My first attempt at a DVD laser pointer

[Stewox]

Hi

I've tried it in the past without much info/help, I burnt the diode when trying to solder something , I had no idea about overheating issue.

But I took that as a experience, now I have a better diode, it's quite a good DVD from August 2008 - it's used ofcourse so i got it cheap but and I specifically searched for 2008 and above.

But the diode is much different than the last time, the last time I got the one which has heatsing on it that i never got off.

I have some pics of this diode, I have zero idea about naming, specs, volts, ampers so I have not attempted to connect it to anything yet.

I do have knowledge of needing a resistor and maybe driver board, I do have a known local electronics supplier (note, this is a specialized private supplier so he should have really special stuff like this)

The issue is , I do not have paypal nor international creditcard as I do not condone online purchasing of any kind, and I don't think I will make account just for that, this method is fairly uncommon in my country, and the friends who made paypal account have reported major troubles they had with it. There has been only negative news about these things. And I'm a PC enthusiast so I know all about credit card hacking and related phenomena etc. I would like to avoid any of this to get my parts for this build, if possible.

I just don't know what specs lenses do I need and I could make an "aixiz" style housing myself or find an alternative, I did find a local assembled diode supplier here that's fairly rare but that was some time ago and I don't have the link so I'll search for that again, but as I remember it's not that cheap, but they have many kinds of focusing lenses afaik.

My goal would be to make the laster trail line, I think without that line it's pretty much worthless because that's the cool effect I'm after, I am not concerned about the performance of burning in long ranges or other extreme overclocking, it's okay if it burn like 2 meters is enough, but that line that's seen even in daylight is what I'm primairly for.

I really appreciate everyone helping on this, time is not an issue and I am not lazy not to research but I simply am not experienced with electronics enough to be digging this full in because I do not have plans to make bigger or better stuff after I try this build, maybe later in life when I have more resources to put into it.

Thanks a lot - I've been delaying this for years so it's really something i like to see happen.


http://i.imgur.com/gGse67F.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/YoM3iXA.jpg

 

[Eudaimonium]

You are definitely going to need to remove it from it's heatsink. It's called diode extraction, and only a bare diode can be installed into an Aixiz module.

Aixiz module is basically a small machined piece which holds the diode and lens in place. No change of nice beams otherwise!

Regarding the electronics, you need a current regulation - it'd be best if you can have somebody explain that to you in person rather than over internet becaue it tends to be rather confusing to some people.

Current regulation circuits are relatively simple and easy to build, best of all cheap, and if all that don't work for you, you can buy pre-made and preset drivers, plug'n'play ready.

Well OK maybe closer to solder'n'laze, but point is, no current adjustements involved

Shoot me a PM if you need some more detailed explanation or further pointers!

 

[Stewox]

Well this one doesn't seem round, fairly weird looking.

But those assembled drivers support intensity regulation, you said no adjustments but if that makes a trail line, that's fine for me.

EDIT: have you looked the pic, is that even the correct one, but I'm 99% it is since it was the biggest one in the assembly afaik.

 

[Bionic-Badger]

It's hard to tell from just a photo like that whether it is the right diode. You should post a picture of the sled too, and indicate where the diode came from. Even with a photo of the sled it's sometimes hard to tell what diode is for what purpose as the manufacturers lay them out differently.

Finally, your sled may not even contain a laser diode that you can even extract or use. Some diodes are square shaped, or the laser is grafted directly onto the sled. That's why most people are recommended to purchase a red diode directly, as people already know their limitations, and they come in a predictable can package that you can push into a module.

So for now, I'd at least post a picture of the sled and indicate where you pulled the laser from. Maybe there will be some clues from that.

 

[Eudaimonium]

Well you can't really tell the shape of the diode unless it's out of it's sink.

It's fairly easy to do, the heatsink material is USUALLY (not always :/ ) quite brittle, and will snap perfectly in half after two small cuts and applying twisting force with two plies on opposite sides. Diode simply falls out unharmed.

 

[Stewox]

Well I threw almost everything else in the garbage, it's still there but it's messy and wet from all the snow outside so I wouldn't be digging it up. Also i've smashed pretty much everything to get to the diode as i was so enthusiastically rushy.

I can say that this diode had some sort of round short tube-like lense in front of it, next it was the renctagular one which was kind of interesting as it was looking like being 2 halfs together, the idea is that another diode from a 90 degree angle could also, that diode was smaller looking as it had no heatsink but only contacting the assembly, that's probably the IR diode.

The 3rd was, well, it had a cricuit board on it but for some reason I thought it wasn't the diode so I threw it away.

Well, i got it now, luckly it was unharmed and just sitting on the pile of metal from the DVD.

There's an round hole in the center of the heatsink which spreads quite across it, the curcit board has lots of small lines and 2 strips of those flat plastic wire wraps coming of, doesn't look like positive and negative only, but I've saw on YT videos some diodes have circuti board however this just doesn't feel too big enough to be anythign behind that, it just looks like a circuit board and a heatsink on it.

Is there any recommended specs so I can try lighting them up temporairly to see which is which ?

Not sure why do I have to take off the heatsink at all, wouldn't that cause more work making a contact with another heatsink later? But I guess the casing would act as a heatsink right, but making the contact seems a challenge

I don't think if I'm going to go through all the trouble for an Aixiz module, there has to be some alternative, feels weird that the whole DVD laser pointer scene is dependant on one company somewhere 9000 miles away. Or i'll change my plan and make it less mobile to carry.


For example here:
http://www.conrad.si/Laserski-moduli.htm?websale7=conrad-slowenien&ci=SHOP_AREA_26434_0212562

Diodes are too costly: (i got this DVD for 15€)
http://www.conrad.si/Laserske-diode.htm?websale7=conrad-slowenien&ci=SHOP_AREA_26434_0212561

And some lenses: (collimator means focus right ?)
http://www.conrad.si/Laserska-tehni...7=conrad-slowenien&ci=SHOP_AREA_26434_0212560

And a couple of drivers:
http://www.conrad.si/Krmilna-elektr...7=conrad-slowenien&ci=SHOP_AREA_26434_0212563

But have no idea what to look for, diameters, types of lenses ... ?

 

[Eudaimonium]

Problem is, that every diode's heatsink (one that comes from DVD sled) is different.

Every diode itself is the same.

That's why you gotta pull the diode out in order to install it into anything.

Also, while the Aixiz is the original manufacturer of those things, you can get them anywhere. I can make a module for you if you need. Tons of websites reselling them as well.

Or there are other members here who make it out of copper for better thermal properties of entire assembly.

 

[Stewox]

Ahh, all right ...

 

[Bionic-Badger]

Yeah, I wouldn't cut corners by not installing those at least into the 12mm module. Even those have poor heat removal and should be installed into a bigger heatsink. I'd not run the laser with more than like 30mA or something just to see if you have any red light. I've burned out more than my fair share.