A laser wire stripper is a computer-controlled machine, much like a CNC router, which uses a laser to burn off the insulation of the wire. Laser wire stripping machines are used mostly for very fine gauge wires since they do not damage the conductor. A typical CO2 laser wire stripping machine should be capable of stripping the insulation from any size wire.
The compound automatic wire stripper was first patented in 1915 by Stuart G. Wood of Brooklyn, NY.[1] The design was refined by Herman Gerhard Jan Voogd of the Netherlands eliminating the awkward 4 bar mechanism taking on the general outline that it has kept since.[2] Wood, now of Rockville IL, added reinforcements, replaceable blades, and blade stops in 1943[3] The 1943 design was also equipped to block the halves open after stripping to avoid crushing the freshly stripped wire as it returned to its rest position. A second actuation released the mechanism to return to the rest position. The action was further refined by Wood[4] and finally, in 1959, by Eugene D. Hindenburg of DeKalb, IL.[5] The 1959 refinement of the action shifted the sequence of operations so that the stripping blades opened before any other part of the mechanism began to return to the rest position while the clamping jaws retraced the sequence of operation, remaining closed until the handles were fully released.
