Vector Shape Creation

Image Tracing (Vectorization)

Image Tracing also known as Vectorization allows you to take an imported image such as a scanned drawing, graphic design or photo and to convert colors in that to vector outlines. These outlines can then be used as part of your design to create toolpaths or to generate 3D shapes using the modeling tools.

Advanced Text Tools

The Advanced Text Tools let you access True Type or Open Type fonts on your PC to create text outlines for your design. In addition the software comes with a selection of specialist Single Stroke / Stick Engraving Fonts for efficient machining when making things like badges or small signs. The text can be controlled using automatic sizing and layout options. There are also editing tools for Fitting Text to a Curve and interactive text arcing and spacing (kerning).

Import 2D data (DXF, DWG, EPS, AI etc. )

Data can be imported from a huge range of other design programs using a variety of industry standard file formats. These include DXF, EPS, AI as well as PDF files (if they contain vector data). Once imported, the program has a wide range of tools to make working with this data as efficient as possible.

A very important set of tools are those used to identify duplicate vectors and identify and rejoin open vectors. These tool can save an enormous amount of time when working with poor quality data in getting it ready to machine.

Basic Dimensioning

The Dimensioning tools allows you to create a variety of different types of measurements on your drawing. These can be oriented in any direction or fixed horizontally or vertically. There are also options to add angular and arc dimensions. You can control the text height, font number of decimal places and position for each one.

Vector Transform & Editing

Whether your design vectors have been created in the software or imported you have a large choice of editing options to prepare your part for toolpath creation or modeling. Vectors can be easily scaled, moved, mirrored, distorted, grouped, welded, trimmed, extended, offset, smoothed and joined together. As with the drawing tools you either have precise control over the editing values adjust the vectors very accuratley or can use the mouse to dynamically make adjustments until your layout looks correct.

Vector Layout

In addition to the editing tools the software also has tools to let you layout parts either in a rectangular array to create a grid of objects or in a circular array to create symmetrical layouts around a center point. Vectors can also be pasted along a vector by specifying the distance between each copy or just fitting a specific number on the guiding object.

True Shape Nesting

True Shape Nesting lets you automatically arrange and fit vector shapes into your material size or user definable area, to get optimal material usage and minimum wastage.

Part Nesting is perfect for Sign and Cabinet makers who need to minimize material wastage and cut as many parts – letters & cabinet doors / panels – as possible from sheet materials.

Reduce Material Costs = Increased Profits

The nesting routine places vector shapes as close to each other as possible ensuring a sufficient gap to allow the parts to be cut out correctly. The nesting includes options to control part direction with regard to things like material grain or machine orientation.

Layer Management

The Layers are a very efficient way to keep your 2D data organized. They can be used however it suits the way a person likes to work or can be employed to optimize the way a part is modeled or toolpathed.

One of the main uses of Layers is to allow you to temporarily hide data you were not currently working with. Layers could also be used to group vectors you might be using to model certain shapes in a 3D design to make it simpler to work on a small part at a time. The ability to associate toolpaths with specific layers and types of data means you can create Toolpath Templates which can be assigned to other parts that share the same layer structure. This is particularly powerful for applications like Cabinet Making where different designs can be automatically machined once a template has been set-up.

Rulers, Snap Grid and Guidelines

Rulers, Snap Grid and Guidelines help make vector drawing and 3D part layout easier and more accurate. These options can be switched on / off as required along with Snapping options that automatically detect and snap the cursor to key regions on a design.

Create Shapes from Vector Outlines

The Create Shape modeling function Instantly adds 3D shape to a closed vector outline based on either a Curved, Angular or Planar (flat) profile. These shapes can be controlled by adjusting angle and height values.

Your 3D design updates instantly showing you what your model looks like while experimenting with different shapes, heights, tilts, fades and combine modes. This allows you to quickly define the shape you actually want.

Once generated the shape is added to the Component Tree and can be further edited and combined with other shapes to make your finished 3D part.

Two Rail Sweep

Sweep along two vector rails to model 3D shapes based on one or more cross section shapes. This powerful tool can be used to create accurate geometric shapes like borders or can be used to create flowing organic shapes such as a leaf or decorative flourish.

