3D 256 bit gray scale bitmap, alternative SOFTWARE CONTROLLER DRIVES to LaserCut 5?

Hi all,

I have ordered a JD1325 laser-cutting machine that :D runs of “LaserCut 5.3”and was wondering.....

Can you engrave in 3D with a 256 bit gray scale bitmap image, with each shade of gray as a different power output setting with alternative SOFTWARE THAT DRIVES THE CONTROLLER BOARD that replaces Lasercut 5.3 software?

This is the links to the laser cutter I have order.
buy laser machine products from diytrade - Group1 - Product Catalog - manufacturer of CO2 Laser Engraving & Cutting Machines cnc router cnc woodworking machine cnc marble engraving machine

I have searched the net for some time now and all the information I can find on relevant threads and article just keep going on about dithering 2 tone effect and Photoshop and coral draw and all the other graphic software but never seem so give a definitive answer wither it is possible to do...
3D engrave of 256 bit gray scale bitmap image, with each shade of gray as a different power output setting...

USING DRIVER BOARD SOFTWARE, OR NEW DRIVER BOARDS + SOFTWARE ONLY! Please?

if someone could point me in some direction to all the software alternatives that I can replace Lasercut 5.3 that might be of interest that would be grate

O yes, and A Big HI to all the cnczone community this is my first thread!

I don't think its possible to get even two different shades of a grey from the workpiece being cut out?

Whatever wood you use will stay the same colour,I suppose a staining of the cutout can be stained with quite a few colours to emphasize the shadows and lights of the workpiece afterwards.

The shades of gray relate to different power settings and this relates to Bern depth like in this video making it 3D 3D Laser Cutting and Engraving - YouTube

So its burning the wood at different levels to gain the darks and lights.

I think Vcarve will suit your needs?

I thought Vcarv was just for cnc routers not laser cutting?

It's not different levels its different power output settings for each shade in you gray scale image.

We don't think this laser machine can make 3D photo,as we know most laser n Jinan is for 2 d ,
hope this can help you
Best Wishes
Lucy Lee
Jinan G.WEIKE LASER
Http://www.wklaser.com
[email protected]
TEL:86-531-88020976
FAX:86-531-88912386

Paul

The short answer:
Your machine will never do it.

The long answer:
We started looking at lasers about 2 years ago. We got samples of the "best" their machines could do from Kern, Vytek, Epilog, Jamieson, and a bunch of Chinese ones I don't remember. The ONLY machine which can do high quality 3D engraving is the Kern. That is why no one else advertises it, they cannot do it. Some of the "middle of the road" lasers do a decent job with it but once you see the Kern engravings, its hard to settle for less. We ended up buying a used Kern about a year and a half ago as the cost of a new one is around 6 figures. They are HARD to find used because everyone who buys one never wants to get rid of it. No one is selling them to upgrade because they are at the top.

For the machines with good RF excited laser tubes, I think it is mainly an issue of not having the software/control portion figured out yet. It takes a little work to get the laser power to accurately follow your command when you are feeding it 10,000+ pixels of data every second. I guess it takes more than a little work since Kern seems to be the only company with a good handle on it.

The cheaper machines with the high voltage tubes do not have quick enough rise and fall times to do it, it is just not possible. The characteristics of the tube make it take too long to turn on and off so you cannot change power levels fast enough.

On the grayscale issue:
Kern's DSP controller can accurately translate an 8 bit grayscale (256 shades) into laser power. That means each pixel in the image has an effect on the power level and hence the engraving depth. So white would be 0 power (laser off) and black would be full power (laser on). In between, the power is modulating using PWM to obtain an average power which matches the shade of gray. A grayscale image is brough into corel draw and then the Kern software interprets the colors into power levels. You can find a decent explanation of how the image affects the engraving here: http://www.gantryco.com/laser-carvin...-graphics.html

Matt