minus one and a half inches. Also, if you had an odd size number for this three quarter, I will show you how to do that.
So for the width, you're gonna type in a formula here. So you can either type in the letter W for width, or the letter X for the X measurement. Both of those variables will give you the same result. So that's the first part of our equation. Our next part of our equation is we wanna subtract. The border times two.
So if your border is a simple number, like three quarters of an inch, we already know that times two is one and a half. So you would do X minus one and a half. But if that was an odd number and you didn't know exactly what double that was, you can do X and then do minus, and then in parenthesis you would do .75, which is our border times, which is the little multiplication sign the number two, and then close the parentheses. So that total formula is X, which is our width, minus the border times two. And then at the very end, you're gonna click equals. And that will give you your formula. So you can do that. Also for the height, you're gonna do the same.
So in this case, you would do the letter H for height or the letter Y for the Y dimension. And we could do that same formula we just did. Or like I said, if you knew the double number, which in this case three quarter times two is one and a half, you would do Y minus 1.5. And then the equal sign, and that will give you your answer.
And now if we click create, this rectangle is now exactly three quarters of an inch from the edge all the way around. So that is a very quick way to make rectangles exactly the size you want them according to the width and height of your shape. And I would also recommend putting them on their own layer.
And associate that layer with a toolpath if you can. So as you could see in this example, we made a Toolpath template that we just load in here, and this would be the top side. Click open and I'm gonna apply it just to this sheet and actually just have to recalculate these for this specific sheet. Click okay.
And now in the 3D view, you'll see it created our toolpaths that we were looking for, and once we click preview,
we could see that's exactly what he was looking for. So that makes it very easy, to do this when you have multiple projects that are all the same design but different measurements. And if you wanna learn more on how I set up those toolpaths with the layers, I will drop a link in the top right of this video.
You can click on that to watch that video. But if this quick tip helped you out, make sure you like and subscribe for more.
