Development of a Low-Cost, Arduino-Based CNC Laser Cutting and Engraving Device for Laboratory Teaching/Learning and Engineering Purposes

Abstract

The article presents the design and implementation of a low-cost, easy-to-implement, Arduino-based computer-numerical-controlled (CNC) laser cutting and engraving device. By means of a CNC shield and appropriate drivers, as well as the G-code Reference Block Library firmware, the Arduino-Uno board can control the motion of the motors and the laser head of the CNC device, enabling the laser (which emits at 450 nm, providing an optical output of about 5.5 W) to perform cutting and engraving processes. The device is lightweight and compact in size (thus, portable and easy to place and store) and made up of open-source, easily available (even recycled) equipment at a cost of about 190 €. Despite its simplicity and low cost, the device can adapt to lab and medium-demand engineering environments and can operate on a wide variety of materials. The described device can also serve as a learning and teaching tool through which students have the opportunity to encounter a diverse range of engineering topics and skills and fully exploit the attractiveness and effectiveness of project-based and discovery learning.

Received: 17 December 2025 | Revised: 11 March 2026 | Accepted: 13 May 2026

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to this work.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available within the manuscript.

Author Contribution Statement

Georgios Akritidis: Software, Validation, Investigation, Data curation. Leonidas Dritsas: Conceptualization, Methodology, Supervision, Project administration. Gerasimos Pagiatakis: Conceptualization, Methodology, Validation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. Andreas Papadakis: Methodology, Investigation, Resources, Data curation, Writing – review & editing. Ioannis Katsiris: Investigation, Resources, Data curation, Writing – review & editing. Nikolaos Voudoukis: Investigation, Data curation, Writing – review & editing. Dimitrios Karaoulanis: Investigation, Data curation, Writing – review & editing. Dimitris Uzunidis: Investigation, Data curation, Writing – review & editing.