When working in large format printing we regularly create art for walls over 220 inches wide. It is further complicated that there are also requirements for special cuts on the router to help with monitor brackets or other notches to assist with final
installation. We must marry up the full wall art with vector cut shape prior to running file through another application that helps slice the wall art into multiple panels that include the required cut outs.

Hi everyone, i have a one question about plt file like plotter cutter file, can i export any file in plt format please advise.

Can draw at a smaller scale and then scale up during export/ print.

Canvas size limitations needs to be eliminated. I do vehicle wraps, large signs etc. I want to be able to work at full scale not scale down 25 or 50%. I used to use Corel Draw for designing and there wasn't any limitation on canvas size. You could draw and scale to any size anywhere on the page(that's the only thing I likes about Corel Draw and I miss that option). A lot of times I have jobs that require 25 - 30 ft designs or more. There is so much more potential space outside of the canvas that we can't access for design purposes. Hopefully soon this can be corrected....For now I guess I'll continue to open my larger files into Photoshop and size it full scale there. Which by the way doesn't make since if Photoshop will allow you to scale your design to the size you need but illustrator has limited design space? Aren't Photoshop and illustrator created by the same company? This can be very frustrating.

I had this issue many times too , I have to use the real large format size because I need to export it to a Vinyl Cutter Plotter not an ink Printer , 8 or 10 Meter width signboard or vehicle or the front facade of the 4 doors shop is the case for me where I need more canvas space. Hope to see this feature soon :)

Same issue I freelance design large format I want to use illustrator.

A virtual scale would be fine, but in addition to it internally keeping the virtual scale, we would need the outputted file to automatically include the scale... at least as part of the filename, as in a universal convention ie: "filename@(10to1).ai" or "filename(@10-1).ai" so when it goes into production (as long as no one messes with the name) everyone knows what the scale is who handles the file afterwards... then perhaps a simple script could be added in some of the "specialty large format software" my clients use tp take the info from the universal naming convention proportions in the filename and autoscale upon open.... not super elegant but at least everyone know what to look out for from a virtual scaled file.

So yeah add a reliable naming convention that corresponds with the .ai virtual scale when the file leaves design in ai and goes out to other people for production...

Please allow art boards that are larger than 272". When desiging display graphics, I often need artboards larger than 272". Because illustrator doesn't support larger boards, I have to do a lot of math and do art at reduced size unnecessarily.
Thank you
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Our company creates large scale signage. We currently use Illustrator for smaller projects because of its user friendly UI, scripting capabilities, actions panel and probably countless other items. But for the bulk of our orders, we require Gerber Composer. It is essential to design at 1:1 scale in our business as there are machine limitations. These limitations can not be removed or fixed and literally define what software we use on the front end. There would be over a hundred users that could switch to Illustrator overnight if the artboard were increased to at least 2.5x what it is now. I'm no programmer, but if similar programs do not have canvas size limitations, why does Illustrator? A virtual scale option sounds sketchy and it does not give me hope, but if a larger canvas is impossible, I guess it would be worth giving it a try. PLEASE do not throw this idea away, we are all SICK to death of composer!

How about a "vector-only" document/setting where we/you would not need to WORRY about the PPI limitations. No pixel effects... no placing of raster images, and if needed, only a low-res proxy is placed at a VERY low PPI. PPI becomes irrelevant and the vectors can scale infinitely... allowing a user to design a building floorplan at 1:1 scale. You might be surprised at how OFTEN I have had to use Illustrator to enter and manipulate floorplans and layouts of that sort.

The ability to work at 1:1 ratio is a must. I was just trying to optimize cuts of shapes (that I entered accurately in u.s./inches) onto a 60" roll of vinyl 30-feet long... but obviously, I cannot even CREATE that large of a document. Vectors are vectors... a rectangle does not take-up more space whether it's 40-inches long or 40-FEET long... PLEASE allow us to design at 100%, 1:1 size.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE...!!!

Maybe you guys can look at how Flexisign makes their document canvas size. With Flexisign it appears the canvas size is unlimited and increases based upon the artwork that is created in the file, as if it adjusts to the artworks bounding box, rather than having a set canvas size when the file is created like Illustrator does. For example in Illustrator when you make a new document it makes a canvas that is 227"x227" and then places an artboard or artboards inside that canvas, but with Flexisign when you create a new document it just makes the canvas the size of the artwork you place in it and grows as you need it with what appears to be no limitation. Bobby Henderson mentioned he saw a few issues over 200 feet but I never had an issue with Flexi while using it for years in the sign industry with any size. It was also much better at rendering very complex vector designs that would run really slow in Illustrator. I used to use Flexi to make edits for prints sometimes because it rendered the same art much faster.

