Laser cutting apparatus and laser bevel cutting method

Abstract

The present application relates to a laser cutting device and a laser bevel cutting method. The laser bevel cutting method comprises: making at least one of a pipe to be processed and a laser cutting head do a rotating movement around a central axis of the pipe to be processed; making at least one of the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head do a horizontal movement along the central axis; and controlling the laser cutting head to cut the pipe to be processed to form a desired bevel, wherein based on an angle of the desired bevel, the laser cutting head is controlled to gradually change a pitch angle relative to a vertical direction during the whole cutting process, and the rotating movement and the horizontal movement are controlled according to the pitch angle of the laser cutting head during the whole cutting process. The present application also provides a laser cutting device capable of realizing the above method. The laser cutting device and the laser bevel cutting method of the present application can greatly improve the flatness of the cutting surface of the bevel part cut out, thereby effectively improving the processing quality.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of laser processing, and more specifically to laser cutting equipment and laser beveling methods. Background Technology

[0002] Laser cutting equipment is often used for beveling hollow tubes, including the tube surface and corners, such as... Figure 8 As shown. In current conventional beveling methods, when the laser cutting head is cutting the pipe surface, its swing angle relative to the vertical direction always remains 0 or remains at an angle corresponding to the beveling angle; when the laser cutting head is cutting the pipe corner connecting the pipe surface, its swing angle relative to the vertical direction will change from 0 to an angle corresponding to the beveling angle or change from an angle corresponding to the beveling angle back to 0.

[0003] Parts cut using the conventional beveling method often have protrusions or recesses at the corners of the tubes, such as... Figure 9 As shown, this will seriously affect the splicing and welding of subsequent parts.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a new technology to improve the quality of parts cut by laser beveling. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present invention aims to overcome the above-mentioned and / or other problems in the prior art. By using the laser cutting equipment and laser beveling method of the present invention to bevele pipes, the flatness of the cut surface of the beveled parts can be greatly improved, effectively improving the processing quality.

[0006] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a laser beveling method is provided, comprising the following steps: rotating at least one of a pipe to be processed and a laser cutting head about a central axis of the pipe to be processed; moving at least one of the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head horizontally along the central axis; and controlling the laser cutting head to cut the pipe to be processed to form a desired bevel, wherein, based on the angle of the desired bevel, the laser cutting head is controlled to gradually change its swing angle relative to the vertical direction throughout the cutting process, and the rotational motion and the horizontal motion are controlled according to the swing angle of the laser cutting head throughout the cutting process.

[0007] According to a second aspect of the present invention, a laser cutting apparatus is provided, comprising: a laser cutting head; and a control device. The control device is configured to: control at least one of a tube to be processed and the laser cutting head to rotate about a central axis of the tube to be processed; control at least one of the tube to be processed and the laser cutting head to move horizontally along the central axis; and control the laser cutting head to cut the tube to be processed to form a desired bevel, wherein the control device controls the laser cutting head to gradually change its swing angle relative to the vertical direction throughout the cutting process based on the angle of the desired bevel, and simultaneously controls the rotational motion and the horizontal motion according to the swing angle of the laser cutting head throughout the cutting process.

[0008] Unlike existing cutting technologies where the laser cutting head only changes its angle at the corner of the pipe, this invention innovatively changes the angle of the laser cutting head gradually throughout the cutting process. The laser cutting head or the pipe to be processed then rotates and moves horizontally in accordance with this gradually changing angle. This cleverly distributes various mechanical errors and model deviations evenly throughout the entire processing trajectory. As a result, the bevel-cut parts produced in this way, whether on the pipe surface or at the corner, have extremely high flatness, greatly improving the processing quality.

