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Thread: My laser scanner - Part II

  1. #1
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    Default My laser scanner - Part II

    Here is my latest incarnation. Since the last photo I posted I have added a blue lasever module and replaced the previous 5V power supply with one that can supply more current since it is also used for the blue laser.

    I have a few more things to do to it. I bought a bunch of 16 guage aluminum and am going to replace the diamond deck sides and top with plain aluminum sheet metal. It is a lot easier to work with. I'm also going to build a mini enclosure that fits from the tips of the laser, over the dichros and over the mirror portion of the galvo black. I bought a 2" square window from Edmunds Optics to fill in the front beam exit hole. So, all of the laser optics will be sealed so that no dust can get to them. I am going to drill hundreds of holes in the top aluminum sheet so that heat from the power supplies and laser modules can exit via natual circulation.

    I don't plan on having any fans since after extended periods of operation everything seems relatively cool. My lasers are only 200mw(R), 50mw(G), and 70mw(B) so there isn't a whole lot of generated heat. Also, these power levels mix together perfectly. I'm running them all wide open and get a nice color balance.

    I will probably clean up the wiring a bit but there is no hurry on that.

    Also is a screenshot of Spaghetti, my laser show software I am writing and using.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails DSCN0205.JPG  

    Spaghetti.jpg  


  2. #2
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    looks great mate
    Eat Sleep Lase Repeat

  3. #3
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    Yeah looks great, lets see some pictures of it in action! Also your program looks to be very clean! Good job. I wish I knew how to do some programming.

    I am going to drill hundreds of holes in the top aluminum sheet so that heat from the power supplies and laser modules can exit via natual circulation.
    In some ways I hope this is more of an exaggeration. If anything I would replace 100's of holes with one fan, just because I think the fan would look a lot cleaner. But then again on the upside those hundreds of holes could double as another breadboard... unfortunately 16 gauge wouldn't give you much stability

  4. #4
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    You may be right about the holes and the fan. I'm going to give that a little thought before I go to drilling holes. I was leaning toward bing fanless so that it is quiet and has no electrical noise. Maybe I can find some quiet fans.

  5. #5
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    I think we all understand the electrical noise part of the issue. When doing your final layout and electrical routing, specify one side of your board for power and the other side for signal. This will help keep interference to a minimum Thats the way I do it with any electronics I work on - so far so good. In fact one of the newest PCBs I am designing is a 3 layer board the middle is the ground to isolate signal on one side and line voltage on the other side. I have no clue if this will work or not, but I hope that it will

    If anything you might want to just plug a fan into a power supply within the projector to see if you get any electrical noise before you cut holes ...

  6. #6
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    what do you call thoes onse?
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails dimser.jpg  


  7. #7
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    i think there called dave and john!!
    Eat Sleep Lase Repeat

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by flyby View Post
    what do you call thoes onse?
    Hey Flyby, those are mounts. They are the holders for dichrohic glass which is used to combine the laser beams.

    Gary, did you make those yourself?

  9. #9
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    Both the Projector AND Spagetti Look great!~ Keep us informed on the Progress of Spagetti!
    CREATIVITY AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT!
    www.laser-ad.com

  10. #10
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    Yes, those two little guys are my dichro mounts and I made them myself.

    The Spaghetti software is coming along slowly but surely. I just added some blanking optimization to it last night and it makes a big difference in output quality. It only works with the Moncha DAC right now because that's all I have. If those guys on here ever bring that USB DAC that they are designing to reality I'd like to support it and give it away for free. It could be the new and improved Popelscan combo. We'll see what happens.

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