Adding text/etch lines to a DXF export

[justinking30]

Hi all,

I have been messing around with AI all morning trying to figure out if this is possible and not having much luck. I did get the AI to write a forum question (below) based off what I was trying to get it to help me with.

What I am trying to accomplish may not be possible with fusion. IF that is the case so be it.

I have attached a .f3d file to show what I am trying to accomplish in a dxf format

We use Fusion 360 (Sheet Metal workspace) to model flat plates for CNC plasma cutting.

Our workflow is:

• Parametric plate geometry in Sheet Metal

• Export DXF via Flat Pattern (to preserve interior/exterior layer structure) - Other DXF exports within fusion don't keep the layers and it adds a significant amount of time for me in our nesting software to individually add cut paths to individual geometry within each part(DXF)

• Import DXF into ART Toolshop for nesting

• ART automatically assigns cut logic based on outer vs inner profiles

This part works well.

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What We Need

We’re trying to build a reusable parametric plate template that also includes:

• Changeable marking/etch text (e.g. a plate identifier and a circle to help the welders know where to weld the pipe on to avoid marking 100 plates) 

• Text that exports correctly in the Flat Pattern DXF

• No corruption of interior/exterior profile detection

• No extra 2D cleanup in another CAD package

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The Issues We’re Running Into

1. Sketch text does not export in Flat Pattern DXF.

2. Emboss/Deboss features don’t appear in Flat Pattern export.

3. Through-cutting normal text creates island geometry (e.g. inside “P”).

4. Single-line fonts fix islands, but are open geometry and won’t extrude without converting to slots.

Flat Pattern export appears to only respect actual sheet metal boundary edges.

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Core Question

Is there a clean, supported way in Fusion to:

• Include editable marking text

• Have it appear in Flat Pattern DXF export

• Without creating through-cut islands

• And without breaking nesting layer logic?

Or is the accepted workflow to convert single-line text into thin through-cut slots and manage marking logic in nesting?

Looking for real-world plasma workflows.

Thanks in advance.

[TimelesslyTiredYouth]

@justinking30 As far as I know, the Flat Pattern DXF export only outputs geometry that exists as actual sheet metal edges in the flat pattern; sketch text and emboss/deboss features are not included because they are not treated as boundary edges of the sheet metal body. Therefore, if text needs to appear in the Flat Pattern DXF, it must be created as real cut geometry within the sheet metal model.

My immediate thought is single-line font, which you've already accepted. But talking from my view as a laser cutting/CNC person, the only viable option for you that I see is to include thin cuts with a single line font and have extrusions only by 0.5-0.8 mm to minimise material cutting.

Personally, I convert single-line text into very thin cut paths, or I straight up explode the geometry so I have a workable 2d geometry and then save as a seperate DXF or thin extrude, around 0.5–0.8 mm wide, so it becomes real geometry that exports in the Flat Pattern DXF. The laser can cut or etch these thin lines cleanly without wasting material. Sometimes, for simple markings, I leave the single-line text as a sketch and handle it as an etch layer in CAM so the DXF stays clean, so unfortunately I don't know your pain, as I'm under the impression that plasma cutters cut all the way through the material.

Kind regards

Ricky

[justinking30]

Hi Ricky,

Thanks for your reply.

Yes that is my impression too, it is unfortunate that creating a DXF outside of the flat pattern workspace doesn't keep the integrity of the DXF layers. without the DXF layers my task nesting all the plates in our nesting software becomes 10x longer.

My reason for asking this question was I am trying to create an easily changeable file where I can just change a couple of parameters and some text and a couple later seconds I have a new plate to cut that is labelled and easily sorted from the hundreds of other plates we cut a day. Unfortunately exploding the text removes the ability to change it which ruins the speed and functionality of the reusable file.

Plasma cutting is much like laser cutting with a couple extra steps, it can etch and cut, there is just a different amperage tooling in the cutting head required for either process.

I will try it extruding the text right through the plate and see how I go with that.

Cheers,

Justin.

[marius.gildehaus]

Hello @justinking30,

We are working on improving the DXF export this year to make sure to have better outputs for manufacturing.

With that we also want to ensure that you don't need to extra edit the DXF in another CAD tool.

See also in the Fusion Roadmap: Fusion Roadmap 2026 - Fusion Blog

Best,
Marius

[justinking30]

Hi Marius,

Good to know! I will await each update eagerly!

Cheers,