- Email: [email protected]
Fast processing with laser machining system
News Update Fast processing with laser machining system
D
esigned for high speed contour cutting, drilling and welding of smaller, cylindrical and other three-dimensional parts up to 725 mm across, the Laserdyne 550 Beam Director multiaxis laser machining system is available from Lumonics. It has been developed for fast information processing to ensure reliability and accuracy within tight tolerances, where processing speed, accuracy and repeatability are essential. The enclosure design has been improved to incorporate two centre opening doors, giving front and top access for easy and fast part and fixture loading. In addition, the enclosure now also provides easier access to the laser head and motion system for cleaning and routine maintenance. The company’s Laserdyne 550 Beam Director system provides automatic focus control (AFC) to maintain constant laser beam focus in either beam axis and any user selected direction, part surface coordinates (PSC) programming for faster development of three-dimensional axis part programs, and AutoNormal to orientate quickly and accu-
Laser factory to be built
ith profits and turnover claimed to be up by 18% on 1995, and an increasrately the laser beam perpen- mg worldwide demand for its systems, dicular to the part surface, laser manufacturing Trumpf is set to strengthen its thus reducing programming production capabilities with time. In addition, the system in- the building of a new laser Factory. corporates Feature-Finding The 4.4 ha allocated for the for locating critical part features and referencing key laser iirst phase of this development features together with in-tix- .s in Ditzingen, Stuttgart, Gerture gauging to verify that the many, adjacent to the compapart is fixtured correctly before ny’s headquarters. beginning processing. The factory should allow The Laserdyne Beam Di- the company to expand its rector system offers accurate, production of laser beam genhigh speed point-to-point and :rators and components - its contouring motion and the production rate of COz and _t 135” tilt motion up to 32 YAG lasers is currently more rpm as an alternative to tilt than 1000 units per annum. tables for faster throughput. The development will also The direct drive Beam Di- allow the logistics centre, rector also provides a more which is currently based extercompact operation with an nally, to be incorporated withincreased work envelope effiin the main manufacturing site. ciency. A second building phase is With its integrated laser also envisaged for the expanand motion control, graphics sion of production facilities for display, automatic start-up Trumpfs punching and niband shut down, programmable bling machines. operation and help tile and status reporting systems, the Laserdyne system provides Trumpf Ltd, President Way, ease of operation and produc- Airport Executive Park, Luton, tion efficiency for users. Bedfordshire LU2 9NL, UK.
VV
Fax: •t 44 (0) 1582 399260 Lumonics Ltd, Gothenburg Way, Sutton Fields Industrial Estate, Hull HU7 OYE, UK. Fax: + 44 (0) 1482 839233
Vi
hrough sputtering thin T coats of gold and alumina, Matsushita Electric Industrial Company’s Central Research Laboratory has succeeded in creating a high-performance, non-linear optical material, according to a recent report in me Nikkei Weekly. The response time of the material - the speed at which the material changes the index of refraction of an incoming light signal - is said to be 0.98x10 * s. The material’s most likely application is as a switch. In addition, the material is also said to exhibit a high linear optical susceptibility of 0.1 esu. That is, it is claimed to be about 30 times easier to control light with it than with conventional materials. Researchers made the material by depositing 15 alternating layers of gold and alumina on a glass surface. The conventional production technique for non-linear optical materials, the rapid quenching of melts, can create regions of high and low response rates, but when efforts are made to eliminate the low response-rate regions, the susceptibility of the material is said to drop.
