A method and apparatus for controlling the motion stroke of a laser, and related devices

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of control method, device and related equipment of laser motion stroke, method includes: step 1: encoder fixed on the crossbeam of laser direct imaging equipment is calculated by the different scale values on grating read at different positions, and the real-time stroke of several lasers distributed in the crossbeam is sent to processor;Step 2, the remaining stroke obtained by the preset stroke of laser subtracting real-time stroke is calculated by processor, and according to the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of laser, step motor is controlled, so that laser continues to move forward, until the total stroke of laser is just equal to preset stroke.This application realizes the accurate control of the exposure stroke of laser, improves image exposure precision.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of laser direct imaging technology, and in particular relates to a method, device and related equipment for controlling the motion stroke of a laser. Background Technology

[0002] refer to Figure 1 The laser in the laser direct writing device includes a crossbeam 101 and several lasers 102 arranged in a row on the crossbeam 101. The crossbeam 101 is connected to a conveyor belt 104 via a connecting block 103. The left end of the conveyor belt 104 is fitted onto a drive wheel 105, and the right end is fitted onto a driven wheel 106. The drive wheel 105 is connected to the output shaft 108 of a stepper motor 107. A processor 109 controls the stepper motor 107 to rotate. The stepper motor 107 drives the drive wheel 105 to rotate via the output shaft 108. The drive wheel 105 and the driven wheel 106 drive the conveyor belt 104 to move left and right. The conveyor belt 104, via the connecting block 103, drives the crossbeam 101 to reciprocate left and right on the upper guide rail 112 and the lower guide rail 113 via the upper slider 110 and the lower slider 111, respectively. The crossbeam 101 drives the several lasers 102 to reciprocate left and right synchronously for exposure. Figure 2 Several rows of image bars in the image.

[0003] Due to: (1) the inherent rotational stroke angle error of the stepper motor 107; (2) the execution error formed between the output shaft 108 of the stepper motor 107 and the drive wheel 105, and between the drive wheel 105 and the conveyor belt 104, the execution error, i.e., the loss between the output power of the stepper motor 107 and the actual power received by the crossbeam, causes several lasers 104 to fail to quickly and accurately position themselves according to the control instructions of the processor 109 when the stepper motor 107 rotates at high speed with microsteps (microsteps are the step distance of the stepper motor, which can be a few micrometers or hundreds of micrometers), resulting in errors in image exposure. For example: Figure 1 In the original calculation, the processor 109 calculated the horizontal exposure travel of several lasers 102 as a preset travel distance S1 from A to B. However, due to the aforementioned rotational travel angle error and execution error, the actual travel distance of the lasers 102 may be a travel distance S2 from A to C or a travel distance S3 from A to D. If S1 is 400 mm, S2 may be 380 mm, and S3 may be 420 mm. That is, there is a discrepancy between the actual travel distance of the lasers and the expected preset travel distance, resulting in laser exposure errors. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention provides a method for controlling the motion stroke of a laser, which aims to solve the problem of inconsistency between the actual stroke and the preset stroke of the laser caused by the rotation stroke angle error and execution error of the stepper motor in laser direct imaging equipment.

[0005] This control method includes:

[0006] Step 1: The encoder fixed on the crossbeam of the laser direct imaging device calculates the real-time travel of several lasers distributed in a row on the crossbeam by reading different scale values ​​on the grating at different positions, and sends the real-time data to the processor.

[0007] Step 2: The processor calculates the remaining stroke obtained by subtracting the real-time stroke from the preset stroke of the laser. Based on the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of the laser, the processor controls the stepper motor to make the laser continue to move forward until the total stroke of the laser is exactly equal to the preset stroke.

[0008] Further, in step 2, the processor controls the stepper motor based on the remaining travel distance and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total travel distance of the laser is exactly equal to the preset travel distance, specifically including:

[0009] If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that the laser can just complete the remaining travel distance when the stepper motor does not need to continue applying a positive drive signal, then the processor controls the stepper motor to stop rotating, so that the distance traveled by the laser from continuing to move forward to stopping is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance.

