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Available · version 6

Centreline and V-groove Engraving

Create and verify linked centreline and synchronized V-groove engraving operations in Cadivari.

Updated August 20265 min readCAM & machines
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Recommended test

  1. In CAD, place the text BRIDGE TEMPLATE, then draw two touching lines and an arc inside the stock.
  2. Switch to CAM → Operations and activate Engrave, or press G.
  3. Click the text, both lines, and the arc. Click any selected source again to remove it. Choose the 60° V-bit, then create the engraving.
  4. Set 0.500 mm depth and confirm the displayed engraved width is about 0.677 mm for the preset 0.100 mm tip.
  5. Change between the 30°, 60°, and 90° presets. Confirm wider angles produce wider grooves at the same depth.
  6. Choose Custom V-bit, then edit its included angle, tip diameter, and maximum cutting diameter.
  7. Confirm touching path segments form one continuous stroke while dashed Safe-Z links appear only between disconnected strokes.
  8. Open 3D. Confirm the cutter is conical and Material mode shows a depth-correct V-groove, then animate the engraving alone and in the complete job.
  9. Review the G-code and confirm each stroke plunges at its start, cuts at the selected feed, and retracts before travelling to another stroke.
  10. Save and reopen the project, then edit the linked text or path geometry and confirm the operation rebuilds automatically.
  11. Import a stroked SVG, select it in CAD, choose Prepare centreline engraving, and confirm its true strokes become cutter paths while filled outlines are excluded. For mixed artwork, the separate V-carve preparation can include those strokes as companion V-grooves.

01 · EXPLICIT CAM HANDOFF

Select text and paths in CAM

Engrave accepts any combination of Text, Line, Arc, Spline, and grouped SVG artwork objects. Technical and Roman Serif text contributes centreline cutter paths; locally bundled outline fonts contribute their closed outer and counter contours. For SVG artwork, only paths classified during import as true strokes are eligible centrelines. Click each source to toggle it into the pending selection, then create one operation when the sources share a cutter, depth, feed, plunge rate, and spindle target. The operation stores entity IDs rather than copied display paths, so later text, font, CAD, and SVG edits rebuild its machine geometry and validation.

CAD geometry never machines itself

Drawing, importing, or editing a source cannot silently add toolpaths. Machine motion exists only after the separate Engraving operation is created.

02 · CENTRELINE STROKES

Connected segments cut continuously

Cadivari joins selected path segments when their endpoints coincide. Lines remain exact, arcs are sampled to a maximum 0.050 mm chord tolerance, and splines use the same dense millimetre sampling used by the CAD preview. Disconnected strokes are ordered deterministically from job zero by the nearest available endpoint and may be reversed to shorten travel. Every depth pass repeats that order.

The cutter remains centred on each stroke. Before every disconnected stroke it travels at Safe Z, descends vertically at the stored plunge rate, cuts at the stored feed, and retracts again. The operation does not apply contour-style left/right compensation, holding tabs, or spoilboard overcut.

V-groove width and depth stay synchronized

Choose V-groove source mode and enter either the target surface width or cutting depth. Cadivari derives the matching value from the selected V-bit's included angle and tip diameter, rejects widths beyond its maximum cutting diameter, and repeats the same centreline only for the required safe depth passes.

03 · SHARED CAM PIPELINE

One resolved operation drives every view

The same cutter-centre records drive 2D inspection, conical 3D cutter presentation, sloped-wall material playback, time estimation, individual or complete-job animation, export preflight, Shapeoko/GRBL G-code, tool-change grouping, enable/disable, project Save/Open, and complete-job ordering. G-code identifies the exact V angle, tip, maximum diameter, final depth, and resulting engraved width. Engraving is treated as inside machining and must occur before the final outside cutout.

DepthDistance below stock-top Z0
WidthPhysical groove width at final depth
AngleIncluded V-bit angle
TipPhysical cutter-tip diameter
StepMaximum depth per pass
FeedCentreline cutting rate

CURRENT SCOPE

Supported engraving paths and straight plunges

  • Linked Text, Line, Arc, Spline, and grouped SVG true-stroke objects; touching selected paths are joined without an unnecessary retract
  • Technical and Roman Serif produce efficient single-line motion; ten bundled outline fonts trace every closed glyph boundary and counter
  • Dedicated V-groove mode with synchronized target width and depth, exact V-bit limits, depth passes, 2D/3D preview, animation, G-code, export, and Save/Open
  • Filled SVG boundaries remain excluded from centreline-only motion; use the separate mixed filled-artwork V-carve mode to combine solid fills and explicit stroke V-grooves safely
  • Unsupported characters block the operation rather than being substituted in G-code
  • Flat end mills plus 30°, 60°, 90°, and custom V-bits with exact angle, tip, and maximum-diameter geometry
  • Straight vertical entry for every disconnected stroke; verify that the real engraving cutter is suitable for this entry
  • No automatic text-on-path, hatch filling, or pocket-clearing of outline letters yet
  • Use separate operations when sources require different cutters or machining parameters

Verify the actual cutter tip geometry, diameter, depth, feed, plunge rate, spindle target, stock position, workholding, and Safe Z before exporting or running the program.

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