Bambu Lab has announced the R1, a 55 W CO2 laser cutter and engraver the company says is safe enough to run in a home workspace, opening a new category for the 3D printing brand.
Bambu Lab is known for its 3D printers, offering some of the most robust units makers can use at home, and now the company is looking to expand beyond fabricating with plastics into the world of laser cutting and engraving. Revealed today, the R1 cuts and engraves wood, acrylic, leather, paper and fabric, and can engrave glass, stone and coated metals.
Because it uses a CO2 laser rather than a diode, it can handle clear acrylic and glass, with Bambu Lab saying it can cut up to 18 mm of black walnut plywood and 20 mm of acrylic. The working area measures 600 by 300 mm, with an optional Conveyor accessory that feeds stock up to 3,000 mm long, bringing furniture-scale projects within reach.
Bambu Lab is looking to shake up the laser cutter space by making the technology more versatile and accessible for makers. On a typical CO2 machine, keeping mirrors aligned is a manual ritual of test shots and hand adjustments that can eat up an hour of a newcomer’s day. The R1’s Auto Laser Alignment system reads the beam with a sensor and corrects the mirrors through motorized actuators in about a minute.
A TriSense System of cameras, lasers and encoders handles positioning, focus and motion tracking, while motion algorithms proven on Bambu Lab’s 3D printers keep engraving clean at speeds of up to 1,000 mm/s. Curved objects such as bowls are also supported, with cutting accuracy of less than 0.2 mm.
Bambu Lab seems to be making safety one of the major priorities for the R1, and judging by the features the company is listing, there are some bold claims that could be exciting if they hold up during testing. The R1 carries a Class 1 laser safety rating under IEC 60825-1, which the company says allows for enclosed operation without goggles or a dedicated room. Lid-open shutoff, flame detection, crossflow ventilation, and an optional fire-extinguishing system round out the protections.
The R1 operates within Bambu Suite on both Windows and macOS, allowing users to share the same account and engage with the MakerWorld community they are already familiar with. Pre-orders open today at US$2,499, with shipping set to begin in October. We are planning to take a look at this new machine, so stay tuned to CGMagazine to learn more from our hands-on testing in the coming weeks.
