LightVision DPSS Green Laser Pointer Modifications For 2005 model with APC These lasers have Automatic

Power Control (APC), where a photo sensor monitors the green output beam, and the IR laser diode current is controlled in order to provide a constant output. This design also incorporates a disaster avoidance current monitoring circuit, a major improvement compared to other APC-only circuits, which are tricky to properly align and suffer from instabilities that can easily result in damaged laser diodes. This document assumes you already know how to get the pointer apart. When you have the laser module pulled out, you will see the PCB. Compare it to these pictures and verify that it is EXACTLY the same layout as here, before performing any modifications. The Board

Note that some boards do NOT have LED1 and R101 installed; this is only an ON indicator. Note that your board may have some parts with different markings, and some SMT resistors may be different physical sizes as well as having slightly different values. Different values have been encountered for R102/R1; some pointers have R102=322 (3.2K) and R1=303 (30k), other pointers have R102=392 (3.9k) and R1=393 (39k). In addition, R106 has been encountered with various values between 1k and 3.9k, and R105 may be 3.2k or 3.9k. Dont worry about that, the operational differences are not that great - and the modifications swamp out these variations. For now, just verify that the layout is the same. If not, do not attempt to modify your board using these instructions! Component References First, familiarize yourself with the layout and the part references. Top side parts (right photos, above and below) are numbered 1,2,3 etc. Parts on the bottom side are numbered 101,102,103, etc. This makes it easier to determine on which side of the board any given part is located, when referring to the schematic.

Now What? If you are non-technical and/or impatient, skip ahead to the Stage I and Stage II Modifications sections. Otherwise, it is advised that you look over the schematic and read the technical circuit descriptions that follow. Page 1 of 4

LightVision DPSS Green Laser Pointer Modifications For 2005 model with APC The Schematic Diagram This one was a real bear to reverse engineer; there are 20 parts jammed onto this tiny board and 18 vias (tiny plated through holes for connecting the two board layers together) and many of these vias are underneath parts or in the middle of solder-covered pads. The only way to retain my sanity was to remove all the parts and clean the board thoroughly, and work it using a combination of layered digital macro photographs and a jewelers loupe. In addition, some parts have cryptic house number markings and needed to be measured after being removed. Anyway, it was wrenched loose, captured alive and here it is:

The Basics U101 is a 1.25V reference, it takes the battery voltage and regulates it to a constant voltage that is then divided down and applied to the op amp inputs as reference levels. A variable signal is applied to the other input. These input levels are what everything revolves around; when the inverting (-) input to the op amp exceeds the noninverting (+) input, the op amp output goes low (zero), and vice versa. The output of the op amp in some way affects the variable signal, and this forms a control loop Once that is understood, the rest is easy. . APC Circuit Description U102:A is the APC comparator. The reference is on the (+) input, and the green output feedback signal to the (-) input, as the feedback sensor is connected at the of the voltage divider for the (-) input. More green power top lowers the effective resistance of the sensor and increases the voltage at U101 Pin 2. Adjusting the pot clockwise lowers its resistance and reduces the voltage at Pin 2, so more green power is needed to raise this level, in order to achieve the op amps equilibrium state. Reducing the value of R102 increases the APC adjustment range of this circuit, at the expense of increased sensitivity to adjustment, due to the reduced adjustment resolution. When more green power is needed, the op amp drives Q2 ON harder, until equilibrium is reached. R104 limits the base current to Q2, and forms an RC integrator / filter with C101 to smooth out (stabilize) this very crude control loop. Note that R104s value is low enough to allow driving Q2 to very high output currents.

