Laser Marking 2011 and Beyond. What is a Laser How does a Laser Work What Products are being Marked Why Laser marking is so Popular

Transcription

1 Laser Marking 2011 and Beyond What is a Laser How does a Laser Work What Products are being Marked Why Laser marking is so Popular

2 3 Key Laser components 1. A laser source,- generates the laser beam. 2. A scan head,- deflects the laser beam via Glavo Controlled mirrors thru the Lens 3. The marking software,- Translates easy layout capabilities to laser pulses.

3 How a laser marker works Laser marking is obtained by delivering and focusing a laser beam on the target surface by mean of motorized mirrors controlled by a dedicated software. Software

4 1. Laser source options Laser sources used today for marking span from 3 to 80 Watt of optical power while the most of the market belongs within the 10 to 30 Watt range. Laser technologies may from one producer to others, anyhow the main established ones are: Different Wavelengths react with Different Materials CO2-10,600nm DPSS 1,064nm (diode pumped solid state) Fiber 1,070nm Green 532nm UV 355nm

5 Laser marker In addition to a laser source of suitable wave length, a marking laser requires three other mechano-optical components which are: the beam expander, the scanner head, and the flat-field focusing lens. Resonator Scanner Head Marking Control Unit/PC Beam- Expander Lens Laser Control Unit LASER SOURCE A complete solution must include not only suitable laser emission controls, but also beam shot generation, and trajectory plotting control software.

6 Scanning Head: Beam deflection Galvo-motor Y f θ Working Distance Galvomotor X F-Theta LENS x= f*θ Working Field Y- X- Lens Y+ X+

7 Scanning Head: F-Theta Lenses Spot diameter Marking Area

8 Laser source: Q-switching effect Q-switching enables DPSS and Fiber lasers to reach very high peak power pulses, while CO2 lasers emits a continuous wave (CW). OFF ON OFF 10W 100KW peak 10W average

9 Laser source: Wavelengths Laser radiation is generated at different wavelength, depending on the laser source technology, from 180nm up to 10.6um. The most of the industrial applications belongs to the IR range. 180nm LASER radiation emission window 10600nm UV IR FIR 400 nm Visible radiation window 700nm CO Argon Nd:YAG Tripled 355 Excimer Nd:YAG Doubled 532 Visible Diode 670 He:Ne 632,8 Nd:YAG 1064 Fiber (Yb) 1070 GaAs Diode

10 Marking Software: User interface The software is used by the operator to define the marking layout by mean of a graphical user interface. Real-time control of the laser source and galvo head is then performed by the embedded software running on board the marking hardware. The software converts the graphics into vectors (parallel lines and paths) to be traced by moving the mirrors and switching the laser beam on and off accordingly.

11 Marking software: Optical correction The scanning head draws distorted shapes over the target surface because of barrel distortion effect, so, the software applies a correction algorithm in order to perfectly compensate. DISTORTED IMAGE SOFTWARE CORRECTION MARKING RESULT

12 How laser process works The marking is realized by the portion of the laser radiation absorbed by the material. Nothing is added on the material surface, the laser changes how the material reflects the light. PROCESS v INCOMING LASER ENERGY Ec Er REFLECTED Ea ABSORBED Et TRANSMITTED

13 Marking technique: Engraving The surface incision is made by rapid fusion and vaporization of the material with subsequent re-solidification of the edges of the groove. This effect is achieved by a combination of vaporization, melting and burning processes.

14 Marking technique: Ablation Anodic film, coatings or paint on metals and/or plastic can be easily vaporized without the need for high heat input, so, without affecting the underlying material.

15 Marking technique: Surface modification The material surface is altered by the inclusion of gas bubbles (foaming) or impurities. This effect is achieved by means of a controlled burning or melting process.

16 Marking technique: Color change Surface color change due to the oxidization on the metals (annealing), or photochemical reactions of the molecules of plastics (bleaching), and those of special color additives mixed into the plastics themselves.

17 Laser Integration and Safety Laser marking equipment is classified as a Class 4 device, according to the IEC international standard. Laser integrators should implement all the relevant safety features in order to provide a Class 1 system to the end user. Safety Considerations Line Of Sight Direct Touch Burn Off Eye protection Protection of digits Protection of Lungs/Nose

18 Off the Shelf Integration Stand Alone Workstation. Assembly Line Integration

19 Laser integration: Automated line Laser marking equipment is also installed onto fully automated lines where it is requested to mark part while moving. Together with safety features, the integrator should implement the automated handling using the appropriate encoder to deal with moving belt.

20 Why does the Laser Market continue its fast Growth? Salability marking part numbers and logos on parts Liability Limit liability from recall Traceability Mark and Trace through production process FDA New traceability regulations UID Universal ID Datacode Marking for Military GREEN TECHNOLOGY-No toxic inks, additives or waste

21 Mark & Read Solutions & DPM Project Support DPM project: Screening and identification of typical key marking applications in target industries: Selection of samples to be provided to DPM project leader Starting with: Automotive Electonics & Solar Surgical tools Next: food & pharma Packaging applications Tracing applications Create Package Solution to target Vertical Markets integrating reading and vision products (e.g.: Medical Tools)

22 Mark & Read Solutions Examples Automotive DPM: Automotive: glass marking Solar: silicon wafer marking Healthcare: surgical tools tracing

