Measuring Your Laser’s Output

Laser power can be measured on the table without disassembly of the safety system. This method is the recommended way to measure the laser output.

Place a power meter in the top left corner of the table against the rulers. Focus the laser on the sensor pad of the laser power meter. In your layout software (i.e. CorelDRAW), create a 1/2″ circle for vectoring. The circle should align to allow the laser to vector on the sensor pad of the meter. Print the square to the laser using 100% power and 1% speed.

To make the power measurement, start the laser power meter then quickly close the top of the laser system and start the engraving job. Repeat this process at least three times and average these values for a Power on the Table reading. Keep in mind that the power on the table may be less than the rated power of the tube due to the slight loss of power from each mirror and the focus lens.