The Rotary Tool

Overview

Training

Laser Cutter training required.

Required: read this entire article before attempting to set up or use this tool

Operation

Safety

All safety guidelines of the laser cutters apply here.

Setup

Location

The rotary tool currently lives in the laser maintenance cabinet.

Quantum Laser Physical Preparations

The honeycomb (and its support slats) needs to be removed to allow enough vertical space to fit the rotary tool. Setting a wood board inside the Quantum Laser can be useful for putting the rotary on top of and leveling.

When removing the honeycomb from the Quantum laser move the laser head to the back of the machine and lift the honeycomb out through the lid. When putting the honey comb back in make sure it’s centered in the bed and won’t pinch. Slowly raise the bed and adjust if needed.

Step by Step Rotary Tool Operation

1. Remove the honeycomb
2. Lower the bed to the lowest position available using the Z axis +/- buttons on the laser touch screen.
3. Place the rotary tool on the aluminum slats. For larger items, you may need to remove the slats and use custom-made lowered slats to support the rotary tool.
4. Turn off the laser.
5. Connect the rotary tool cable to the port inside the laser labeled “Rotary Axis”.
6. Using calipers, measure the diameter of your work material.
7. Place your work material on the rotary tool and adjust the wheel positions and heights to accommodate the material size and any differences diameter along the axis (i.e. for non cylinders such as pint glasses). The top of the material should be level.
8. Turn on the laser.
9. In lightburn open the Rotary Setup window (Top menu bar, Laser Tools > Rotary Setup).
10. Enable Rotary.
11. Select the Rotary type (denhac’s rotary tool is a roller).
12. Enter the steps per rotation (7700 works well for denhac’s rotary tool).
13. Enter the roller diameter (68mm for denhac’s rotary tool).
14. Enter the object diameter of your work material.
15. Using the laser touch screen, move the laser to directly over the center of your work material.
16. Set the distance between the laser head and the work material to the recommended focal distance (this may need to be done manually).
17. Send the design from Lightburn to the laser cutter. Clicking start in Lightburn is not recommended. If sending the same file multiple times you may need to change the filename that is sent to the laser – trying to overwright the same file name can produce errors.
18. On the laser touch screen set the origin (manual screen).
19. Close the lid and push the start button on the laser touch screen (auto screen).

Monitoring

Monitoring is same as with general laser cutter use. We want all operators to be present if they encounter a fire, so do not leave the machine unattended while it is running.

Shutdown & Cleanup

1. TURN OFF THE LASER. Disconnect the rotary.
2. Return rotary device to the cabinet.
3. Replace the slats and honey comb bed.
4. In LightBurn disable the rotary (Top menu bar, Laser Tools > Rotary Setup). Restart Lightburn

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Cause	Solution
Incomplete engrave and an error on the controller about not enough material.	The origin position chosen was too close to 0.00 on the Y Axis for the shape of the engrave and it attempted to move the wheel position to a negative number.	Use the UP/DOWN buttons to rotate your material 360 degrees and set your origin there instead.
Engraved pattern is squished around the rotation axis.	(Many) On light-weight objects, the rotary wheel may not grip well to the object and will have trouble turning it.	Add a little weight to the inside of the object you are engraving.
Engraved pattern is squished or stretched around the rotation axis.	(Many) The machine settings for the rotary steps/rotation or diameter are not correct.	Reload the rotary machine settings file via LightBurn, then power cycle the laser.
Rotary tool stops rotating but laser continues lasing	Y limit has been reached and the rotary tool will not pass the limit	Try moving the laser to the back of the machine and setting the origin; Place the rotary tool near the front of the machine and resume from step 15 above.
The laser bed stops descending before reaching the lowest position	The laser incorrectly senses that the bed is at the lower limit	Turn the laser off and on again then try lowering the bed further,

Materials

Same material restrictions apply as for general laser use. Double check that the kind of coating on your tumblers/mugs/whatever is laser-safe before you engrave them!

Files & Resources

• Quick Reference Sheet
• Product Page
• OMTech Rotary Setup Blog
• LightBurn Rotary Setup Documentation

Detailed PDFs and other resources for the laser cutters can also be found on denNAS in the SIG Laser Cutting folder.

Specifications

Name	4-WHEEL ROTARY AXIS WITH 360 DEGREE ROTATION FOR 50W AND UP CO2 LASER ENGRAVER CUTTING MACHINE
Manufacturer	OMTech
Model	LRA-GL49
Motor	NEMA 23
Engrave Lengths	2 – 14 inches (5 – 35 cm)
Engrave Diameters	0.4 – 6.0 inches (1 – 15 cm)
Angular Precision	+/- 5%

History

2024-06: Rotary tool available for beta testing

2024-11: Rotary tool available for general use after reading this article and watching the video