[0010] If the real-time speed satisfies the following condition: when the stepper motor no longer applies a positive drive signal and the laser cannot complete the remaining travel distance, the processor controls the stepper motor to continue providing a positive drive signal to the laser so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance.

[0011] If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that if no reverse drive signal is applied to the stepper motor, the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is greater than the remaining distance, then the processor controls the stepper motor to rotate in the reverse direction so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining distance.

[0012] Furthermore, the encoder is a photoelectric encoder.

[0013] The present invention also discloses a control device for the motion stroke of a laser, comprising:

[0014] The grating, fixed on the base of the laser direct imaging device, is used to provide the encoder with different scale values ​​when the laser is in different positions to obtain the real-time travel of the laser.

[0015] The encoder is fixed on the crossbeam of the laser direct imaging device and moves horizontally synchronously with several lasers that are uniformly fixed on the crossbeam in a row. The encoder is used to obtain the real-time travel of the laser by reading different scale values ​​on the grating at different positions and to send the real-time travel to the processor.

[0016] The processor, electrically connected to the encoder at one end and to the stepper motor at the other end, is used to: calculate the remaining stroke of the laser after subtracting the real-time stroke from the preset stroke, based on the received real-time stroke; and control the stepper motor according to the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total stroke of the laser is exactly equal to the preset stroke.

[0017] Furthermore, the processor controls the stepper motor based on the remaining travel distance and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total travel distance of the laser is exactly equal to the preset travel distance, specifically including:

[0018] If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that the laser can just complete the remaining travel distance when the stepper motor does not need to continue applying a positive drive signal, then the processor controls the stepper motor to stop rotating, so that the distance traveled by the laser from continuing to move forward to stopping is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance.

[0019] If the real-time speed satisfies the following condition: when the stepper motor no longer applies a positive drive signal and the laser cannot complete the remaining travel distance, the processor controls the stepper motor to continue providing a drive signal to the laser so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance.

[0020] If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that if no reverse drive signal is applied to the stepper motor, the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is greater than the remaining distance, then the processor controls the stepper motor to rotate in the reverse direction so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining distance.

[0021] Furthermore, the encoder is a photoelectric encoder.

[0022] The present invention also discloses a storage medium storing a computer program thereon, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of a method for controlling the motion stroke of a laser.

[0023] The present invention also discloses a computer device, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the processor executes the program to implement the steps of a method for controlling the motion stroke of a laser.

[0024] The beneficial technical effects of this invention are as follows: The device, method, storage medium, and computer equipment can all achieve the following technical effects: precise control of the laser's stroke, ensuring that the actual stroke of the laser is consistent with the preset stroke, solving the problem of inconsistency between the actual stroke and the preset stroke caused by the inherent rotation stroke angle error of the stepper motor and the execution error of the stepper motor caused by the series of transmission components from the stepper motor to the laser, such as the output shaft, drive wheel, and conveyor belt. This achieves precise control of the laser's exposure stroke and improves the laser's exposure accuracy. Attached Figure Description

[0025] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the laser direct imaging device mentioned in the background art without the encoder and grating installed;

[0026] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram showing the width of the image to be exposed as a preset travel distance S2.

[0027] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the steps of the laser motion stroke control method of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a laser direct imaging device in which an encoder is fixedly connected to the upper end of a crossbeam and a grating is installed on the base of the laser direct imaging device. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0030] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicating orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, are only for the convenience of describing this invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this invention; the terms "first," "second," and "third" are only used to describe distinctions and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance. Furthermore, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installed," "connected," and "linked" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to fixed connections, detachable connections, or integral connections; they can refer to mechanical connections or electrical connections; they can refer to direct connections or indirect connections through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal communication of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0031] refer to Figure 3 This invention discloses a method for controlling the motion stroke of a laser, comprising:

[0032] Step 1: The encoder fixed on the crossbeam of the laser direct imaging device calculates the real-time travel of several lasers distributed in a row on the crossbeam by reading different scale values ​​on the grating at different positions, and sends the real-time data to the processor.