No update on canvas size in CC18 either.. disappointed indeed!

Working in a virtual scale can be a liability. In sign design and manufacturing you will always need to export the artwork to other applications and even other computers used by co-workers or even at a different company sub-contracting out certain specialized fabrication tasks. This situation can force the designer to plaster warning notes across the artwork inside the art file and written notes elsewhere to prevent the artwork from being fabricated as is without enlarging it to the correct, full size scale.

CorelDRAW will allow users to design things in scale by altering the ruler setup. In the Options dialog one can select "Edit Scale," which by default is set to 1:1, 1.0-inch Page Distance = 1.0 World Distance. The idea is to let someone design something seemingly big yet still fit it on a normal letter sized or legal sized sheet of paper for printing client sketches. I avoid this method because I've seen all sorts of odd, math errors when this scale artwork is enlarged to the intended real full size. The numbers often don't add up. I was dealing with this issue just recently, having to fix the artwork from another sign company. In my work I create production sign artwork at full size and then create separate client sketches with the artwork reduced down to defined scales, such as 1" = 1' or 3/8" = 1'.

Jay mentioned CorelDRAW having an unlimited art board size. That's not true. CorelDRAW has a 1800" X 1800" limit. And even before then, around the 1000" X 1000" the user will get pestered with a box saying "this zoom has exceeded the boundaries of the drawing space; your window will be adjusted accordingly."

Dedicated sign making applications, such as SignLab or FlexiSign Pro, have larger design spaces. From my own experience, dating back to the early 1990's using CASmate, some of these applications get a bit unstable when the drawing surface grows past 200 feet in any direction. I've witnessed strange errors (spectacularly bad ones in CASmate) when going that big and doing anything too complicated. I'd do something like weld a bunch of objects and see points disappear or other strange things. At smaller scales the same welding operation would work just fine.

Obviously there is some push and pull going on between art board size and precision of object editing.

We NEED a larger design area for sign design!

Hi Yogesh,

I think it's been mentioned already but for the work that I do and the way that the company I work for wants our workflow to be, a virtual scale is not an option that would be acceptable. Several people besides myself have expressed this concern already.

It is a non-negotiable MUST that I build all the artwork that I do at full size. Whether it's channel letters for a storefront, an 80 foot mural that shows the history of a company or tanker trailer that carries propane. All of them, without question, have to be built full size. Working at scale, virtual or otherwise, has proven to cause problems when the workflow requires that the artwork done in my department moves to production and fabrication in that they typically don't check the artwork to make sure it's the correct size. They use it as it is. Their expectation is that the artwork has been provided to them print ready or cut ready. They may double check to make sure the sizes on the order match the size of the artwork but if it's not correct, it comes back to me so I can fix it and resave for them.

We have to work 1:1. As I mentioned before, and I've noticed others mention as well, there is software that's been around for quite some time that has an unlimited canvas size already. Speaking only for myself, a "virtual scale" option is an unacceptable solution. The most compelling reason that it will not work for my situation is simple; how do I check the exported file to make sure that it's actually scaled to the correct size? From my perspective, I would have to open the exported file in software that allows me to see it 1:1 which completely defeats the purpose because if I can open it and see it 1:1 then why don't I just build it in that software 1:1?

Virtual scale may work for some situations. It won't work for me. There are too many chances for mistakes.

Same here.

We work on designs for trucks 18 meter wide, Buildings 60 meters high/wide, interiors 20+ meters wide. So the +/- 6x6 meter canvas size in a GIANT pain in the buttocks.

It's an issue we do not have in CADlink's SignLab which basically has an "infinite" size canvas.

Yes. The ability to design in scale would definitely be useful. I use the Hot Door CADTools plugin to accomplish that, but there are drawbacks.

I design a lot of really large signage that is often beyond the size of the available canvas. I can’t currently design a 30’ or even 60’ sign at full scale. So a number of additional steps for the workflow have to be implemented.

I often export directly to a vendor who will directly manufacture from my files. Like a CnC router for instance. To require to vendor to re-scale my artwork before inputing into their software invites chances for errors to occur. I could design in AutoCAD or something, but i prefer Illustrator, and the files tend to work better with manufacturers.

I really need to do the design in real size (20 feet) but no scale down ratio. Malaysia Printer more often to print with actual size PDF, because PDF file size are smaller while email and it's don't need to relink the images (which some printer might link the wrong attached photos). I've experience about the printer didn't know how to printe a smaller ratio scale down AI file to a actual normal size (his designer didn't know how to link back the photos). Please improve. Thanks!

There is a suggestion like this WAY up the list.

Canvas size is a huge thing for me. I also makes signs. We do wall murals. Sometimes the graphics are MUCH bigger than a truck. We are forced to use other programs to make these products.