Combination punch/laser machine
Amada’s (Buena Park, CA; www.amada.com) new LC-C1NT combination punch-laser machine has been engineered to significantly reduce the time it takes to transition between modes. According to the company, the normal transition time of almost 5 seconds has been decreased to about 2.2 seconds. In addition to the reduced transition time, the C1 machine has been designed with new Y-axis punch and laser positioning drive modules. By utilizing digital direct drive servo motors, which eliminate the need for gearboxes, positioning accuracy is increased +/- 0.003 in, approximately 25% more accurate than machines that use a gearbox in their Y-axis drives. Continuous loop feedback monitoring ensures accuracy throughout long production runs.
Laser for solar cell processing
The Mamba from Coherent Inc. (Santa Clara, CA; www.coherent.com) is a 525 W (at 1064 nm), diode-pumped, solid-state laser that delivers a combination of high reliability, long lifetime, and minimal maintenance downtime, and is primarily intended for high throughput materials processing applications such as edge deletion of solar panels and ITO patterning. The reliability of the Mamba derives from several factors including PermAlign construction for drift-free, long term alignment of its resonator optics, pump diodes fabricated using Coherent’s long lived AAA material, and indium-free hard solder pump diode packaging for extended lifetime. Furthermore, when pump diode replacement is finally required, the pump modules can easily be replaced in the field for minimal downtime and reduced cost of ownership.
Fiber-coupled, two-bar module
DILAS’ (Mainz, Germany; www.dilas.com) fiber-coupled, multi-bar modules feature a compact footprint and convenient aiming beam. These fiber-coupled, multi-bar modules deliver 808nm and 976nm wavelengths at 80 watts output power and 1550nm at 30 watts, through a 400µm core diameter fiber with a numerical aperture of <0.22 and WPE of >35%. This new housing meets customer demand for a small package and advanced features. The two-bar design is based on industry-standard conductively cooled bars, which can be cooled with industrial grade water or thermo electrical air-cooling. Achieving high brightness and high efficiency, this new module has demonstrated a lifetime greater than 10,000 hours at 80W CW operating condition.
Laser for drilling
The JK604D laser from GSI Group (Rugby, UK; www.gsiglasers.com) has been specifically designed to address percussion drilling and trepanning within the aerospace and automotive industry sectors. Typical applications include drilling of cooling holes (effusion) in jet engines and gas turbine components such as nozzle guide vanes, blades, and combustor liners. Benefits of the new laser include the following. First, a beam quality that is consistent over the wide operating range, but has been improved by 30% over that of the JK704LD1, which reduces the focused spot size, while increasing the peak power density and depth of focus, leading to a broad processing envelope and ease of application parameter determination. Second, a wide operating envelope, without the need for potentially troublesome variable intracavity optics, allows more flexibility in choosing operating parameters and matching them to processing speed variations. Third, the use of reliable, modular power supply technology from the JK Pulsed Laser Range allows a smaller power supply footprint and the use of the LaserView graphical user interface for complete control and easy, high-speed interfacing to system level controllers.