Snapmaker designs both the Auto Focus and Manual Focus modes to help you measure the focal length. To switch the focusing mode, tap Settings > Laser > Auto Focus on the Touchscreen.
¶ Tools Required
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Laser material × 1
-
Silicone plugs × 4
-
Laser safety goggles × 1
¶ Procedures
- Place the provided material on the Laser Engraving and Cutting Platform. Secure it with the silicone plugs.
- On the Touchscreen, swipe left to tap Calibration.
- Read the homing instruction on the Touchscreen. Tap Going Home, and the Laser Module will automatically jog to the starting position of X, Y, and Z axes.
If you have completed homing previously, the machine will skip this step.
- Slide the scale to set the thickness of the material (1.5 mm) and tap Next.
- Put the Calibration Card provided or a piece of A4 paper between the Laser Module and the material. Tap X-, X+, Y-, Y+ to move the Laser Module above the Calibration Card. Keep adjusting the Z Offset until you feel slight resistance when you pull out the Calibration Card, and it should be wrinkled when you push it forward. Then, pull out the Calibration Card and tap Next.
- Put on the Laser Safety Goggles and tap Next.
- Tap Set Work Origin, and then tap Run Boundary. As the Laser Module moves, the laser dot will be traveling along the path of a small rectangle on the material surface, which represents the area to be engraved. Ensure this work area on the material is blank. If not, tap X-, X+, Y-, or Y+ to reset the work origin and run boundary again. After setting the work area, tap Next.
- Read the Auto Focus instruction on the Touchscreen. Tap Start, and the machine will keep adjusting the height of the Laser Module to engrave a series of lines on the material. Then, the built-in camera will identify the best engraved line.
- After Auto Focus is completed, tap Complete.
If the screen displays Failed, tap Failed and slide the scale to choose the line corresponding to the thinnest engraved line manually. Then you may need to redo Auto Focus. For more information about the possible causes and solutions to failed auto focus, see Laser calibration failed.
¶ Related Reading
¶ Tools Required
-
Laser material × 1
-
Silicone plugs × 4
-
Laser safety goggles × 1
¶ Procedures
- Place the provided material on the Laser Engraving and Cutting Platform. Secure it with the silicone plugs.
- On the Touchscreen, swipe left to tap Calibration.
- Read the homing instruction on the Touchscreen. Tap Going Home, and the Laser Module will automatically jog to the starting position of X, Y, and Z axes.
If you have completed homing previously, the machine will skip this step.
- Slide the scale to set the thickness of the material (1.5 mm) and tap Next.
- Put the Calibration Card provided or a piece of A4 paper between the Laser Module and the material. Tap X-, X+, Y-, Y+ to move the Laser Module above the Calibration Card. Keep adjusting the Z Offset until you feel slight resistance when you pull out the Calibration Card, and it should be wrinkled when you push it forward. Then, pull out the Calibration Card and tap Next.
- Put on the Laser Safety Goggles and tap Next.
- Set Reference Points. Tap X-, X+, Y-, Y+, Z-, or Z+ to move the Laser Module. After the laser beam is focused into the smallest spot possible, tap Next.
- Tap Set Work Origin, and then tap Run Boundary. As the Laser Module moves, the laser dot will be travelling along the path of a small rectangle on the material surface, which represents the area to be engraved. Check if this work area is a blank surface on the material. If not, tap X-, X+, Y-, or Y+ to reset the work origin and run boundary again. After setting the work area, tap Next.
- Read the Manual Focus instruction on the Touchscreen. Tap Start, and the machine will keep adjusting the height of the Laser Module to engrave a series of lines on the material.
- After the engraving process is completed, check the engraving result and find the best engraved line.
For more information about how to identify the best engraved line, see How it works: measure the focal length for 1600mW laser module. If the best engraved line does not exist, see Laser calibration failed.
- On the Touchscreen, slide the scale to choose the line corresponding to the best engraved line, and tap Save to save the focal length and exit the manual focus procedure.