[0033] Step 2: The processor calculates the remaining stroke obtained by subtracting the real-time stroke from the preset stroke of the laser. Based on the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of the laser, the processor controls the stepper motor to make the laser continue to move forward until the total stroke of the laser is exactly equal to the preset stroke.

[0034] The following is a detailed combination Figure 4 Steps 1 and 2 will be described in detail.

[0035] refer to Figure 4A number of lasers 102 are evenly arranged in a row on the crossbeam 101 of the laser direct-writing imaging device. An encoder 114 is fixedly placed at the upper end of the crossbeam 101. The encoder 114, the lasers 102, and the crossbeam 101 form a whole, moving synchronously back and forth between the upper guide rail 112 and the lower guide rail 113 under the drive of a stepper motor 107. It can be understood that the real-time speed and real-time travel of the encoder 114 are equal to the real-time speed and real-time travel of the lasers 102. Therefore, to determine the real-time speed and real-time travel of the lasers 102, the real-time speed and real-time travel of the encoder 114 can be obtained. Specifically, during the initial time t0 when the laser 102 just begins to move, the encoder 114 reads the scale value a0 on the grating 115. After a period of time, when the time becomes t1, the encoder 114 reads the scale value a1 on the grating 115. Therefore, during the time interval (t1-t0), the distance traveled by the encoder 114 is (a1-a0). It should be noted that the grating 115 is fixed relative to the horizontal ground; therefore, the grating 115 needs to be fixed on the base of the laser direct imaging device in a location that can be read by the encoder 114. (Reference) Figure 1As mentioned in the background technology, the processor 109 originally set the preset travel distance of several lasers 102 to S1 from A to B. However, due to the inherent rotational stroke angle error and execution error of the stepper motor, if the output power of the stepper motor is not dynamically adjusted according to the real-time displacement and speed of the crossbeam, the actual travel distance of the several lasers 102 may become S2 from A to C or S3 from A to D. That is, the actual travel distance of the several lasers 102 may be shorter or longer than the preset travel distance, which obviously does not conform to the preset travel distance of the lasers 102. In order to ensure that the actual travel distance of the lasers 102 meets the preset travel distance, when the several lasers 102 synchronously travel a distance S2 (S2 < S1) horizontally and reach point C, the encoder 114 can calculate the travel distance S2 by reading the difference between the scale value of the grating 115 at point C and the scale value at the initial position A. Encoder 114 sends S2 to processor 109. Processor 109 calculates the real-time speed Vc of laser 102 at point C. Based on the remaining travel S4 = (S1 - S2) and the real-time speed Vc, it determines whether laser 102 can complete the remaining travel S4 within the time it takes for its speed to decrease from the current real-time speed Vc to 0. This determines whether it is necessary to continue sending control signals to stepper motor 107, so that stepper motor 107 continues to drive beam 101 forward via output shaft 108, drive wheel 105, and conveyor belt 104. Beam 101 then drives laser 101 forward. For example, if processor 109 determines, based on the remaining travel S4 and real-time speed Vc, that it is no longer necessary to apply a positive drive signal to stepper motor 107, and that the distance laser 102 travels forward within the time it takes for its speed to decrease from the real-time speed Vc to 0 is exactly equal to the remaining travel S4, then processor 109 will no longer send control signals to stepper motor 107, and stepper motor 107 will stop rotating. If, based on the remaining travel distance S4 and the real-time speed Vc, the processor 109 determines that if no further positive drive signal is applied to the stepper motor 107, the laser 102 will travel a distance less than the remaining travel distance S4 during the time its real-time speed Vc decreases to 0, meaning the total travel distance of the laser is less than S1 and it stops before reaching point B, then the processor 109 needs to send a control signal to the stepper motor 107 again, so that the laser travels a distance exactly equal to the remaining travel distance S4 during the time its real-time speed Vc decreases to 0.If the processor 109 determines, based on the remaining travel distance S4 and the real-time speed Vc, that if a reverse drive signal is not applied to the stepper motor 107, the distance traveled by the laser 102 during the time its real-time speed Vc decreases to 0 will be greater than the remaining travel distance S4, meaning the laser needs to continue moving forward a certain distance after reaching point B before stopping, and the total travel distance is greater than S1, then the processor 109 sends a reverse drive signal to the stepper motor 107 so that the remaining travel distance traveled by the laser during the time its speed decreases from the real-time speed Vc to 0 is exactly equal to S4, i.e., the total travel distance is exactly equal to S1. Therefore, the control method of this application can precisely control the laser travel distance, so that the actual travel distance of the laser is adjusted in real time under the feedback control of the processor to ensure that the final total travel distance is consistent with the preset travel distance. This solves the problem of inconsistency between the actual travel distance of the laser and the preset travel distance caused by the inherent rotational travel angle error of the stepper motor and the execution error of the stepper motor caused by the series of transmission components from the stepper motor to the laser, such as the output shaft, drive wheel, and conveyor belt. This achieves precise control of the laser's movement distance and improves the laser exposure accuracy. It should be noted that in this application, the percentage of the remaining trip S4 to the total trip S1 can be any value, such as 50%, 60%, 70%, 75%, 80%, or other values, and there are no restrictions here. Additionally... Figure 4 In this design, since several lasers 102 are arranged in a row along the vertical centerline of the crossbeam 101, and the encoder 114 is positioned along the vertical centerline of the crossbeam 101, it can be understood that the horizontal movement speed of the crossbeam 101, the horizontal movement speed of the lasers 102, and the horizontal movement speed of the encoder 114 are equal. The forward drive signal mentioned in this application refers to a drive signal applied by the processor to the stepper motor that promotes the forward movement of the laser and increases its forward travel distance. The reverse drive signal refers to a drive signal applied to the stepper motor that slows down the laser and reduces its travel distance.

