The Laser Cutting and Welding Machines - Research Proposal Example

The laser cutting and wielding machines Introduction The laser cutting and laser wielding machines applies a very high powered laser to help in the cutting of the perforation plates or sheets which is made up of plastic, rubber, stone, glass, rubber, composite materials or foam. The laser cutting refers to a computer numeric controlled (CNC) thermal process and non-contact which provides accurate and quick cuts with a cutting grove and narrow kerf. The most lasers cutting with the welding machines apply the use of carbon dioxide lasers or the neodymium-doped and also the yttrium aluminum garnet lasers. There are also thousand of other lasers which are available. The carbon dioxide laser cutting and wielding machines applies the use of energy state transition which occurs between the rotational states and the vibration states of the carbon dioxide molecule to help in the emission of light long infrared. This wave1lengths often occurs at about 10 µm. The carbon dioxide lasers helps in the maintenance of continuous and high levels of the power applied, making them suitable in cutting and marking applications. They are often applied in the cutting of steel and super alloys at various power levels ranging from 1 to 5 kW. The lasers are also applied in the laser eye and in the correction of the laser vision. (Krar 51) Discussion Some of the specifications for the cutting and the laser wielding machines which includes the transverse speed, power, Y-axis travel, X-axis travel and the Z-axis travel. Usually there are three different types of carbon dioxide lasers: transverse gas flow, axial gas flow and the sealed tube. For the various sealed tube lasers, the power output is 40 to 80 watts (W) per meter of the each of the tube length. The lasers are usually pumped by flash lambs, near IR laser diodes and also the gas discharge lambs. A number of the specialty laser cutting and welding laser cutting machines are applicable in the cutting of pipes tubes, films, adhesives and composite materials. The laser cutting and welding machines helped in the cutting of machines are specifically designed in the cutting of rubber, plastic, stone, marble, metal, foam, granite and the composite material. Some of the laser cutting and welding machines include integral interface and computer interface. Other systems include motorized heads, robotic arms, guidance modules, pallets, gantry tables, monitoring systems, cabinets, sensors and laser optics. Advantages of Laser Welding There are a number of advantages which are associated the laser welding and these includes; Punctual energy input which is exactly localized in very fine structures Limitation of various working piece deformation in a very slight manner or even none Very high mechanical strength of the welded seams The seams are very slim and flat with their surfaces being oxide free There is no contact welding without any effects of various effects of the mechanical force on the specific work piece Various excellent process control which helps in ensuring constant quality in the entire process of manufacturing. Various laser cutting and welding machine helps in the designing of applications with highest demand on the cutting speed. The fields of application include precision engineering, jewelry [production, electronics production, vehicle and machine construction and medical technology. There are also a number of features which has been associated with it which includes; The flexible laser cutting and the welding systems for the fast 2D and 3D in the handling of the metals such as pipes, steel sheets and 3D forms are often used. The working chamber of 1100 X 1500cm and also the working area 500 X 450 X 350mm There are various laser sources of 50W to 200W available. The laser cooling is in the integration in the machine that is used for housing. The machine can cut up to a level of 3mm. It is equipped with a number of options which includes swiveling and the tilting axis. It has got manual operations via the joystick. It has a teach mode which is also done via the joystick. The transferring of the CAD of various DXF files. (Rosato 28) The strength that lasers have as opposed to other convectional processes like stamping and the punching is that they work with minimal contact. The main cut width of 0.1 inch makes it possible for the lasers to be applied for small radius cutting. The small kerf makes it possible for very close nesting of parts which helps in the minimization of the materials maybe through heat treated after cutting without any level of distortion occurring through the grinding and reforming. Material Considerations The laser becomes very less effective as the thickness of the material increases. For example the lasers maybe ineffective for the cutting of the carbon steel thicker than 4 inches. The limitations of the thickness are usually determined by the surface reflection and the conductivity at a level of 10.6 microns and at the vaporization point of the alloys. With the upsurge in thickness, the chances of blowout will also increase. (Sugden 48) In a number of instances, the ability of the laser in cutting will be improved through the focusing of the assist gas. This gas helps in two purposes; helping in combustion and also blowing the debris or molten metal away with the required material. Other conditions also contribute in processing problems. A thermal