Quote Originally Posted by unromeo View Post
Hi John,

sure, if I can help with anything I will gladly do it, the only problem is that my programming kung fu is not that strong and that project was a while ago, but I can crawl my way into a working program if I want to. I can also assist in CAD and 3d printing if there is the need.

I wonder, if the measuring sensor is ofset from the pecking axis (the cutting head) won't that be an issue ?

I have a different idea how to measure the center of the laser line that won't involve cameras and PC's, but it will need to be tested for precision. I want to try something old school and very simple: analog electronics. Two small photodiodes placed aprox. 1mm apart (depending on the thickness of the laser line) so that each will catch the side of the line. Some op-amps to compare and amplify the signal and an analog microampmeter to display when we are at the exact center. Any difference in amplitude between the two photodiodes will be amplified and shown on the meter.
I have to buy a decent laser module and will test this out soon.

Regards,
Romeo
Just remember that there are no laser line generators that paint a straight line, for that you need a pentaprism which is v.expensive. So it depends what you are trying to do. I ultimately went to a taut wire system with the camera, worked very very well for me but I only used for straightening in 1D, a dot laser would have worked equally as well if you can mount it securely enough (which is extremely difficult). I used epoxy for generating the plane for the pair of rails to sit on.

Cheers, Joe