Options for this tool include:

• Controlling the direction of the drive rails
  
• Scaling to a specific height
  
• Dynamically dragging or snapping the exact position of each cross section to define the shape you want
• Link corresponding nodes on matching drive rails to make mitre-style corners.
• Filling the middle of a closed rail to create panel shapes

Extrude and Weave

Extrude and Weave allows you to use one or more vectors as drive rails and extrude either vector cross sections or existing 3D components along them. In addition to the standard extrude the function has an option to automatically create a weaved effect where the drive rail/s overlap.

The tool includes many options to help you control the way the shape flows and the final result you get. The variety of 3D forms that can be created with this tool vary from simple linear extrusions all the way to extremely complex ornate woven shapes and it certainly qualifies as one of the most powerful tools in the program.

Interactive Sculpting & Blending

Aspires powerful 3D Sculpting tools provide total flexibility when modifying designs. Models can be manipulated like a piece of virtual clay to smooth out edges and discontinuities, as well as to add extra detail, all helping to create that authentic ‘hand carved’ look for your models. This function sets Aspire apart from typical computer modelers as this type of dynamic editing cannot be replicated using standard surface or solid CAD/CAM modeling programs

The Sculpting lets you interactively modify 3D designs using the sculpting tools with control over brush size and strength, plus options to,

• Smooth, Smudge Deposit, Remove, Erase with options to raise, lower or blend the changes

The option to Preserve Transparency limits sculpting changes to only be on the 3D model surface and not 'bleed out' onto the surrounding flat plane.

The Undo function allows the sculpted changes to gradually be returned back to the original state. Allowing changes to be undone on specific local regions without having to undo any changes made to the complete model.

The sculpting can be controlled using the mouse or even a pen tablet (such as a Wacom) and where applicable PC's that use a touch-screen.

3D Textures from Images

Import 2D (color and black & white) image files – BMP, JPG, TIF, GIF and instantly convert them to 3D component textures that can be applied onto or behind 3D models and machined as part of your project.

Aspire can be used to build an infinite variety of 3D textures from imported images. These textures can be combined with other 3D shapes in the design and can also be interactively edited to any size or height as well as being sculpted or smoothed to adjust their final look before toolpath creation.

This function can also be used to make high quality Lithophanes (back lit machined photos).

3D Component Editing

Many of the vector editing tools which can be used on 2D data in Aspire can also be used to edit 3D Components. Shapes can be easily scaled, moved, mirrored, distorted, grouped, trimmed and cropped. Aspire also allows you to smooth a 3D object or to add draft which creates angled walls on the part (good for vacuum forms). The software also has a tool to Z-slice a part to create separate models if your CNC size, tooling or material limits the depth of part you can cut.

3D Component Layout

A number of the vector layout tools are also available to make copies of 3D Components. They can be arrayed in a grid or around a circle, pasted along a curve or even nested to optimize how many parts can be fitted onto a piece of material.

3D Component Manager

Aspire's unique ‘Component’ based modeling approach gives enormous flexibility when creating complex designs. The ability to work on small simple pieces makes it easier to build up the pieces you need to create a complex job. This also gives you the power to continue to edit individual parts of the design as you build it up. This approach is particularly useful if you need to make design changes based on customer feedback once a project is complete.

Using the component manager (Component Tree) individual 3D objects can be adjusted to change the way they interact with each other within a project. Parts can also be grouped to create sub-assemblies. Individual Components and Groups can be adjusted to add tilt and fade or adjust the height as well as control the material (color) they are shaded with.

As you make changes to a Component the 3D model will update to show you instantly the effects of your choices making it easy to iterate through different design options.

Import 3D Models & Clip Art (STL, OBJ, 3DM etc.)

Any model you create in Aspire can be saved as a piece of Clip Art for use in other projects.

Import 3D Mesh files created in other CAD software such as,

• Rhino, SolidWorks, AutoCAD, Silo, MOI, Blender etc.
• STL, 3D DXF, OBJ, 3DS, VRML, 3DM

Interactively change the size and orientation of imported 3D models.


Interactively rotate 3D mesh files into the required orientation for adding to a design.

Instantly convert designs from raised models to recessed mold cavities.

Easy to use interactive drag and drop, size, mirror, rotate and distortion tools allow 3D clipart designs and modeled components to be edited to instantly produce unlimited design variations.