[0036] In some embodiments, the processor is preferably a chip processor, which has the functions of data processing and control. For example, it may be a GPGPU (General Purpose Computing on GPU, i.e., general-purpose computing on a graphics processor) or an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array, a product of further development based on programmable devices such as PAL, GAL, and CPLD).

[0037] In some embodiments, the encoder is preferably a photoelectric encoder. As the laser moves along with the photoelectric encoder, the value read from the grating changes with the position of the photoelectric encoder. Based on the amount of change in the read value, the real-time travel of the laser is calculated.

[0038] refer to Figure 3 The present invention also discloses a control device for the motion stroke of a laser, comprising:

[0039] The grating, fixed on the base of the laser direct imaging device, is used by the encoder to obtain the real-time travel of the laser by reading different scale values ​​when the laser is in different positions.

[0040] The encoder is fixed on the crossbeam of the laser direct imaging device and moves horizontally synchronously with several lasers that are uniformly fixed on the crossbeam in a row. The encoder is used to obtain the real-time travel of the laser by reading different scale values ​​on the grating at different positions and to send the real-time travel to the processor.

[0041] The processor, electrically connected to the encoder at one end and to the stepper motor at the other end, is used to: calculate the remaining stroke of the laser after subtracting the real-time stroke from the preset stroke, based on the received real-time stroke; and control the stepper motor according to the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total stroke of the laser is exactly equal to the preset stroke.

[0042] The functions of the grating, encoder, and processor have been explained in detail previously and will not be repeated here.

[0043] The control device of this application can precisely control the laser travel, so that the actual travel of the laser is adjusted in real time under the feedback control of the processor to ensure that the final total travel is consistent with the preset travel. This solves the problem of the laser's actual travel not matching the preset travel caused by the inherent rotational travel angle error of the stepper motor and the execution error of the stepper motor caused by the series of transmission components from the stepper motor to the laser, such as the output shaft, drive wheel, and conveyor belt. It achieves precise control of the laser's motion travel and improves the laser exposure accuracy.

[0044] This invention also discloses a storage medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of a method for controlling the movement of the laser. The storage medium refers to a carrier for storing data. Examples include floppy disks, optical discs, DVDs, hard disks, flash memory, USB flash drives, CF cards, SD cards, MMC cards, SM cards, Memory Sticks, and xD cards. Popular storage media are based on flash memory (NAND flash), such as USB flash drives, CF cards, SD cards, SDHC cards, MMC cards, SM cards, Memory Sticks, and xD cards.

