Computer-Controlled Cutting

Vinyl Cutting

Using Silhouette Studio

To design my vinyl sticker, I utilized Silhouette Studio as it is the software built specifically for the Cameo vinyl cutters in our Fab Lab.

I first installed the MacOS version of Silhouette Studio through its offical website. After following the installation steps, I was able to open the software and begin a new design from there.

I chose to design the San Francisco 49ers logo because they are my favorite NFL team and have a relatively simple color scheme and design. To start, I found a png image of the 49ers logo through a quick google search. I made sure that the image had a transparent background so that I could avoid having to remove it later. Here is what the original image looked like.

I then opened the image in a new Silhouette Studios design. In order to prepare the image for vinyl cutting, I had to first trace it. Tracing an image in silhouette studio converts it from a raster image (JPG, PNG, PDF) to vector lines that the machine will be able to recognize. To do so, I first clicked the Trace tool in the right panel of the Silhouette Studios workspace. This opened up the trace menu, which contained a button called Select Trace Area. I clicked it and then selected an area around my entire image as the trace area.

Once done, I clicked "Trace" and the logo was succesfully converted.

Since my design contained multiple colors, which meant that I would have to cut on multiple sheets of vinyl, I needed to separate each part and cut them individually. To do this, I selected the traced design, right-clicked it, and then hit Release Compound Path. This separated each floating piece of the design, making each path its own, separate object. This allowed me to take apart the design and make individual cut areas for each color. I made sure that they were all an appropriate distance away from each other so that all the vinyl sheets could fit and the entire design could be cut at once.

Using the Cameo Vinyl Cutter

Before cutting, I needed to gather all the vinyl colors for my design. My design contained red, gold, black, and white. Using my fab lab's resources, I was able to find the correct sheets.

I then trimmed down each sheet so that they could all fit on one cutting mat. I made sure to carefully arrange each peice on the mat so that their location alligned with the location of each part in the design. This made sure that vinyl cutter would accurately cut each segment. Once the cutting mat and vinyl were properly set up, I loaded the cutting mat into the Cameo vinyl cutter.

Sending the Design to the Vinyl Cutter

With the cutting mat loaded, I navigated to the Send tab in Silhouette Studio to prepare the design for cutting. In the send panel, I selected my material type by changing it to Glossy Vinyl. This setting adjusts the blade depth and cutting speed to match the specific material, ensuring clean cuts without damaging the vinyl or the cutting mat.

After confirming my material settings, I clicked the Send button to transmit the design to the vinyl cutter. The machine began cutting each segment of my design according to the paths I had traced earlier.

Cutting Results

Once the cutting was complete, I unloaded the mat and examined the results. Here is what the cutting mat with vinyl looked like right after the cut.

During inspection, I noticed that the black vinyl was slightly unaligned. A very marginal portion was cut off from the top of the black oval. This misalignment was likely caused by the vinyl sheet shifting slightly on the mat during cutting, but the error was minimal enough that it wouldn't significantly impact the final sticker.

Assembling the Sticker

With all pieces cut, I began the process of assembling the sticker. I used tweezers to carefully separate the stickers from the excess vinyl and remove each sticker from the white base. This process required precision to avoid tearing or stretching the vinyl pieces.

Next, I used transfer tape to lift each piece from its backing. I had to be extremely careful in order to align each sticker properly. The process was very tedious to make them fit together, as the multiple layers needed to line up precisely to recreate the 49ers logo accurately. I started with the larger base pieces and gradually added the smaller details, checking alignment after each placement.

Once I finished assembling all the layers, I placed the sticker on the window of our Fab Academy office with transfer tape still attached.

After carefully pressing the sticker onto the window to ensure it adhered properly, I slowly peeled back the transfer tape, leaving the completed 49ers logo on the glass.