Intelligent Clipart File Format - 3DClip

Aspire's special 3DCLIP file format lets you save one or more 3D Components as a model that retains the individual component elements used to create it. Rather than save several individual files to cover all the permutations, it is now possible to export a single clipart file that preserves the structure of the components. The visibility of individual components can then be altered, even after the design has been imported into a new model. This is in effect is way of creating "Intelligent Clipart".

A Component or Component Group can be exported from any session of Aspire to add to your library of clipart and then import and re-use all or part of in another project.

Clip Art Browser and Vector Art 3D access

The Clipart tab provides a quick and convenient way to access and view the contents of your Aspire files. This makes it easy to browse files for re-use of components in other jobs, this will help speed up the creation of new layouts as well as increasing the choices available for "real-time" 3D design. In addition, a second page on this tab allows you to search Vectric's extensive online commercial clipart catalogue at VectorArt3D.com – here you will find hundreds of professionally produced clipart components, created specifically for CNC manufacture that can be purchased and downloaded.

This tab will automatically show previews of models created in Aspire. This can include Windows libraries that allow you quickly see the contents several folders of 3D components in one place. The Clipart tab can be found on the left-hand side of the Aspire main window, alongside the Drawing and Modeling tabs.

You can "Drag & Drop" a thumbnail into the 2D View and the selected object will be imported at the location of the dropped thumbnail and added to the model's Component Tree.

The Clipart tab is a great way to browse and select from the Free Clip Art that is included with Aspire.

Free 3D Clipart (worth over $3,500)

The Aspire installation disk includes a large variety of 2D and 3D Clip Art files that can be used as is in your own projects or edited to create your own variations.

The files include a mix of formats. The 2D artwork (110 items) comes in CRV format which can be opened in VCarve Pro or Aspire. The majority of 3D files are 3DCLIP format some of which have individual Components saved in the file (see section on Intelligent Clip Art). For the panel, shields, weaves and some ribbons there are CRV3D files that include vectors so you can see how the file was created and easily edit and recreate version of your own.

Over 100 of the models are commercial quality pieces of 3D clipart from Vector Art 3D. Each one of these is presented in 3 different styles, raised, dished and recessed (so actually 300+ variants), retail cost to purchase just these files would be over $3,500 if bought from the Vector Art 3D website.

There are over 400 different individual designs on the disk in a number of variants totalling over 1200 different files. You can read more about the specifics of the files and see a catalog of the models by clicking on the link below.

View 3D Clipart Guide and Catalog (PDF) (10Mb)>

Material Setup

Referencing the software to how your CNC will be setup is one of the most important elements of the software process. A summary of the Material Setup is displayed at the top of the Toolpath Tab allowing you to quickly check the settings before you start calculating toolpaths. Any of these values can be easily adjusted to change the tool reference for its X,Y or Z zero location, move the position of a model in the material, adjust the position where your machine starts from or specify distance to ensure the tool lifts above any clamping that is being used.

2D Production Profiling

Using the profiling toolpath strategy, objects can be cut out quickly and efficiently. Simply select the vector shapes you wish to profile, select the tool from the tool database and the software will do the rest. The Profiling automatically offsets for the tool radius and sorts nested shapes to ensure that inner shapes such as the center of a letter 'O' are cut before the outer shape (so parts are not released from the material before they are cut). Full control of cut direction is offered along with either automatic or manual control of tool entry point for each shape.

Profile Machining includes production cutting options that ensure parts can be held in place and accurately machined with high quality edges and corner detail.

• 3D Tabs for smoother profiling plus advanced options for automatic positioning to hold parts in place when machining
• Lead In / Out and Overcut distance to prevent dwell marks appearing on components
• Advanced Ramp options for controlling how the cutter enters the material, reducing heat build-up and cutter wear
• Profile around the Outside / Inside of open shapes
• Sharp internal and external beveled edges and corners

Cutouts can be done in multiple passes depending on the maximum cutting depth of the tool used and a positive or negative allowance can be specified to either 'under cut' or 'overcut' the shape if required. The number of passes on a cut can be edited very precisely to allow very thin final cuts or to individual add or remove particular cut depths.

