Revision as of 12:01, 20 January 2013

Error creating thumbnail: Unable to run external programs, passthru() is disabled.

Summary

This is our LS 6090 PRO Laser Cutter. It has a working area of 900mm by 600mm, and is powered by a 60w CO2 Water Cooled Laser Tube that can engrave and cut through materials such as wood, plastic, card, leather, fabrics, up to about 10-15mm thick (note, it can not cut metal). The laser cut is approximately 0.15mm wide, and a job can take a few seconds through to tens of minutes depending on material thickness and design complexity.

We have a dedicated PC running LaserCut 5.3 software to import, prepare and download jobs to the Laser Cutter. It can import various formats, with DXF being the most commonly used, so various software packages can be used to create your designs.

Here are some examples of laser jobs we've run (please add a photo of yours any time you do a job!)

Using the Laser Cutter

The laser cutter is a great way to easily produce accurate and complex 2D forms in various materials, and can be designed for with limited experience in various drawing or CAD applications. At the same time, it is an expensive tool with real risk of injury and fire, so is very important you know how to use it to avoid damaging the machine. You must only use the laser cutter if you have been trained, and if you are ever in any doubt about something, please ask for assistance.

Training

Instructions

NEVER EVER LEAVE THE LASER CUTTER RUNNING UNATTENDED

To use the laser cutter, you must have been trained and have had your name added to the trained user list; these instructions are not a substitute for this training. See the training section to understand how you can become qualified to use the laser cutter.

Although not a requirement, it is recommended someone else trained is also present when using the laser cutter. Having two pairs of eyes helps avoid forgotten steps, allows for double checking, clarifications and discussions, and ensures a greater pool of experience is both present and being built up as the laser is used.

First draft to be expanded - please read the paper copy manual

Powering up

First give the machine a quick visual check. Make sure that there is nothing left on the bed and that the equipment has no obvious damage. Make sure the lid is closed. Turn the key on the right hand side to 'On'. This will set the cutter into doing its self-checks and also automatically start the cooling water feed pump. The air filtering system on the right hand side of the machine has its own 'on' button which should also be turned on. While the machine warms up power up the adjacent PC. This is running XP. The laser cutter application is obvious on the desktop.

Setting the focus

If the mirror adjustment has been completed the only adjustment on the machine is the height of the bed, and thus the work piece, from the lens. The critical dimension here is 41mm and several gauges made of perspex will be left around the machine. This gauge needs to be a fit between the top surface of the material you intend to cut and the white plastic 'flap' on the lens piece. Failure to set the distance correctly will result in an out of focus laser and much bigger (put lower powered) cut line.

loading your drawing

The PC software has an import facility which seems to be happy taking AutoCAD 2004 DXF files and other formats. The scaling seems to be a bit funny so drawing a known size rectangle around your drawing helps check it has things correct. If the import doesn't do what you want size-wise you can then select the whole image and the use the 'size' command from the drop down menu to set the dimension you want. Clicking on the three dots ... symbol will adjust the other axis in the same proportion. Selecting the 'centre on bed' option will locate your imported drawing on the centre of the machines cutting bed.

assigning actions to colours

Your drawing will show on the screen in various colours. Each colour will appear on the menu on the right hand side of the screen with numbers related to power and speed of the laser which will be used for the colour. The handbook provided with the machine gives suggested values for various materials but these should be considered as a starting point for a test. In due time we will try to build up a sample stock of materials and record the values which work best. For example the book suggested a speed of 10 for 3mm MDF which on one sample was so slow it burned a massively thick line, 40 ended up as a better speed.

Download the file to the cutter

The download option will by default call the file on the laser cutter 'LASER'.

Aligning the job on the cutter

Your drawing will feature a blue dot which represents the starting point of the laser, this is by default on the top right corner. The cutter's menu will show the most recent downloaded file highlighted. Pressing the 'test' button will make the head travel along the maximum extends of the cuts. This shows you that you have the material in the right place, and you have enough of it! You can do this repeatedly, opening the lid, moving the work place, closing the lid, test, until you have things where you want them.

cutting the work

When happy with the location of the material press 'start' to start the cutter. Watch the head and at least at first be prepared to press the 'stop' button immediately if you find you are burning massive holes in you work piece! This goes back to doing some tests on a sample of your material and making sure you are happy with the cut speeds and power you have selected. You should stay near the cutter at all times and be prepared to pause it or stop it in the event of fire.

