Need help

[mohamed talaat]

Hello,,

I bought a 5 mw 405 nm laser module and. I use this laser as a source for a laser sensor. I was able to calibrate this to work as a laser distance sensor but the problem is that laser usually hits my hand and my face. I do not know if this laser is considered danger or not as it's near the UVA and can it cause skin cancer or not.
Thanks,

[adafruit_support_bill]

I can't answer for that particular module. All our lasers are 650nm.
All laser modules should come with the appropriate warning stickers attached. You can ask the seller or manufacturer for more details.

[zener]

I think the main danger would be would be eye damage. In the UK the max allowable power for a pointer is 1 mw. Anyway I don't think 5mw will damage your skin. I think you will get a lot more UV from the sun.

[mohamed talaat]

I think the main danger would be would be eye damage. In the UK the max allowable power for a pointer is 1 mw. Anyway I don't think 5mw will damage your skin. I think you will get a lot more UV from the sun.

Thanks so much, I asked a doctor who treat skin cancer and he told me there is no danger and a 405 nm is considered safe to skin and the problem will be with less than 320 nm which is UVA and closer to UVB that may cause skin cancer. For me I bought a 650 nm red from adafruit it's much safer to my eyes also, I do not know the power and class of my blue laser all I know is that it hits my eyes 4 times directly and nothing happened to my eye . I guess it's less than 5mw and I have no prof just guess

[Franklin97355]

all I know is that it hits my eyes 4 times directly and nothing happened to my eye

Not yet but it is a very bad idea to allow a laser to shine in anyone's eyes as the eye focuses light onto the retina and the damage may not show up until it's too late.

[waltr]

With a low power visible light LASER, what typically happens when it hits your eye is you blink very quickly, its an autonomous response. This tends to prevent eye damage. If the LASER is not visible, IR, then your eye will not respond and permanent damage can happen even with low powered LASERs.

I have had a 5mW HeNe LASER hit my eye that did cause a temporary spot in my vision and some burning discomfort for a few hours. Bottom line is: do not allow any LASER to enter your eye and precautions, common sense, must be taken when using any LASER.

[mohamed talaat]

Not yet but it is a very bad idea to allow a laser to shine in anyone's eyes as the eye focuses light onto the retina and the damage may not show up until it's too late.

I'm not stupid to look at a laser directly or shine it to anyone's eyes but I'm calibrating it to work as a distance sensor and I know that it could happen during calibration you are measuring mV from the sensor. It sens's the reflection coming from the laser when it hits something at this point I needed to fix the position of of the senor and the laser. I contacted the seller and he told me that the laser is in Class 1 which is safe under any condition.

[jim123e]

Can anyone tell me if this is safe? I was at a parade and the local fraternal org was selling brightly-colored plastic-noisemaker ray-guns to kids. This is China's latest export and it featured a red visible laser that shone when the trigger was pulled. Can I trust that the Chinese are integrating eye-safe lasers for these toys?

[Franklin97355]

Can I trust that the Chinese are integrating eye-safe lasers for these toys?

I sure would not. Test and check all items that you may have doubts about.

[adafruit_support_mike]

FWIW, the collimation on inexpensive laser diodes is pretty bad, so the beam would become less concentrated as the distance from the source increases.

This is the same country that sells food products with heavy metals in them though, so I agree with Franklin: when in doubt, test.