did you know that CO2 lasers are, apparently, better at burning corneas than they are at retinas
The little HeNe beam is quite square to the table in both planes which I think has resulted from a lot of luck.
Thanks Guys.
I keep wondering if the cooling system will be man enough for the job. ;D
Tweakie.
Fed up, SHMED up !
One of, if not the best build threads here.
Keep em' coming Tweak !
THANKS !
Russ
Me-thinks Tweakies owner is really a machine
By Golly...he is human. :)
Just curious Tweakie, could the attachment be made with a torch and a dab of silver solder ?
You certainly know how to boost a guy's confidence Brian. ;DYour welcome
Tweakie.
So Guys, correct me if I am wrong, but would it be right to say that the striations are being caused by the lack of resolution in the exported arc ?.
Tweakie.
Don't suppose you could perform your magic on this foot or is that too much to ask ?I'll do ya one better. I'll make you one using arcs instead of the jagged lines. ;D You might have to scale it to fit your needs.
How does this etching work? How does it produce the required shade? Doesn't it just melt the acrylic?
Think you can do 3D shapes in a glass cube like those sold in souvenir shops? That would be lovely. But then you need to focus the laser at different heights - can you do this?
cheapi am sorry :D :D :D
4500mm/minDo you build another machine ?
or used ones from:in this site there are many secondhand machine for laser.
http://www.europalaserboerse.com/eng_product_catalog.php
That looks awesome Tweakie. It would be neat to see that being made. (hint hint, nudge nudge)
- where does the time go ?.
now where did I put that etching tank ?.
Tweakie.
Is it your girlfriend
Very nice!
Speaking of the router, i have decided to change the X&Y axis from belt to a ball screw setup. Both axis already have pretty hi precision rails they slide on, it is just that little bit of play in the belts that gets frustrating, especially when there are a lot of quick direction changes. they sort of vibrate, which sometimes causes a couple of thou error in the parts.
Would it be worth exploring some kind of belt vibration dampening before i embark on changing it to ball screw?
Jen
Have you a design made up for the clock arms? You realize you gotta make some fancy dancy frame for it, too, don't you?
He's only done the one. Tweakie is smart enough to only have to do the one, plant it, and the rest simply grow already monogrammed.
This Impact engraving is not something that will necessarily work 'straight out of the box' because my first attempts were just terrible but with the right setup the results are, I think, quite stunning.
Tweakie.
Have you tried it yet ??
Tweakie.
:) ;D :)
..... hip boots recommended, chest waders preferred.
:)
Are you using the Gold Method photoshop plugin?
Thanks for the heads up on fotosketcher, always nice to have new tools.
I have found a problem with making these 3D puzzles - everybody who sees one wants one and I have so many requests now for horses, a bear, the Eiffel tower etc etc.
Tweakie.
For the most part everyone thinks I should be giving my things away. After all its just wood.
And ya wonder why they are out of work and can't find a job.
So you will remake it? I watched their process and was amazed as to how fast and simple it was.
I've now lost all respect for you, my friend - ;)
Dave
Hi Brian,
My electromagnet was a gift from Andrea (Robotmar) http://www.robotfactory.it/Cnc_indexMain.htm (look under Micropunti) who had the first successful results using a magnet with the Mach Impact / Laser plugin. He shows the construction on his website or in this thread http://www.machsupport.com/forum/index.php/topic,16446.0.html but other than that I have no specific technical information relating to the field properties / iron saturation etc.
Hope this helps,
Tweakie.
The reason I asked about the material is that on the photo above it looks like there is some transparent layer between the numbers and the background.
I would be grateful of a copy of your Vectric PP if it is to be shared.
Tweak: I don't see any G2 or G3 in your tap file. So I have to think that is your first attempt at your bike cutout.
Tweak: I don't see any G2 or G3 in your tap file. So I have to think that is your first attempt at your bike cutout. I was kind of looking forward to trying out my laser on your fine example of how a cut should look. Thanks for sharing, your a inspiration to all.
Funny thing is, I had been using the plugin via Output1 active low.
You mentioned earlier having the Digital Trigger and an Output both configured to the same port and pin and both Enabled at the same time.