[0009] Preferably, N positions can be selected on the surface of the pipe to be processed. These N positions are projected onto the cross-section of the pipe along the direction of the central axis, dividing each corner and each edge of the cross-section into M parts. The cross-section is perpendicular to the central axis, M is an integer ≥2, and N is an integer ≥6. The swing angle difference β between two adjacent positions of the laser cutting head and the laser cutting head at the two adjacent positions is controlled, and the rotation angle difference γ between the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head at the two adjacent positions is controlled. β is one-M of the desired bevel angle, and γ = 360° / N.

[0010] More preferably, the N locations projected onto the cross-section along the direction of the central axis can divide each corner and each side of the cross-section into M equal parts.

[0011] Preferably, the laser cutting head can start cutting from the tube surface position among the N positions, the tube surface position is projected onto the edge of the cross section along the direction of the central axis, and the swing angle of the laser cutting head at the tube surface position is 0.

[0012] In addition, the pipe to be processed can be a polygonal pipe.

[0013] According to a third aspect of the invention, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided having encoded instructions recorded thereon, which, when executed, implement the laser beveling method of the invention.

[0014] Other features and aspects of the invention will become clearer from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0015] The invention can be better understood by describing exemplary embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0016] Figure 1 This is a flowchart of a laser beveling method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] Figures 2(a) to 2(d) A schematic diagram illustrating the laser beveling method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 3 A side view of the part after laser beveling of the tube to be processed;

[0019] Figure 4 A schematic diagram is shown illustrating the laser beveling method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 5 A cross-sectional view of the pipe to be processed when performing the laser beveling method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of a variation of the laser beveling method according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0022] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of a laser cutting device according to the present invention;

[0023] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a prior art laser beveling method; and

[0024] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of a part manufactured using the existing laser beveling method. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The present invention will be further described below with reference to specific embodiments and accompanying drawings. More details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a full understanding of the present invention. However, the present invention can obviously be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein. Those skilled in the art can make similar extensions and derivations based on actual application situations without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should not be limited by the content of this specific embodiment.

[0026] Unless otherwise defined, the technical or scientific terms used in the claims and description shall have the ordinary meaning understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains. The terms "first," "second," and similar terms used in the description and claims of this application do not indicate any order, quantity, or importance, but are merely used to distinguish different components. The terms "an" or "a" and similar terms do not indicate a quantity limitation, but rather indicate the presence of at least one. The terms "comprising" or "including" and similar terms mean that the element or object preceding "comprising" or "including" encompasses the element or object listed following "comprising" or "including" and its equivalents, and do not exclude other elements or objects. The terms "connected" or "linked" and similar terms are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, nor are they limited to direct or indirect connections.

[0027] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a laser beveling method is provided.

[0028] Figure 1 A laser beveling method 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. For example... Figure 1 As shown, method 100 includes steps 120, 140 and 160, which are implemented in parallel.

[0029] In step 120, the tube to be processed or the laser cutting head is rotated around the central axis of the tube to be processed.

[0030] The pipe is hollow, unlike a solid sheet. To cut a bevel at a specific angle on the incoming pipe, each face of the pipe needs to be cut. As shown in Figure 2(a), the pipe can be rotated around its central axis, allowing the laser cutting head to cut each face without needing to rotate. Alternatively, as shown in Figure 2(b), the laser cutting head can rotate around the central axis of the pipe while keeping the pipe stationary, ensuring each face is cut. Another option is for both the pipe and the laser cutting head to rotate together around the central axis.

[0031] In step 140, the tube to be processed or the laser cutting head is moved horizontally along the central axis of the tube.

[0032] A bevel at a certain angle needs to be cut into the incoming pipe material to be processed, such as... Figure 3 The side view of the pipe shows that the pipe is cut by the laser cutting head in the horizontal direction. Figure 3The direction of the X-axis (in the middle) also needs to be changed. As shown in Figure 2(c), the tube to be processed can be moved horizontally along its central axis, or as shown in Figure 2(d), the laser cutting head can be moved horizontally along the central axis of the tube, or the tube to be processed and the laser cutting head can be moved horizontally together along the central axis of the tube.