Connections with reflections cause errors study by the Optoelectronics Division of the A US National Institute of Stan-
The Laserdyne 550 Beam Dimctor from Lumonics has been designed for high speed contour cuffing, drtlllng and welding
Fast optical switch developed
dards and Technology (NIST) has found that users of optical power meters can expect as much as a 10% error if the meter is used with a connector different from that used to calibrate the meter. The error sources, NIST found, are reflection properties of the detectors, windows and connectors involved. When the power incident on an optical Iibre power meter is measured, radiation is transmitted through a fibre at-
tached to the detector by a fibre connector and adapter. The closeness of the fibre connector to the detector - and its associated window - provides an opportunity for reflections that introduce errors in the power readings. To perform the study, NIST selected six common connector types from four randomly chosen vendors, and calibrations were performed on four types of power meters at three telecommunications wavelengths. National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, Colorado 80303-3328, USA
Optics & Laser fichnology Vol29 No I 1997
D
esigned for high speed contour cutting, drilling and welding of smaller, cylindrical and other three-dimensional parts up to 725 mm across, the Laserdyne 550 Beam Director multiaxis laser machining system is available from Lumonics. It has been developed for fast information processing to ensure reliability and accuracy within tight tolerances, where processing speed, accuracy and repeatability are essential. The enclosure design has been improved to incorporate two centre opening doors, giving front and top access for easy and fast part and fixture loading. In addition, the enclosure now also provides easier access to the laser head and motion system for cleaning and routine maintenance. The company’s Laserdyne 550 Beam Director system provides automatic focus control (AFC) to maintain constant laser beam focus in either beam axis and any user selected direction, part surface coordinates (PSC) programming for faster development of three-dimensional axis part programs, and AutoNormal to orientate quickly and accu-
Laser factory to be built
ith profits and turnover claimed to be up by 18% on 1995, and an increasrately the laser beam perpen- mg worldwide demand for its systems, dicular to the part surface, laser manufacturing Trumpf is set to strengthen its thus reducing programming production capabilities with time. In addition, the system in- the building of a new laser Factory. corporates Feature-Finding The 4.4 ha allocated for the for locating critical part features and referencing key laser iirst phase of this development features together with in-tix- .s in Ditzingen, Stuttgart, Gerture gauging to verify that the many, adjacent to the compapart is fixtured correctly before ny’s headquarters. beginning processing. The factory should allow The Laserdyne Beam Di- the company to expand its rector system offers accurate, production of laser beam genhigh speed point-to-point and :rators and components - its contouring motion and the production rate of COz and _t 135” tilt motion up to 32 YAG lasers is currently more rpm as an alternative to tilt than 1000 units per annum. tables for faster throughput. The development will also The direct drive Beam Di- allow the logistics centre, rector also provides a more which is currently based extercompact operation with an nally, to be incorporated withincreased work envelope effiin the main manufacturing site. ciency. A second building phase is With its integrated laser also envisaged for the expanand motion control, graphics sion of production facilities for display, automatic start-up Trumpfs punching and niband shut down, programmable bling machines. operation and help tile and status reporting systems, the Laserdyne system provides Trumpf Ltd, President Way, ease of operation and produc- Airport Executive Park, Luton, tion efficiency for users. Bedfordshire LU2 9NL, UK.
VV
Fax: •t 44 (0) 1582 399260 Lumonics Ltd, Gothenburg Way, Sutton Fields Industrial Estate, Hull HU7 OYE, UK. Fax: + 44 (0) 1482 839233
Vi
hrough sputtering thin T coats of gold and alumina, Matsushita Electric Industrial Company’s Central Research Laboratory has succeeded in creating a high-performance, non-linear optical material, according to a recent report in me Nikkei Weekly. The response time of the material - the speed at which the material changes the index of refraction of an incoming light signal - is said to be 0.98x10 * s. The material’s most likely application is as a switch. In addition, the material is also said to exhibit a high linear optical susceptibility of 0.1 esu. That is, it is claimed to be about 30 times easier to control light with it than with conventional materials. Researchers made the material by depositing 15 alternating layers of gold and alumina on a glass surface. The conventional production technique for non-linear optical materials, the rapid quenching of melts, can create regions of high and low response rates, but when efforts are made to eliminate the low response-rate regions, the susceptibility of the material is said to drop.
Connections with reflections cause errors study by the Optoelectronics Division of the A US National Institute of Stan-
The Laserdyne 550 Beam Dimctor from Lumonics has been designed for high speed contour cuffing, drtlllng and welding
Fast optical switch developed
dards and Technology (NIST) has found that users of optical power meters can expect as much as a 10% error if the meter is used with a connector different from that used to calibrate the meter. The error sources, NIST found, are reflection properties of the detectors, windows and connectors involved. When the power incident on an optical Iibre power meter is measured, radiation is transmitted through a fibre at-
tached to the detector by a fibre connector and adapter. The closeness of the fibre connector to the detector - and its associated window - provides an opportunity for reflections that introduce errors in the power readings. To perform the study, NIST selected six common connector types from four randomly chosen vendors, and calibrations were performed on four types of power meters at three telecommunications wavelengths. National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, Colorado 80303-3328, USA
Optics & Laser fichnology Vol29 No I 1997