Multi-spot laser marking method and device

Abstract

The invention discloses a multi-light-spot laser marking method and device, and relates to the technical field of laser marking, and the method comprises the steps: obtaining a scanning path of parallel light beams, and an activation state of a light spot in each parallel light beam; determining an activation sequence of each parallel beam according to the scanning path and the activation state; and when scanning is started, the parallel light beams are controlled to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and light spots in the parallel light beams are activated or inactivated at preset positions according to the activation sequence, so that a pattern to be marked is formed. According to the laser marking method and device, the parallel light beams are used, the activation states of the multiple light spots in the parallel light beams are controlled, laser marking is completed through the multiple light spots at the same time, therefore, the marking efficiency of laser marking is greatly improved, meanwhile, the time needed by point-by-point marking in large-scale batch production is shortened, and the production efficiency is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of laser marking technology, and in particular to a multi-spot laser marking method and equipment. Background Art

[0002] In the current laser processing field, especially in laser marking (laser) applications, the single-point mode laser marking method is commonly used. This method controls the movement of the laser beam on the surface of the material through a galvanometer scanning system to form the required marking pattern point by point. In single-point mode, the laser beam can only scan point by point, and even simple patterns need to go through each marking point one by one, which makes the overall marking process time-consuming. In the face of large-scale batch production, this point-by-point marking method will significantly extend the production cycle, thereby affecting production efficiency. Summary of the invention

[0003] The main purpose of this application is to provide a multi-spot laser marking method and equipment, aiming to solve the technical problem of how to improve the marking efficiency of laser marking.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, an embodiment of the present application provides a multi-spot laser marking method, the multi-spot laser marking method comprising: Acquire the scanning path of the parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam; Determining an activation sequence of each of the parallel light beams according to the scanning path and the activation state; When scanning starts, the parallel light beam is controlled to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and the light spots in the parallel light beam are activated or deactivated at predetermined positions according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked.

[0005] In one embodiment, before the step of acquiring the scanning path of the parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam, the step includes: Converting the pattern to be marked into a dot matrix consisting of pixel coordinates; According to a preset scanning method, the pattern to be marked is divided into at least one scanning area, each of which contains pattern elements of the pattern to be marked; For each pattern element in the scanning area, generating at least one scanning line, wherein the scanning line is a path of the parallel light beam during the scanning process; Calculating a coordinate sequence of the pattern elements contained in each of the scanning lines, each coordinate in the coordinate sequence corresponds to a position of a light spot in the parallel light beam during the scanning process; Based on the coordinate sequence, the scan lines are combined in a preset scanning direction order to generate a scanning path of the parallel light beam.

[0006] In one embodiment, after the step of combining the scan lines according to a preset scan direction sequence based on the coordinate sequence to generate the scan path of the parallel light beam, the method further includes: The coordinate sequence of the pattern elements contained in the scan line is associated with the light spots in the parallel light beam to determine the activation state of each light spot during the scanning process.

[0007] In one embodiment, before the step of dividing the pattern to be marked into at least one scanning area according to a preset scanning mode, wherein each scanning area contains pattern elements of the pattern to be marked, the method further includes: Acquire the height or width of the pattern to be marked, and the marking height or marking width of the parallel light beam; When the pattern to be marked is divided into scanning areas, the height or width of each scanning area is less than or equal to the marking height or width of the parallel light beam.

[0008] In one embodiment, the step of determining the activation sequence of each of the parallel light beams according to the scanning path and the activation state comprises: Calculating the activation time and the deactivation time of each light spot according to the order of each scan line in the scan path, and the activation state and the preset activation duration of the light spot in the parallel light beam; An activation sequence of the parallel light beams is generated according to the activation time and the deactivation time.

[0009] In one embodiment, before the step of controlling the parallel light beam to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence when starting scanning, and activating or deactivating the light spot in the parallel light beam at a predetermined position according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked, the step includes: Calculating a first deflection angle of the galvanometer in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction according to the size of the scanning area and the distance between two adjacent scanning lines in the scanning path; Converting the first deflection angle into an electrical signal to generate a galvanometer control signal; The galvanometer control signal is transmitted to the galvanometer driver to drive the galvanometer to deflect according to the first deflection angle, so as to control the parallel light beam to move to the next adjacent scanning line in the scanning area according to a preset scanning direction.

