Copy Along Path

Quick Reference: Copy Along Path

Duplicates an object along a line, curve, or other shape.

Location

Arrange → Copy Along Path

Use Copy Along Path to create repeated designs that follow a line, curve, or perimeter of a shape, for example:

Decorative borders along, inside, or outside edges of a shape.
Repetitive designs that flow along a line such as ropes, vines, and chains.
Precisely-spaced patterns that follow a vector path, for example measurements on a curved ruler.

Using Copy Along Path¶

Copy Along Path works by duplicating copies of one object along the path of another.

Select the object to be copied first. Add the path to the selection (hold Shift while clicking the path), and go to Arrange → Copy Along Path to open the tool.

Adjust the options according to your needs — you'll see a preview of the result in the Workspace as you make changes.

Click OK to confirm the copies, or Cancel to discard them.

Requirements¶

The object to be copied must be:

A vector object — not an image
A single object or a single Group of objects
Selected first

The path must be:

A vector — not an image
A single, individual object — not a Group
Selected second

Placement¶

The placement of the original object to be copied relative to the start of the path determines the position of the copies.

Place the center of the object to be copied on the start of the path to superimpose each copy over the path.

Offset the object to be copied from the start of the path to maintain that distance from the path with each copy.

Open vs. Closed¶

When using a closed path, the copied objects will start at whatever part of the path is closest, and then wrap around the circuit of the path to meet back up at the same point.

When using an open path, it's best to center the object to be copied over an end point of the path. This will create even spacing along the entire path.

Options¶

Spacing¶

The spacing of copied objects is measured from the centers of each copied object. There are two ways of spacing the copies objects along the path:

Number of Copies spreads a certain quantity of them along the path, with even spacing between.
Space Between Copies fills the path with as many copies as it can fit, given the spacing you provide. This usually leaves some excess line at the end of the path.

Rotate Copies¶

Enable Rotate Copies to create duplicates that are oriented acording to the changes in direction of the path. Disable this option to create objects that remain in the same orientation as the originally-copied object.

Scale Copies¶

Enable Scale Copies and enter a value in the adjacent field to incrementally change the size of each copy, with the final one reaching a size equal to this percentage of the original's size. A number larger than 100 will increase the sizes of the copies, a number lower than 100 will decrease them, and setting it to 100 (or disabling the switch) will keep the copies the same size as the original.

Auto-Increment Variable Text¶

Use Auto-Increment variable text in conjunction with Variable Text to add text-based codes that are substituted for other data when you send a project to your laser. Enabling Auto-Increment variable text will apply an Offset to each copied Text Object, so different data will output in the place of the same formatting expressions.

Troubleshooting¶

Copy Along Path is not to be confused with Apply Path to Text, which attaches a single Text Object to a vector object, reshaping it to follow the contour of the chosen path.
If your copies aren't appearing where you expected, check that their starting placement is set appropriately for your goals.
If Copy Along Path is grayed out in the menu, it's likely that your objects are not suitable or they haven't been selected in the correct order.

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