Fiber Laser Optics and Its Importance

Fiber laser cutting is used for a wide range of applications to process and produce laser quickly and efficiently with lasers. So the question is, how does fiber laser cutting machine use laser to cut? Talking about laser, how is laser produced and what is its principle?

Optics plays a huge role in the quality of cuts. You can find consumables from Prima Optics, lvd strippit parts, trumpf, etc. We have divided fiber laser cutting machines into two types: inner optics and outer optics.

Inner or Internal Optics

Let us find out what inner optics do in the laser machine.

Cutting

The laser generator releases a super-density laser beam. It is irradiated on the metal plate by a light spot. Then the cutting material is melted or vaporized at high temperature. After that, the high-pressure gas is used to blow off the melted metal and the residue.

Laser Production

Laser is converted from electrical energy to light energy. It is obvious that the conversion between the two energy cannot be 100%. Some part of it gets converted to light energy and the other is converted to heat energy. Currently, the electro-optical conversion rate of fiber lasers is 25%-35%. So better the performance of laser, the higher is the ratio of electro-optical conversion rate. So you will have lower energy consumption.

Outer Optics

Here is what outer optics do in the laser cutting machine.

Light Transmission

When the laser generates light and transmits it through optical fiber, a certain amount of energy is lost. Because the optical fiber is connected to the laser head. Also, when they are released from the fiber-optic head, they take a wavy shape. 

Waveform Light

Waveform light cannot collect or concentrate energy. With a collimator, you can process the wave light close to parallel light. 

Focusing Lens

The main function of this lens is to collect and concentrate the parallel light and form a super density light spot. 

Protective Lenses

While using a laser cutting machine, a certain amount of metal dust and debris will be generated. If they enter the cutting head of the laser machine, then it is important to protect the lens. You can replace this lens whose average shelf life is one piece per month. Needless to say, the loss depends on the intensity of the equipment. You can invest in good-quality mirrors like the reflectors from Prima Optics, Trumpf, lvd strippit parts, etc. A good quality mirror will last long.

Copper Nozzle

After the laser crosses the protective lens, it is released through the copper nozzle. On average, you might need two pieces per month. Again, the amount of loss depends on the intensity of use of the equipment. You can buy good quality spare parts from the Trumpf, Prima, LVD, etc. for your laser machine.

How to Maintain Lens?

As discussed above, we know how the lens gets damaged when you use the laser for a period of time. But to reduce this cleaning is necessary. The correct procedure to clean the lens is to use a cotton swab and dip it in the alcohol. Alcohol evaporates if any access is left on the lens. Then gently wipe the lens with it. These lenses have a layer of coating on the lens, wipe gently so that you don’t scratch. 

Conclusion

The performance of laser cutting machines depends mainly on the condition of optics. So it is important to maintain the mirrors to get the best from them. It is advisable to change the worn-out parts on time because it will directly affect the performance of the laser. Buying good quality consumables and cleaning the spare parts at the regular interval will increase its shelf life.

Source: https://altpartsinc.wixsite.com/altpartsinc/single-post/fiber-laser-optics-and-its-importance

Laser Cutting Parts: Nozzle Types and Uses

Cincinnati Lasers are fiber laser systems that give high speed cutting on thin materials at low operating costs. This reduces the time and cost for the operators as it makes the cutting process fast and accurate. As it is a machine, there are chances that it will need some repairing after some time. Some companies provide spare parts for such laser machines. One can easily find the Mazak spare parts for these laser machines when required. 

Cincinnati laser has a touch screen display, easy to use buttons, and a full-sized keyboard. This has prima optics that are very much important to focus on the cuttings by lasers. It can easily operate on Windows Operating System, which makes it simple to use for the operator. This has a camera attached that makes it easy to see the process of cutting.

Laser technology has made many changes in the industries. Using this technology helps to easily cut and engrave materials for the best result and quality. Nozzles are for cutting or engraving the materials based on the programs set up for the process.

Advantages of Laser Technology

• Highly Accurate
• Excellence in Cut Quality
• Speed in High Processing
• Very small heat-affected zone compared to others
•  Low application of heat
• Cutting and marking with the same tools
• Cuts many materials
• No contact between material and tool
• High-pressure laser cutting

Principles of Laser Cutting 

• Rear Mirror
• Output Mirror
• Polarizing Mirror
• Telescope Mirror
• Beam Bender
• Cutting Carriage
• Adaptive Mirror
• Focusing Mirror
• Cutting Head
• Cutting Nozzle 

The standard nozzle for the Cincinnati lasers helps in engraving and cutting. There are different sizes of the nozzles according to the requirements of the cuttings and designs.

