IR lasers & EYES

[shakeshake]

When playing with an 1-2W IR laser, what's the safest distance you can;t blind somebody? How many seconds it should stay focused on the eyeball ?
I was reading here on forums: some say they are not dangerouse others say IR laser are very dangerouse.

I doub it can hurt the eyes, and you won't feel anything until is to late. I am talking if you play , even with a green/blue laser by focusing on people that are 1-2 miles away.

 

[Steve K]

From a practical viewpoint, this isn't something you want to find out. I'm not familiar with what the exact guidelines are, but my understanding is that a scanning laser can be safe, but if the same laser is stationary, it can be considered unsafe. The duration of the exposure is an important factor.

As a rule of thumb, if you are in the same building as the laser, you should probably be wearing protective googles.

 

[susanawalkly]

The beam from high power IR laser would hurt your retina directly. You might have no feeling of it until it is too late.
Anyway, please never forget wearing laser goggles while you are using such a IR laser.
It is no kidding, but a big danger.

 

[bshanahan14rulz]

Electromagnetic radiation is electromagnetic radiation. Just because our eyes can't see it, doesn't mean it doesn't exist or it can't affect us.

People often claim that 5mW (0.005W) is "safe." This doesn't mean that it is impossible to harm your retina. It means that, on average, your eye's blink reflex will be fast enough to attenuate the radiation before it causes damage to your retina.

I most certainly must have eye damage from doing stupid things when I was a kid, but I don't notice blind spots or gray spots or anything. I think eye damage is hard for someone to self-diagnose because our brains are so complex that it will "calculate" what you are supposed to see in your blind spot to make one "contiguous" picture.

 

[AnAppleSnail]

Does looking at the sun hurt? That's about 1.5mW, and it can lead to eye damage. A thousand times that is bad news. Also, IR lasers can reflect off surprising things. Metal (regardless of finish), glass, etc. I can't remember the range that diffuse and specular reflections are likely to be dangerous.

From the general thrust of your questions, I suggest getting a spiffy set of correct-wavelength goggles for everyone involved.

 

[Theodore41]

Hi.
After all I have read from the thread,I see that some bad guy,could stay close to a airport,and blind pilots with a ir laser which is not seen from the pilots so as to protect theirselves,as they are doing, when some stupid guys send to them light from a green laser.