When using Lightburn controls, my laser is firing when I use the Frame control or the Go to Origin control. I also tried to engrave and it is just engraving the line/cut command in over and over. Yesterday, I used the machine, and all things were functional. How do I manage this? If I use the control panel to move the laser head on the machine, the laser does not fire.
I have a Boss 100wt machine with a Ruida control panel. I am using Lightburn 1.4.00
Do you have and can you drive a voltmeter?
There is nothing in Lightburn that controls what you are describing as far as I know…
We can tell you how to check the signals between the controller and the lps… I doubt that will buy you anything…
Maybe @JohnJohn has an idea…
Hang in there…
That should not be happening.
There are two possibilities.
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The Boss 100W laser should not have laser-on framing. The long infrared invisible light makes it dangerous enough that LightBurn locks it out. Active laser framing is available for the blue (visible light) diode lasers. The software switch is in the Device settings menu. The switches are named “Enable Fire Button” and “Laser on while Framing”. The controls to enable this are not present or available for a Ruida controlled device like your Boss 100W CO2 laser. It’s not really a possibility per se.
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The Controller, wiring, or LPS is problematic. If the CO2 laser tube starts when it shouldn’t it’s most often caused by the LPS failing into a live-mode followed in second place by a wiring issue. The Controller is the Least likely candidate and there are status Lights on most controllers to assist with troubleshooting.
The 100W laser power supply delivers about 50,000 Volts (give-or-take) to spark-up the tube. It’s a lot like an old Neon Sign and not very forgiving of missteps.
It may be most prudent to Power down (and UNPLUG) the engraver. Tie a loose knot in the power cord and leave it under the machine. Then wait an hour or more (overnight is good) and check the wiring between the controller and the LPS. The voltage levels at the controller are Very Low here and are safer than a vintage desk or wall phone. With the engraver unplugged these are all dormant. Take pictures of the wiring in case something moves. Loose terminals or terminal screws shouldn’t allow the laser to fire. If the wiring got warm and joined or somehow or came loose and got crossed up that could be the cause of the problem. It could be that simple.
Take pictures of the wires going into the LPS. It’s the box with the Lonely yet Terrifying Red Wire that goes to the laser tube. The wires on the opposite side of the box, in one of the plastic terminal blocks there are about half a dozen control signal wires. These are the ones that the controller uses to turn the Laser on and off.
There is usually another block of wires next to it, or a little further over with only two or three wires feeding it. These are the ones that power the LPS. With the engraver unplugged, a roll of electrical tape, and with a good picture of where the wires go, you can safely disconnect power from the LPS. Pull the wires gently in the direction they are clamped. Often the terminal block slides apart. If it slides apart, wrap the the block 3 or 4 times with electrical tape and you’re ready to proceed with troubleshooting. If it doesn’t slide apart, loosen the terminal clamping screws at the terminal block about 2 full turns and slide the wires out. Tape these individually so they can’t touch and so you can plug the engraver back in and proceed with troubleshooting.
If this is not something you’re comfortable with please Call Boss or an Electrician with additional High Voltage certifications or Neon Sign experience or anyone who used to fix Tube-Type TV sets. Sometimes when I talk about this stuff with electricians they don’t believe that it’s High Voltage so I try to make that comparison to Neon Signs and Old TV sets in conversation.
With the LPS unplugged and the power leads taped off it’s safe to move to the next step.
A volt meter is used to confirm that the signals are getting from the controller to the LPS. You may also want to check continuity or resistance in the ground path. If these are both are correct then replacing the LPS is the next step.
Advanced testing will require an oscilloscope or a meter that can interpret a PWM signal. Oscilloscopes are pretty exotic but the TV repair folks might have one. It’s not likely necessary to get this figured out.
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