How-to guides & troubleshooting

How to use

1. New or import: File > New, or Ctrl+I to import SVG / PDF / AI / EPS / DXF / PLT / images; drag & drop also works.
2. Edit: seven tools in the left toolbox (V select, A node, U shape, B freehand, P pen, T text, H pan); the right panels are Colors, Cutting Tool, Built-in Clipart, Layers, and Guides & Grid. Object position / size / rotation / mirror are adjusted in the property bar under the command bar (it adapts to the active tool; weld/group a multi-selection there) — not in the right panels.
3. Draw clean shapes: enable Shape Snap on the freehand bar to turn rough strokes into clean rectangles/circles/triangles; the shape tool shows a live width/height readout while dragging, and near-circular ellipses snap to a perfect circle (magenta cross).
4. Add text: with the text tool, click the canvas and type right away (IME supported), or click existing text to edit it inline — Enter or clicking elsewhere commits, Esc cancels; text renders solid-filled by default. Text supports horizontal/vertical layout, and clicking a path outline with the text tool types along that path.
5. Build contour (optional): click "Contour" in the command bar to generate cut lines. Vector contours are built from all closed artwork on visible layers, not only the current selection — hide unrelated layers when you need an isolated result; for imported images the image contour wizard opens.
6. Send: click "Send" in the command bar, pick machine and connection, preview, then cut.

Troubleshooting

Not sure where to start?

Run Help > Feature Tour once (a six-step walkthrough), then open the Built-in Clipart panel, click Clipart Library, select an item and click Accept (or double-click it), and do a test cut. All shortcuts are under Help > Keyboard Shortcuts.

How do I get back to the file I was working on?

The welcome screen on startup lists your recent files — click one to continue where you left off. You can also use File > Recent Files anytime. Press Esc or create/open a file to leave the welcome screen.

Canvas orientation differs from the machine?

The send preview converts orientation using the selected machine's axes and origin settings. Before the production cut, verify the preview direction and origin and run a test cut first — do not infer machine motion from canvas orientation alone.

How to use

1. Ctrl+I (File > Import) supports SVG, PDF, AI, EPS, DXF, PLT and common image formats; AI files must be saved from Illustrator with "Create PDF Compatible File" enabled, and EPS must contain supported vector content.
2. When importing an image, choose its purpose first: "Print and Cut" keeps the color artwork for printing and opens the cut-contour wizard; "Background Image" places the image as a session-only printable/reference background without generating cut lines.
3. Tracing wizard: pick the background with the color picker to set tolerance, touch up the mask with the brush, tune smoothing / minimum size / keep holes.
4. Pick an output mode: Contour (offset cut line with outline %/mm, corner style and hollow options), Bounding frame (rounded box per shape), Grid table (columns/rows with overlap bands) or Cut table (equal-division grid lines).
5. Contour type: Cut contour (solid), Half-cut contour (dashed perforation/half-cut) or Cut contour + bleed (adds a bleed-colored band that prints but is never cut); on the "Dashes" tab set a fixed dash/gap, or "Use number of joins" to leave N connection points per ring.
6. Click "Next" on the second page to return to the canvas, then complete placement: move to position, click to confirm, drag to scale; outputs land on the canvas as vector paths.

Troubleshooting

PDF import says "no vector paths found"?

The PDF is a full-page bitmap (a scan or an image-exported PDF). Save the page as PNG and use image import + tracing instead.

Traced contour is loose or corners look dull?

Check source image sharpness first; too much tolerance eats detail, too little leaves noise. Output automatically raises the working resolution for small artwork — no manual upscaling needed.

Half-cut contour vs. the "Dashed" checkbox — what's the difference?

Two entries to the same semantics: choosing Half-cut auto-checks Dashed; on output, dashes are expanded into pen-up/pen-down perforation (half-cut). Sticker jobs often use "Use number of joins" to leave a few connection points per ring so pieces don't fall out.

Will the band from "Cut contour + bleed" be cut?

No. The bleed band is display/print only (it hides registration gaps), and is automatically skipped when sending cuts — it produces no tool path.

DXF / PLT opens with broken, unclosed lines?

Common in customer files. Select all and run Edit > Clean Up Paths (0.1 mm join tolerance + auto close + duplicate removal).

