Standard Operating Procedure – Setup
There are a few routine procedures to follow in order to use the laser, as well as some safety precautions and best practices to keep in mind.
1. Power On
The power controls for the machine are located on top of the outer frame on the right side nearest the user. You should see the following – an emergency stop (e-stop), the job timer, and a remote control key chain:
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At the time of writing (late 2024), the power switch that’s supposed to be there where the remote control is affixed is out of order. To turn on the machine, simply disengage the e-stop by twisting it clockwise until it clicks. Upon activation, there should be an audible “clunk” sound and the work area should light up under the gantry.
Before proceeding, with the remote control chained to the console, confirm that the auxiliary systems – the chiller, the exhaust, and the air assist – are operational. In contrast to previous incarnations of the machine, the auxiliary systems do not power on automatically. To do this manually, press the “on” button on the remote control, then check the following:
Chiller
Located between the laser cutter and the refrigerator. The screen should display a temperature between 19 and 21. If at any time, the chiller starts to beep or display an error on screen, power down the system immediately and contact a shop lead.
Exhaust
The fume extraction system is powered by the mint green industrial fan behind the machine. When operational, it should be loud and the duct should show obvious signs of air moving through it. If the fan is inactive or generating any unusual sounds, power down the system and contact a shop lead.
Air Assist
The air assist for the tool head inside the work area is powered by the small air compressor between the exhaust fan and the chiller. The tool head should begin emitting a steady stream of air upon startup. If it does not, power down the machine and contact a shop lead.
Finally, power off the auxiliary systems. The auxiliary systems are only necessary while the machine is actively cutting or engraving. At any other time, they serve no purpose and waste considerable amounts of electricity.
2. Prepare Work Area
Once the machine has been powered on and the auxiliary systems are confirmed to be operational, and before connecting to the attached computer, one must make sure that the moving parts of the machine are free of obstacles.
First, ensure that there are no objects placed on the lid of the machine that could be disturbed upon opening the lid. Next, open the lid. Keep in mind to check the area for obstacles whenever closing the lid as well.
With the lid open, make sure that there are no foreign objects behind or to the right of the tool head within the work area that could prevent the gantry from completing its homing cycle. Also ensure that the work area is free of any previous users’ materials, tools, work holding fasteners, or other objects.
Finally, before proceeding, make sure there are no objects that could become wedged between the edge of the honeycomb and the frame of the machine surrounding it when moving the Z-axis upwards.
Notes
- If at any point following the setup procedure the chiller starts beeping, this is an indication that it is not functioning properly.Turn off the device immediately using the E-stop and contact a shop lead. A built-in safety interlock designed to cut power to the tube in the event of a cooling failure is present, but as with any automatic safety measures, one must assume it is prone to failure and err on the side of caution.
- If at any point, the laser begins making a loud grinding noise, this is likely because the stepper motors driving one of the three axes of movement is straining to move against an obstacle. In the event of a tool head crash, push the E-stop immediately and contact a shop lead.
3. Connect
Power on the computer connected to the laser cutter, log in with the provided password (you will be granted access to this when receiving training on the machine), and open Lightburn from the desktop. It is important to specifically use the desktop shortcut because launching LightBurn by way of opening a project file will not launch the startup script. This script is necessary for the computer to establish a connection to the machine. You should see the following on the screen:
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Do not interact with the computer until Lightburn is fully launched. Doing so may interfere with the startup script and prevent the machine from connecting to LightBurn.
By the time Lightburn is on screen, the tool head should have automatically returned to home – in this case, the back right corner of the work area.
If the tool head did not move, or if Lightburn is unable to control the laser cutter beyond this point, it likely did not establish a connection properly. If this occurs:
- First, try simply closing Lightburn and re-opening it.
- If that doesn’t work, try powering down the laser system and then re-open LightBurn once more.
- If that doesn’t work, follow the yellow ethernet cable from the back left of the laptop to the laser to make sure it’s still plugged in. Reboot both the computer and the laser cutter and attempt to connect one more time.
- If the computer still fails to connect to the laser, contact a shop lead for further assistance.
Notes
- Do not launch Lightburn by opening a Lightburn file or launching from the Start menu (or Windows search bar). Doing so will bypass the startup script and the connection will not be properly established.
- Only attempt to launch Lightburn if the laser cutter is already powered on. Doing so in the reverse order will prevent a connection from being made.
- If the laser powers off for any reason whilst connected to the computer, the connection must be reestablished. Do this by either closing and relaunching Lightburn, or by turning both machines off and back on fully in the right order.
4. Prepare Work Piece
Lastly, place your work piece on the honeycomb bed of the work area, secure it in place as necessary, and proceed to the Operation phase when ready.
Tips
- Especially when working with materials prone to warping, it may be possible to mitigate this using either the honeycomb clips available in the consumables storage on top of the laser, strong magnets, or weights. If using these methods, double check to make sure the tool head will not collide with anything in the work area.
- For advanced use cases, it may be beneficial to design and use a jig of some sort to ensure desired placement and to facilitate repeatability for running jobs in large batches.
Notes
- Whenever engraving a work piece, make sure to leave room on the work area to either side – the tool head moves rather fast when engraving and needs room to slow down. The amount of overshoot is configurable within the Lightburn operation settings. Failing to account for this (always check the Preview button before starting a job!) may result in crashing the X axis – in other words, slamming the tool head into the sides of the work area. This is unlikely to permanently damage the machine unless left unattended.
After completing the above steps, you should be ready to jump into LightBurn for the rest of the process.