[0033] In step 160, the laser cutting head is controlled to cut the pipe to be processed to form the desired bevel. Based on the angle of the desired bevel, the laser cutting head is controlled to gradually change the swing angle relative to the vertical direction throughout the cutting process. At the same time, the rotational motion in step 120 and the horizontal motion in step 140 are controlled according to the swing angle of the laser cutting head throughout the cutting process.

[0034] To cut a bevel at a certain angle on the incoming pipe material to be processed, in addition to the coordination of the aforementioned rotary and horizontal movements, the most important factor is the cutting action of the laser cutting head. Figure 4 A schematic diagram of pipe beveling according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown (the pipe in the figure has already undergone beveling). As shown in the figure, the pipe to be processed includes a pipe surface and a pipe corner. In order to cut the desired bevel angle, the laser cutting head may cut perpendicular to the central axis of the pipe and parallel to the pipe surface, or it may cut perpendicular to the central axis of the pipe and along the pipe corner, as needed. Of course, the laser cutting head must be at a certain angle to the vertical direction when cutting.

[0035] In conventional pipe beveling, such as Figure 8 As shown ( Figure 8 The diagram shows a laser cutting head rotating around the central axis of the tube while the tube itself remains stationary. The tube in the diagram has already undergone beveling (the arrows indicate the normal direction of the laser beam during the cutting process). Several positions are selected on the tube surface. While cutting on the tube surface, the angle of the laser cutting head relative to the vertical direction remains unchanged. However, when cutting a corner, the angle of the laser cutting head changes to correspond to the beveling angle. Taking cutting a 45° beveling as an example, existing processing methods generally involve... Figure 8 The locations A to H are selected as shown. If we consider the angle... A轴 and angle B轴 Let represent the sway angle of the laser cutting head relative to the vertical direction and the angle of rotation of the laser cutting head around the central axis of the pipe, respectively. Then, the cutting action of the laser cutting head is as follows:

[0036] Starting from position A, the angle at this point A轴 0°, angle B轴 It is also 0°;

[0037] When cutting from position A to position B, the posture of the laser cutting head remains unchanged. At position B, the angle...A轴 and angle B轴 Both are still 0°;

[0038] When cutting from position B to position C, the posture of the laser cutting head changes. At position C, the angle... A轴 -45°, angle B轴 It is 90°;

[0039] When cutting from position C to position D, the laser cutting head's posture remains unchanged again. At position D, the angle... A轴 Still -45°, angle B轴 It is still 90°;

[0040] When cutting from position D to position E, the laser cutting head's orientation changes again. At position E, the angle... A轴 It returns to 0°, angle B轴 Then it changes to 180°;

[0041] Next, the laser cutting head moves from position E to position F, maintaining the same orientation. At position F, the angle... A轴 Still 0°, angle B轴 It is still 180°;

[0042] When cutting from position F to position G, the posture of the laser cutting head will change again. At position G, the angle... A轴 Change to 45°, angle B轴 Then it changes to 270°;

[0043] When cutting from position G to position H, the laser cutting head's posture remains unchanged again. At position H, the angle... A轴 Still 45°, angle B轴 It remains at 270°;

[0044] Finally, the laser cutting head is cut back from position H to position A. During this process, the orientation and angle of the laser cutting head change. A轴 Return to 0°, angle B轴 It is 360° (0°).