DO NOT LEAVE THE CUTTER UNATTENDED

finishing

The end of the job is signified by a beep. Waiting a few moments for the exhaust pump to clear any remaining smoke is a good idea and will limit the build up of smells in the rest of the workshop. Remove your work piece, ensuring that all parts are cleared from the bed of the machine.

turning off

The cutter is turned off using the key switch, check that air filtering system is also turned off. Shut down the PC and double check that everything is left in save state for the next user. Go away excited by what you can make and come back with lots more drawings!

Health and Safety

The laser cutter is a potentially dangerous piece of equipment which must only be operated by members who have received appropriate training. Risks include:-

• Fire. Cutting at the wrong speed or the wrong power can result in the material igniting. You MUST watch the cutter at all times and be prepared to stop the job if problems occur. If you are seeing a little burning you can pause the job to see if the flame stops. You may find that the flaming occurs each time the laser passes over the slots in the bed. A CO2 fire extinguisher is located new the machine in case of emergency.
• Laser burns. A 60W laser will do a good impression of Blofeld ('no Mr Bond I expect you to DIE'). Do not tamper with it. DO not tamper with any interlocks, Do not stare into the laser! As a sign in one university laser lab read 'these instructions continue in braille'
• Entrapment. The head and bed of the cutter can be moved by the front panel menu. Be careful when working inside the cutting area not to trap hands or clothing. Do not attempt to climb into the machine!

Maintenance

Maintenance Schedule

Continuous Maintenance (Every job, done by all laser users)

• Clean the laser bed with IPA and cloth
• Clean any debris off laser bed and surround using soft brush

Basic Maintenance (Every week, done by laser maintainers)

• Clean the laser lens with IPA and cotton buds
• Oil the 3 runners with 3-in-one light oil
• Thoroughly clean the laser bed with IPA and cloth
• Check the water level in the cooling tank
• Clean and remove debris from the machine base and catchment drawer

Full Maintenance (Every month, done by laser maintainers)

• Check the water is clean in the cooling tank (i.e. no contamination/organic build up)
• Check filter unit for filter renewal
• Oil the 4 rise and fall lead screws with 3-in-one light oil
• Check mirrors and clean with a disposable sachet lens cleaner cloth (only if needed, mirror coatings are delicate)
• Work through mirror alignment procedure to check alignment of mirrors

Maintenance Log

Reactive Maintenance

• 15th Jan 2013, Simon Ford: Laser cutter not powering up, with switching on via key gives no activity whatsoever. No recollection of it cutting out during a job (Alexis), so assume it just stopped turning on at some point. Filter box and power sockets confirmed OK. Diagnosis: RCD in right back panel of Laser reset to off, no obvious reason why. Switching back on brought everything back to life OK.

Regular Maintenance

• Week Number, Date, Type, Maintainer (Notes)

2013

• Week 02, January 7, Full, Chris @ HPCLaser
• Week 03, January 14, Basic, Simon Ford
• Week 04, January 21,
• Week 05, January 28,
• Week 06, February 4,
• Week 07, February 11,
• Week 08, February 18,
• Week 09, February 25,
• Week 10, March 4,
• Week 11, March 11,
• Week 12, March 18,
• Week 13, March 25,
• Week 14, April 1,
• Week 15, April 8,
• Week 16, April 15,
• Week 17, April 22,
• Week 18, April 29,
• Week 19, May 6,
• Week 20, May 13,
• Week 21, May 20,
• Week 22, May 27,
• Week 23, June 3,
• Week 24, June 10,
• Week 25, June 17,
• Week 26, June 24,
• Week 27, July 1,
• Week 28, July 8,
• Week 29, July 15,
• Week 30, July 22,
• Week 31, July 29,
• Week 32, August 5,
• Week 33, August 12,
• Week 34, August 19,
• Week 35, August 26,
• Week 36, September 2,
• Week 37, September 9,
• Week 38, September 16,
• Week 39, September 23,
• Week 40, September 30,
• Week 41, October 7,
• Week 42, October 14,
• Week 43, October 21,
• Week 44, October 28,
• Week 45, November 4,
• Week 46, November 11,
• Week 47, November 18,
• Week 48, November 25,
• Week 49, December 2,
• Week 50, December 9,
• Week 51, December 16,
• Week 52, December 23,

