Getting Started

Let's discover EasyCarve in less than 5 minutes.

To start making a new model in EasyCarve begin by clicking the New Project button on the home page.

Model

The first step in creating your project is to choose from one of the existing models.

Use either the right-hand controls to filter the models or use the search box to find specific models from D&M.

When click any of the models, you will see that each EasyCarve model comes in 3 styles:

• Regular
• Dish
• Recess

Choose the style you like the most and click 'Import' to create your project.

Setup

Once the model is loaded you'll be at Step 1 of the project setup. Here you can specify the material you wish to cut the model from, and the machine you will be using.

Specifying the material and machine is important because it will determine the speed and depth of the cut.

Material

In the material selection step, you can pick from a selection of materials.

Choose the one that most closely matches the material you will be using.

Machine

EasyCarve needs to know the machine that you wish to use in order to start your project.

In the machine selection step, you can choose the machine, either by selecting one from the list or choose 'Add new machine' to create a new machine. To learn more about machines see the Tool Database guide.

Tool Database

Finally, before you begin making anything you should tell EasyCarve what tools you have and how you would like them to machine. Your selection of configured tools is called your Tool Database. To learn more about the Tool Database see the Tool Database guide.

To get to the Tool Database, go to the settings menu at the top right-hand corner of the screen and then from within the settings menu click on 'Tool Database'.

Click 'Add Tool' and fill in the form to match the tool you have. Once a tool is created you can then set up the feeds and speeds for the tool for a specific material and any machine you own.

When you are prompted to add feeds and speeds you can set them for any material and machine you have. In this way you can customize them so that they are appropriate for the material you are cutting without needing to add lots of different tools.

Size & Position

Step 2 allows you to specify the size of your model and the material you will be cutting it in.

Model Size & Orientation

We begin by setting the size of the model. If you change one dimension then the other dimension is fixed. If you wish to make the model thicker or thinner without changing the width and height then you can use the link button to unlink the dimensions.

We can adjust the of the model to rotate it 90 degrees by clicking the rotate button.

We can also choose to mirror the model. This is done by clicking the mirror button.

Material Size

In the next step, you define the thickness of your material block you have. It needs to be at least the desired thickness of the model. If not, then you can go back to adjust your model thickness.

Material Origin

In the next step, you define where you want your machine's XY and Z zero is. This will be good to know later on when you start to position your material on the machine bed and set the zero point of your machine.

Toolpaths

The next step is the toolpath step. This is where you will generate the toolpaths for your project. The toolpaths are the instructions that the machine will follow to cut the model.

There are three different toolpaths it is possible to make using EasyCarve:

• Roughing Toolpath - This is the first toolpath that you should make. It is used to remove the bulk of the material.
• Finishing Toolpath - This is the second toolpath that you should make. It is used to remove the remaining material and to give a smooth finish to the model. Usually such a toolpath uses a ball nose tool.
• Cut Out Toolpath - This is the final toolpath that you could make. It is used to cut the model out of the material.

Depending on your use case you may not need to make this toolpath.

Once a toolpath has been calculated you will notice that EasyCarve will begin to show you a preview of the toolpath you've just made. It will preview the toolpath in the block of the material that you have specified.

You can view a wireframe and simulation of each toolpath using the toggle button in the top left-hand corner of the view.

Roughing Toolpath

The roughing toolpath is the first toolpath that you should make. It is used to remove the bulk of the material. To make the roughing toolpath click on the 'Create roughing toolpath' section.

To create the toolpath select the tool you wish to use, specify a machining allowance and an angle and click 'Calculate'. The toolpath will begin to calculate and the view will update to reflect the progress of the toolpath calculation. Finally EasyCarve will show a fully simulated version of the toolpath.

Finishing Toolpath

The finishing toolpath is the second toolpath that you should make. It is used to remove the remaining material.

To create the toolpath select the tool you wish to use, specify an angle and click 'Calculate'. The toolpath will begin to calculate and the view will update to reflect the progress of the toolpath calculation. Finally, EasyCarve will show a fully simulated version of the toolpath.

Cutout Toolpath

You may optionally wish to create a cutout toolpath. This toolpath is used to cut the model out of the material. To create the cutout toolpath click on the 'Create cutout toolpath' section.

To create the toolpath select the tool you wish to use, specify a final pass height and a cut direction and click 'Calculate'. The toolpath will begin to calculate and the view will update to reflect the progress of the toolpath calculation. Finally EasyCarve will show a fully simulated version of the toolpath.

Save & Export

Once you have created all the toolpaths you need you go to the next step which is the 'Export' step to save out the different toolpaths for your machine. To do this select each toolpath you wish to save by clicking on the checkbox next to the toolpath name.

Select the appropriate post-processor for your machine. It is likely that your machine has only one post-processor, but if not then use the one suggested by your machine manufacturer.

Once the toolpaths have been saved they will be automatically downloaded by you web browser. You can then use these files to run your machine.