ULS Software Laser Interface

[Bill George]

Does anyone know the cost for this software? Laser Interface+ Features
Buying a used ULS V460 and wondering how much this costs from Universal and is it worth it? It looks like to me it would make life a lot easier.

[Mike Lassiter]

Bill as far as I know the drivers are provided at no cost. Go to their website and to the driver download page and see if you can download the latest driver for this machine. The driver I use allows to check their server for an updated driver and will download and install thru the driver itself. I don't know if the series you are asking about does or not.

[Mike Lassiter]

here http://www.ulsinc.com/downloads/ Bill

[Scott Shepherd]

Will the V460 even run the latest software? Where is the V in the product family? Before the M series or after? If it's before, it may not run that.

[Bill George]

Well its a 2006 machine and they talk about the interface here > http://www.ulsinc.com/products/featu...ser-interface/

I was under the impression it was an extra cost software feature.

[Scott Shepherd]

Humm, is it a VLS-460? Or just a V-460? I'm having a mental moment and the V isn't ringing a bell as a 2006 machine, but it probably is.

It's just the standard driver for the machine. The additional stuff is the material database thing and the direct import feature. Those cost money, the basic driver should be free. If it's the most current driver being used today, then it's a VERY VERY good driver. My opinion is it's one of the best, if not the best, on the market.

[Mike Lassiter]

Humm, is it a VLS-460? Or just a V-460? I'm having a mental moment and the V isn't ringing a bell as a 2006 machine, but it probably is.

It's just the standard driver for the machine. The additional stuff is the material database thing and the direct import feature. Those cost money, the basic driver should be free. If it's the most current driver being used today, then it's a VERY VERY good driver. My opinion is it's one of the best, if not the best, on the market.

I checked for new drivers yesterday and found another new release Version 5.38.57.43 that I downloaded and installed.

[Mike Lassiter]

on that webpage the link goes to there is a button for "Legacy Drivers" that has the M,V and X series

[Bill George]

Yes I see all the Drivers and such but this software I provided the Link to above allows you to run the machine without running Corel Draw or whatever with a Print Driver. (I think) It looks to be a stand alone print manager. Or is what they are showing what you ULS folks already use?

Since I don't have the machine yet, I am depending on the Knowledgeable people on here who own and operate one to clue me in. I am looking forward to getting it and learning the software.

[Mike Lassiter]

what shows on the link is the same as what I am using on my ILS laser. It's a print driver interface that you will print from Corel (or others) that you will assign the speed, power, and so forth to a color used in the graphic program. Once you "print" it using the driver then you go to the control panel and can actually print the file or move it around your cutting area and so forth. The Control Panel is the final link to the laser and you can either use it or use the run button on the machine itself ( in my case anyway) Again - I am not sure about the specific machine you are asking about, but basing my comments on how mine works.

It's sort of like 2 separate programs. One is the print driver that you will access from your graphic program, and the other one is the control panel that you can access the laser from as a stand alone program.

[Bill George]

Mike, thanks for checking it out for me. My concern is now I am creating a File, exporting as a dxf and importing into the laser control software where I assign areas to be rastered or engraved and another to vector cut. I did not want to lose that ability to assign areas or circles, ovals and etc to different functions, as above.

[Mike Lassiter]

Bill if the software works for your machine as it does mine - I can have 2000 files in the control panel that have previously been ran on the laser. What that means is once you create something in your graphic program and send it to the control panel software - it stays there (sort of) until you delete it out. So if you have something that you do over and over again for a regular customer you don't even have to use the graphic program at all. Just go into the laser control panel and find the file and you are ready to hit the run button and start cutting or engraving. It's pretty handy for experimenting too, where you can go back and see what worked for that material before and use the same settings for something new in the same material. It saves a little extra time and trouble for repetitive jobs that you do often.
I have to cut MDF to fit my cutting table because the sheets come 49" wide rather than 48" wide. I have a file permanently saved (you can do that so you don't accidently delete some you want to keep) that I run every time I place a new sheet of MDF on the cutting table.

[Scott Shepherd]

Bill, I think this is a V-460 (I think that because you said it was ). The V-460, I don't think, can run that software you linked to. I've only seen the software that runs the M-300 a couple of times in my engraving career and I recall it being something other than what you're showing on that link.

I suspect this is a legacy machine and it can't be run from that, but I could be completely wrong about that. I think it's going to take a call to ULS or someone on here with one to speak up. If it runs the latest driver, then I'd be pleasantly surprised.

[Mike Lassiter]

The driver download for the M,V and X are legacy drivers as I got it on ULS web page Scott. The link Bill posted shows the same thing I am using, but as I commented already - I don't that will be what he can run either.

[Bill George]

The driver download for the M,V and X are legacy drivers as I got it on ULS web page Scott. The link Bill posted shows the same thing I am using, but as I commented already - I don't that will be what he can run either.

I think I will contact them tomorrow. If the machines have more or less the same interface and all you need to do is upgrade the Driver for your OS, wondering why it won't work? I'd think it would all be in the Software. The machine was made in 2006 so its not all that old. They list updated drivers for Windows 7 and 8.