Maintenance Shopping List

• 3-in-one light oil
• Cotton Buds
• Lens cleaner sachets
• Soft paint/cleaning brush
• Thermometer for water tank
• Hand held CO2 extinguisher

Further Information

• LS 6090 PRO Laser Product Page
• HPCLaser Technical Info
• Laserscript Forum

LaserCut 5.3

* [Homepage]
* [Manual]

Selection and Install

Purchase and Repairs

Full Purchase, Delivery and Installation (£6865.00+vat = £8238.00)

• LS 6090 PRO Laser engraving and cutting machine, 600mm by 900mm 60W (£5250.00+vat)
• Laser Fume Filter (£1250.00+vat)
• Delivery (£190+vat)
• Installation/Training (£175+vat)

Maintenance and Spares:

• 60 watt C02 laser tube (£275.00+vat)
• 50 mm Focus Meniscus Lens (£75.00+vat)
• Estimate for Call Out (£200.00)

Whilst tube lifetime is impacted a lot by usage and care, we will initially estimate the need to replace the laser tube every 6 months

Questions and Requirements

• Cambridge Science Centre
  • 600 x 900mm would allow use for exhibit units
• Thickness of materials?
  • 25mm acrylic, 10-12mm ply (depending on ply)
• Do we need a cooler unit?
  • No. More needed for continuous use (we expect regular but intermittent use)
• What are the power supply requirements?
  • 240 V 50hz

How much power does the laser and the fume filter, require? I have looked on their website and it's not clear, I also had a looked on the Bofa Website for information about the fume filter, and there are too many models to be able select the correct model. When you next contact the supplier. Can you ask the following.

What size supply will each item require?

• TBC (nothing out of the ordinary)

I did read somewhere on the site, that the laser and the fume filter would be interlocked, is this correct? If so, this would suggest that only single supply would be required for both items. and one more question,

• The pumps are powered from the back of the laser cutter, but the filter is a separate supply

Does the laser need a assigned PC?

• Yes

• [User:Barhamd] I'm wanting to cut thin 1mm and .5mm ABS or perspex for model buildings. Would like something that can cut and half-cut a fine ~.25mm line. Not so concerned about massive size. Is this some kind of work something that could be done on a large cutter or do we need a smaller unit too?
  • It states "Resetting position accuracy: 0.015mm"
• How often do the lasers need replacing?
  • It depends on lots of things like care, use level, how much degradation is acceptable, luck - "could be 1 year or 5 years"; we will assume every year for now

What (if anything) can this do on metals?

• Possibly mark using a paste, but certainly can't cut

What sort of line thickness does it give?

• Laser width is approx 0.15mm

The bare minimum for me would be something capable of cutting an A3 sheet, which probably means 600x450mm. A 1200x900mm[1] machine from Laserscript comes in at about £6.5K; a used one went on eBay recently for something like £4.5K. The factory gate price for a similar unit from Shenhui, who are a well-regarded Chinese manufacturer, is $4K -sea-freight would come in at $250, and import duty appears to be 4.5%.

I (Dave from the science centre) would be really keen to be able to cut at least A1 on it (840x594mm) As this is the biggest module we are using at the moment.

Laser cutters used by other spaces, and other references

For comparison, a 1200x900 laser cutter from Shenhui (who appear to be the internet's Chinese supplier of choice) comes in at US$4000 + US$250 seafreight + 4.5% import duty + delivery (or collection) from Felixstowe - that's roughly £2775 ex VAT.

Replacement tubes cost £195 ex VAT for a 40W HPC tube (LS3020/LS3060) and £350 ex VAT for an 80W (LS1290). They are rated at 1000 hours, although this is heavily dependent on careful calibration of the machine and will be much lower if it's misconfigured.