To laser cut, waterjet cut, or CNC route parts, we can’t use raster files or photos because our cutting machines require vector files. They cannot cut a part using a pixel-based image file (PNG, JPEG, TIFF formats).
Laser, waterjet, and CNC cutters can only process path-based vector files (DXF, DWG, EPS, .AI formats) since the paths function like a map that the machine can follow to cut your parts.
For more detail, check out Why We Require Vector Files for Laser Cutting and our guides on converting from raster to vector.
In Summary
Why can’t you use raster files or photos?
Laser, waterjet, and CNC cutters can only process path-based vector files (DXF, DWG, EPS, .AI formats) since the paths function like a map that the machine can follow to cut your parts.
