Goals so far

● I will redo the look of the laser

● I will redesign belt anchors
● I will try different power levels of the laser
● I will begin printing new parts
● I will set up my advisor meeting

My research/ what I learned

Most of my time the past few weeks has been redesigning.

I found problems with my initial design when assembling
the laser, and aimed to solve these problems.

The biggest issue I had to resolve was the belt anchors

snapping. The torque of the stepper motors was too much
for the plastic pegs and they broke. My quick fix was super
glue, but I have since come up with a better solution.
This new design for the stepper carriage will be a lot
stronger, and will allow me to put more torque on the part
from the stepper.
I have been learning from my mistakes with the first
design to make this second design better. I have been
doing less learning and research from the internet and
more from what I have already done.

Citations
https://www.controleng.com/articles/stepper-motor-torque-
basics/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLnt-kuxnXo

Accomplishments

My accomplishments in the past weeks have mostly been

with redesigning. My goal on top of making the laser
stronger has been making it look better.
The redesign of the stepper motor carriage is both
functional and looks better in my opinion. I had to chop of
a piece of my last design in order to fit in the motor, but
this design already has the opening.
This is the new design of my legs for the laser. I think that
they look better, and will also cut down on the amount of
filament needed to print.

I have made the laser attachment thicker so that it will be

less flimsy when holding the laser. I do still need to
measure the exact hole placement for my laser module.
While I have been redesigning, I have been also working
on fixing the stepper motor problems. I have got the
motors spinning smoothly, but am still experiencing some
problems. The motors will rotate smoothly, but only after
jittering for a few steps.

Reflection

I have been able to redesign some of the look of my laser.

I have added some lettering and branding to make it look
more unique. I have also made some cosmetic changes to
make everything more pleasing to the eye.

I have also redesigned the belt anchors. The solution I

have come to is using a combination of fillits, more surface
area, and a wider radius on the different anchors. These
changes will make the pegs stronger. With stranger
anchors, I will be able to have a higher tension in the belt
which translates to more precise movements.
I have been experimenting with different power levels of
the laser. These power increments will allow me to make
lighter or darker scores with the laser. All of the power
increments are controlled by the grbl controller. This
means that the controller will be able to change the power
level during an engraving to make different line types.

I have not been able to print any of my new parts. A

combination of printer problems, and lack of filament has
made printing unavailable at the time. I am hoping that in
the next few weeks I can print the new parts and
reassemble my laser.

I have been in contact with my advisor and will be going to

his place of work to meet with him. My advisor works as a
laser engineer, so getting to see his place of work will be a
great opportunity. I am really excited to meet him and see
his work.

Overall I feel like I am starting to close in on the end of my

project. I think that once I have the problems with the
stepper motors all sorted out it should be smooth sailing. I
am hoping that within the next few weeks I can do my first
engraving trial.