Ultra-HD High-Performance Sherline CNC Laser Upgrade with PLH3D-XT-50, HP Air Nozzle

Click here to purchase the Laser Upgrade Kit with XT-50 for Sherline CNC Machines !

Features & Benefits of the PLH3D-XT-50 Cutting and Engraving Laser Head In Details

Adjustable, Microscopic & Square Beam Spot 25 - 500 DPI

All of the laser heads from PLH3D-XT-Series are distinguished by adjustable, microscopic when needed and square beam spot. By adjusting the height of the laser head above the material, one can adjust the beam spot size up to even 2mm. PLH3D-XT-50 laser head is achieving beam spot width below 50um when set in perfect focus. The square spot allows for perfect details when rasterizing graphics, and also ensures consistent thickness of the cutting line, so that even small details are perfectly reproduced according to the design. With the XT-50 you can achieve an ultra HD resolution of over 500 DPI or engrave large scale formats or images down to 25DPI.

High Power Density

As known power density is defined how much power is located in certain area. Typically it is specified in kilo wats over cm2 or mm2 (kW/cm2 or kW/mm2). This parameter is one of the most crucial parameter for cutting or engraving different materials. PLH3D-XT-Series laser heads are designed to achieve small beam-spot size the outcome of this proportional increase of the power density. Higher power density reveals new cutting and engraving possibilities. Additionally, cutting and engraving processes are significantly faster comparing to laser heads without anamorphic optics. For example with XT-50 you can engrave (not only mark) stainless steel and tool steel.

Cutting and Engraving - PLH3D-XT-50 blue laser allows to cut and engrave various materials such as wood, cardboard, rubber, paper, textiles, leather, plastic, balsa, plywood, and many others, as well as mark stainless steel, titanium and low heat conductance subtypes of steel. To learn more, please check our Manuals and Articles section.

Improved Safety - The cutting and engraving laser head is now equipped with an “Armed” indication LED. Whenever the engraving laser head is connected to the power supply, the indication LED will turn on.  Additionally, the LED will indicate overheating in case it happens. Whenever the ambient temperature of the environment in which the engraving laser operates in a CW mode exceeds 40⁰C (104⁰F), the indication LED will start blinking. Such a warning means that the temperature is about to cross the maximum operating temperature. In case the ambient temperature reaches 45⁰C (113⁰F) and above, the indication LED will no longer work and the engraving laser head will shut down.

Factory Set Lens - the engraving laser head is shipped lens installed and adjusted to focus at 60.0 mm (measured from the front-face surface of the laser head to the engraving plane). This focal distance has a well-optimized focal spot size which is suitable for many laser cutting and engraving applications. This is the best-optimized focus distance to start with! 

Input Signal Versatility and 5/10V Analog input Switch - the build-in driver allows accepting a variety of signals 0 - 5 V analog signal and 0 - 5 V, 0 - 10 V or 0 - 24 V for PWM/TTL signal. The engraving laser head is now equipped with an additional switch for the 10 V analog input. Modulation Input 1 of the cutting engraving laser can be changed from 0–5 V analog input to 0-10 V analog input. This change makes this cutting and engraving laser even more versatile, and compatible with more CNC machines and 3D printers. Please refer to the user manual to find out how to change the voltage range on Modulation Input 1.

The Built-in Driver inside the Engraving Laser Head - Opt Lasers is the first company that integrated the laser diode driver directly into the cutting and engraving laser head. A short connection between the laser diode and a driver ensures better protection for a diode, possibility of high-frequency current modulation as well as eliminates inductance effects during the switch-on. In contrast to the previous generation of the driver, the engraving laser diode driver features enhanced efficiency, produces less noise, and is built with even-higher quality components, which ensures improved reliability and long lifetime of the engraving laser.

Accepts a Wide Range of Power Supplies - 12 - 24 V, the integrated high-efficiency DC-DC converter is adjusting the input voltage to proper diode compliance voltage. This reduces the amount of heat generated and ensures over-voltage protection.

No Additional Cooling Required 24 hours / 7 days- This lightweight 300g (10.6 oz) engraving laser requires no additional cooling and can work constantly 24 hours every day. The engraving laser's body acts as a heatsink, and the fan design allows it to function as an air nozzle, protecting the lens from the smoke whilst also cooling the laser head. Rigorous testing on tens of prototype designs allowed us to optimize the heatsink’s shape and enable efficient cooling while maintaining the module’s notably compact design the distinct shape of the cutting and engraving laser heads provides the best possible cooling method for a 6 W laser diode. Numerous prototypes have been tested to find the best solution for cooling the laser diode. The current design allows the engraving laser to warm up by only 2 - 3 degrees Celsius after a whole hour of constant work at full power.

Strongest Fan Available on the Market in its Size - cooling is not the only thing that the fan is doing - 43 m³ of air per hour (25 CFM) makes a great smoke removal system. Additionally, the fan has 70000 hours of life expectancy.