How to use

1. Build contour: click "Contour" in the command bar, set offset amount, corner style and whether to include holes, then click "Build Contour". Vector contours are built from all closed artwork on visible layers, not only the selection — hide unrelated layers for an isolated result; clicking "Contour" on an imported image opens the image contour wizard (background removal + trace preview).
2. Marks: select the artwork to wrap first, then click "Marks" in the command bar. The shapes are circle and L-shaped corner only — "Vertical segments" is a count, not a third shape; placement is object / page, with optional direction arrow, white marks and QR code (the arrow and QR code are printed information graphics and do not participate in edge finding).
3. With "Marks follow object" checked, marks and the QR code stay aligned when you move the object.

Troubleshooting

Do repeated generations stack marks?

No. Regenerating replaces the old marks; the QR code is a single atomic object and cannot be split or edited by accident.

Inner holes not cut?

Make sure "keep holes" was checked when tracing and the hollow option when building contours.

How to use

1. Click "Send" to open the send platform; pick vendor and machine (command template, width and axes).
2. Output: one of four — printer-class USB (driver-free auto match), serial COM, TCP, or "File" to save a PLT directly.
3. Optionally pick a material preset — materials inject speed / pressure only; blade-tip compensation, closure compensation and the blade profile are set in the "Process > Compensation" card, not in the material preset. Send scope can be "whole document / selection only".
4. Multi-color jobs: enable "Group by color" and set cut / plot / skip per color; each color's "Craft" sets multi-pass, dashed / half-cut or crease, and "Document craft" sets the whole-job default when grouping is off.
5. Under "Advanced > Output parameters", choose the origin: bottom right / top left / center use the cutting-content bounding box, while "Page absolute" anchors to the page bottom-right corner and preserves design coordinates (load the media with that page corner at the tool origin).
6. For queued production, add the current job to the job queue and send in order or recut.
7. Run "Test cut" (a small triangle at the origin) before the real job; the stats row shows cut length, ETA and cost.

Troubleshooting

Machine does not respond?

Check in order: connection & cable → machine online without errors → send a "Test cut" to verify the link; for serial models confirm the COM port and baud rate.

Cut size slightly off (e.g. 100 mm cuts as 99.2 mm)?

Mechanical error. Use "Size calibration": cut an uncompensated 100 mm square, enter the measured width and height, and the app calculates X/Y scale factors applied to all output; calibration values are saved with the send settings.

Long banners drift or misalign?

Set "Path ordering" to "feed bands" in advanced options to reduce media shuttling; lower the speed if needed.

How to use

1. Fill page: tile the selection across the page with spacing.
2. Nest objects: auto-arrange irregular parts to save material, with utilization display and one-step undo.
3. Step array: copy objects by rows, columns and horizontal / vertical step; Cutting table: add an evenly divided helper cut grid over the selection (it does not copy the source objects).
4. Sequence duplicate: batch number plates — trailing digits auto increment, or generate labels from a selected CSV column.
5. Weeding lines: frame and row / column helper lines for weeding; Add bridges: cut gaps into closed paths by bridge width, count and angle, keeping stencil-letter islands attached.
6. Tiling lives under Send > Job: jobs wider than the machine are split into panels by panel width / length with overlap bands and alignment crosses, previewed or sent panel by panel (mutually exclusive with color output).
7. Set unit prices in Preferences > Cost Estimate to see perimeter / area and a quote in the send platform.

Troubleshooting

Artwork wider than the machine — can it be cut?

The send platform warns about oversize jobs and guides you to "Tiling": cut tile by tile, then assemble using the alignment crosses.

Some parts unmoved after nesting?

Parts that do not fit the sheet stay in place. Enlarge the sheet or allow rotation and retry.

How to use

1. Size calibration: cut an uncompensated 100 mm square → enter the measured width and height → the app calculates X / Y scale factors applied to all output (enter 100 for both to remove compensation).
2. Print & Cut calibration: when edge-finding cuts are uniformly shifted, enter X / Y offsets; available only after real positioning marks put the job into edge-finding mode, and it affects edge-finding jobs only.
3. Direction test card: send an asymmetric F card to verify the feed axis, carriage direction and mirroring; for physical comparison, "Save two-state PLT" creates swap and no-swap files to cut separately.
4. Blade-offset test cut: cut a 20 mm square with an inner diamond — rounded corners mean the blade-tip compensation is too small, flags or whiskers mean it is too large; adjust the blade profile or blade-tip value under Process > Compensation.
5. Material test matrix: a speed × pressure grid cut cell by cell — find the cell that cuts through without damaging the liner, record its speed / pressure, then add or edit a preset manually under Process > Material > Manage. The matrix dialog does not select a cell or save a preset automatically.

