Evaristo purchased one of our blackTooth laser cutters and he added a modification that I believe to be quite useful. The blackTooth comes with a potentiometer to control the intensity of the laser, but Evaristo wanted to add a device to be able to see the measure of this intensity level.

Here is how Evaristo implemented this modification (in his words):

I made the modification of adding a digital display in order to provide a numerical display of the output strength of the laser. I purchased the display locally in Houston at an awesome store EPO (Electronic Part Outlet) for $ 8.65, the printed user manual inside say the item is PM128-E, the display is very customizable as it can display volts ( AC & DC) and amps.

The display has four connections: ground, power, signal in, and signal ground. Coming from the laser power supply I was able to the use the terminals for the 5V (power for the display), IN (signal input), and ground, when looking at the green connector these would be the terminals starting from the right. I then ran the 3 wires (as the signal and regular ground could share in this particular case) along the existing wiring and tie-wrapped as needed.

In choosing the location for the display I considered two different locations: the MDO area between the top panels and the Plexiglas area by the output strength pot. I ended up choosing the MDO area as I had handy new router I wanted to test and liked that the display would be on top so I could monitor the laser as it was cutting. Using the faceplate as a template on the underside of the MDO top, I routed down the wood to leave about a 1/4 inch area to attach the meter and its faceplate.

My next upgrades will be to swap out the potentiometer with a digital control, to provide more accurate control of the 0-5 volt range and adding limit switches.