Topic 1 Laser Cutter

This blog entry will consist of 
1) 4 important hazards associated to the operation of the laser cutting machine
2) Materials that CAN and CANNOT be used
3) Steps on how to operate a UNIVERSAL laser cutter
4) Some things I learnt

These are the 4 important hazards and the respective safety control measures on the operation of laser cutting machine:

Hazards	Safety control measures	Pictures to support the explanation
Fire/ Hot objects 🔥	Administrative control  -Warnings in package about flammable materials and how to put out a fire safely -Warning signs near laser cutter -Users are asked to identify location of fire extinguisher before operation of laser cutter
Materials that contain chlorine ⛽ (one should not cut materials that contain chlorine as chlorine gas will be released)	Administrative control -Warnings in package
Beam of light for cutting 🔦 (do not stare at beam as it is equivalent to staring at the sun)	Administrative control -Warnings in package -Signs near laser cutter reminding users not to stare
Exposure to laser beam  (can cause severe eye damage or skin burns)	Engineering control -A cover is put in place and user only can use laser cutter when the cover is down

Below are the materials that can be cut/engraved using laser cutting machine in FabLab ✅:

Material	Photo of material
Wood (up to 6mm) -Plywood -Natural Wood
Cardboard (burnt marks and fire may occur)
Acrylic (up to 5 mm)
Paper (burnt marks and fire may occur) -Art card -Technical board

Below are the materials that can’t be cut/engraved using laser cutting machine in Fablab ❌

Material	Photo of material
PVC
Metal
Foam
Rubber

Below are the steps on the operation of UNIVERSAL laser cutter machine in FabLab:

Start up
1)	Switch on light switch
2)	Switch on power for laser cutter, Air assist and Extractor T1442 Makerspace
3)	For MAKERSPACE, switch on the fume extractor.

Operating laser cutter (Corel-draw)
Importing design
1)	Import design from Fusion into Corel Draw
2)	In Corel Draw, select File> Import> Select chosen .DXF file and press Import
Changing fill colour
3)	At the bottom right of the screen double click on fill tool. Select the solid colour icon at the top left of pop out box
4)	Select RGB in the “Colour model” drop-down list
5)	Change respective RGB colour
Changing line colour
6)	At bottom right of the screen double click on the Pen tool
7)	Select colour drop down list> Select RGB on pop-up
8)	Repeat step 5
9)	Select width to hairline
Setting laser cutting software & setting to print
10)	Click on File> Print
11)	Click on wheel beside printer for settings before clicking “Load”
12)	Select preset that matches material type and thickness and press “Open”
13)	Check the Power, Speed, PPI before sending it for cutting. Note: Z-axis usually set as material height for optimal focus point
14)	Press “Apply”, “Ok” to print
15)	Click on the task tray at the bottom right of screen and select “Universal Laser Systems Control Panel”
16)	Close lid of laser cutter
17)	Press the “On” button on the laser cutter to begin cutting if not on. IF green start button is there, press Green start button on UCP or the physical button.

Shut down
1)	Ensure laser cutter is not cutting and lid is closed for 30-40secs
2)	Remove unwanted materials and dispose into trash
3)	Deactivate laser cutter and switch off switches
4)	Do not need to shut down PC

DOs and DONTs when there’s flame/fire on the material being cut:

DOs and DONTs	Photos to support the description
DOs
Immediately hit the emergency button/ switch off the power
Open up the cover to cut off the laser
Attempt to blow off the flame (only if you feel comfortable)
Notify staff on duty immediately
If fire is unable to blow off, 1) Remove material from the laser cutter 2) Place it on the floor and step on it to put out the fire
DONTs
Allow flame to last for more than 1-3secs

Below is my Learning Reflection on the laser cutter activities.😪
Through this practical, I learnt how to operate a laser cutter by reading and sourcing information from multiple places to write a SOP. Personally I feel that it was vital to first read through the multiple resources provided to us on brightspace and understand the steps before proceeding to write the SOP. In the brightspace package I also learnt that there are materials that cant be cut by the laser cutter. We also had to know where the emergency button and fire extinguisher was before we could start the cutting process. During the test I was very anxious and I was afraid that I would make mistakes and fail. However I remained calm and finished the test by referring to my SOP when I blanked out. This shows that the SOP was important to guide me in operating the laser cutter and I could not just count on my memory. 
Furthermore, I also learnt that the laser cutter is a important machine as it is able to give us our desired design in a short amount of time. Laser cutting is more efficient to me when I compare it to the 3D printing we did back in ICPD. It saves us more time, I remember the design I imported to the software during the test was a cute little dog that only took less than 5 seconds to print. Before I could understand what was going on, my little dog was done. Some things to take note would be that during engraving and cutting, it is easier to highlight the entire design, change the width to hairline and make it green before changing the parts you want to cut to red. 
Overall, this experience was a fun and enriching one despite of how nervous I was before the test.