PencilCADLaser cutting on iPad
You can design laser-cut parts on iPad with Apple Pencil and send your laser software a file that’s sized, layered and checked. Draw the parts at true size, then use PencilCAD’s Cut toolset to set the bed and the kerf, give each operation its colour, run a preflight, and export for LightBurn, Glowforge, xTool, Epilog or a laser that prints from a driver.
1. Draw at true size
Draw each part at its real size: write 160 on a line and the line becomes 160 mm. The SVG states its units, so it opens 160 mm wide instead of being guessed.
2. Close every outline
A closed outline cuts a part free; a gap leaves it hanging, and a doubled line burns twice. Check, in step 8, catches both.
3. Set the sheet and the bed
Choose Cut in Settings → Tools, tap Sheet, pick a bed preset (check it against your machine) and set the material. Measure the board and drive every slot from one dimension, as the parametric sketching guide shows.
4. Find the kerf with the test card
The beam burns away the kerf, so parts shrink and holes grow; on export PencilCAD offsets each cut by half of it, so don’t add it again in your laser software. Cut the test comb, tap the narrowest slot the board fits snugly, and Save puts the kerf on the sheet.
5. Give each operation a colour
In Operations, set each layer or shape to cut, score, engrave, draw or skip; the LightBurn profile writes LightBurn’s palette colours. In your laser software, turn on cutting inner shapes first.
6. Text that engraves
For engraved lettering, use the bundled single-line font, Relief SingleLine, or tap Outline to turn any font into shapes. A DXF carries text as text, so export SVG or outline it first.
7. Nest the parts and add tabs
In Layout, set the copies: PencilCAD nests them, turns them to fit and spills onto more sheets (As drawn keeps your arrangement). Tabs adds small uncut bridges so parts stay in the sheet.
8. Run the preflight
Tap Check before every export. It catches live text, parts off the sheet, open outlines, double cuts, overlaps, tiny features, size limits and empty layers, most with a one-tap fix.
9. Find power and speed with a test grid
Job keeps a power, speed and number of passes for each operation. Cut the laser test grid on your material and tap the best square: its power and speed go to that operation.
10. Export for your laser software
In Export for, pick your software’s profile; files follow the Cut layout. Send passes the file to xTool through Files, or makes a hairline SVG to upload on an Epilog’s own page in Safari.
SVG opens almost everywhere; DXF suits LightBurn, CNC software and CAD (see iPad sketch to DXF). For vinyl and paper, see Cricut cut files on iPad; for routers, sketch to G-code; for bent metal, sheet metal flat patterns; and everything else is on the features page.
Questions
Can you design for a laser cutter on an iPad?
Yes. Draw the parts at true size in PencilCAD, switch to the Cut toolset to set the bed, the operations and the kerf, run Check, then export for LightBurn, Glowforge, a print-driver laser, or a generic SVG or DXF.
What file should I send to my laser?
SVG for most laser software, sized in millimetres or inches with outlines as paths. DXF suits LightBurn, CNC software and a round trip through CAD. PencilCAD’s Generic profile writes either, with one layer per operation.
How do I find my laser’s kerf?
Add PencilCAD’s kerf test, a comb of slots a little narrower than your board. Cut it, push a scrap of the board into each slot, and tap the narrowest one it fits snugly. The kerf is the board less that slot, and Save puts it on the sheet.
How do I choose power and speed?
Cut the laser test grid, a set of squares at different powers and speeds, on the material you’ll use. Then pick the best square, and its power and speed go to that operation in the Job.
Cricut, Glowforge, xTool, LightBurn and Epilog are trademarks of their owners; PencilCAD isn’t affiliated with them.