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DIY Laser Cutter

This is a home brew laser cutter I made from a pair of old flatbed scanners. It uses a ~200mW red laser diode from a DVD burner, installed in a focusing module and heat sink (the aluminum block in the top scanner) , and features a USB connected 2-axis driver board (board kit is from Chapp Inc.). The control software features a simple GUI that lets you create and save motion paths and provides indication of various machine states. The board/SW also supports over-travel limit and homing, plus it outputs a programmable PWM signal to control external devices. The laser can cut black paper and thin dark-colored plastic; black styro food trays from the deli cut nicely too.

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Uploaded on January 21, 2008
Taken on January 21, 2008