Projector build planned. Little help?

[bhwollen]

Hi all, I have been planning a build for a while now, have some of the parts, and need a source for some others. All help is greatly appreciated!

What I have:

• 280mW Analog 532nM Lab
• RIYA DAC
• LSX and Spagetti
• Dichros

What I need:

• Case. I have seen a lot of you using computer server cases. Is there any out there that are good for laser projectors? I have access to a mill so the machining isn't a problem.
• Red laser. I was planning on using the 638nM Mitsubishi diode, with optic corrections from this thread- http://laserpointerforums.com/f49/in...ion-69568.html ... I haven't looked into how to do it that deeply, but it shouldn't be too hard. What is a good driver with analog modulation for this?
• Blue Laser. Planning on using a 445nM diode. I find that the beam specs will be fine for the projector I plan to build. For the heatsink for this and the Red I will probably just use a hunk of aluminum with some thermal grease under it.
• Dichro mounts. No clue where to get these. On a tight budget so the cheaper the better. Source?
• Galvos. Looking for some ~20kkps galvos, maybe used if I can find them for a good price. Maybe even 15kkps cause I'm cheap. Anybody know where to get some decent galvos for a good price?

Pretty sure I'm forgetting something, cause its way past my bed time...

Lets sum up all my questions

1. What case can I use that is cheap and sturdy? A computer server case?
2. What drivers for my DIY lasers? Flexmod P3?
3. Where can I buy some cheap dichro mounts that are decent?
4. Where can I get some decent galvos at a good price? Anybody selling some?

I have a good amount of electronics knowledge so the wiring shouldn't be a huge problem.

Thanks for all of your help guys!

[LaNeK779]

1. What case can I use that is cheap and sturdy? A computer server case?

I think it is better to get a hold of a decent 10mm 0r 12.7mm thick slab of aluminium as a baseplate and then build a case around it, using 1mm - 3mm alu sheets. You will need a baseplate anyway (thermal and structural stability stuff etc etc)

2. What drivers for my DIY lasers? Flexmod P3?

flexmods are a bit harder to find at the moment, i suggest you consider badpip's quad driver, leaves room for future expansion

3. Where can I buy some cheap dicro mounts that are decent?

try searching on ebay for newport MM1 or MM2 (i could be more accurate if i knew what dichros you have at hand

4. Where can I get some decent galvos at a good price? Anybody selling some?

There are a lot of 20k sets in the price range of 100 - 200 usd. i suggest you ask around and see if anyone wants to sell a used set of dt25, or DT30. This is as good as it gets on a budget. Please, please, don't bother with low ball 15k sets...

I strongly believe that an adjustable mount for the red is the way to go. You will just be stuggling in vain with a short FL collimator and the mitsu red without an adjustable diode mount. Buy one now, thank me later

you can use a slab of alu for the blue one, no problems there. just pay attention that beam heights are the same


in general, 1:1:1 is a good colour mixing ratio when using sub 640nm photons. You will be able to pull the trick off easily with a single 445 and a single mitsu 638. My general feeling is that you have got off to a nice start and the costs will not spiral out of control. Just keep the build tidy and plan ahead

and keep us posted!!

[bhwollen]

Thank you so much for all your help

I already have a 1 foot by 2 foot sheet of aluminum, 12mm I believe. So that should work fine for now. I can add the walls after.

I believe somebody over at LPF is selling the flexmods, but I'm not to sure. Can you link me to "Badpip's driver" EDIT: Found it. . Is it easy to set up because I have had issues with the flexmod in the past.

The dichro's I have are from the C@SI0 projector. They are big, but allow 445 to pass through both which is helpful, because more loss on the higher power laser

I'll look for some dt25 or dt30s. If anybody has some they would like to sell me please PM me!

You kinda lost me with the adjustable mount for the red part. I don't fully understand what you mean... Can you go into further detail please?

Also, another n00by question, what do the lasers modulation wires actually connect to? Am I missing a component or do they connect to the galvo powersupply?

[LaNeK779]

because more loss on the higher power laser

spot on! perfect


to make a short story short, to get a usable beam out of the mitsu 638, you need a short FL collimator (around 2.0 - 2.9mm). Short FL lenses need to be perfectly dead center to the diode emitter in order to get anything usable. So, if you machine something, you need to allow for some "play" (maybe 1mm maybe less) so that you can move the diode around in its "nest" to get the diode dead center. carefull, i don;t mean "rotate the diode", i mean an actual two dimensional shift. examples of these mounts can be seen in logsquared, solarfire, cdbeam or dave posts (again, search is your friend)


galvos need two things, power and signal. power is self explanatory, cable goes to the psu (not want to go into the grounding scheme here, wiring is a good long read, available here with some searching). signal cables go either directly to the db25 ilda jack (pins 1 and 14 for X and 2 and 15 for Y), or to a "break-out board" like the ones DZ or stanwax sell. I generally prefer to use one of these solutions as it makes wiring tidier and easier, plus they include safety features


ooooops....... re-reading, i see that you asked about modulation, not galvo signals...

anyway, the answer is pretty much the same. either directly to the DB25 or to a break out board (pins 5 and 18, 6 and 19, 7 and 20)

5 0 to +5V (diff) R (+) [Red]
6 0 to +5V (diff) G (+) [Green]
7 0 to +5V (diff) B (+) [Blue]

18 0 to +5V diff R (-) [Red]
19 0 to +5V diff G (-) [Green]
20 0 to +5V diff B (-) [Blue]

if you only have a single colour dpss or diode and want to display content of other colours (i.e. the whole frame, not just the green parts of it), you can use the intensity pins 3 and 16 (although this cannot behave as a fully analog signal, it is some sort of quasiTTL, too technical for me to think about it. all i know is it works). Another solution for this is to tie all the colour channels together using diodes, but then your laser will never work on full power, diodes "chop" 0.7volts of the incoming signal

[bhwollen]

Regarding the red, I just looked through a lot of this thread http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/...lashlight-Fail and my brain has turned to mush... The more I read the more confused I get. This post http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/...799#post222799 looked like I could possibly machine that with the proper blueprint, but I still don't understand all the optics to be used... What is the disadvantage to the way I linked to at LPF?

Also, using the c@sio dichros, what is the best mounts I can use?

EDIT: Alright, did some more reading, I jumped in on that group buy for the lens and mounts. I assume I could epoxy those dicros to those mounts correct? Is there anything else I need for the red other then the heatsink, diode, and driver?

[LaNeK779]

using epoxy is ok, as long as you don't use instant glue. instant glue can give off fumes that will blur your optics
two part epoxy is the way to go, something like jb weld, or jb weld kwik

sorry, i'm not familiar with the c@$io dichros. i guess if they are some sort of squarish offcuts, MM1 is the way to go, gluing the dichro so as to stick out of the side

there is also what is called a "flex mount". check out these links (dave) http://lasershowparts.com/store/inde...&productId=210 and (stanwax) http://shop.stanwaxlaser.co.uk/brass...ount-228-p.asp

[bhwollen]

Ok, I think I understand now. I should epoxy the dichros to the front of the MM1.

[LaNeK779]

glue just enough of the dichro surface to make it stay there, most of the dichro should be out of the mount, free so that both the through and reflected beams can be combined

[bhwollen]

In the middle of the MM1 isnt there a hole for the beam to pass through?

Either way, once I actually have those components I should be able to figure it out.

EDIT: Am I thinking about the MM2?

[LaNeK779]

i am not aware of a version of the mm1 with a hole in the middle.
the mm2 has both versions, one with a hole and one without one.