[0045] This invention also discloses a computer device, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor. When the processor executes the program, it implements the steps of a method for controlling the movement of the laser. The processor contains a kernel that retrieves corresponding program units from the memory; one or more kernels may be provided. The memory may include non-permanent memory in computer-readable media, random access memory (RAM), and / or non-volatile memory, such as read-only memory (ROM) or flash RAM. The memory includes at least one memory chip.

[0046] Finally, it should be noted that the above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for controlling the motion stroke of a laser, characterized in that, include: Step 1: The encoder fixed on the crossbeam of the laser direct imaging device calculates the real-time travel of several lasers distributed in a row on the crossbeam by reading different scale values ​​on the grating at different positions, and sends the real-time data to the processor. Step 2: The processor calculates the remaining stroke obtained by subtracting the real-time stroke from the preset stroke of the laser. Based on the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of the laser, the stepper motor is controlled to make the laser continue to move forward until the total stroke of the laser is exactly equal to the preset stroke.

2. The control method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, In step 2, the processor controls the stepper motor based on the remaining travel distance and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total travel distance of the laser is exactly equal to the preset travel distance. Specifically, this includes: If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that the laser can just complete the remaining travel distance when the stepper motor does not need to continue applying a positive drive signal, then the processor controls the stepper motor to stop rotating, so that the distance traveled by the laser from continuing to move forward to stopping is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance. If the real-time speed satisfies the following condition: when the stepper motor no longer applies a positive drive signal and the laser cannot complete the remaining travel distance, the processor controls the stepper motor to continue providing a positive drive signal to the laser so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance. If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that if no reverse drive signal is applied to the stepper motor, the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is greater than the remaining distance, then the processor controls the stepper motor to rotate in the reverse direction so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining distance.

3. The method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The encoder is a photoelectric encoder.

4. A control device for the motion stroke of a laser, characterized in that, include: The grating, fixed on the base of the laser direct imaging device, is used to provide the encoder with different scale values ​​when the laser is in different positions to obtain the real-time travel of the laser. The encoder is fixed on the crossbeam of the laser direct imaging device and moves horizontally synchronously with several lasers that are uniformly fixed on the crossbeam in a row. The encoder is used to obtain the real-time travel of the laser by reading different scale values ​​on the grating at different positions and to send the real-time travel to the processor. The processor, electrically connected to the encoder at one end and to the stepper motor at the other end, is used to: calculate the remaining stroke of the laser after subtracting the real-time stroke from the preset stroke, based on the received real-time stroke; and control the stepper motor according to the remaining stroke and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total stroke of the laser is exactly equal to the preset stroke.

5. The control device as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The processor controls the stepper motor based on the remaining travel distance and the real-time speed of the laser, so that the laser continues to move forward until the total travel distance of the laser is exactly equal to the preset travel distance, specifically including: If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that the laser can just complete the remaining travel distance when the stepper motor does not need to continue applying a positive drive signal, then the processor controls the stepper motor to stop rotating, so that the distance traveled by the laser from continuing to move forward to stopping is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance. If the real-time speed satisfies the following condition: when the stepper motor no longer applies a positive drive signal and the laser cannot complete the remaining travel distance, the processor controls the stepper motor to continue providing a drive signal to the laser so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining travel distance. If the real-time speed satisfies the condition that if no reverse drive signal is applied to the stepper motor, the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is greater than the remaining distance, then the processor controls the stepper motor to rotate in the reverse direction so that the distance traveled by the laser during the time it continues to move forward until it stops is exactly equal to the remaining distance.

6. The control device as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The encoder is a photoelectric encoder.

7. A storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that, When the computer program is executed by the processor, it implements the steps of the laser motion control method as described in any one of claims 1 to 3.

8. A computer device, comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, characterized in that, When the processor executes the program, it implements the steps of the laser motion control method as described in any one of claims 1 to 3.

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