A Brief Overview of Laser Beam Break Systems

A beam break system is a technology that senses motion by detecting objects passing through a beam of light by coupling a laser beam with a receiver.

A transmitter (e.g. laser diode module (697-3557) ) emits the beam in the direction of a receiver (e.g. synchronous detector). The receiver detects the beam if it is sensitive to the emitted wavelength. As it is also “synchronised” with the emission of the transmitter, the receiver only detects light modulated at a specific frequency and does not respond to ambient light. If something blocks the beam, then the receiver outputs an electrical signal. The output signal from the receiver powers an LED indicator, sounds an alarm, or can be monitored with a test instrument (e.g. oscilloscope).

Beam break systems can be used for “event monitoring” to detect intruders, approaching vehicles, fog, smoke, or fluid streams. They can also be used for counting objects passing through the beam (e.g. on a production line or conveyor belt).

The Beam Break Kit (210-7349) by Global Laser, available with Laser Safety Class 1 (210-7349) , Class 2 (210-7350) or Class 3R (210-7351) transmitter options from RS Components, contains the transmitting and receiving components required to build a laser beam break system. To complete the system all you need to do is supply a DC voltage to each component and align the transmitted beam with the receiver optic.