Funny thing is, I had been using the plugin via Output1 active low. This worked fine and I had been engraving the last couple of days that way. As soon as I set it to active high it no longer worked. Go figure.
On it's own, the plugin will not always smooth a gradient of tone without producing 'steps' as can be seen in the background of this image which is a smooth transition from light to dark.
Well, I think the plugin doesn't control the laser power whatsoever. All it does is trigger it on and off.
Dan
And to be more correct, I think that the laser never really does several pulses on top of one another (well if it's focused fine enough that is), as the axis is in a constant move. I think the correct way of thinking about it is the dots intensity. And the other thing to consider while at it is that the exposure time is determined by the axis feed rate.
Those of you that have been following this (never ending) thread will know that between Andrea in Italy and myself in the UK we have spent quite a lot of time putting the Mach Impact / Laser engraving plugin through it’s paces. Although there are still some improvements that could be made to the plugin and it still has a lot of mileage left in it, the legacy issue of it’s requirement for a parallel port are starting to show and it is perhaps time to start looking at alternatives.
In the Eastern European countries, for many years, it has been common practice for black marble monuments and remembrance plaques to display an engraved ‘photographic style’ of image and this has inevitably prompted the development of CNC software to complete the task. One such software is “DotG” a Hungarian program which has just had an English translation version released. It is completely ‘free of charge’ and can be downloaded from here http://dotg.weebly.com/download.html
DotG works in an entirely different way to the Mach plugin insofar as it creates GCode from a pre-processed 1 Bit image and although I haven’t quite got my postprocessor completely sorted everything looks extremely promising so far.
It is early days yet but I will keep you posted of my experience with this software as I learn more.
This example image of Audry Hepburn with the glamour of the 1950/1960’s was laser cut into some scrap MDF whilst I was testing various settings and it would, I think, look quite stunning cut into some mirror tile (project awaiting).
Tweakie.
Those of you that have been following this (never ending) thread will know that between Andrea in Italy and myself in the UK we have spent quite a lot of time putting the Mach Impact / Laser engraving plugin through it’s paces. Although there are still some improvements that could be made to the plugin and it still has a lot of mileage left in it, the legacy issue of it’s requirement for a parallel port are starting to show and it is perhaps time to start looking at alternatives.
In the Eastern European countries, for many years, it has been common practice for black marble monuments and remembrance plaques to display an engraved ‘photographic style’ of image and this has inevitably prompted the development of CNC software to complete the task. One such software is “DotG” a Hungarian program which has just had an English translation version released. It is completely ‘free of charge’ and can be downloaded from here http://dotg.weebly.com/download.html
DotG works in an entirely different way to the Mach plugin insofar as it creates GCode from a pre-processed 1 Bit image and although I haven’t quite got my postprocessor completely sorted everything looks extremely promising so far.
It is early days yet but I will keep you posted of my experience with this software as I learn more.
This example image of Audry Hepburn with the glamour of the 1950/1960’s was laser cut into some scrap MDF whilst I was testing various settings and it would, I think, look quite stunning cut into some mirror tile (project awaiting).
Tweakie.
HEY Tweaks, Can you track and shoot down ICBM's yet ?
You are having WAY too much fun.
(;-)TP
I love the effect of the "scrimshaw" look that you get with that. I'm imagining the old oriental carvings or the scenes that sailors on ships would do on ivory teeth/tusks.
Interesting technique indeed!
Dave
A picture of a very good friend, laser etched using GCode produced with the free software DotG.
Tweakie.
If you were to rerun the program several times does it etch into the tile deeper?
Also wondered about applying rub-n-buff for an added effect. You could mask and color areas for effect.
Hi Yanxin,
Excellent work my friend, you are certainly making good progress on this project. 8)
Tweakie.
Tweakie,
Nice job, as is always the case with your work. I don't know much about ceramics, but wondering if burning an image before firing in a kiln would allow lower power to be used - ala laser diodes :). I have some old greenware (?) left by the previous owner of my weekend home that I didn't want to throw away, so it looks like another experiment has now been added to my list.