The nozzle’s correct size is very important for a perfect cutting, e.g., nozzles with large holes are for high-pressure cutting. If the size of the nozzle is a bit large, the cutting gas consumption increases and without affecting the cutting process. If the size of the nozzle is too small, the material cannot part easily. 

Importance of Nozzle Distance

The nozzle distance is very important for the cutting processes and is programmed for height control. The nozzle does not touch the material for cleaner cutting.

The distance between the material and the nozzle affects the quality of the cutting. The smaller distance between the nozzle and material gives a perfect cutting quality. There are some restrictions for better cutting:

1. For safe cutting, the minimum distance is a must.
2. Minimum distance is approximately 0.025 inches.
3. The nozzle distance is small or large for hole piercing, which depends on the thickness of the material.

Sizes of Nozzles

• Short Nozzle with large hole diameter (7mm)

Laser cutting and engraving are done using this size of nozzle and are mainly used for laser acrylic processing. It gives a beautiful flame-polished edge.

• Short Nozzle with small hole diameter (3mm)

The use of this nozzle is mainly for the cutting of those materials that emit excess smoke, like wood. This has a small opening that blows away smoke and cutting gases.

It is not suitable for engraving dust intensive materials like rubber or stamp plastic. Engraving dust settles at the nozzle’s opening, which blocks it, causing burn holes in the lens.

• Long Nozzle with small hole diameter (3mm)

This is suitable for the combination with a 2.5-inch lens, useful for the large focal length between the nozzle and the material.

• Copper Nozzles for laser cutting with compressed air

These copper nozzles are short with a hole diameter of 1.7 mm. As this has an extremely small diameter, the airflow directly targets the kerf, which makes for a clear cut. 

These are suitable for cutting thick materials like wood with 5mm or polycarbonates. This attachment comes in 4 different lengths, depending on the lens’s length and focal distance.

End Words

The spare parts are important for handling such laser machines. Mazak spare parts are very important for Cincinnati lasers, as they provide accurate parts that help maintain the machine. Using standard nozzles helps to cut the materials and engrave them with the right technique. Nozzles do not touch the material while cutting for the best quality. The sizes of nozzles affect the cutting quality.

Source: https://altpartsinc.wixsite.com/altpartsinc/single-post/laser-cutting-parts-nozzle-types-and-uses

How to Maximize Your Laser Productivity

One of the great things about laser engraving and cutting systems is the speed with which they can etch a pattern or cut even the most intricate designs. Even though lasers can help create something beautiful, the process is time-consuming. Hence, laser operators are always looking for ways to increase productivity.

As a laser operator, the first question you should ask is if you are running the laser efficiently or not. Does it have quality parts like Trumpf eco nozzle or prima optics?

So, here are a few tips and tricks you can use to ensure that you operate the laser machine efficiently.

1. Engraving multiple items in one batch:

Printing multiple times in one go reduces production time. Let’s say we have a project which requires engraving similar design on more than one item like plaques or coasters and then printing multiple pieces at once would be advisable.

According to research, engraving in batches helps users save their time by 37%. And if they have quality parts like Trumpf eco nozzle and prima optics, it makes your job easier and speedier. The number of batches you can engrave depends on the size of the table. To do this, you need to maximize the page size based on your laser machine table size in your graphic design program. You can fill up an entire table with a particular piece and engrave them all. Using a jig to space out items is very helpful and important.

2. Adjust the resolution:

If you wish to increase throughput, the resolution is a factor to definitely consider. The image is important in any engraving job the higher the DPI (dots per inch), the closer the DPI will be to engrave dots. This gives you a detailed engraved image but there are chances it might take a bit of a long engraving process. But, when you lower the engraving resolution a bit, you can increase your time savings by up to 33% or more.

To offset the low resolution, consider using different patterns found within the epilog print driver. Dithering takes the visual dot pattern that is visible with lower DPI and randomizes them. This helps them in hiding the low resolution as well. By getting the right combination of resolution and dithering pattern, it becomes easy for you to achieve a result that is perfect and takes less time.

3. Color Mapping:

You can use color mapping to save engraving time. For example – you have three columns each with 20 names. By default, the laser sees this as one image, and the laser head will travel over the white space between columns in order to engrave the entire graphic for printing. Using color mapping enables you to skip all the white space by assigning each column with a different color and associates engraving order. With the help of this method, the laser will engrave one column at a time, it passes over the white space between columns when it’s time to move to the set of names. This approach moves upwards at 43% but this rate also depends on the products you are engraving.

4. Pre-engrave items:

Customization is very popular and is a great business opportunity. But loading up the same designs, again and again, can be very difficult and boring as well. This also consumes lots of production time.