Troubleshooting

Mark scan fails?

Walk the checklist: ① enough margin around marks; ② media not reflective, marks printed crisp; ③ printed at 100% (no scaling); ④ page size matches the document; ⑤ machine mark settings match the mark type. The checklist is built into "Diagnostics & test cuts".

Rounded or overshooting corners?

Wrong blade offset. Send the blade test cut, read the diamond's corners, then adjust the blade profile or blade-tip value under Process > Compensation — not in a material preset.

How to use

1. CorelDRAW: the WXTool toolbar — Cut Output, Create Contour, Marks, Layout (popup: Fill Page / Cutting Table / Weeding Lines / Tiling / Nesting), Export DXF, License, Language, Help; on a narrow toolbar some entries move into "More". Select objects, then click a button.
2. Illustrator: open the WX panel via Window > Extensions; its 11 entries are grouped under Main Task / Create / Layout & Production / Export / System. It shares the engine, license and material library with the CDR plugin, but the entry layout differs.
3. Built-in help: the Help button on the CDR toolbar / the "Help" dialog in the AI panel.

Troubleshooting

Does text need manual outlining first?

No. The CDR and AI plugins expand text non-destructively when cut, contour, nesting or DXF actions run, and the original text stays editable; if outlining an Illustrator text's appearance introduces a bitmap, the plugin blocks output and asks you to expand or remove raster effects, or use bitmap tracing.

Toolbar missing in CorelDRAW after install?

Restart CorelDRAW; if still missing, enable WXTool under Window > Toolbars. If only License, Help or layout actions seem absent, open "More" or "Layout" — toolbar overflow may have moved them.

Illustrator panel blank or showing "not connected"?

Click "Retry" on the banner; if it persists, restart Illustrator (the plugin starts with AI).

Plugin update fails / files locked?

Quit CorelDRAW / Illustrator completely before running the installer — plugin files are locked while the host runs.

How to use

1. After activating Studio, open the AI chat panel from the left toolbox; switch DeepSeek / ChatGPT in the panel.
2. Wanxing cloud proxy: sign in to your Wanxing account and purchase AI quota; canvas read/write tools are available — path edits and image generation require confirmation.
3. Personal API key: enter a vendor key under Configure Key (encrypted on this PC); traffic goes to the vendor and does not consume Wanxing quota; canvas tools are supported.
4. Web chat: embeds or opens the official chat page with your free web account; this mode has no canvas MCP tools.
5. If quota runs out: buy more quota, switch to a personal key, or use web chat.

Troubleshooting

Can I chat without activation?

No. The panel prompts you to activate; the whole chat feature requires a valid local license.

What if I have no AI quota?

Cloud proxy refuses the request. Buy AI quota, or use a personal API key / web chat. Wanxing does not offer free proxy chat.

Will AI change my artwork?

Write tools and image import show a confirmation card first; only confirmed actions apply and they are undoable. Web chat never modifies the canvas.

How to use

1. Activate: License menu > Activate — enter an activation key online, or import an offline license file.
2. Move to a new machine: unbind the old device in the website account center first to release its activation seat, then activate on the new one; "Remove License" on the old machine is a local sign-out only and does not guarantee a released seat.
3. Update: Help > Check for Updates — when a version is found, you confirm "Download and install"; only then does the app download and verify the package, and verification failure cancels installation.

Troubleshooting

Activation failed?

Top 3 causes: ① mistyped key (mind O vs 0 and hyphens — paste it); ② activation limit reached (unbind the old device in the account center to release its seat — removing the license on the old machine is a local sign-out only); ③ cannot reach the activation server (check network / proxy; use an offline license file in offline environments).

Does the license survive going offline?

Online-activated licenses have a 72-hour offline grace period; reconnect and restart to restore automatically.