KSA FAB LAB > Laser Cutters

Operating the Laser Cutters

This document assumes that you have successfully generated a plot file that the laser cutter recognizes correctly. If you have not yet reached that point, please refer to the software document.

At this point, you have successfully sent your file to the laser cutter for processing - and the name of your job (including your settings, if you are using the ULS laser) are displayed on the LCD panel at the front of the laser cutter. You are now ready to place your material and process the file.

1. Place (and secure) your material

There are two metal guides on the bed of the laser cutter that define the upper left corner of the cutting area. Place your material on the cutting bed, pushing it securely up against both guides. Some materials, such as blocks of wood or metal, may stay in place on their own. Others, such as sheets of chipboard or thin wood sheets, may need to be taped in place. You can test whether your material needs to be secured by closing the lid of the laser cutter and turning on the blower. If your material vibrates or shifts, you will need to secure it. Tape usually works well in this regard.

Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, you may also need to provide space underneath your material for hot gases to dissipate. On the Epilog, this can be accomplished by removing the solid metal base sheet (if it is in place) to reveal the honeycomb surface. On the ULS, you can place spacers under your material to ensure a clean cut all the way through your material. Raising your material above the cutting bed in this way allows air to flow on all sides, allowing exhaust gases to dissipate without scorching the underside of your material.

2. Focus the laser on your material

The Epilog system has an auto-focus capability. You can either choose to have the laser focus itself at the beginning of your job (via the laser cutter preferences in your software) or you can manually initiate the focus operation by pressing "Focus" on the top of the laser cutter and then "Go" to start the process.

On the ULS system, focusing must be done manually. Once your material is in place, press the "Z" button at the far right of the laser cutter control panel. This will place the laser cutter in its focusing position, usually one inch from the upper left corner of your material. If you need to focus based on a different location, use the 4 directional arrows to move the cutting head to your desired location. Do not move the cutting head by pushing on it!

Once the cutting head is positioned correctly, locate the focus guide on the left side of the laser cutter - it is usually to the left of the Y-axis rail, upside down. Place the focus guide on your material, with the notch on the white pole turned to the left, and slide it against the cutting head. Notice where the notch falls in relation to the corner of the cutting head. Using the up/down arrows on the laser cutter control panel, raise and lower the cutting bed until the notch on the focus guide is exactly lines up with the lower corner of the cutting head. The bed will raise and lower by one-tenth of an inch increments at first - if you need greater precision, press the "Select" button to toggle over to hundredths mode (designated by a flashing underscore underneath the hundredths position on the display scren).

When you have correctly focused the laser cutter, press the "Z" button again. There is no need to accept or finalize this setting.

3. Run a test pass, if desired

If you wish to run a test pass, leave the cover of the laser cutter open and press the green "Start" button. This will cause the laser cutter to start processing your file using its red pointer laser rather than the full-strength cutting laser (On the Epilog laser cutter, you turn on the pointer laser using the "Pointer" button). This technique is useful if you want to make sure your drawing is positioned correctly, or if the right lines are going to be cut. It is less useful, however, if you want to prevew a raster engraving operation.

You can stop this test pass by pushing the "pause" button on the laser cutter control panel, and the laser cutter will move home when it has finished its current operation.

4. Turn on the blower

This is very important! Every time you use the laser cutter, you must turn on the blower. Failure to do so can cause a fire in the laser cutter, scorching your material and potentially ruining a very expensive piece of equipment - or worse. The blower can be turned on by pushing the green button on the Jet blower by the door to the Fab Lab. If you are using the Epilog laser cutter, you can also turn on the air assist nozzle by hitting the power switch on the small blue air compressor to the left of the Epilog.

5. Run your file

When you are ready to run your file, make sure all doors on the laser cutter are closed (on the ULS system, the flashing red light on the control panel turns to a solid green). Press the green "Start" button on the control panel, and your file will be processed. When it has finished, the laser cutter will beep once and the cutting head will return to its home position.

6. Remove your material, and turn off the blower if necessary

Please double check that no one is using the other laser cutter before turning off the blower.

7. Clean the laser cutter

This is very important - most jobs on the laser cutters will leave some residue on the cutting area which is flammable if enough accumulates. Take some time to clean the cutting area with a bit of water on a paper towel.

Questions?

If you have any questions about anything contained in these documents, please contact Matt Bernhardt at bernhardt.7@osu.edu, or 614.292.7595.