[0045] Using the conventional method described above for beveling, the quality of the produced parts is not ideal; protrusions or depressions are always unavoidable at the corners of the pipes. Figure 9 As shown, this is highly detrimental to subsequent splicing and welding. The inventors discovered that one of the reasons for this problem is the inconsistent quality of the pipes to be processed, with varying degrees of deformation often occurring on the pipe surface and at pipe corners. Existing cutting methods, however, often involve angle... A轴 and angle B轴The changes all occur at the pipe corners. When the pipe corners deform, the cutting errors caused by the deformation are concentrated at the corners, resulting in bulges or depressions in the cutting trajectory. On the other hand, when calibrating the capacitance sensor on the laser cutting head nozzle, a one-to-one correspondence is established between the nozzle's distance from the pipe surface and the capacitance value; this relationship is called a capacitance model. However, this capacitance model is established when the nozzle is perpendicular to the pipe surface, and therefore only applies to the case where the laser cutting head is perpendicular to the pipe surface. But when performing beveling, the laser cutting head is often not perpendicular to the pipe surface, resulting in a mismatch in the capacitance model and a deviation in the Z-axis direction (vertical direction). This deviation changes with the angle between the laser cutting head and the pipe surface. In existing cutting methods, the angle... A轴 and angle B轴 All the changes occur at the pipe corners, so the deviation of the capacitance model will also be fully reflected at the pipe corners. The error caused by this deviation is stacked with the error caused by the pipe deformation, further aggravating the trajectory deformation of the pipe corners.

[0046] While theoretically, processing quality can be improved by compensating for pipe deformation and capacitance model deviations, compensating for pipe deformation requires actual measurement of the pipe followed by deviation compensation, which is time-consuming and severely impacts processing efficiency. Furthermore, compensating for capacitance model deviations requires capacitance calibration of the nozzle-to-pipe surface positional relationship at different angles, and then incorporating these multiple calibration results into the cutting process, which is extremely difficult to implement.

[0047] Through repeated design and experimentation, the inventors innovatively varied the swing angle of the laser cutting head throughout the entire cutting process. This variation occurs not only during pipe corner cutting but also during pipe surface cutting. Simultaneously, the rotation angle of the laser cutting head or the pipe to be processed around its central axis also changes in accordance with this swing angle variation throughout the cutting process. This cleverly integrates the abrupt cutting action into the initial trajectory processing, thereby dispersing the cutting errors caused by unavoidable pipe deformation and capacitance model deviations throughout the cutting trajectory, effectively preventing deformation of the processing trajectory at pipe corners. The bevel-cut parts processed using this invention exhibit extremely high flatness, whether at the pipe surface or corners, significantly improving product quality and providing favorable conditions for subsequent splicing and welding.

[0048] Optionally, to achieve the gradual change of the swing angle throughout the cutting process in step 160, N (N is an integer ≥ 6) positions can be selected on the surface of the pipe to be processed. These N positions, projected along the central axis of the pipe onto the cross-section of the pipe, divide each corner and edge of the cross-section into M (M is an integer ≥ 2) parts. The swing angle difference β between two adjacent positions of the laser cutting head can be controlled, and the rotation angle difference γ between the pipe to be processed or the laser cutting head at the two adjacent positions can also be controlled. β is one-M of the desired bevel angle, and γ = 360° / N.

