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ArcticMyst Security by Avery

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Mar 4, 2014
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Hello to all, I felt a few words about myself should be done before I post anything else . . .

I'm a teacher at a local College in Southern California, I teach Electronics, Microprocessors (the PIC), and Basic Robotics. All my lasers that I have right now are all under 5mW, but it is tempting to step up to a higher powered laser and experiment with it.

My current laser project is to take several (5 or 7) < 5mW lasers controlled by a PIC and generate characters on the wall by moving the lasers and turning the beams on and off rapidly in the proper sequence. Earlier in the week I was able to drive a single laser from a PIC and 500 Hz (1mS on & 1mS off). As I moved the laser across the wall, I could see a string of dashes proving that I could modulate the laser.

By the way, on the night that the test was successful, I decided to sign-up to be able to post on the forum. Up to that point I had been spending several weeks reading the forum and researching the high powered lasers.


By the way, one of the more interesting and informative videos I've seen on YouTube is, "Laser Safety Seminar", presented by the Physics Department of Fort Hays State University. IMHO, I feel it should be required viewing by anyone who wants to play or experiment with lasers.



Bob Diaz
 





BowtieGuy

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Welcome to LPF Bob, you've already started off in the right direction by introducing yourself; so many new members don't bother.

With your background, it looks as if you will be a great asset to the forums.

Have fun, be safe!

BTW - I like your intelligence test! :D
 
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Laser Safety Seminar Video

Welcome to LPF, Bob! I sat through that 1 hour video attached below. It explains all the salient aspects of what lasers are and why we have to be careful in handling them. Especially relevant for the unacquainted is the section on LEP (laser eye protection) at the 44th minute of the video.:yh:

 
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Joined
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Thanks, right now I'm in the research phase of high powered lasers and I'm NOT going to ask the classic question, "How must power to I need to burn ... ?" or "What laser should I purchase for ... ?" :yh:

To me is seems like there are four variables to the power question, but that's something for another thread.

There's a local electronics surplus supply place near my house and they sell both the <5mW laser diodes and the <5mW laser modules. I haven't got the diode yet, but I have been playing with the laser module. While I only modulated it up to 500 Hz, I do plan on seeing how high I can go before I hit the bandwidth limits of the device. If I can push the frequency above the audio range, I should be able to send audio over laser light using FM Modulation. The only problem is I don't know the rules at my college for use of lasers in the classroom. They may not allow an < 5mW device without safety glasses. :undecided: TBD.



Thanks,


Bob Diaz
 
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May 9, 2013
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Welcome to the forum, Bob. It's great to have you here and I'm sure you'll find value in the archives as well as the tremendous user community. I look forward to hearing how your project progresses.

Have fun and be safe!

Cheers,
Clayton
 
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Another welcome from Texas-

sounds like you will be an asset to our forums-

i'm no expert- and I may be wrong but...
at least for some lasers lots of turning off and on is not always a good idea-- UNLESS
these are lab Lasers with TTL blanking- a way to do rapid on/off with no or very little chance of damage-

however with WAY over spec RG & V pointers as low as 4$ each you do not have much $ to lose if you try those.

General rule: small lasers have small heat sinks- small heat sinks often means short duty cycles with an equal (0r longer) time of a rest period-- if it cost you a lot--- treat it with respect- better to run less than it can stand instead of finding out the hard way that you ran it too long w/o a rest--
Seems that many red pointers withstand abuse better while 405 purple and green DPSS need to be treated better- the newest blue 445- 450 nm looks to be very robust and handles abuse very well- PM me if you want more info or links to labbies i have used..

if you want to meet up with other laser geeks- try to make one of the LEMs held in Cali. -- these are lots of fun -cost very little and a great way to network with like-minded folks .. SoCalLEM is one and there are others- NWLEM happens in Portland.
THE biggie is SELEM in NC(in aug.) search 'SELEM Laser' for awesome vids at YTube...
I work with (not for) AixiZ Laser (Houston) and they have lots of low priced lab lasers with TTL- very good prices and the best customer service ever.-- aixiz.com

enjoy!!!

hak
 
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worthy of a +5 JUST for that heads-up on the safety video-- (when i can---:)

A pro-active approach to laser safety is a must if we are to survive--

TY 'Mac' for adding it... cant 'reward' you just yet --but will later--

hak
 
Joined
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In my tests of turning on and off a small <5mW laser, it's switched between 100% on and 0%. I've read somewhere that if I have the laser on, but at a very low power, I can use it at a much higher ON/OFF frequency. The highest I've tested is 500 Hz. In order to test at higher frequencies I'll have to come up with a better way to "see" the output as the frequency becomes higher.

This will likely be a project for the summer time when I'm not teaching classes.

For now the < 5mW lasers don't need safety glasses, BUT before I obtain anything > 5mW, I'll need to pick up some laser safety glasses. I'm still deciding on which laser I really want.



Bob Diaz
 

ru124t

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Mean and green ! That's my course of action !


LPF - Fueling Your Laser Fire
 
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Welcome Bob!

I'm very new here myself. Been reading the site for the most part.

I enjoyed that Laser Safety Seminar, definitely a must see! Thanks for pointing that out!
 
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