A very powerful feature is the ability to specify that square corners are required. This is often used when profiling with a V-Bit tool, where with a conventional toolpath the tool will 'roll' round a sharp external corner leaving a radius on the chamfer created by the tool, with the 'square corners' option an angular chamfer will be created.i

The Profile toolpath is probably the most important toolpath option available. It is used for some of the simplest and also the most complex things you may do with your CNC. The software has been structured to let you customize whether you just want simple options for quick cut-outs or whether you want to access more advanced features to control cutting on particular material. This allows both new and experienced users to decide how much information they need to be presented with when creating this frequently used function.

Fast and Efficient Pocketing – optimizes use of two tools

The Pocket toolpath makes machining the material away from inside a vector shape efficient and easy to achieve. Just select all the vectors defining the shapes you want to cut and the program will sort the vectors to identify islands automatically and offset the boundaries for the selected tool radius.

If the Z depth of the pocket exceeds the specified maximum allowed cutting depth for the tool in a single pass, the software will automatically generate multiple passes.

Either climb or conventional cutting directions can be specified in order to produce the best edge finish for your selection of material and cutter. The tool can also be ramped into the job to reduce cutter stress when entering the material.

Drilling

Whether you are drilling a single hole or hundreds, just select the vectors representing the holes and the software will drill the center of each vector to the specified depth. The grouping feature makes it easy to associate all vectors for a particular toolpath strategy together so only one needs to be selected. The tool database includes a dedicated drill tool type so that the true tool geometry can be seen in the toolpath previews.

As well as a single Z plunge you also have the option to activate Peck Drilling, which drills to a specified depth, retracts the tool to clear the chips, drills down to the next step, retracts the tool and so on until the required finish depth is reached.

Precision V-Carving

V-Carving uses a constant angled cutter that's moved at flowing variable depth to create a 3D carved effect on the job, similar to the way a craftsman would work by hand. The software automatically calculates a path defined by the combination of the angle of the tool specified and the width and shape of the vectors being machined.

The extremely fast and robust Vectric VCarving engine handles complex designs with ease providing both fast calculation speed and robust handling of imperfect data.

As well as 'simple' VCarving, the software supports many advanced VCarving strategies, such as 'Flat Bottomed' v-carving, optionally using a second flat bottom tool to optimally clear out the flat areas. Another advanced capability is the support for v-carving areas wider than the tool by making multiple clearance passes to achieve the required depth.

Raised Prism Machining

The Raised Prism machining strategy is prefect for cutting high quality raised lettering and shapes on signs for restaurants, hotels and bars etc. that look hand-made.

• Raised Prism carving uses the side angle of V cutters to rapidly form angled sides around the selected shapes.
• Automatically calculates the material thickness required to create a full prism based on the job size and cutter angle.
• Calculates multiple Z passes when rough machining is required to remove material from around the prism shape.
• Typically used when cutting raised lettering on signs.

Fluting Toolpaths - Ramp In / Out

Fluting is a special toolpath type for cutting tapered grooves often known as ‘Flutes’ by ramping the cutter into and out of the material. When using this toolpath the software drives the tool along the center of the vector giving you control over the way the tool ramps into the start and end of each selected object. This has many interesting applications outside of just the standard uses you would expect for this type of operation.

Perfect for:

• Woodworking and solid surface machining.
• Flutes on columns and fireplaces
• Drainage grooves on kitchen sink and shower units
• Options for ramping in and out to create unique decorative results

Efficient Texture Toolpath

Textured panels are often specified by interior designers and architects and textures are also a very useful option for creating backgrounds on dimensional signs. Vectric has a unique approach to generate unique 'hand carved' looking textures which still machine extremely efficiently.

Once you specify a tool (typically a pointed or round profile) then you have various settings you can set to create the characteristics of your texture toolpath. To give these textures a more natural and less machine made look you can set different levels of randomness. The toolpath will replicate the same type of move that would be made by someone using a chisel to carve overlapping strokes into the material. Creating this as a toolpath move (rather than as a 3D model) will minimize the hand-finishing and also the machining time required to cut this.

Textures can also be 'trimmed' to a vector boundary allowing the creation of this type of finish in a background area of a job. This is a look very popular with sign makers using Vectric software.