[0049] Still referencing Figure 4 N positions can be selected on the surface of the pipe to be processed. These N positions are not only on the surface of the pipe, but also at the corners of the pipe, for example... Figure 4 Positions A to H are defined in the diagram, with positions B, D, F, and H located at various pipe bends. These N positions, along the central axis of the pipe, have corresponding projection points A' to H' on the cross-section of the pipe to be processed, as shown below. Figure 5 As shown, the cross-section is perpendicular to the central axis of the pipe. It can be understood that... Figure 4 and Figure 5 The example shown is a rectangular tube. Therefore, to cover all tube faces and corners, at least eight positions need to be selected on the surface to be processed, namely, positions A to H. Their corresponding projection points on the cross-section are also eight, namely, A' to H'. However, the tube to be processed can also be other polygonal shapes, such as triangular, pentagonal, or hexagonal tubes. Because the tube to be processed has at least three tube faces and three corners, to cover all tube faces and corners, at least six positions need to be selected on the surface to be processed according to the tube shape, i.e., N ≥ 6. Each side and corner on the cross-section corresponds to each tube face and corner of the tube, and the corresponding projection points of the N positions on the cross-section divide each side and corner into at least two parts. Still using... Figure 5 Taking a rectangular tube as an example, the projection points A' to H' on the cross-section divide the four sides and four corners of the cross-section into two parts. It can be understood that for a triangular tube, six positions can be selected so that the corresponding projection points on the cross-section divide the three sides and three corners of the cross-section into two parts. Similarly, for a pentagonal tube, ten positions can be selected so that the corresponding projection points on the cross-section divide the five sides and five corners of the cross-section into two parts. Hexagonal and other polygonal tubes can be deduced similarly, which will not be elaborated here. Furthermore, although... Figure 4On the rectangular tubing, eight of the N positions are selected, but in practice, sixteen (two at each corner and on each surface), twenty-four (three at each corner and on each surface), or even more multiples of eight can be selected as needed. This allows each side and corner of the cross-section to be divided into three, four, or even more parts. Similarly, for triangular tubing, twelve, eighteen, or even more multiples of six can be selected from the N positions. The same applies to pentagonal, hexagonal, and other polygonal tubing, which will not be elaborated upon here.

[0050] Continue with Figure 4 Taking a rectangular tube as an example (in this example, the laser cutting head rotates around the central axis of the tube, while the tube itself does not rotate; however, as mentioned earlier, it is also possible to rotate the tube around its central axis while keeping the laser cutting head stationary, or to have both the tube and the laser cutting head rotate together around the central axis), the arrows represent the normal vector direction of the laser processing beam during the cutting process. Assume the bevel angle to be processed is 45°. Figure 4 In the example, eight locations A to H were selected. Their corresponding projection points A' to H' on the cross-section divide the four sides and four corners of the pipe cross-section into two parts, where β is 22.5° and γ is 45°. Still using angles... A轴 and angle B轴 Let represent the sway angle of the laser cutting head relative to the vertical direction and the angle of rotation of the laser cutting head around the central axis of the pipe, respectively. The cutting action of the laser cutting head is as follows:

[0051] Starting from position A, the angle at this point A轴 0°, angle B轴 It is also 0°;

[0052] During the cutting process from position A to position B, the angle A轴 Gradually changing, angle B轴 The angle also changes accordingly; at position B, the angle... A轴 -22.5°, angle B轴 It is 45°;

[0053] During the cutting process from position B to position C, the angle A轴 Continue to change gradually, angle B轴 The angle also changes accordingly; at position C, the angle... A轴 -45°, angle B轴 It is 90°;

[0054] During the cutting process from position C to position D, the angle A轴 Continue to change gradually, angle B轴 The angle also changes accordingly; at position D, the angle... A轴-22.5°, angle B轴 It is 135°;

[0055] During the cut from position D to position E, the angle A轴 Continue to change gradually, angle B轴 The angle also changes accordingly; at position E, the angle... A轴 It returns to 0°, angle B轴 Then it changes to 180°;

[0056] During the cut from position E to position F, the angle A轴 Gradually changing from 0° to 22.5°, the angle... B轴 The angle also changes accordingly from 180° to 225°;

[0057] During the cut from position F to position G, the angle A轴 Gradually changing from 22.5° to 45°, the angle B轴 The angle also changes accordingly from 225° to 270°;

[0058] During the cut from position G to position H, the angle A轴 The angle gradually changes from 45° to 22.5°. B轴 The angle also changes accordingly from 270° to 315°;

[0059] Finally, during the cut from position H back to position A, the angle... A轴 Gradually changing from 22.5° back to 0°, angle B轴 It also changes accordingly from 315° to 360° (0°).

[0060] During the above cutting process, the angle A轴 and angle B轴 The process is constantly changing; the A-axis, which causes the laser cutting head to wobble, and the B-axis, which causes the laser cutting head to rotate, both participate in the interpolation throughout the entire process.

