Automation

Serial work is where marking software earns its keep: numbering a batch, triggering the cycle from a pedal or a line controller, marking around a cylinder.

Batch work without extra clicks

• Variable text and barcodes advance themselves after every mark — serial numbers and file data step forward, date/time reflects the clock at the moment of marking; in arrays each copy takes its own value, so one press of MARK numbers an entire tray.
• Passes per press and a part counter with session timers; the counter ticks on every completed cycle.
• Continue Mode: after each burn the red-light trace comes back on for positioning the next part — F2 marks again straight from the trace, no clicking around between parts.

Pedal and IO signals

Wire the marking cycle into a workstation or a line:

• Foot pedal — the cycle waits for the hardware footswitch before each pass.
• Start-mark input on a GPIO port with selectable polarity — trigger the burn from a fixture sensor or a PLC.
• Mark-complete output — a pulse with configurable port, polarity and duration tells the line the pass is done.
• Test buttons read the inputs and pulse the output right from the settings — check the wiring without firing the laser.

IO control is implemented end-to-end; final validation of pedal and port scenarios on production machines is still in progress.

Rotary axis

Marking rings, tumblers and shafts with a rotary axis on the controller:

• Text/Object mode marks unit by unit — the axis turns each glyph or object to the apex, it burns flat, the axis moves on. Confirmed on real hardware, with cycle timing matching EzCad.
• Vector Mark (split) mode slices wide vector graphics into strips with configurable width, overlap and manual split lines. Implemented and working through the emulator and tests; the final on-machine validation of split burning is still in progress.
• Step-by-step red-light trace: the axis brings each unit to the apex and the pointer outlines it; arrow keys walk the part unit by unit before any burning happens.
• Axis Control panel with jog, precise positioning in degrees and homing; the flyout warns about edge defocus when a strip is too wide for the part diameter.
• Rotary 3D simulation shows the burn on a rotating blank — ring or tumbler, with material presets and a client-friendly view (first version, still maturing).

Cylinder correction without an axis

For shallow artwork on a stationary pipe, bottle or mug, Zenom pre-distorts the geometry by cylinder projection — convex or concave, along X or Y, with a live preview of the distortion. When you close the flyout, the correction switches off automatically, so the next flat job is safe. Final on-machine confirmation of this mode is in progress.

Not in Zenom

• No conveyor (fly mark) marking yet — jobs run on stationary parts.
• Continuous loop mode does not combine with the rotary axis: Zenom refuses the job and asks you to switch Continuous off. With IO triggers it falls back automatically — the job runs as bounded passes and the message says why.
• Raster engraving on the rotary axis is not supported — vector marking works; engrave rasters flat.