Yanxin,
Nice work indeed. It looks like your DAC is similar to what a couple of us are also using, just with a different IC. If you haven't already, please join our group at: http://hobbycncart.com/forum/63-151-29.
Regards All,
John Champlain
Yanxin,
Dave's circuit works slick, but you will lose the lower bits of output because of the threshold requirements of laser diodes. I added a second op-amp to the output from the DAC so I could set a bias of about .2(?) volts minimum. This lets me have the complete 256 bits usable over the full range of the 0v to 5v signal. I typically modulate my diode between .3 amps min. and 1.6 amps max. I'm not sure if I could go higher or not - don't want to risk blowing another diode. I have a 0 to 2 amp meter hard wired in the leads to my diode so I can monitor its current draw.
Hope this helps,
John Champlain
Hi Dan,
Losing a few bits from the bottom of a 256 bit image is not the same as reducing total bit depth of an image. To me, my images were burning darker with the lower bits missing, but YMMV. When I was able to use the full 256 bits, my results seemed to improve, hence my recommendation. In truth, image engraving with analog modulation of laser diodes is still evolving, and we are all learning new things frequently.
Yanxin,
If you increment (jog) your diode control by one step at a time until your diode current starts to increase from your set minimum, this will tell you how may bits (if any) are being 'lost'. Your driver may respond differently than mine, and you may not need the full 0 to 5 volt signal to get good results.
More here about my circuit (message #320): http://hobbycncart.com/forum/63-151-16
Best Regards,
John Champlain
My congratulations Yanxin, this looks like you are well on your way to producing some stunning images. 8)Thanks, Tweakie, you are the one that always motivating me. A good start:)
A really excellent job my friend. ;)
Tweakie.
:) Yanxin, your coming right along............ makes me happy.Thanks Bret, still a long way to go, those genius setup a really high standard, hard to keep up with:)
Brett
Yanxin,
Yes to Tweakie's comment - a really excellent beginning. MDF burns dark, but your image shows very good image tonality.
The lines are something I also have a problem with. Are you using 1/4-20 (or similar) lead screws? That's what I believe is causing the lines, and I have just started building a small belt-drive machine to see if I can eliminate them. Our friends who use ball screws don't have the lines.
John Champlain
Lines are gone once I reduced the line spacing half, in order to retain all shades, I had to burn MDF darker, it's still burning, will take 4 hours to complete.Too early to say that, it shows up as it burns more, sounds like the lead screw problem.
Yanxin
Yanxin,
I'm the one that developed/invented this process by varying the power to laser engrave 8bit shades and I do have to say, very good job!
Why don't you jump over to the Hobby CNC Art laser diode thread and post your results? This is a CO2 laser build thread that Tweakie started. Just a suggestion.
Jeff
Too early to say that, it shows up as it burns more, sounds like the lead screw problem.
Yanxin
Would it not be easier to use a small engine hour meter?
Can you add data storage system that monitors & collects beam; on time, emission power and temperatures at tube, coolant and ambient. And then display it in a spread sheet that can be used to predict life cycle?
I've never heard of vellum for solder stencils. That sounds interesting.
I tried cutting some scaled down Tweakie-bikes out of .032" basswood. The half scale and quarter scale (250 micron features) ones turn out great. Basswood is not up to the task of 1/8 scale Tweakie-bikes. They cut out, but the bike is essentially made out of 125 micron wide ash and falls apart.
One issue with cutting things at this scale is the tendency of the assist air to blow the cutout bits all over the place. I even have a couple of quarter scale Tweakie-bikes gone with the wind...
Hi texaspyro, I'm very impressed by your results. Can I ask you how you managed to get such a tight focus? Also, would you recommend your setup to cut ~mm sized features in kapton?
Thank you very much for sharing. Is it against forum rules to ask for your laser source?DTR laser shop... google will find it. My .5 watt laser is from a 12X Blue ray writer. The new 1 watt is from a 16X blue-ray writer. I also built a 3 watt 445 nm head. It has a beam around 5 mils wide. I run it around 2.5 watts max. He has a new 5 watt diode, but the beam is even bigger.
