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Cd laser risks

Irdiode

New member
Joined
Jan 24, 2021
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Hi, I would ask your opinion about what happened yesterday while repairing an old portable audio CD Player. This is not the first time I work on CD or DVD players or burners, and I know the risks associated to laser beams.
This is the problem: I watched the disk playing with the lid opened for about 10-20 seconds at about 40 cm. I was not perpendicular to the lens because the lid of the portable CD player, even while opened, stays on an angle that covers the direct beam. But I think that I watched it on an angle between 80-45 degrees. Next I turned it off, put the CD player aside, moved the lens to its external maximum position, watched again it playing the CD for a few seconds by the side and finally I realized that the laser was already working seeing the red dot under the cd.
Now my sight seems ok, but I read much threads on this forum and I'm worried. What do you think about?
Attached you can find the specs of the laser.

In your experience with IR lasers, could this have caused a damage?
I watched the laser through a spinning CD, never directly in the lens, but anyway only 40 cm far (as I remember).

Thank you in advance.
 

Attachments

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Firstly, the reading laser on a CD player is quite low in output power. The divergence would have also been large from where you were standing as the lens is set to narrow the beam directly in front of the reading lens to read the tracks (pits) on the CD. focal length is anywhere from 0.5-1cm.

I think you are quite safe.
 
Thanks for your answer and for the explanations. Sure I will be more careful next time.
 





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