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FAQ
Ray5 Pilot is a local web controller for the Longer Ray5 laser engraver. It provides Dashboard controls, camera overlay tools, timelapse, SD file management, imported jobs, GRBL settings, ESP32 tools, updates, and troubleshooting helpers.
No. Use LightBurn, LaserGRBL, or another laser design program to create the file. Use Ray5 Pilot to upload, frame, run, monitor, and manage it.
Ray5 Pilot can run on Windows, Linux, and macOS when Python and the required packages are installed. Windows users can use the BAT/EXE launchers or run python app.py. Linux/macOS users can use start-ray5-pilot.sh or run python3 app.py manually.
Settings changes Ray5 Pilot's local config.json.
GRBL reads and changes controller $ firmware settings on the Ray5.
The old Machine Settings wording has been replaced with GRBL. The internal route may still use older names for compatibility, but the wiki and navigation should describe it as GRBL.
Most common causes:
- Wrong Ray5 IP in Settings.
- Ray5 is off or not on Wi-Fi.
- Computer and Ray5 are on different networks.
- Ray5 ESP3D page is busy or not responding.
- WebSocket settings are wrong.
Known Ray5 live status values are normally:
Port: 8849
Path: /
Subprotocol: arduino
It is a conservative safety state. If Ray5 Pilot loses communication while a job may still be active, it blocks some automatic actions until you physically verify the machine is safe and clear the lockout.
SD refresh pauses during active/busy states, uploads, running jobs, holds, jogs, door state, or communication-loss safety lockout. This protects the Ray5 from extra SD API requests while busy.
Pause and Resume use GRBL real-time commands. These may not return normal ok text even when the controller obeys them.
Test Fire sends a low-power/timed laser command, waits for the configured duration, then sends laser off. It still emits laser light and must be treated as dangerous.
Check the camera URL in Settings, then use Test Camera. Also confirm the camera stream opens outside Ray5 Pilot.
Open Latest opens the processed overlay snapshot.
Open Raw opens the unprocessed camera frame.
Live preview, manual snapshot, and timelapse can use different capture paths depending on what is available. Newer Ray5 Pilot versions try to use the latest live preview frame first for snapshots and timelapse. If no fresh live frame is available, Ray5 Pilot falls back to the configured camera capture method, such as HTTP snapshot, ffmpeg, or OpenCV.
Recalibrate the camera overlay first. If shape/scale are correct but the burn is slightly shifted, use Camera Overlay Alignment in Settings.
The final frame delay captures one last frame after the laser head parks. Set it to 0 if you do not want the delay.
Ray5 Pilot may detect signs of 3D-printer slicer G-code, such as hotend/bed temperature commands or extrusion moves. Export GRBL laser G-code instead.
For most jobs, use SD upload/start. SD running is usually smoother and avoids network streaming jitter.
Yes, for testing without hardware. The Ray5 Emulator is on GitHub here:
https://github.com/P0k3sm0t/ray5-emulator
Do not treat emulator success as a final safety test. Always verify on real hardware before release.