Auto-Inlay Toolpaths

The Auto-Inlay toolpath options calculate profile cut-out and pocketing toolpaths for parts that need to be assembled to make inlays and inserts.

• Automatic cutter radius compensation on corner regions to ensure male shapes will fit into female pockets or cavities
• Allowance option to ensure a sufficient 'gap' is created to allow parts to fit together
• 4 different Inlay options that are designed to make machining inlays very simple and straightforward (straight, stepped, pocket and hole)
• Ideal toolpath option for sign makers, woodworkers, plastic and solid surface fabricators who need to cut parts that fit closely together

3D Roughing and Finishing

There are two toolpaths which are typically used to machine the 3D parts of a job in Aspire. The areas that these toolpaths cut is governed by selecting a vector to act as the boundary for the machine area.

To remove the majority of unwanted stock as quickly as possible most jobs require a 3D Roughing Toolpath to be calculated. There are two Roughing strategies available Z-Level and 3D Raster each of these has advantages depending on the type of shape being cut. The toolpath also has an option to specify an allowance to leave a skin of protective material on the part for the finish cut to clean up.

3D Finish Machining cuts the 3D part of the job to the exact size. The tool parameters let you balance the quality of the surface finish with how long the part will take to cut. Depending on the shape of the part there is a choice of Raster and Offset cutting strategies.

Detailed regions can be machined selectively using smaller cutters to ensure the finest of detail on a 3D project is accurately machined.

Project Toolpath onto 3D Model

The conventional 2D / 2.5D toolpath strategies in Aspire can also be projected onto an underlying 3D model surface. This allows text or other shapes that follow the 3D contours of the part to be efficiently machined onto the 3D Component model.

• VCarve or Engrave at constant depth onto a 3D surface
• Pocket, Profile, Drill and Texture onto the 3D model

High Quality Toolpath Preview

One of the most important productivity tools available in the software is the realistic 3D toolpath preview support. The results of each individual or the combination of all the toolpaths can be previewed cutting into a 3D preview model. This means that whether your job is a simple toolpath with one tool, or created from a complex combination of tools and strategies at different levels you can be sure that when the job is cut, it is right first time.

As well as showing that the toolpaths are correct, the high quality rendering and ability to use real world material textures and fill colors is a very valuable sales tool. Using the simulation you can create customer proofs and evaluate design options without actually having to cut anything!

Estimated Machining Times

To help estimate how long toolpaths will take to cut the software will calculate a time based on the length of the toolpath and the specified feeds and speeds that have been entered for the selected tool. This can be tweaked by the operator by editing the 'Scale Factor' so over time a value can be optimized based on actual machine performance to ensure the estimate is as close as possible to the actual cutting time.

Toolpath Tiling – Divides toolpaths to fit material or machine limits

Using the Toolpath Tiling options it is possible to machine objects and designs that are many times larger than the available area of your CNC machine bed.

This process is also invaluable if the maximum sizes of your material pieces are limited. In both cases, a much larger project can still be machined by breaking the toolpath down into manageable tiles or strips, each of which can fit within the machineable area of your CNC machine, or on the available material blocks.

Once cut, the tiles can then be re-assembled to form the finished piece.

Toolpath Templates

Toolpath templates allow you to improve the efficiency of your production processes by saving the complete toolpath settings for common operations. These settings can then be re-used at any time on different design geometry. Frequently used strategies and tooling can thus be applied to similar jobs, quickly and easily.

Form Tools - custom shaped cutter profiles

The software allows you to add your own custom tools shapes to the tool library and generate toolpaths and simulate the finished result!

Now you can simulate the effects of complex Roman Ogee cutters, Round Over bits and any other custom tool shape you desire. Simply draw the tool profile using the vector drawing tools or import the profile from the manufacturer and you can add your custom tool to the list. In the tool database you can specify feed rates, spindle speeds, cutting depths etc. in the same way that you do for any of the standard tool types.

Wrapped Rotary Axis Toolpaths

Wrapped Rotary Axis Toolpath postprocessing allows all toolpaths created in the software to be saved and run on CNC machines fitted with rotary axis or rotary indexer setups. These setup functions also allow you to specify your rotary part setup and view the wrapped results in the 3D view.

This function can be used for designing and cutting projects such as fluted columns and barley twists or engraving text onto round projects.