[0010] In one embodiment, after the step of transmitting the galvanometer control signal to the galvanometer driver to drive the galvanometer to deflect according to the first deflection angle to control the parallel light beam to move to the next adjacent scanning line in the scanning area according to a preset scanning direction, the method further includes: After completing the scanning process of the current scanning area, calculating the second deflection angle of the galvanometer from the current scanning area to the starting position of the adjacent scanning area, and generating a positioning control signal of the parallel light beam; After the positioning control signal reaches the starting position of the adjacent scanning area, the galvanometer is readjusted to the first deflection angle to continue the scanning process.

[0011] In one embodiment, when starting scanning, the steps of controlling the parallel light beam to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and activating or deactivating the light spot in the parallel light beam at a predetermined position according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked include: receiving a control instruction generated based on the scan path and the activation sequence; According to the control instruction, synchronously controlling the activation state of the light spot in the parallel light beam and the deflection of the galvanometer; After completing the scanning of all scanning areas, stop sending the control instruction.

[0012] An embodiment of the present application also provides a multi-spot laser marking device, which includes: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the computer program is configured to implement the steps of the multi-spot laser marking method described above.

[0013] The embodiment of the present application discloses a multi-spot laser marking method, which obtains the scanning path of a parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam; determines the activation sequence of each parallel light beam according to the scanning path and the activation state; when starting to scan, controls the parallel light beam to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and activates or deactivates the light spot in the parallel light beam at a predetermined position according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked. The present application uses a parallel light beam and controls the activation state of multiple light spots in the parallel light beam to achieve laser marking using multiple light spots at the same time, thereby greatly improving the efficiency of laser marking. At the same time, the time required for point-by-point marking in large-scale batch production is reduced, which significantly improves production efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 It is a flow chart of a first embodiment of a multi-spot laser marking method according to an embodiment of the present application; Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a marking pattern formed on a material surface by a parallel light beam composed of multiple light spots in a first embodiment of a multi-light spot laser marking method according to an embodiment of the present application; Figure 3This is a flow chart of a second embodiment of the multi-spot laser marking method involved in the embodiment of the present application; Figure 4 This is a flow chart of a third embodiment of the multi-spot laser marking method involved in the embodiment of the present application; Figure 5 This is a flow chart of a fourth embodiment of the multi-spot laser marking method involved in the embodiment of the present application; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the multi-spot laser marking device of this application.

[0015] The purpose, features and advantages of this application will be further described in conjunction with the embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application and are not used to limit the present application.

[0017] In the current laser processing field, especially in laser marking (laser) applications, the single-point mode laser marking method is commonly used. This method controls the movement of the laser beam on the surface of the material through a galvanometer scanning system to form the required marking pattern point by point. In single-point mode, the laser beam can only scan point by point, and even simple patterns need to go through each marking point one by one, which makes the overall marking process time-consuming. In the face of large-scale batch production, this point-by-point marking method will significantly extend the production cycle, thereby affecting production efficiency.

[0018] In order to solve the above-mentioned defects existing in the related art, the embodiment of the present application proposes a multi-light spot laser marking method, which obtains the scanning path of a parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam; determines the activation sequence of each parallel light beam according to the scanning path and the activation state; when starting to scan, controls the parallel light beam to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and activates or deactivates the light spot in the parallel light beam at a predetermined position according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked. The present application uses a parallel light beam and controls the activation state of multiple light spots in the parallel light beam to achieve laser marking using multiple light spots at the same time, thereby greatly improving the efficiency of laser marking. At the same time, the production efficiency is significantly improved by reducing the time required for point-by-point marking in large-scale batch production.

[0019] It should be noted that the execution subject of this embodiment can be a multi-spot laser marking control system, or a computing service device with data processing, network communication and program running functions, such as a tablet computer, a personal computer, a mobile phone, etc., or a multi-spot laser marking device capable of realizing the above functions, etc. The following takes the multi-spot laser marking control system as an example (hereinafter referred to as the "system") to illustrate this embodiment and the following embodiments.