[0061] When as described above for Figure 4For the rectangular tube shown, the N positions are selected as sixteen (two at each tube corner and two on each tube surface, with each side and corner of the cross-section divided into three parts), twenty-four (three at each tube corner and three on each tube surface, with each side and corner of the cross-section divided into four parts), or even more multiples of eight. Accordingly, the above β is 15° (one-third of 45°), 11.25° (one-quarter of 45°), and so on. Similarly, the above γ is 22.5° (one-sixteenth of 360°), 15° (one-twenty-fourth of 360°), and so on. Similarly, if the tube being cut is triangular, the N positions can be selected as six (one at each corner and on each surface, with each side and corner of the cross-section divided into two parts), twelve (two at each corner and on each surface, with each side and corner of the cross-section divided into three parts), eighteen (three at each corner and on each surface, with each side and corner of the cross-section divided into four parts), or even more multiples of six. Correspondingly, β would be 22.5° (half of 45°), 15° (one-third of 45°), 11.25° (one-quarter of 45°), and so on. Similarly, γ would be 60° (one-sixth of 360°), 30° (one-twelfth of 360°), 20° (one-eighteenth of 360°), and so on. The same applies to pentagonal, hexagonal, and other polygonal tubes, which will not be elaborated upon here.

[0062] Furthermore, the bevel angle in the above-listed bevel cutting examples is 45°. It's understandable that if the bevel angle is different, simply replace the reference angle for calculating β with that other angle. For example, if... Figure 4 The rectangular tube shown has a bevel angle of 60° to be cut. When the N positions are selected as eight, sixteen, twenty-four, or even more multiples of eight, then β is 30° (half of 60°), 20° (one-third of 60°), 15° (one-quarter of 60°), and so on. The same applies to other polygonal tubes, which will not be elaborated here.

[0063] It should be noted that, although Figure 4 The N positions mentioned in the text are in Figure 5 The projection points on the cross-section are all located at the midpoints of each side and corner of the cross-section, but in reality, it is only necessary that the projection points of these N positions on the cross-section are all located at each side and corner. For example, still taking a rectangular tube as an example, the selected positions A to H can also be... Figure 6 The locations shown are not the midpoints of the edges and corners, but rather the projections of their positions onto a cross-section perpendicular to the central axis of the pipe.

[0064] The laser beveling method of the present invention gradually changes the swing angle of the laser cutting head and the angle of rotation of the laser cutting head or the tube to be processed around the central axis of the tube throughout the cutting process. The N positions selected on the surface of the tube can provide a reference for the change of the swing angle and the rotation angle. As long as the projection points of the selected N positions on the cross-section can divide each side and each corner of the cross-section into at least two parts, it can be ensured that the swing angle and the rotation angle are always changing during the process of the laser cutting head cutting from the tube surface to the tube corner and from the tube corner to the tube surface. This "distributes" various mechanical errors and model deviations to the entire processing trajectory, so as not to accumulate at the tube corner and cause the tube corner to bulge or dent.

[0065] Of course, if the points projected onto the cross-section from the N positions are evenly divided into M equal parts by each corner and each side of the cross-section, then the "distribution" of the various mechanical errors and model deviations mentioned above will be more uniform, and the control of the swing angle and the rotational motion will be smoother and more gradual, thereby further improving the overall flatness of the cut pipe. For example, it can be as follows: Figure 4 As shown, the points projected onto the cross-section from the N positions are all located at the midpoint of each side and corner of the cross-section. Alternatively, the points projected onto the cross-section from the N positions can divide each side and corner of the cross-section into three, four, or more equal parts. It is understood that the more equal divisions (M), the more evenly the various mechanical errors and model deviations are distributed, and the higher the flatness of the pipe surface and pipe corners, thereby further improving the quality of the machined parts.

