Difference between revisions of "Robotec 100W Laser"

Revision as of 18:28, 26 November 2017

Overview

The Makeshop bought a laser!

Specifications

Robotec 100W Laser Cutter

• Cut area: 1300 x 900mm
• Laser: 100W CO2 Reci W2
• Cutting speed 0-4000cm/min
• Motorized z-axis
  • Autofocus
• 110vac Input Power
• Water chiller to cool the laser tube: Water chiller CW5000
• Ventilation fan for exhaust: yes
• Air pump for air assist on cutting surface: yes
• Supply of low-cost replacement laser tubes: 100W CO2 Reci W2 can be found on eBay for about $600 (not sure if other tubes or suppliers are compatible)
• May be controlled from a PC (running Windows, Linux, or both): BMP, PLT, DST, DXF, AI from CorelDraw, PhotoShop, AutoCAD, TAJIMA
• Honeycomb table: yes
• Controller that supports non-PC-connected cutting (USB drives): Yes (RD Color controller)
• Network interface for sending jobs from any computer: yes, through RDWorks8
• Rotary axis for engraving round/multi-sided objects like drinking glasses: yes
• Limit switches: yes (metal sensing)
• Rails: Hiwin Linear Rails

Setting up a PC with the software

1. Go here and download RDWorks V8. (The other versions are not meant for our machine.)
2. Un-archive the downloaded file using 7-Zip or whatever. This will produce both the setup and the manual for the software.
3. Run the setup. Click Install.
4. Eventually a window will pop up. Change the origin point to top-right. Install the driver. (It says to plug in the cutter before you do this, but you don't have to do that.) Click Install, then close this window.
   • If you have trouble with this part, don't worry about it. It's easier not to use the driver anyway - it's only needed if you plug into the cutter with a USB cable.
5. You're done. Open RDWorks.

Using RDWorks

We need to flesh this out later, but basically you will want to import stuff using File->Import. (For very simple shapes and text, I guess you could use RDWorks itself to make them.)

In RDWorks, different colors are used to split up different cutting methods. For example, you could have a bunch of red shapes and a bunch of green shapes, and the red ones are "drawn" (cut with a very low power so as to produce a visible line) and the green ones are cut with a high power so as to cut through the material. These colors will import from Inkscape or whatever other software you use, provided that there is enough contrast. (Dark red and bright red will both import as just red, for instance. Or maybe a dark enough red will import as black.) So stick to garish colors for this.

Once you've got something that you believe is worth cutting, in the lower right corner, ensure the "Network" port is selected. If not, open the port settings, add a new network port called "Network" with the IP 10.56.1.66. Then you can select it. Once that is done, press the Download button. Give your file a name that is 8 characters or less (spaces not recommended) and it will download to the cutter.

Cutting a file

1. Turn on the big exhaust fan, using the breaker in the main shop breaker box.
2. Turn on the fume extraction system, using the power strip near the small laser in the fab lab.
3. Plug the cutter into power. Its power cord is near the chiller on the floor, and there's an extension cord right there.
4. Turn on the cutter exhaust blower with the green button.
5. Turn on the cutter lights with the red button.
6. Focus the laser on your media.
   • For manual focus, press the ZU button. Scroll up and down to select "Z move". Scroll left to move the bed up and right to move the bed down. Hit Esc when you are done.
   • For automatic focus, locate the black metal disc and sit it on top of your media. Use the arrow keys to position the green box on the bottom of the cutting head directly above the metal disc. Now press the ZU button. Scroll up and down to select "Auto focus" and hit Enter. If you have not positioned the metal disc correctly, the bed will smash into the head/the gantry/everything. Hit the emergency stop button and try not to do that next time!
7. Using the arrow keys, position the head at the top left(?) corner of your piece. Then press Origin.
8. Press File. Scroll to your piece and press Enter to load it.
9. Press Frame. The cutter will run around the (square) perimeter of your piece. Go back and correct your origin/head positioning if it's not right.
10. Once you're happy with that, close the cutter and press Start to do the thing.
    • Seriously - close the cutter. If you don't close it, it will cut anyway and it will blind you and cut your hand off. Don't be daft.

Settings

Vector Cutting Setting Suggestions

All settings are merely a suggestion starting point, your experience may vary depending on many things like color, temperature of material etc.

Repair and Upgrade Log

On arrival:

• The unit was initially focused by Ryan Coons, thanks Ryan!
• 10 minutes into the first vector cut, one of the E-Stop switches failed open causing a complete loss of power. The switch was replaced from phil's spares and the machine was functional within 30 minutes of failure.
• Currently the vent exhaust is tied back into the 40W Laser's exhaust system, exhaust tubes have been ordered so that the 100W laser can have a parallel system.

Possible improvements

• Door safety!
• X/Y/Z over-extended safeties
• Z safety in parallel with the auto-focus one (to keep from crashing into the head)
• Do we have an iron bed? Would magnets help to hold flimsy work pieces in place?
• Connecting a fan to the "blow" output on the controller.
• U axis???
• Publishing the "Status" pin on the controller to MQTT to be able to tell when jobs are done
• Red dot sight
• RDVPrinter
• RDProjector?