zero fidelity CNC

Here's the schematic of an adjustable laser diode driver circuit. It's based on this post by nickname Daedalus on the Laser Pointer Forums . This post has gotten so popular that people are referring to the circuit as a 'DDL circuit' (DDL is Daedalus' signature in the forums). It's just a constant current driver, but Daedalus was the one who popularized the use of this in DIY laser scene. From various sources in the internet, the voltage of the red 16x DVD burner led is found to be 3.2V and it's said (in various sources in the 'net) to withstand 250mA current. The laser output power is said to be 250mW. That is the power of the light coming out of the diode. It's not needed for these calculations. The circuit, like this one , is using two 10 ohm resistors in parallel for the limiting resistor. So the total resistance is 5 ohms, and the resulting wattage is 2x the wattage of the resistors . 5 ohms results in a maximum output current of 250mA. ...

There are a ton of instructions on the net about ripping laser diodes out of old 16x DVD burners. Well, here's mine. Quite soon after starting this project, I found exactly what I needed: a 16X DVD burner from an old computer in the electric waste. Here's the poor thing before the operation. It's an LG GCC-4480B CD-RW/DVD ROM drive. The unsuspecting DVD burner before meeting it's fate. And here are the tools I need. Let's get to work. With these I was able to get everything out. Warranty's void now. Pull or cut the cabling to get the PCB out of the way. View from top. Laser lens is visible. View from bottom. Take out the screws connecting the rails of the laser module. Inside the top cover I found this cool little ring-shaped magnet. It's quite powerful for it's size, maybe a Neodymium magnet. It found a new home on my fridge. The magnet. And finally, here's the beef. The laser module with it's laser diodes. ...

Here's a list of the parts I'm planning to use. 2 stepper motors for XY control (0€, from old printers / scanners) Mechanical structure for the XY table (0€, I'm planning to use printer & scanner parts) Red laser diode 150mW - 250mW 650nm (0€, from an old 16X DVD burner) Laser module with focusable lens ($9.50 from AiXiz ) This is needed to collimate the laser beam. I don't know what that means either, I just read it off some other tutorial page! I ordered the 650nm 5.0mW 12x30mm module with a glass lens as an accessory. Normally they come with plastic lenses. Sounds bad having a plastic lens on an engraving machine that's supposed to burn stuff. Laser diode driver circuit (?€, parts list later) Arduino (20€ from your nearest Arduino dealer) To control the stepper motors. I will use Arduino for this project because of the ease of use and available libraries. I have one already. Adafruit motor shield for Arduino (?€ from nearest Adafruit de...