[0066] The above details how to gradually change the swing angle during the entire cutting process by selecting N positions on the surface of the pipe and controlling the swing angle difference and rotation angle difference between two adjacent positions of the laser cutting head at those N positions. However, it can be understood that even without selecting positions, by directly controlling the swing angle and the rotation angle, it is also possible to gradually change the swing angle of the laser cutting head and the rotation angle of the laser cutting head or the pipe to be processed around the central axis of the pipe during the entire cutting process.

[0067] In addition, it should be noted that the polygonal pipes mentioned in this invention include not only regular polygonal pipes, i.e., regular polygonal pipes, but also irregular polygonal pipes.

[0068] Furthermore, although in the above examples the laser cutting head starts cutting from the pipe surface position (the position on the pipe surface that is projected onto the edge of the cross-section along the direction of the pipe's central axis) among the N positions, and the swing angle of the laser cutting head at that pipe surface position is 0°, the laser beveling cutting method of the present invention can actually also start cutting from the pipe corner position (the position at the pipe corner that is projected onto the corner of the cross-section along the direction of the pipe's central axis) among the N positions, for example... Figure 4 The cutting can begin at position B in the N positions, or it can start from a position on the pipe surface where the swing angle is not 0°, for example. Figure 4 The position C in the text.

[0069] Thus, the laser beveling method according to the present invention has been described. By gradually changing the swing angle of the laser cutting head and the angle of rotation of the laser cutting head or the pipe to be processed around the central axis of the pipe throughout the cutting process, the method greatly optimizes the abrupt changes in the cutting process compared with existing cutting methods, making the overall cutting action smooth and gentle. This evenly distributes various mechanical errors and model deviations that are intertwined with the abrupt changes in the cutting action throughout the entire processing trajectory, thereby significantly improving the processing quality.

[0070] According to embodiments of the present invention, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, on which encoded instructions are recorded, which, when executed, implement the laser beveling method of the present invention described above. The computer-readable storage medium may include hard disk drives, floppy disk drives, optical disc read / write (CD-R / W) drives, digital universal disk (DVD) drives, flash memory drives, and / or solid-state storage devices, etc.

[0071] According to embodiments of the present invention, a laser cutting apparatus is also provided.

[0072] refer to Figure 7 The illustration shows a laser cutting apparatus 700 according to the present invention, which includes a laser cutting head 720 and a control device 740.

[0073] The control device 740 is configured to: control at least one of the tube 760 to be processed and the laser cutting head 720 to rotate about the central axis of the tube 760; control at least one of the tube 760 to be processed and the laser cutting head 720 to move horizontally along the central axis; and control the laser cutting head 720 to cut the tube 760 to form a desired bevel. Specifically, based on the desired bevel angle, the control device 740 controls the laser cutting head 720 to gradually change its swing angle relative to the vertical direction throughout the cutting process, and simultaneously controls the rotational and horizontal movements according to the swing angle of the laser cutting head 720 throughout the cutting process.

[0074] Optionally, the control device 740 selects N positions on the surface of the pipe 760 to be processed. These N positions are projected onto the cross-section of the pipe 760 along the central axis, dividing each corner and edge of the cross-section into M parts. The cross-section is perpendicular to the central axis, where M is an integer ≥ 2 and N is an integer ≥ 6. The control device 740 controls the laser cutting head 720 to have a swing angle difference of β when it is in two adjacent positions among the N positions, and simultaneously controls the rotation angle difference of the pipe 760 or the laser cutting head 720 when they are in two adjacent positions to be γ. β is one-Mth of the desired bevel angle, and γ = 360° / N.

[0075] Optionally, the N locations projected onto the cross-section along the direction of the central axis can divide each corner and each side of the cross-section into M equal parts.

[0076] Optionally, the control device 740 can control the laser cutting head 720 to start cutting from one of the N positions on the tube surface, the tube surface position being projected onto the edge of the cross section along the direction of the central axis, and the swing angle of the laser cutting head 720 at the tube surface position being 0.