Hence, pre-engraving comes to your rescue. It helps you pre-engrave inventory before individual orders come in. You can easily pre-engrave the main graphics of the design on a batch of cutting boards. Pre-engraving is easier using laser machines having parts like Trumpf eco nozzle and prima optics.

You can pre-engrave any item be it on cutting boards, glasses, trays, etc. this will help you streamline your daily engraving tasks.

5. Use center engraving:

One more important thing is to use center engraving. It quickly sets up custom jobs on items like phone, awards, trophies, and many such which require center text or graphics. Center engraving makes it easy to work in different size items without the need to create a custom template for each of them. This feature allows users to move the laser from hand to the center of the object which they are engraving. They can also set the center point as the new home position and the laser will use the point to place the graphic. In comparison to setting up custom files and jigs, this method will help you to save a lot of time.

Final Words:

Being a fabricator and owning a laser engraving machine, you need to think wisely and think of the ways your business can grow. These tips and tricks will help you grow your business and enhance your skills by being more productive.

Source: https://altpartsinc.wixsite.com/altpartsinc/single-post/2020/06/01/Co2-Laser-Vs-Diode-Laser-Which-one-is-right-for-you

Latest Trends in Laser Cutting Machines

Laser cutting is both -- the present and the future of the technology world. Even educational organizations praise their applications and future opportunities it would bring.

Hence, this article is dedicated to the recent trends laser cutting machines are offering and how you can leverage them:

1. Introduction in the new industries:

The laser cutting machine is useful because of its fast and automated nature. Today it has become an integral part of large-scale manufacturing processes. Laser cutting machines and their parts like Prima optics, Mitsubishi replacement parts assure an increase in productivity, reduces overtime and production cost. Additionally, it even assures human safety. 

Because of these major reasons, different industries like the automotive, shipping and aviation industry are leveraging the technology. It also helps in decreasing manual labor and deliver more in less time. This, in turn, helps companies to let employees focus on other important work.

2. New nozzle designs:

There are various types of nozzle designs available in the market. Mazak uses three nozzle designs that are useful in increasing cut speed and decreasing gas consumption. 

The new designs of nozzle include a single nozzle, double nozzle and low consumption of nozzles.

Let’s see each of them in brief:

1. Single Nozzle: 

It is also known as a traditional nozzle and offers a reliable cutting performance. It is useful for ½’’ thickness of the material or under and offers minimal taper. This type of nozzle choice can be a reliable choice however it has a bit slower cutting speed for thick materials with a high gas consumption rate for these three designs.

2. Double nozzles:

They are similar to single nozzles but offer reliable cutting performance for a different range of materials. These nozzles shine for cutting ¼’’ and under. For a double nozzle, there are different cut speeds for a range of materials and it has a low gas consumption. Depending on the material and the thickness, double nozzles save 20 to 50 percent.

3. Low consumption nozzles:

If your company works for ¼’’ material and is thicker, then having an LC nozzle can be a perfect choice. It provides a faster and reliable cut speed. The LC nozzles have low gas consumption for thick materials. However, LC nozzles require large part spacing due to nozzle width.

In such scenarios, you have to make sure that the parts of your material have a proper space between them.

Each of the above-discussed designs fits perfectly for a specific cutting application. It depends on the thickness of the material and provides an advantage.

4. The rise in a fiber laser:

There are various types of laser cutting machines available and each of them having a positive or negative side. When, the CO2 laser cutting machines are high in demand due to their smooth, quick and high cutting speed, now people are adopting fiber laser cutting machines and their parts like Prima optics, Mitsubishi replacement parts. They have started understanding the advantages of machines like easy maintenance, cheap and fast cutting speed for thin materials.

5. Emerging in the common market place:

The usage of laser cutting machines is increasing at a large scale in the production and automobile industry. Going further, it is even available in various workshops for small and personal businesses. 

Businesses can even use laser cutting machines to do detail designing for home decor. Additionally, it is even helping businesses to save time and increase the production rate.

6. Increased power:

Till 2015, laser cutting machines were having the power of 4kW across North America. But, with the recent updates in the laser cutting machines, we are having 6kW of high power.

These machines and their parts like Mitsubishi replacement parts increase performance and simultaneously offer thick cutting speeds and improving quality.

There are some assumptions that high power laser machines are useful to cut thick materials, that is true. But, it is important to have a large cutting range as it will be an added advantage for high power laser cutting.

Final words:

Laser cutting machines have a wide scope for future opportunities. They are useful in multiple industries and their application is increasing rapidly.  With the latest trends, experts are anticipating even better results with added value for the entire industry. Additionally, they will even bring ease to your organization, employees and will reflect more precision in your work.

Source: http://altparts.mystrikingly.com/blog/latest-trends-in-laser-cutting-machines