You never forget your first laser...

Can you remember back in the days when you’d lose the radio stations signal when you passed under a bridge? What about having to get up and blow the dust off of the needle on the record player so it would stop skipping? Technology certainly has come a long way, and lasers are touching our lives every day in ways we may not even recognize. We tend to use things without thinking about them. Has it ever occurred to you that every time you listen to a CD or point with a laser pointer, you are holding the discovery of a Nobel Prize Laureate in Physics, in your hand? Well, if you haven't, you're not really alone.

Further advancements in technology lead to the invention of the MP3 files and the players used to access these files. From the first half of 1995 through the late 1990s, MP3 files began to spread on the Internet. MP3's popularity began to rise rapidly. The small size of the files allowed for widespread peer-to-peer file sharing of music ripped from compact discs, which would have previously been nearly impossible.

While the makers of MP3 players strive to make their products smaller, more technologically advanced, and more resistant to everyday wear and tear – users will still find that repairs are needed and more refurbished models are hitting the market. Many consumers, eager to get a great deal on an MP3 player will opt for a refurbished model.


Laser Photonics Case Study:
A customer contacted Laser Photonics with a need to mark their plastic MP3 players with the word "REFURB" to distinguish full-price direct market MP3 players from second market refurbished ones. The customer wanted to use a laser system to make a mark that was not very noticeable to the end user.

FREE Sample Processing
Once our technicians received the customers' plastic samples, they used a 20 watt Pulsed Fiber Laser to etch the word "REFURB" onto the samples. Using a 160mm focal length lens and 6 watts of power, the mark was complted in just one pass in 2.84 seconds. These samples were processed at no charge to the customer.


Laser Photonics Recommendation:

For processes like this, our applications engineers recommend the Fiber Tower Desktop which has a very small footprint and is compact in height. The light, compact Desktop can be carried by one person and is fully plug-and-play. Simply plug the compact system into any 110VAC outlet and you are in business producing high quality marks on production parts.

Fiber Tower Desktop Benefits

• Small size; designed for tight workspace conditions
• Industrial-grade extruded frames with rack mount components, very small footprint
  Scissor Jack (Manual Z-axis Adjustment)
• Lightweight design for use in virtually any environment (home, office, factory, shop, etc.)
• Equipped with a Q-Switched fiber laser (0.5mJ @ 10kHz, 0.5mJ @ 20kHz available)
  50,000 MTBF (Mean Time Before Failure)