Thanks! I will use my lab's goggles, don't worry ;)
Make SURE that they block the wavelength of your lasers... not all goggles work at all wavelengths..Thorlabs LG10, 190 to 534 nm, OD = 7+, they should be fine. We are all very scared by our laser (not the 405nm one), hence the expensive goggles.
Hi Guys,
This is the little sub-panel fitted in it's place on the controller board. I used a couple of spots of cyno to fix it's position on the IC's before making the through connections to the main board. The function of these two switches will be software programed to control such things as ‘last setting store and retrieve’, 'PRF frequency', 'menu selection' etc. What started out as a simple project just keeps growing ;)
Tweakie.
........... I need to do some more testing but the latest version of the plugin (1.2c) will shortly be freely available to any that are interested.
Tweakie.
........... I need to do some more testing but the latest version of the plugin (1.2c) will shortly be freely available to any that are interested.
Tweakie.
I'm interested if this works with the impact engraving too!
Thanks in advance,
Vogavt
I already had a look at it but noticed it was more about grbl setups. Can it be fitted to Mach3 setup?
you mean by combining M11/M10 and pwm like you did with optocoupler?
Way cool guys,
If I only had a laser and the time to work with it. Maybe when the other 40 projects are done.
Mike
Way cool guys,
If I only had a laser and the time to work with it. Maybe when the other 40 projects are done.
Mike
Mike, how can you possibly live without a laser ? ;D
Tweakie.
When using the Impact / Laser Engraving plugin, I have found that the initial preparation of the image or photo is key to success. A free program which has just come to my attention is FotoSketcher by David Thoiron. http://www.fotosketcher.com/download.htm
(When installing use the advanced options unless you want to install the unwanted toolbars etc or else download the portable version).
This program is capable of producing some quite stunning results and in some ways can be better than the Photochop plugin I have been using to date.
Tweakie.
To prepare photos well, another photo post processing goodware is image filter editor (http://www.watermark-software.com/photo-filter-fingertips.html), which supports fast adding photo protections as well as well editing.
(http://www.watermark-software.com/imgs-style2016/photo-filter-fingertips/photo-filter-fingertips-4.jpg)
Hi Nikolaj,
The DotG X axis motion is 'stop-start' so, in operation, it will be 'jerky'. This can, top some extent, be reduced by selecting a suitable feed-rate / Acceleration.
The 'virtual B axis' movement is necessary to trigger the M10 / M11 commands whilst the X axis is stationary (the M10 / M11 commands will only take effect at the instant of an axis movement).
Hope this helps.
Tweakie.
Hi Nikolaj,
Did you check PicEngrave at www.picengrave.com ?
It may do what you want. It does have the option of variable feedrate, but not sure about the M10/M11. Haven't used it for a long time, but I am sure Tweakie will soon chime in and give you a better reply.
Dan
Did you try to download and install it? I think it will allow you to play with it without a licence, but will put watermarks on your image.
Dan
Did you try to download and install it? I think it will allow you to play with it without a licence, but will put watermarks on your image.
Dan
http://prntscr.com/exkn5o
There are watermarks.
But when I try to press the launch, a window for entering the key pops up.
I can not try.
I can only buy and use immediately.
Maybe I'm doing something wrong?
Hi Nikolaj,
PicLaser demo version can be downloaded from here http://www.piclaser.com/
Try it to see if it meets your needs.
Tweakie.
My problems now I think are mainly the damn theta lens, one of those things with very little information to go on.
Hi Spandex,
Depth control is a weak point.
Comparative depth and repeatability is generally good but trial & error is usually used to arrive at the correct initial settings.
Tweakie.
Another update for the Impact / Laser Engraver plugin (v1.2a).
Image aspect ratio;
I have re-instated the ‘maintain aspect ratio’ function (somehow lost along the way) which is now operated in a slightly different way to which it was originally. There is a new screen button “Calculate Parameters AR” and this automatically sets the vertical (Y Axis) height based on the, user input, horizontal (X Axis) width information and the original image aspect ratio. This new function works alongside the original “Calculate Parameters” function and provides a choice of either locked or free aspect ratio.
