LaserUser.com Forum (formerly RDWorksLab)

Hello,
I work with a local Makers space and we have a Chinese 100w CO2 laser with the Ruida RDC6442s controller. We want to be able to update our website with a webcam image of what is going on in the bed of the laser and also update the current status of what file is being run and what the expected and current run time is on the project file.
Has anyone setup a service that outputs this, or is there a way to read the data from the controller via ethernet?
Thanks in advance for the help.
-Brian

i have a PTZ camera setup to monitor my laser when operating. When working in the shop it is more convienent to look up a monitor while working on other stuff than to stand in front of the laser.

I would not recommend using a camera to monitor progress from afar.
I don't know a way to display the controller progress via the ethernet - RDworks communicates with the laser via ethernet but it does not status work in progress.

I think Brian wants to show the laser in use in actual time rather than monitoring it from a remote site? I would look to Lightburn software which actually can use a camera in it's operation. Their program is much more modern and their people are responsive.
I have noticed that people really like to watch the laser in action, it is mesmerizing.

Basically we want to know what the current job is and how long it will be running so our maker space members can quickly look at the website and will be able to know when the laser will become available. Just Basically for scheduling of laser use time. We do want to use the Webcam to watch the laser in action cause it is quite mesmerizing.

understand - I do not believe the controller will define the duration of the project -it will show the elapsed time. The simulation mode in RDWORKS will give you a time estimate for a project but that information is not associated with the controller.

Hi Brian,

Did you manage to get a status report from your Ruida controller via its network connection? I'd like to do a similar thing and retrive the running/idle status, and would be interested in your experiances.

Best wishes,

Dean