Compatible with Accessories for the Ease of Use - ease of work as well as safety is crucial to us. Accessories we produce are of highest quality, milled on CNC machine, which makes the work easy and safe. Please check out the accessories we prepared for the PLH3D series.

OEM Customization is Available for Manufacturers of 3D Printers and CNC Machines.

Example Applications

PLH3D-XT-Series Engraving Laser Heads allow you to meet the biggest requirements, and broadly realize your needs in working with both soft and hard materials.

Stainless Steel
Operation	Feed Rate	Air Flow
Engraving	5mm/s (11.8 IPM)	5L/min

Exceptionally Accurate Metal Engraving

PLH3D-XT-Series engraving laser heads were devised as a series of specialized laser heads for engraving with extremely high resolution and cutting thin materials with ultra-thin lines. Based on our 6W-Series laser heads, XT-Series laser heads inherited all their advantages: versatility, compact dimensions and high-speed driver. The microscopic beam spot allows to make precise and very small size engravings in a wide variety of materials including stainless steel.

Ceramic Tile
Operation	Feed Rate	DPI
Engraving	2500/min	423

Ultra-HD Ceramic Tile Engraving

The 500 DPI capability allows for amazing quality engravings on materials like ceramic tiles. Higher power density reveals new cutting and engraving possibilities. Additionally, cutting and engraving processes are significantly faster comparing to laser heads without anamorphic optics.

Coal Duplex
Operation	Thickness	Feed Rate	Air Flow
Cutting	1mm (0.0393")	500 mm / min</td>	10-20L/min

High-End Detailed Engraving & Cutting on Soft Materials

PLH3D-XT-50 laser heads, thanks to the fact that they achieve a spot width of less than 50um, also allow cutting materials with care for a thin even cut line. For comparison, a typical human red blood cell is 5-10um in size, and the diameter of a single human hair is 50-20um.

Other PLH3D-XT-50 Applications Gallery

Built In a Laser Diode Driver by Opt Lasers - The Heart of The Laser Head

Opt Lasers is also a laser diode drivers manufacturer. Due to our experience building over years, we created a very high-efficiency driver with low power consumption and low heat production. Additionally, it is the fastest dedicated engraving laser driver available on the market, accepting signals up to 30 kHz. Using 6 W cutting and engraving laser at high speed is no longer a problem while engraving small details or making small radius turns, because the engraving laser controller is able to read all necessary signals.

CNC controllers are able to send modulation signals at great speeds, hence 30 kHz is not a problem to them. This is why a high-speed driver is a must in such a device. The driver is able to read 30 000 instructions every second, which creates enhanced precision and resolution in terms of power control. Also, the maximum driver current is 6 A so using it with 3 - 4 A value ensures an offset and a long life of the driver.

High power and high-frequency current laser diode driver

• Maximum output current capacity: 5 A
• Typical output current: 3-3.5 A
• Input voltage 12-24 V
• Integrated microcontroller for temp. measurement and soft start
• Thermal protection system: 45 °C 1
• Soft start for diode protection
• Electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection
• Reverse voltage protection
• Overcurrent protection
• Compact size and 90% efficiency
• CW Mode and Input Control Mode
• PWM/TTL and analog inputs
• Modulation bandwidth 0-30 kHz

Product Technical Specifications

Important Additional Information:

• Remember that it is not a toy.
• Laser radiation is dangerous even when scattered or reflected from any surface.
• Always use proper protection laser filter on your CNC machine dedicated to 430 - 480 nm in order to avoid reflected radiation.
• Never point laser head at people or animals.
• Do not touch the beam, it may cause burns or other injuries. 
• Do not stare at the beam or the beam spot while the material is being cut.
• Laser radiation - Avoid eye or skin exposure to direct or scattered radiation.
• Class 4 laser product.

uSpot Lens Upgrade versus XT-50: The uSpot Lens Upgrade, now a discontinued product, is replaced by our XT-50 laser head that is much more technologically advanced than the uSpot upgrade was. While the uSpot Lens Upgrade allowed you to obtain 125 DPI and 593 kW/cm² optical power density, XT-50 yields 564 DPI and an optical power density of 2469 kW/cm².

The PLH3D-XT-50 blue cutting and engraving laser head has two separate controls.

Modulation Input #1 accepts 0 - 5 V or 0-10 V for analog power modulation

Modulation Input #2 accepts 0 - 3.3V, 0 - 5 V, 0 - 10 V or 0 - 24 V for TTL/PWM, turns on the laser when the voltage exceeds 1.8 V. 

Important: Do not connect both Modulation Input 1 and Modulation Input 2 at the same time. Doing so may result in malfunction of the engraving laser.

Important: PLH3D-XT-50 engraving laser should be powered with a high-quality power supply without anything else connected. Please note: connecting the laser engraver to the same power supply unit as a stepper motor or any other high-impedance equipment is not recommended. Doing so may cause damage to the laser diode.

Important: When engraving on shiny surfaces/metals or painted metals, it's good practice to tilt the laser head by 5-7 degrees. This prevents the laser beam from reflecting back toward the laser diodes inside the laser head.