Head-mounted camera
When the camera rides on the laser head. Different alignment requirements, different workflows.
A head-mounted camera moves with the laser head. The advantage is high detail in a small area (since the camera is right above the work). The trade-off is that the camera does not see the whole bed at once, only the area under the head right now.
Calibration and alignment work differently for head-mounted versus bed-fixed cameras.
When to use head-mounted
- You need to see fine detail of the work area right under the laser.
- You want to place jobs very precisely on features (engraving onto pre-printed material, matching grain on wood).
- Your work area is large and a fixed camera could not see it all at acceptable resolution anyway.
When not to
- You need to see the whole bed at once for layout, use a lid-mounted camera instead.
- The camera weight slows down rapid moves.
- You do galvo work, there is no moving head.
What you need
- A camera light enough not to slow down the head significantly.
- A mount that keeps the camera rigid as the head moves.
- All the basics from Install a camera.
Steps
1. Mount
Mount the camera on the head, pointing down at the bed. Keep wires routed safely so they do not snag during long moves.
Set the camera's focal distance to the material surface, the camera's image is sharpest at the same height the laser focuses.
2. Calibrate the lens
Same as for bed-fixed cameras. See Calibrate the camera. The lens distortion does not change just because the camera moves.
3. Alignment uses the head's position
The key difference: a head-mounted camera's image position changes as the head moves. Alignment relates the image to the head's current workspace position, not to a fixed bed location.
Beam Bench handles this distinction internally. The Camera Alignment dialog is the same; the math underneath uses the head's reported position when computing the transform.
4. Capture overlapping frames for full-bed view
A head-mounted camera cannot see the full bed in one frame. The practical workflow is to move the head over the area of interest and capture there before starting a job.
5. Use it
After setup, the workflow is the same as a fixed camera: place jobs on the canvas where you see them in the camera image. Beam Bench handles the math.
Verify it worked
- Moving the head and capturing a fresh frame shows the new bed area in the right canvas location.
- A test burn at a marked location in the camera image lands on that location.