Note: This functionality wraps standard 3 axis toolpaths around a cylindrical axis, substituting one of the linear axis to drive the rotation of the block of material while it is being cut.

Production Plate Engraving

Production Plate Engraving lets you merge text lists into templates for badges and industrial plates. It can be used to merge CSV and text based lists using variables that can automatically scale to fit a pre-made design layout.

Quick Engrave for Diamond drag tools

Quick Engrave can be used to create toolpaths for Diamond drag tooling. This is typically used for marking engraved products such as gifts, awards, plaques, badges, pens, trophies etc.

Import Toolpaths from other Vectric Programs

Toolpaths generated in PhotoVCarve can be imported into the software to combine with other toolpath types.

Multiple PhotoVCarve projects can be imported and positioned, where additional elements can then be added and machined. All of the toolpaths can then be previewed and saved from the software.

Please Note: PhotoVCarve is a separate product for more details see the PhotoVCarve area of the web site.

Printing

The contents of either the 2D or 3D view can now be printed using the Print command on the File menu. Simply select the view you wish to print (2D or 3D) and then click the Print command. The standard Windows printer dialog allows you to select the printer and adjust its properties. When the OK button in this dialog is clicked, the view will be printed.

The Print Preview command on the File menu allows you to check the layout of your page before you print. The printed view is always scaled to exactly fit the currently selected page size (including allowance for margins). Drawings are not, therefore, printed at actual size and are not printed across multiple pages.

File Thumbnails

Files saved from the software (CRV, CRV3D or 3DCLIP) include a thumbnail image. Windows Explorer can make use of these thumbnails to show you a preview of each file when you browse a folder.

The software also supports Windows drag and drop functionality to quickly add pieces of 2D or 3D clipart into an existing model directly from Windows Explorer. With Windows Explorer open, simply click and drag the 3D clipart thumbnail of the file you want from the Explorer Window into the 2D View. The selected file will be imported automatically and displayed in the software.

Video Tutorials

The Aspire disk set includes over 35 hours of video tutorials and all the files you need to work through the examples. These are split into sections beginning with Getting Started projects to let you see the process to produce a complete part and start to understand the general workflow. Then there are videos to cover some of the basics before you get into the fundamental concepts and skills and individual videos on specific features.

The videos are designed to take you step by step through different types of projects to explain the key methods you will use in the software and to demonstrate these on real-world examples. You can just watch and absorb the contents or follow along pausing where necessary to complete a task. In addition to learning how to use the program the videos include tips and tricks for better use of the software. The result of each project (along with the Clip Art) provides a library of parts which can be machined to create sample files to improve your CNC skills or help you to demonstrate your capabilities to potential customers.

Technical Support & Vectric Forum

One of the most important features of any program is not within the program itself. It is the support and resources available when you are learning the program or when you have a question about how something works or even a suggestion for a new feature.

Vectric have a dedicated Support Website http://support.vectric.com. This portal allows you to quickly access Video Tutorials, the Vectric User Forum (see below), Free Monthly Projects for Aspire and VCarve Pro, Program Updates, Upgrade Options, Gadgets and the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page. The FAQ pages have searchable general and software specific questions and answers.

We are very proud of the quality of our software, and maintain an active and open forum at http://vectric.com/forum/ . The forum lets users ask questions and discuss techniques related to CNC and the software. In addition to direct input from Vectric, there are a large number of enthusiastic users who are always willing to help on any topic associated with CNC machining. Another very interesting section of the forum is the gallery area where users can post images of projects they have done using Vectric software. Please take a look, there are some very nice examples of work on there.

And Much More ...

We have only been able to give a brief overview of some of software capabilities here. To really understand the speed, ease of use and full scope of what the program can do then please download the trial version and try it for yourself.

The video tutorials will get you up and running quickly and the trial version is supplied with a number of standard demonstration files which you can scale and cut on your own machine using your own tooling to verify the quality of the toolpaths from the software and compatibility with your machine. In addition to the standard demonstration files we supply, you can load any of your own data files and preview them using the standard toolpath simulation capabilities of the program.

Finally, if you have reached this far, we'd like to thank you for your interest in Vectric software and encourage you to ...

Download the free, no registration required trial version now and see what the software can do for you!