Screen cover for glass top in a public space?

Is there a product available to place over the glass top when Glowforge is being used in a public place? Our local library has a unit on order and 2 administrators came by to see our GF in action and understand the noise volume. They were surprised when I gave them the GF glasses to watch the etch and cuts. They expressed concern on how to keep observers safe if the laser is in a public space in the library. Should they consider placing it in a controlled access space - or can some kind of shielding material be added to the glass top.

The 10600nm wave length will be absorbed by the lid, if an errant beam reflects. That’s not to say that the point of impact can’t damage your eyes just because of how bright it can be.

I think you only need the glasses when you’re using the pass-thru on a Pro unit.

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I’m guessing you have a Pro if you have the glasses. If that’s correct, do you have the pass-through shields? (early units did not have them installed from the factory, newer ones do)
If you have the shields in place, there is no need for the glasses.

The passthrough slots are the only place that the laser beam escape.

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Glass is mostly opaque to the 9–10µm infrared light generated by CO2 lasers. The laser will not go through the glass top.

Thank You All - I went back and looked at the Safety Training. Yes, I erred on the side of caution. GF glasses are only required when the pass through barriers are open on the Pro. I’ll clear that up with our library. So much information to assimilate. Want to be safe. I just wish I would have gotten the geeky pictures of all of us watching our pro do a 19 second cut.

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I’m glad to see you were able to reference your Pro Laser Safety Officer Training for an answer, @kyleyates!

I’m going to close this post. If you have any other questions, please create a new post or reach out to support@glowforge.com.