Engraving Tiny Text with Inkscape
Posted: Thu May 21, 2020
I am putting this here rather than have it lost in a general thread.
I downloaded this Inkscape extension a while ago but I hadn't played with it seriously. https://github.com/evil-mad/EggBot/releases/tag/v2.8.1
Some of what it can do is here https://www.evilmadscientist.com/2011/h ... ing-fonts/
In a nutshell it will take standard fonts and turn them into a single lines for Vector Engraving which in theory will look more crisp in smaller fonts. The test is Standard MS Sans Serif and then fed into 'Hershey Text' which is part of the Eggbot extension.
**My Laser was showing signs of needing lower acceleration at 40mm/sec but the M2 board doesn't allow that so there is a some over and undershoot on the vector moves with that test. The second one was run at 10mm/sec and really really low power (8%) and is much much cleaner.
The photos below are just on some cereal box cardboard and some scrap Acrylic and some other fonts might yield better results again at the smaller end. Lighting with the Acrylic shows everything under my soldering Microscope but to my naked glasses wearing eyes either is fairly readable to 4px and with a Loupe easily but your eyes may vary.....
Font Sizes ran as follows 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 20 & 30
Have a play as it is FREE
I downloaded this Inkscape extension a while ago but I hadn't played with it seriously. https://github.com/evil-mad/EggBot/releases/tag/v2.8.1
Some of what it can do is here https://www.evilmadscientist.com/2011/h ... ing-fonts/
In a nutshell it will take standard fonts and turn them into a single lines for Vector Engraving which in theory will look more crisp in smaller fonts. The test is Standard MS Sans Serif and then fed into 'Hershey Text' which is part of the Eggbot extension.
**My Laser was showing signs of needing lower acceleration at 40mm/sec but the M2 board doesn't allow that so there is a some over and undershoot on the vector moves with that test. The second one was run at 10mm/sec and really really low power (8%) and is much much cleaner.
The photos below are just on some cereal box cardboard and some scrap Acrylic and some other fonts might yield better results again at the smaller end. Lighting with the Acrylic shows everything under my soldering Microscope but to my naked glasses wearing eyes either is fairly readable to 4px and with a Loupe easily but your eyes may vary.....
Font Sizes ran as follows 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 20 & 30
Have a play as it is FREE