How does the Laser Cut and Fill toolpath work (passes, power, and hatch fill options)?

Laser Cut and Fill is the workhorse laser strategy: it cuts through material along vectors or shades enclosed shapes with a stripe pattern.

Tool and power settings

• Select Tool opens your stored laser settings so a material preset can populate the form. Edits here do not change the database entry.
• Power: percentage of your machine's maximum laser power.
• Move Speed: top speed during cutting moves.
• Cut Depth: for through-cuts in thicker stock, enter the material thickness and the software steps down between passes to keep the beam focused. No. Passes is calculated automatically from Cut Depth divided by the tool's Pass Depth; you do not type it.
• No. Repeats: reruns the same toolpath for a deeper burn without changing Z.
• Overscan: extends travel past the shape with the beam off so deceleration does not darken the edges. Dial this in by testing.

Strategy choices

• Cut Outside/Right and Cut Inside/Left offset the beam by the kerf so the finished part or hole matches your drawn vector size. An extra Allowance field adds offset on top of kerf for fit tuning.
• Cut On runs the beam centerline down the vector with no compensation.
• Hatch Fill outlines each shape then fills it with stripes. It unlocks Stepover (line spacing), Hatch Angle, Cross Hatch (a second perpendicular pass), Outline (adds a border pass so coarse stepovers do not leave a ragged edge), and Fill Together / Fill Regionally for how separate shapes are filled.

Output

Set Safe Z and Home Position via Material Setup, optionally Project toolpath onto 3D Model, name the toolpath, and save with a laser-capable post-processor, or use Output direct to machine if yours supports it.

Pro tips

• Kerf comes from the laser tool definition, so measure your actual kerf on scrap and store it there; Cut Outside/Inside accuracy depends on it.
• Use Cross Hatch plus Outline for crisp filled lettering.
• Official documentation: Laser Cut - Fill