FABSHEETS: A LASER CUT FILE GENERATOR - Preparing Geometries for Digital Fabrication with Grasshopper

I. OVERVIEW (README file):

FABSHEETS is a a Laser Cutting File Generator that takes an imported 3D Brep or Mesh geometry, slices it into divisions, lays it out on a virtual material sheet, and exports the result as a cut-ready .SVG file for digital fabrication. Below are the steps for using the tool. Before following the steps described below, ensure that you have BOTH the Rhino file and Grasshopper file open simultaneously to ensure that the example geometries are already loaded into the script. Additionally, make sure the following Grasshopper plug-ins are installed:

TTToolbox
OpenNest

Step 1) Import 3D Geometry

Under the IMPORT GEOMETRY section, you can select from predefined, already modeled shapes (e.g., SPHERE, CHAIR, COW, HEART, DOG) or import your own custom geometry. To do this, simply connect your geometry to the orange B-rep input labeled “OR: IMPORT YOUR OWN GEOMETRY HERE.” In this guide, we will be using the “DOG” geometry as an example (Shown below).

Step 2) Set Number of Divisions

Next, under SET # OF DIVISIONS, use the sliders labeled "X divisions" and "Y divisions" to control how many slices are created in each direction. Increasing these values results in finer, more detailed divisions of the model, which will increase the number of parts in the final output.

Step 3) Set Material Dimensions

Under SET MATERIAL DIMENSIONS, define the size of your material sheet. Use the “Material Thickness [in]” slider to match your fabrication material (e.g., 0.125 for 1/8" plywood). The “Material Width [in]” and “Material Height [in]” inputs should reflect the size of your laser cutter bed or the sheet dimensions you will be cutting from.

Step 3) Select Font Size + Generate 2D Layout

To label each part for identification, you can adjust the font size under SET FONT SIZE using the “Label Font Size” slider. This controls the size of the part labels that will appear in the 2D output layout.

Once your inputs are set, go to the CREATE 2D LAYOUT section. Press “Reset Formatting” to clear any prior results if needed. Then click “Run Layout Optimizer” to generate a clean, flattened 2D layout of all parts, arranged to fit within the material sheet based on your specified dimensions.

Step 4) Export to .SVG file to print

Finally, under EXPORT TO .SVG FILE, you’ll define where and how to export your layout. Use “Enter File Path” to specify the folder where your file should be saved (e.g., C:\Users\YourName\Documents\LaserFiles), and “Enter File Name” to set the name of the file (e.g., Dog_Laser_Cut). Set the Toggle to True to trigger the export process. The script will then generate an SVG file with the layout, ready to be opened in programs for cutting.

Be sure the file path exists before toggling the export, as the script does not create folders automatically. The generated SVG will include labeled and unrolled 2D parts, arranged for efficient cutting and easy assembly.

Step 5) Happy Laser Cutting :)

II. TYPICAL RESULTS:

Using the “DOG” example model file with 16 X-divisions, 8 Y-divisions, a sheet size of 24”x36”, and a sheet thickness of 5/32”, the following labeled SVG file is generated:

Extra: here is a rendering of what the final piece would look like once printed and assembled:

Lily Glantz