Laser tube fixed vertically

[VCR]

Hi

Im studding the possibility of assembling a laser cutter for balsa. I have build whit success a small CNC milling cutter based on a MF70, so I’m confident that I can operate a laser cutter but I have same questions regarding the construction and design.

All the designs I have seen are around a fixed laser reflected whit mirrors. Is there a particular reason for this besides the fact that the laser tube is quit long?
I was thinking of assembling the laser tube fixed vertically and have the material in a moving table.

Vasco

[canadianavenger]

There is no reason why you can't do it that way. Using moving mirrors and lens is very light-weight, allowing for very fast movements. If you move the table/work-piece the mass is much greater, thus you will have lower top speed. Having said that it is how the very large industrial lasers do it, at least partially. A friend of mine has a 2000W CO2 laser, the laser is stationary, with a flying head that moves in X only, and the work-piece then moves in Y.

Keeping the laser & lens stationary and the beam travel to a minimum will have an advantage of having maximal power at the lens/focal-point, as opposed to the losses we see over the long distances travelled in the the traditional mirror/gantry design we commonly use for he small low power machines.

[TLHarrell]

The only drawback is that you'll need double the travel on your X and Y axis for the same work area. Other than that, there is nothing wrong with doing it that way.

[StigOE]

Depending on the tube, you can have problems with air pockets in the tube in the cooling water loop if the laser tube is mounted vertically.

[VCR]

Thanks for the help.
I want to cut very light materials so I don’t have a problem whit the mass of the work piece. In the other end in just an amateur and probably the best is to stick whit the conventional designs

[canadianavenger]

Using an indirect approach with mirrors also offers a level of insurance/protection for the LASER should a fire break out. One only needs to look at my blog and the old ULS LASER I'm trying to re-build to see the effects of fire. The rebuild would be impossible had the LASER itself been in the path of the flames.