Scanner Load Deep Dive

Scanner load is a point-budget metric. Understanding exactly what it measures helps you compare a file with the selected device profile.

What Is Scanner Load?

Scanner load is BeamTracer's required-PPS estimate divided by the selected profile rate. It is expressed as a percentage; 100% means the file's calculated request equals that profile value.

How BeamTracer Calculates It

The calculation is a straightforward PPS ratio against your selected device profile:

required PPS = points in the largest frame × playback FPS
load %       = required PPS ÷ (profile max kpps × 1000) × 100

All points count — including blanked points, because real DACs spend time on blanked travel just like lit segments. There is no movement-complexity weighting in the percentage itself; it is purely throughput demand vs rated capacity.

When the requested frame rate exceeds that point budget, the Safety Check also shows the estimated whole-frame rate that fits. For example, a 2,000-point frame fits about 15 FPS at 30 kpps. The message then points to the useful remedies: simplify the geometry, lower the frame rate, or select a higher profile that matches the intended device. This is point-budget arithmetic, not a certification that any projector or venue is safe at that rate.

The status color follows two thresholds:

The labels are the product's authoring warnings, not measured temperature, mechanical load, or a hardware-safety certification. Use the projector manufacturer's specified pattern, scan angle, and operating limits to choose the profile and allowable headroom.

Separately from the percentage, BeamTracer flags long blanked jumps (large blanked-travel distances across the scan field) as additional warnings. These identify paths worth checking for visible response artifacts even when the raw load percentage looks low.

The Physics

Galvo mirrors have physical mass. When you tell them to move, they must:

1. Accelerate from current position
2. Travel the required distance
3. Decelerate to stop at the target
4. Settle so the beam is stable

Longer movements can produce a different scanner response from shorter movements at the same point rate. This is why the jump warnings exist alongside the load percentage — two files at the same load percentage can contain very different paths.

Consequences of High Load

Visual Artifacts to Check

• Overshoot: A hardware response can extend past a target position
• Ringing: A hardware response can oscillate after a direction change
• Flicker or uneven brightness: A frame may take too long to redraw cleanly

Those artifacts are reasons to inspect the content and hardware setup, but BeamTracer's percentage does not measure coil temperature, wear, or servo current.

Reducing Load

1. Reduce point count in your densest frame — it sets the requirement for the whole file
2. Lower FPS if animation smoothness isn't critical (load scales linearly with FPS)
3. Adjust anchor points when corners need more hold time, while watching the added point cost
4. Add guide points during long blanked jumps to tame jump warnings
5. Optimize path order to minimize total travel

Further Reading