conductivity appears to be high in materials like aluminum and so reduces the cutting speed. If any form of energy is transferred into the material inefficiently, there will be a reduction in the effectiveness of the cutting. Given amounts of the materials; they often become vapor or the molten that happens during the cutting process. They work more like plasma cutter when a thicker material is processes with larger amount of materials which become molten. (Piane 39) Material Composition The material composition affects the lasers in a dramatic manner than the processing method. This level of processing is influenced through the conductivity and also the viscosity of metal which make sit move into a liquid state. The level of tension in liquid metals also on a high level affects the level of dross which compiles to the exit edge of its part. There is the carbon content which helps in the combustion process and therefore making of higher carbon steels and materials to have very high quality, often applied as structural steels. Carbon steels usually comprise of an extensive range of elements having varied melting points. In the course of thermal process there can be a possibility of random reactions which may result from the variance in elements and also the surface condition of the material. Material Quality Usually, the laser processing is very sensitive when it comes to the quality of the material than the processes. The finish will likely to have an effect on the quality for cutting. Hot steels are associated with the quality problem because of the surface scale. The surface will tend to melt with the metal which results in the creation of a desirable finish. The layer cutting also leaves is cast layer on the surface. The stressing on the layers of the deposited material may lead it to crack. New Technologies There has been an extensive avenue on the use of technology when it comes to improved speeds and the quality and reducing the operation costs. There has been a gain in the power speed and the quality of the laser beam which has been key to manufactures making use of the systems in better quality an reducing the need for secondary operations. Newer applications includes using lasers in cutting automotive industry lightweight, hot stamped and ultrahigh strength steels which could be applied when it comes to making a fuel efficient automobiles. There is also the use of robots to help in the manufacturing advantages over an expensive system including lower costs with high flexibility. There has also been convergence of technologies to help in addressing this. The adopted mixture .of high powered lasers with a high quality of the beam and also high performance five-axis systems has come into solutions with the TruLaser Cell 8030 developed to a hot stamping business. There has also been the introduction of LC30. This will help in the offering of a more intelligent control with regards to adaptation to a more advanced technology with the parts. This new technology will help in controlling the slope in the various welding applications. In the weld, one needs to ramp the power up to a full level power, weld and then trying to ramp it down as one comes to the end of welding. This ensures that better control is offered since the machine will be in a position to do that by itself once the parameters have been sent. There has also been the resistance marking for a number of medical devices and even for the aerospace devices. Proposal Milling and the optimization of the tool life Milling is reported to be the most common and frequently applied form of machining, a material removal process which works towards the creation of variety of various features through the cutting a way of the entire unwanted material. The process requires the milling machine, cutter, work piece and the milling machine. The work piece refers to a piece of pre-shaped material which is properly secured to the fixture which is attached to it. The cutter refers to a cutting tool with very sharp teeth which is much secured. Milling is purely applied in the production of parts which are not axially have a number of features like slots, holes and even the three dimensional surface. The parts of the milling which often entail the components are applied in very limited quantities. Another application of the milling is the entire fabrication of tooling for various processes. (Mason 72) The proposal will focus on how a tool life can be optimized during milling. The research will focus mainly on the development of miniaturized technologies which has become a global issue. There are a number of studies which is already conducted in milling, however the optimization of the tool life during milling. Another study that has been conducted to support the claim is the modeling of the machines during milling. Works Cited Bray, Stan. Milling. Ramsbury: Crowood, 2004. Print. Krar, Stephen F.. Illustrated dictionary of metalworking and manufacturing technology. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1999. Print. Piane, Alberto. Five axis laser robot for cutting and welding. Dearborn, Mich.: Society of Manufacturing Engineers, 1985. Print. Rosato, Donald V.. Plastics technology handbook manufacturing, composites, tooling, auxiliaries. New York, N.Y.] (222 East 46th Street, New York, NY 10017): Momentum Press, 2012. Print. Sugden, T. David. Milling. Nürnberg: Getränke-Fachverlag Hans Carl ;, 1999. Print. Read More