weather. Availability Commercial water jet cutting systems are available from manufacturers all over the world, in a range of sizes, and with water pumps capable of a range of pressures. Typical water jet cutting machines have a working envelope as small as a few square feet, or up to hundreds of square feet. Ultra-high-pressure water pumps are available from as low as up to . While most waterjet cutting machines have a large footprint (typically 4'x8'), the first viable commercial entry into the small-footprint "desktop" sized market was created by a UPENN research team as part of their senior thesis project. This was eventually released on Kickstarter, and then went on to become the WAZER Desktop Waterjet. Operating at a significantly lower PSI, it trades speed and cutting thickness for a much lower purchase cost without sacrificing the waterjet's inherent ability to cut nearly any material, placing it well within the reach of small businesses and hobbyists who comprise the majority of its user base. Process There are six main process characteristics to water jet cutting: Uses a high velocity stream of ultra high pressure water which is produced by a high pressure pump with possible abrasive particles suspended in the stream. Is used for machining a large array of materials, including heat-sensitive, delicate or very hard materials. Produces no heat damage to workpiece surface or edges. Nozzles are typically made of sintered boride or composite tungsten carbide. Produces a taper of less than 1 degree on most cuts, which can be reduced or eliminated entirely by slowing down the cut process or tilting the jet. Distance of nozzle from workpiece affects the size of the kerf and the removal rate of material. Typical distance is . Temperature is not as much of a factor. Edge quality Edge quality for water jet cut parts is defined with the quality numbers Q1 through Q5. Lower numbers indicate rougher edge finish; higher numbers are smoother. For thin materials, the difference in cutting speed for Q1 could be as much as 3 times faster than the speed for Q5. For thicker materials, Q1 could be 6 times faster than Q5. For example, thick aluminium Q5 would be and Q1 would be , 5.8 times faster. Multi-axis cutting In 1987, Ingersoll-Rand Waterjet Systems offered a 5-axis pure-water waterjet cutting system called the Robotic Waterjet System. The system was an overhead gantry design, similar in