[0077] The laser cutting equipment described above can realize the laser beveling method according to the present invention as described above. Many of the design concepts and details applicable to the laser beveling method of the present invention are also applicable to the laser cutting equipment described above, and can achieve the same beneficial technical effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0078] The various aspects of the present invention have been described above through exemplary embodiments. However, it should be understood that various modifications can be made to the above exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, if suitable results can be achieved if the described techniques are performed in a different order and / or if components in the described system, architecture, device, or circuit are combined in different ways and / or replaced or supplemented by other components or their equivalents, then correspondingly, these modified other embodiments also fall within the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A laser beveling method, comprising the following steps: At least one of the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head is rotated about the central axis of the pipe to be processed; At least one of the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head is moved horizontally along the central axis; and The laser cutting head is controlled to cut the pipe to be processed to form the desired bevel. in, Based on the desired bevel angle, the laser cutting head is controlled to gradually change its swing angle relative to the vertical direction throughout the cutting process. At the same time, the rotational motion and the horizontal motion are controlled according to the swing angle of the laser cutting head throughout the cutting process.

2. The laser beveling method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, N positions are selected on the surface of the pipe to be processed. These N positions are projected onto the cross-section of the pipe along the central axis, dividing each corner and each edge of the cross-section into M parts. The cross-section is perpendicular to the central axis, where M is an integer ≥ 2 and N is an integer ≥ 6. Specifically, the difference in the swing angle β between two adjacent positions of the laser cutting head in the N positions is controlled, and the difference in the rotation angle γ between the pipe to be processed or the laser cutting head in the two adjacent positions is controlled. β is one-Mth of the desired bevel angle, and γ = 360° / N.

3. The laser beveling method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The N points projected onto the cross-section along the direction of the central axis divide each corner and each side of the cross-section into M equal parts.

4. The laser beveling method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The laser cutting head starts cutting from one of the N positions on the tube surface, which is projected onto the edge of the cross-section along the direction of the central axis, and the sway angle of the laser cutting head at the tube surface position is 0.

5. The laser beveling method as described in any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The pipe to be processed is a polygonal pipe.

6. A laser cutting device, comprising: Laser cutting head; as well as The control device is configured as follows: Control at least one of the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head to rotate about the central axis of the pipe to be processed; Control at least one of the pipe to be processed and the laser cutting head to move horizontally along the central axis; and The laser cutting head is controlled to cut the pipe to be processed to form the desired bevel. The control device controls the laser cutting head to gradually change its swing angle relative to the vertical direction throughout the cutting process based on the desired bevel angle, and simultaneously controls the rotational and horizontal movements according to the swing angle of the laser cutting head throughout the cutting process.

7. The laser cutting equipment as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The control device selects N positions on the surface of the pipe to be processed. These N positions are projected onto the cross-section of the pipe along the central axis, dividing each corner and each edge of the cross-section into M parts. The cross-section is perpendicular to the central axis, where M is an integer ≥ 2 and N is an integer ≥ 6. The control device controls the swing angle difference β of the laser cutting head when it is in two adjacent positions among the N positions, and simultaneously controls the rotation angle difference γ of the pipe to be processed or the laser cutting head when they are in the two adjacent positions. β is one-M of the desired bevel angle, and γ = 360° / N.

8. The laser cutting equipment as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The N points projected onto the cross-section along the direction of the central axis divide each corner and each side of the cross-section into M equal parts.

9. The laser cutting equipment as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The control device controls the laser cutting head to start cutting from one of the N positions on the tube surface, the tube surface position is projected onto the edge of the cross section along the direction of the central axis, and the swing angle of the laser cutting head at the tube surface position is 0.

10. The laser cutting equipment as described in any one of claims 6-9, characterized in that, The pipe to be processed is a polygonal pipe.

11. A computer-readable storage medium having encoded instructions recorded thereon, which, when executed, implement the laser beveling method as described in any one of claims 1-5.

Images