Hey everyone, I’ve been working with the F1 Ultra laser engraving machine for a while now, and while it has great capabilities, I’ve run into a bit of a limitation. The machine supports surface processing for curved surfaces, but unfortunately, it doesn’t support depth map relief engraving for those curved surfaces. It only does relief engraving on flat surfaces, which is fine, but doesn’t help when I need to apply relief effects on 3D or curved shapes.

So, I’ve been thinking about a workaround and wanted to share my idea to see if anyone has tried something similar or has any suggestions.

The Idea:

Since the machine supports surface processing (for curves) and flat relief engraving, my idea is to combine these two capabilities in a way that simulates a 3D relief on a curved surface. Specifically, I’m thinking about using surface compensation to reverse-adjust the depth that doesn’t need to be processed, allowing the flat engraving mode to mimic a curved surface relief.

How I Plan to Do It:

Surface Height Adjustment: First, I need to get the height variations from the 3D surface. While the F1 Ultra does have some surface scanning capabilities for curved surfaces, the machine doesn’t allow us to access that data directly. So, I’ve been using a separate 3D scan to get the surface data, and then I’ll calculate the height differences across the surface. If we could access the F1 Ultra’s internal surface scan data, this step could be skipped and made a lot easier.

Reverse-Compensation: The key here is that I need to reverse-compensate for areas that don’t need additional engraving (i.e., areas already at the correct depth). I’ll essentially subtract the "extra depth" in areas where engraving isn’t needed. For example, if the surface is already at the correct depth in a certain region, I’ll adjust that region to have zero depth adjustment, so the machine doesn’t try to carve any deeper.

Flat Engraving Simulation: Now, even though I’m adjusting the surface depth, I’m still using the flat engraving mode of the F1 Ultra. I’ll apply the adjusted depth map (after compensation) to the flat engraving process. This allows the engraving machine to treat the curved surface as if it were flat, but the end result should mimic the relief engraving as if the surface were 3D.

Steps to Implement:

Step 1: Get the Surface Data – I’ve been using my 3D scanner to generate the surface data. Once I have the 3D model, I extract the height values (Z-coordinates) from it.

Step 2: Normalize the Surface Height – I’ll subtract the minimum Z-value (the lowest point on the surface) from all the height values to "normalize" the surface. This helps in ensuring that the lowest point is treated as the baseline for engraving.

min_depth = np.min(depth_map)
adjusted_depth_map = depth_map - min_depth  # Making the lowest point zero

Step 3: Reverse-Compensate Depth – Based on the curvature of the surface, I’ll adjust areas that are already properly sculpted (not requiring more depth). This will involve using a simple compensation factor where I adjust the depth according to the surrounding heights.

adjusted_grayscale_map = 255 * (adjusted_depth_map / np.max(adjusted_depth_map))

Step 4: Combine with Relief Design – Finally, I’ll overlay my actual design on top of the adjusted surface depth map. This will be the relief design I want to engrave.

Step 5: Apply the Adjusted Depth to Flat Engraving – The F1 Ultra will then perform the flat engraving using the adjusted depth map, simulating the 3D relief effect on the curved surface.

Final Thoughts:

In summary, what I’m essentially developing is a compensation tool to correct the depth map. This tool will allow us to reverse-compensate the areas of the surface that don’t need extra depth and make the flat engraving mode simulate the effect of curved surface engraving. It’s not perfect, but it could be a practical workaround for the F1 Ultra’s current limitations when dealing with curved surface relief.

Questions and Thoughts:

• Has anyone tried a similar workaround with the F1 Ultra, or other machines that don’t support depth map relief for curved surfaces?
• What challenges do you think I might face with this compensation technique, especially in areas with high curvature?
• Any ideas on how to further improve the depth compensation to get a more accurate result?

Would love to hear any feedback or suggestions from anyone who's worked with a similar approach!