23 Surgical tools surface marking for traceability purposes MEDICAL Customer Request Hospitals and medical environments in general, in addition to demanding accuracy in non-disposable tools cleaning, look for traceability methods to manage huge amounts of tools. Datamatrix codes can solve this issue, but marking must not involve any modifications of the metal surface. Also, the marking system must fit strict space requirements, looking for small footprint in hospital technical departments. DLA s Solution DLA s Ulyxe 6W infrared laser marker can easily fit into small marking equipment, and its 1064 nm wavelength achieves high-contrast 2D marking on tools surface, making them easily readable despite metal reflection. The tools have subsequently passed through over 1000 sterilization cycles without any significant fading or signs of rusting. Ulyxe 1064 nm F-theta = 160 mm 2D resolution: 12 mils, 7 mils, 4 mils

24 Identification marking on general-purpose metal keys GENERAL IND. Customer Request The customer request was to mark short texts and identification logos on the heads of general-purpose keys. Given the extremely high production rate (5000 pieces/day), the marking time for a single element shouldn t be more than 4 seconds. DLA s Solution To mark short text strings, Ulyxe nm compact laser marker - with a standard f=160mm lens - is the perfect solution for both plastic and metal heads in 2 3 seconds per piece. After a later customer request of a fast way to mark complex logos and symbols, we proposed V-Lase 20 W infrared laser marker as a good-quality marking solution on all materials. Depending on the complexity of the logo, the marking time varies between 0.5 s and 1 s. Ulyxe 6 nm V-Lase nm F-theta = 160 mm F-theta = 160 mm Marking time = 2 3 s Marking time = s

25 Direct laser marking on silicone cattle tags GENERAL IND. Customer Request The request was to provide a compact laser solution to mark animal tags in order to serve decentralized service providers for local laser re-tagging of animals. The challenge was reducing the marking time down to 10 seconds for the overall animal tag pair (the tag and the round button). DLA s Solution Selecting the appropriate laser and filling parameters enables the Ulyxe 6W compact laser to perform a fast marking with dark gray contrast on both yellow and orange colored tags. The required marking time is 8 seconds. With the use of a higher power IR laser source such as V3+ 27W, the cycle time can be pushed down to about 3 seconds per piece, without any significant loss of marking quality. Ulyxe 1064 nm V nm F-theta =254 mm F-theta = 254 mm Marking time: 8 s Marking time: 3 s

26 Fast marking on plastic automotive components AUTOMOTIVE Customer Request The customer needed a very fast marking solution on the plastic shell of mechanical actuators for the automotive industry. Simultaneous marking of several pieces arranged in a planar layout was required. The marking consisted of alphanumeric strings for traceability purpose. DLA s Solution DLA s V-Lase 20 W laser marker can provide excellent contrast by changing the color of the black surface of the samples. F-theta lens with 420 mm focal length provides a marking area whose size complies with the customer requirements. The marking time per piece is less than 0.4 seconds. V-Lase 1064 nm F-theta: 420 mm Marking time < 0.4 s

27 Engraving on black rubber automotive valves AUTOMOTIVE Customer Request The request was to engrave the product code, a bacth code and the company logo on black rubber valves used in the automotive industry. The huge production rate required a very short marking time of 0,2-0,3 seconds. DLA s Solution Thanks to the wobble function, able to mark thick paths in a single passage, a V-Lase 20W equipped with a standard f=160mm lens perfectly matches the customer requirements. V-LASE 1064nm F-theta = 160mm Wobble = mm/s Marking time = 0,2s

28 Marking on electrical equipment to replace inkjet technique ELECTRONICS Customer Request The customer was looking for an automated solution to replace inkjet marking on the surface of metal covers for electrical equipment. The total marking area is about 160 x 30 mm. Both text strings and numbers should be marked, as well as small geometric figures and logos. The cycle time shouldn t exceed 1 minute. DLA s Solution DLA s V-Lase 10 W laser marker can achieve superb grey-on-white contrast and excellent readability of even the smallest features. Due to the size of the marking area, f-theta lens with 254 mm focal length is equipped. The time required to mark the complete pattern is approximately 1 minute. V-Lase 1064 nm F-theta: 254 mm Marking time: 1 min

29 Marking of identification labels on DIN modules ELECTRONICS Customer Request The request of the customer was to mark identification and traceability labels on the surface of plastic (ABS-PC blend) covers for electrical equipment. The maximum required pattern size was 60 x 35 mm and the marking time shouldn t exceed 10 seconds. DLA s Solution ZEUX nm compact laser marker, together with a standard f=160mm lens, perfectly matches the customer requirements. The cycle times are 1 second and 7 seconds for the front and lateral sides, respectively. ZEUX nm F-theta = 160mm Marking time = 1 7 s

30 Permanent marking on metal carbide tool inserts METAL WORK Customer Request The customer needed to mark short text strings on small carbide tool machine inserts. The marking had to be permanent and easy to read, and the required cycle time was 0.5 s or less. DLA s Solution Both V-Lase 20W and Violino 3+ 27W infrared laser markers are suitable for this kind of application. The higher laser power delivered to the sample by Violino 3+ allows faster marking. The cycle time needed to mark on the side of each sample is 400 ms for V-Lase 20W and 150 ms for Violino 3+, respectively. V-Lase 20W Violino 3+ 27W F-theta = 160 mm F-theta = 160 mm Marking time = 400 ms Marking time = 150 ms