I'm trying to build a burning laser for as low cost as possible. I've tried the whole "DVDR diodes" thing and 3 dvd drives later, I realize they simply cannot do the job at the distance I need.
I'm going to put it bluntly. At a bar nearby there's a vending machine game (BarBerCut Lite) where you control a robot arm with what you could call scissors at the tip. The point of the game is to cut the string enough for the prize to fall. I've seen a hundred bucks a night go into this machine (much of it mine) with no results.
I want to build a portable laser to cut the string, releasing the prize. The strings are about a foot from the front glass, and made of thin nylon. The bar owner doesn't like the machine as it distracts from buying beer, and for the first run actually pulled the machine forward for me to see if i could get a better angle from the side.
I'm pretty familiar with lasers and their required drivers. I also have an old 11.5v li-ion battery that still has a good ~20mWh capacity (i used for my first run, driving 3 diodes at once)
After reluctantly coming to the conclusion I simply haven't had enough experience to improvise my way through building high watt laser systems, I found this site.
Can someone help me or give me suggestions: ~1 Watt laser, focused enough to burn nylon at 1 Foot. Running off a battery. Could care less what color it is. Under $100. Maybe someone knows of a website where cheap components can be found?
I'm going to put it bluntly. At a bar nearby there's a vending machine game (BarBerCut Lite) where you control a robot arm with what you could call scissors at the tip. The point of the game is to cut the string enough for the prize to fall. I've seen a hundred bucks a night go into this machine (much of it mine) with no results.
I want to build a portable laser to cut the string, releasing the prize. The strings are about a foot from the front glass, and made of thin nylon. The bar owner doesn't like the machine as it distracts from buying beer, and for the first run actually pulled the machine forward for me to see if i could get a better angle from the side.
I'm pretty familiar with lasers and their required drivers. I also have an old 11.5v li-ion battery that still has a good ~20mWh capacity (i used for my first run, driving 3 diodes at once)
After reluctantly coming to the conclusion I simply haven't had enough experience to improvise my way through building high watt laser systems, I found this site.
Can someone help me or give me suggestions: ~1 Watt laser, focused enough to burn nylon at 1 Foot. Running off a battery. Could care less what color it is. Under $100. Maybe someone knows of a website where cheap components can be found?