2W Laser Moving Head Enclosure

[Atlewee]

To make things more tidy, this thread is a continuation of my first thread:
MY Very First Laser project, 2W Viasho DPSS 532

I ordered a simple Par64 Moving Head called Chauvet Stage Mover.
I want both Pan/Tilt for my laser so that it can stand on the top of a building and move around.
I also thought it would be easier to mount the stuff inside this enclosure than build one from scratch.

My plan was to have all signals/optics in the head and powersupplys in the base.
The big problem, this enclosure is very tiny! And its stuffed with things that needs to be there.

As you see in this picture, there is not much space left for the laser stuff.






Hehe.. how to mount the LAser PSU inside the base?


The laser is also too long to fit inside the head so the connection on the back of the laser has to go some way.

[Pitts]

You can "shorten" the laser head somewhat by removing the cover over the multi way plug. You do this by loosening the two screws on the clamp and then the tiny little grub screw by the thread. Then you simply unwind the cover and slide in back down the cable. The actual connector is still intact but is now shorter !! The wires will then bend at a much sharper angle.
Obviously not recommended for a flexible cable installation but for fixed will cause no issues.
Not sure if enough for you but it worked OK for me

Cheers

Ray
NZ

[Atlewee]

I started to take the Stage mover apart to see how much I could remove from it to get more space for laser equipment and reduce weight.











Then I opened the Laser PSU to see if it could be made smaller, I also wanted to change the PSU fan later since its extreme loud.






Laser PSU again:



I left the wires that goes to the laser so that I know what colour to connect where afterwards.


This was my first place for the PSU:


I cut the baseplate to the correct size and slided it inside the Head. I created threads in the aluminium plate and bolted it to the head from the outside.









The next step is to mount the components on the alu plate.
The first component I mounted was the Laser PSU.
I bolted it together the way it was mounted in the original PSU case, this gives a great result and the cooling finns will have contact with the alu baseplate.
All components will be mounted on the alu baseplate so that I can slide out the whole laser projector from the head.







Laser PSU mounted Inside the Head:


Laser and Galvos installed, final picture today:


Please comment if you have any suggestions how to make things better =)
The next thing will be to mount the scanner amps, FB3 and the other power supplys.

Ont thing that is a big issue here is the weight balance, it has to be near perfect balance so that the servos is able to tilt the head.
Just small weight changes in the front or back of the head has a huge impact on the balance.

My current layout is balancing. The unit is heavier than the original, have to wait to see if the servos is strong enough to take the load =)

[andy_con]

what an awesome project, top marks mate

would luv to see some video of it in action

[fearfair]

That is some really nice work. Kind of scary wondering just how much weight those stepper motors can handle. I assume it was basically just a par bulb and reflector in there before?

[Atlewee]

That is some really nice work. Kind of scary wondering just how much weight those stepper motors can handle. I assume it was basically just a par bulb and reflector in there before?

Thankyou.
Yes, the only stuff inside was an Par 64bulb witch has its own reflector. there was also some metal supports that I removed to reduce weight and give more space.
I was just about to say how powerful these motors are.
I have now tested the motors and it looks good!
(Video at the end of this post)
The head is very heavy, alot heavier than I ever imagined.

Did not have that much time today, but had to do something =)
When I get positve feedback on this forum it makes me wanna do more.
Today I mounted the last parts, now its only missing a mirror and safety shutter.
And also electrics + paint and touch up of the enclosure.



I'm amased how well It balance:







I'm also amased of how powerful the stepper motors are.
This head is heavy, but when moved by the motors it does not seem very heavy at all.
Also notice the balance, the base that holds the head is small and much lighter compared to the head but the unit does not bend or tip over.

Video of the Laser Moving Head in action:
MovingHeadLaser.wmv

[andy_con]

wow that is mega!!!!

beam video....

can you control the movement at all? or is it all done by built in DMX?

[Insanity]

That is a serious bit of kit you are building.... Great work, keep the pics coming...

Live Pro has built in moving head control, so the whole thing can be controlled off the same software. Not sure how they implement it with an FB3 though. Worth looking in to.... I would be very interested to see the results..

Keep us posted

Mark

[Lasermad]

thats just well ...STUNNING ..and very brave to tear apart a 2 watt viasho ..... bet that didnt come cheap !

I am very excited to see this operating with the beam running .... should be incredibly impressive !

PAUL

[Dr Laser]

I'm wondering about connecting ILDA plug to moving head. Besides that ...Awesome project. And this thing only costs ~350USD.