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LightVision DPSS Green Laser Pointer Modifications For 2005 model with APC Stage I - APC Modification Change R102 to a 102 (1k) resistor, and change R1 to a 10k resistor. This will provide a wide APC adjustment range and should allow adjustment to at least 250mA. If the battery current reaches 250~300mA before the pot is maxed out, there is still some APC range left and youll need to do the Stage II mod to allow higher drive current (but read the disclaimer!). With the R1 change, at least one of the manufacturer part variations is now standardized by this modification, and adjustment to at least 375mA should be possible with the Stage II mods. Overcurrent Circuit Description As we learned above, the APC circuits U101:A drives Q2 ON harder to increase the LD current. All this LD current also passes through R103, and by Ohms Law the voltage across R103 is proportional to the current through it. Since it is a 1 resistor, 100mA = 100mV across R103. The voltage on R103 is applied to the (+) input of U102:B, through R4 (R4 provides a little protection between the op amp input and the rest of the world and has no appreciable effect on the voltage at the op amp pin). So, with 250mA through our laser diode, the voltage on U102 Pin 5 will be 250mV (plus or minus component tolerances, etc.). Look again at U102:B, the constant reference voltage is applied to the (-) input. So when the voltage from R103 is too high the output of U102:B goes higher, and Q1 turns ON and steals the base drive from Q2 reducing the , LD current. This is how the circuit limits the maximum current available to the LD - and protects it against overzealous pot mods, over tweaking, or cutting the sensor wires. Calculations show the factory design limit is set between 260mA (R105=3.2K) and 300mA (R105=3.9K). Raising the reference at U101 pin 6 (by increasing the value of R105) will increase this level. Stage II - Current Limit Modification
DISCLAIMER: THE CURRENT LIMIT CIRCUIT IS A PROTECTIVE FAIL SAFE; ITS DESIGN PURPOSE IS TO PREVENT WILLING TO ACCEPT THE RISK OF DAMAGING THE LASER DIODE FROM OVER CURRENT, OR IF YOU HAVE MODIFIED YOUR POINTER WITH A LASER DIODE RATED FOR, AND CAPABLE OF SUSTAINING, AN INCREASED DRIVE CURRENT. EXCESSIVE LASER DIODE CURRENT. THE FOLLOWING MODIFICATION SHOULD ONLY BE PERFORMED IF YOU ARE

To increase the maximum current limit threshold to 350mA, change R105 to a 4.7k (472) resistor. To allow up to 400mA, use a 5.6k (562) resistor. And a 682 resistor (6.8k) will allow up to 450mA. If you really want a higher level than that, or if your board has R3 with a value other than 12k, youll have to calculate it yourself (note, this formula assumes a 1 resistor for R103).

(1.25 / (R3+R105)) * R105 = trip level (Amperes)

Note that the value of R1 may need to be lowered slightly (below 10k) in order to achieve full APC adjustment range, at higher protection current levels (>400mA). Be sure to read the following Adjustment Notes - and remember, if you push this too far and kill your pointer, dont blame me - you have been warned Page 3 of 4

LightVision DPSS Green Laser Pointer Modifications For 2005 model with APC Adjustment Notes Measuring the laser modules input current is absolutely critical to achieving meaningful results. Use a DMM or other ammeter capable of reading up to 1 ampere. Measuring the lasers green output power is also very important, if you have a real calibrated laser power meter, all the better. If not, this can be achieved with an older green LED (not a super bright type) and a microammeter (the LED will output a photocurrent when laser light is shined on it). Always take a baseline measurement before performing any modifications. Record this and use it for later comparisons. Remember that your green LED and meters combined response will not be the same as someone elses and should only be used for your own relative measurements. The active region of the LED is small, and reflections directly back into the laser will cause false high readings, so angle the beam slightly and move it for a peak when taking measurements. The LED photocurrent is a direct power indication; i.e. if you measure 6uA before mods and 48uA afterward, the laser output power is approximately 8 times what it was before . If you do not have a microammeter, you can connect the LED in parallel with a 1k resistor and use a millivoltmeter; in this case 1mV = 1uA. Adjustment is basically a matter of increasing the laser diode drive current while monitoring the green beam output power. Eventually, a point is reached where the green power does not increase with an increase in input current. This means you have passed the output capability of the assembly and you MUST reduce the LD current. Failure to heed this simple warning will WILL - result in permanent damage to the LD and greatly reduce the lifetime of the laser. Andreduced lifetime means from thousands of hours, to tens of seconds. Not all DPSS assemblies respond equally well to modifications; so be happy with what you get!

Revision History Rev 0 - January 29, 2006 Initial revision Rev 1 - January 30, 2006 Corrected rotation and placement errors on the component reference views. Fixed schematic and text. Rev 2 February 3, 2006 Optimized APC mod based on experimental results. Corrected R106 / R103 reference in current calculation text.

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