Vector-built relief
Deliverable: A decorative panel relief built entirely from vectors using shape editor and layer combination, with a simulation showing a clean finished surface.
Course
ArtCAM
Relief modelling and CNC toolpath generation — vectors, layered reliefs, roughing and finishing strategies — with the tool and material judgement that decides cut quality.
- Duration: 2 months
- Classroom
- Level: intermediate
What you will be able to do
- Build clean vector artwork suitable for machining
- Create and blend 3D reliefs from vectors and from images
- Choose roughing and finishing strategies for a given material
- Select cutters and set feeds, speeds and stepover sensibly
- Simulate a toolpath and spot a gouge before it happens
- Post out a programme your machine will actually run
Who this course is for
- CNC operators and workshop staff
- Furniture, signage and interior fabricators
- Jewellery and die makers working with engraving machines
- Ability to read a drawing is expected
Syllabus
6 modules · 2 months
Module 1. Vectors and artwork
- Importing and cleaning vector artwork
- Node editing and closing open contours
- Vector doctor and why open vectors break toolpaths
- Text, fonts and converting to curves
Module 2. Relief modelling
- Shape editor and building a relief from a vector
- Adding, merging and subtracting reliefs
- Layers and combining shapes
- Sculpting, smoothing and cleanup tools
Module 3. Reliefs from images
- Bitmap to relief conversion
- Cleaning a photograph for carving
- Depth control and compression
- When an image will simply not carve well
Module 4. Toolpaths
- Profiling, area clearance and engraving
- 3D roughing strategies and stock allowance
- Finishing strategies — raster, spiral, along vector
- Machining region, boundaries and rest machining
Module 5. Tooling and cutting parameters
- Ball nose, end mill, V-bit and tapered cutters
- Stepover against finish quality and time
- Feeds and speeds by material
- Tool life, deflection and thin-tool reality
Module 6. Simulation and output
- Simulating a toolpath and inspecting the result
- Spotting gouges, uncut regions and collisions
- Workholding, datum and Z zero
- Post processing to your machine
Tools and technologies you will use
- ArtCAM
- Vector and bitmap artwork
- CNC router and engraving machine
- Cutter libraries and tooling
Projects you will build
Image-derived relief
Deliverable: A relief generated from a supplied photograph, cleaned and depth-controlled, with a written note on which parts of the image did not translate and why.
Toolpath strategy comparison
Deliverable: The same relief machined with two different finishing strategies and stepovers, compared on simulated surface quality and estimated cut time.
Machined piece
Deliverable: A finished carved piece cut on the machine from your own programme, with workholding, datum setting and cutter choices documented.
Where this course can take you
- CNC Operator
- CAM Programmer
- Furniture and Signage Fabricator
- Die and Mould Technician
- Jewellery Engraving Technician
Duration, modes and fees
- Duration
- 2 months
- Delivery modes
- Classroom
- Fees
- Share your details for the current fee
- Fees vary by batch. Machine time, cutters and material for the practical piece are included. Classroom mode only.
Placement assistance
Every student gets placement assistance — that is what 100% placement assistance means. It is support for all, not a job for all. We do not promise a specific salary, a specific number of interviews, or placement at any named company, and you should be wary of anyone who does.
What is included
- A place in the monthly placement drive, held every third Saturday
- The readiness programme every second Saturday — mock interviews and preparation
- CV review against the specific roles you are targeting
- Portfolio review, so your project work is presented the way a reviewer will read it
- Access to the vacancy pool employers send directly to the Samyak network
- Guidance on which roles realistically fit your background and which do not
- A place in the next drive, with coaching, if you are not selected in this one
What is not included
- Any guarantee of a job, an interview, or a particular salary
- Placement at a named or partner company
- Applying to jobs on your behalf
- Support before you have completed the course and its project work
- Visa, relocation or overseas placement assistance
Clean the vectors first
An open contour, a duplicate line or a self-intersection produces a relief with a hole in it and a toolpath that behaves strangely.
The frustrating part is that the symptom appears much later — at simulation, or on the machine — where the cause is genuinely hard to trace back. Ten minutes of vector cleanup at the start removes an entire class of problem, which is why it comes before anything else here.
Not every photograph will carve
Relief-from-image is the feature everybody wants to try and the one that disappoints most.
Depth is inferred from brightness, so flat lighting gives a flat carving, a busy background carves as noise, and low contrast produces mud. No amount of cleanup rescues a bad source. Learning to say “this photograph will not work, bring me another” is the actual skill.
Stepover is the trade you keep making
Halve the stepover and the finish improves and the cut time roughly doubles.
There is no correct answer, only a judgement against the material, the cutter, the piece and the deadline. The comparison project makes you machine the same relief two ways and look at both results, because the trade-off is easier to feel than to be told.
Simulate, then cut
A gouge in the simulation costs nothing. A gouge in a seasoned teak panel costs the panel.
Simulation, checking for uncut regions and collisions, and setting the datum carefully are the last things covered and the first things that matter on the day. Pair this with the CNC Programming course if the machine side is new to you.
Questions
ArtCAM — frequently asked questions
How is ArtCAM different from a normal CAM package?
Conventional CAM machines a CAD model to precise dimensions. ArtCAM builds decorative reliefs — depth-based artwork rather than engineered geometry — and then machines them. It is the right tool for carved panels, signage, mouldings and engraving, and the wrong one for a machined component with tolerances.
Do I need to know CNC already?
It helps considerably. You are choosing cutters, feeds and stepovers, and setting a datum on a machine. The CNC Programming course covers the machine side properly and pairs well with this one. Workshop staff who already run a router will find this course mostly about the software.
Why does the course spend time on vectors before reliefs?
Because an open or self-intersecting vector produces a broken relief and a broken toolpath, and the failure appears much later where the cause is hard to see. Cleaning artwork first — closing contours, removing duplicates, checking nodes — prevents an entire category of problem that otherwise wastes hours.
Will every photograph carve well?
No, and the third module is honest about it. Images with flat lighting, low contrast or busy backgrounds produce muddy reliefs regardless of technique, because depth is being inferred from brightness. Knowing which images to reject before you start is more valuable than any cleanup trick.
Enquire about ArtCAM
Three details is all we need. A course advisor will call you back.
Related courses
- CNC Programming
Machine programming taught with the setup and simulation discipline that stops a crash — G-code by hand first, so you can read and correct what any post-processor writes.
- Rhino 3D
NURBS modelling for shapes parametric CAD handles badly — clean curves, continuous surfaces and watertight solids, with Grasshopper for anything repetitive.
- Jewellery Design
Jewellery design taken to manufacture — sketching, CAD modelling, stone setting and casting constraints — with the metal weight and costing a workshop will hold you to.
- AutoCAD for Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical drafting judged the way a machine shop judges it — correct projection, tolerances that reflect function, and a drawing a machinist can work from without ringing you.
Next step
Talk to a course advisor
Tell us what you want to learn and we will help you pick the right course, batch and mode.