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From: jaf1@bunny.UUCP (Jeff Fried)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics
Subject: Re: Laser Deflection & Modulation
Message-ID: <3688@bunny.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 6-Jul-87 16:36:33 EDT
Article-I.D.: bunny.3688
Posted: Mon Jul  6 16:36:33 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 8-Jul-87 01:40:25 EDT
References: <230@ndmath.UUCP> <204600002@prism>
Organization: GTE Laboratories, Waltham, MA
Lines: 28
Summary: Source for laser deflection and modulation stuff

In article <204600002@prism>, billc@prism.UUCP writes:
> /* ---------- "Laser Deflection & Modulation" ---------- */
> Would anyone out there happen to know of someplace where I could get
> some relatively inexpensive laser beam deflection hardware of the type used
> to create laser light shows?
> /*---------------------------------------------------------------- */
(somebody else asked for the same info, so I thought I'd post it)

about 5 years ago, a group of 3 of us built a pair of laser light show
setups: one was a single laser, the other a 3-color show built with
two lasers.

We used two galvonometers per beam (one x, one y) to deflect the light.
They came from General Scanning, Inc. of Waltham, MA, and I think
they cost about $300 each at the time.  The drive electronics were
pretty simple, but had to be very precise to keep registration
between colors.  We modified the electronics that were developed
by a group under Paul Earles at the Center for Visual Studies at MIT;
each x-y pair took a small (about 4x6") board which mostly
did A-D, limiting, amplification, and a little preprocessing.
At the time, there were no applicable electronics available commercially.
Special jigs were needed to mount mirrors on the shaft of the
galvos, but that was pretty simple; We just used a microscope slide mount and
glued a flange onto it.

Have fun and good luck.

Jeff Fried (jaf1@get-labs.csnet or harvard!bunny!jaf1 or jeff@theory.mit.edu)