Are your laser projects coming out upside down even when everything seems to be perfectly right?

I’ve been through that too. It’s frustrating to watch your workpiece get ruined by the inverted engraving, and it is more frustrating when you cannot figure out what’s causing it.

But don’t jump to conclusions; the possible reason for this issue is rather simple: wrong device origin setting in Lightburn.

I’m Unni, and I’m a laser engraving expert. In this guide, I will explain how to set the proper device origin to prevent your laser outputs from coming out upside down.

Setting the Right Device Origin- The Solution

If your laser output is coming out inverted horizontally and (or) vertically, the possible reason is the wrong device origin setting in Lightburn, which indicates the origin point of the laser in your work area.

For example, when working with a diode laser that has limit switches installed at the lower left corner, the device origin should be that lower left corner of the machine.

However, if you mistakenly set the top right corner as the device origin, Lightburn will interpret the lower left corner of the machine as the top right corner, affecting all design measurements and positioning.

You can also identify this issue if your laser moves in opposite directions when you use the navigation controls in the move tab to position the laser.

To rectify this, you need to navigate to Edit > Device settings and select the right origin for your device.

The origin setting is adjusted by checking the dot that coincides with the actual origin of your machine.

If uncertain about which corner to select, analyze the orientation of the engraving.

If your engraving is upside down (flipped vertically), then choose the corner vertically opposite to the currently selected origin.

Likewise, if the engraving is horizontally flipped, select the horizontally opposite corner.

However, if the engraving is both vertically and horizontally flipped, opt for the diagonally opposite origin.

Once you select the right origin, the laser should function normally, and all the designs should come out the right way.

If you are using a laser engraver without the limit switches, then the origin is based on the position of your laser when you turn on the laser engraver.

So, make sure to place the laser in the set origin corner before turning the laser on.