Changing the Mach mode of motion;
If the original image detail extends to the vertical sides of the canvas it has been found best to process the engraving in the Exact Stop mode whereas if the image detail stops short of the edges there is a small but significant gain in process speed if Constant Velocity mode is used.
By default the plugin now operates in Exact Stop mode and I have added a new check box “CV mode” so that Constant Velocity can easily be used, as and when required. (Without having to open the Mach General Config page to change the settings there). On exit the plugin returns Mach to CV mode.
I have also updated the PDF file to reflect these changes.
Engraving.dll http://www.cooperman.talktalk.net/Engraving.dll
Engraving.pdf http://www.cooperman.talktalk.net/Engraving.pdf
Tweakie.
Wouldn't it be cool if along with laser cutting, it also had a sensor that gauged depth at the same time!
Something for you to design perhaps ?
Judging by the photos that you posted, you never did quite get to the same level of fine detail in terms of cutting out the bicycle as the pros? How fine can your setup get do you think?
Hi Spandex,
Depth control is a weak point.
Comparative depth and repeatability is generally good but trial & error is usually used to arrive at the correct initial settings.
Tweakie.
I am sure it is possible but it is not something I have ever tried.
I suspect that the final result would be far from satisfactory as there is bound to be some scorching / charring of the edges of the topcoat and the entire surface (and quite possibly the entire thickness) of the undercoat.
Perhaps a subject for experimentation ?
Tweakie.
I think I found the answer, looks like it's as simple as, the optimal wavelength is the wavelength that is absorbed by the material.
I do wonder however whether the Mach3 plugin or DotG are smart enough to not stupidly scan the entire area line by line thereby going over large areas where engraving isn't necessary?
Yes, so long as the driver kits take step/direction as their input , thats what you need.Thanks for your time. I will order the 57CNC board . Also , exist a better controller board to be able to manage the laser for engrave ? Thanks again
Art
Also i will dont use DB25. TCP or USB probably. I allways hate db25 for alot of reason
Why not a external PWM base timing. Exist a lot of controllers can easy pragramed with only some lines of code
For those of you interested in laser diode engraving gray scale photos with Mach3, this video was done several years ago. Uses hardware (a digital to analog controller) to generate an analog control voltage from Mach3's Z axis output.Thanks , like that i can doit by myself. I work with DSP microcontrollers for several years. http://www.ccsinfo.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=46829 , response time 0.26ns . If you give me a free license on picengraver why not.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=LlDgTUm8Fi0
AOther dumb question .It is a beter option to isolate the driver to PoKeys ? https://www.aliexpress.com/item/24V-to-5V-4-Channel-Optocoupler-Isolation-Board-Isolated-Module-PLC-Signal-Level-Voltage-Converter-Board/32951680568.html?spm=2114.search0104.3.152.14f55515ETy64f&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_3_10065_10068_319_10892_317_10696_10084_453_454_10083_10618_10304_10307_10820_10821_537_10302_536_10843_10059_10884_10887_321_322_10103,searchweb201603_80,ppcSwitch_0&algo_expid=4149919f-93c3-4487-8eac-1d6905cfb143-22&algo_pvid=4149919f-93c3-4487-8eac-1d6905cfb143
Luckily, if you wish to do any normal Milling , the PoKeys will work with Mach3 or Mach4. Auggie is
a free program so its just a good thing to have in the toolbox if you have a Laser capability on a
Milling type configuration.
Art
Side note, any thoughts on these?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/450nm-15W-Laser-Module-W-Heatsink-Fan-Support-TTL-PWM-for-DIY-Laser-Engraver-P/264005907159
Hi All,
Could someone please point me in the direction of a clear "How to" on this?
I essentially need to know which pin on the parallel port controls the laser, which G-Code command to use and what I need to set in Mach3 to get it to toggle that pin. I have a little PIC board I've made with a dial so I can set the power if the parallel pin is just on and off, I just need to see that pin toggle.
Thanks
Hi ZASto,Well, you know that it's not Mach that I use for laser control, here are some samples, "fresh under laser" :)
I appreciate you are not running your laser with Mach3 but give the Norton method a try and perhaps report back with your findings.
Tweakie.