[0020] The multi-spot laser marking method of the first embodiment proposed in this application, please refer to Figure 1 The method comprises steps S10 to S30: Step S10: Acquire the scanning path of the parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam.

[0021] In this embodiment, the parallel beam refers to the original laser beam emitted by the laser source, which is expanded by an optical system (such as a laser beam expander, a lens, etc.) to reduce the divergence angle of the original laser beam, and then shaped by an optical element such as a lens group or a grating to form one or more groups of mutually parallel laser beams. These laser beams maintain a certain spacing in space and can form one or more parallel marking lines (i.e., scanning lines) on the surface of the material.

[0022] The light spot in the parallel beam refers to the independently controllable small laser emission unit formed after each group of parallel laser beams is processed by an optical system (such as a lens or grating). These light spots are arranged at a certain density in space, and each light spot can be activated or deactivated independently, which means that each light spot can be selectively turned on or off at a specific position on the scanning path, thereby forming the desired marking pattern on the surface of the material.

[0023] The activation state of a light spot refers to whether each light spot in a parallel light beam is activated for marking when it is at a specific position on the scanning path. During the scanning process, according to the preset pattern to be marked, the system will determine whether there are elements of the pattern to be marked based on the corresponding position of each light spot on the scanning path, and thus decide whether to activate the corresponding light spot. When activated, the light spot emits laser and forms a mark on the surface of the material; when inactivated, the light spot does not emit laser, so no mark is formed on the surface of the material.

[0024] Through such control, the light spots of each group of parallel light beams can be quickly and accurately activated or deactivated during the scanning process, thereby forming continuous or discontinuous marking lines on the material surface, thereby achieving rapid marking of the pattern to be marked.

[0025] It should be noted that the laser source, which can also be referred to as the laser transmitter, is a key component in the laser marking system and is responsible for generating the laser beam. During the laser marking process, the laser transmitter emits the laser according to the control signal, and the laser beam is guided to the surface of the material to be marked after passing through the optical system, thereby forming a marking pattern on the surface of the material.

[0026] It should be noted that after a set of parallel light beams is formed, it can be analogized to a straight line composed of light spots. Specifically, the light spots in this set of parallel light beams are arranged in a row in space, and a predetermined spacing is maintained between each light spot, so that when scanning the surface of the material, they will move like a straight line composed of multiple light spots. Each light spot is equivalent to a point on the straight line, and together they can form a continuous or spaced marking line on the material, thereby achieving a fast and efficient marking process.

[0027] Step S20: determining an activation sequence of each of the parallel light beams according to the scanning path and the activation state.

[0028] In this embodiment, the system decomposes the pattern to be marked into elements that can be realized by light spots, such as lines, dots or more complex shapes. These elements will be converted into instructions for the light spots to be activated at specific positions on the scanning path. The activation sequence is a set of instructions that guide the activation position and activation time of the light spots in the parallel light beam during the scanning process. Determining the activation sequence means setting instructions for whether to emit lasers for each light spot in the parallel light beam at a specific position and time during the scanning process. For example, if there is a continuous line in a pattern to be marked, the system will ensure that the light spots at the corresponding positions along the scanning path are activated in the correct order to form a continuous mark. For gaps or blank areas in the pattern, the corresponding light spots will be set to an inactivated state.

[0029] The activation sequence also involves analyzing the coordinate sequence of each light spot on the scanning path to determine whether there are elements of the pattern to be marked in the coordinate sequence of the light spot, and at the same time, combining the activation state of the light spot to calculate the specific time when each light spot should be activated during the scanning process. The specific time includes the calculation of the arrival time, activation duration, and deactivation time of each light spot on the scanning path, ensuring that each light spot can be activated at the correct position and time during the scanning process, thereby forming a predetermined marking pattern on the surface of the material.

[0030] Step S30: When scanning starts, the parallel light beam is controlled to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and the light spots in the parallel light beam are activated or deactivated at predetermined positions according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked.

[0031] In this embodiment, the system will control the parallel light beam to move along the predetermined scanning path according to the previously generated activation sequence, and activate or deactivate each light spot in the parallel light beam precisely at the right time and position, so as to form the desired pattern to be marked on the material surface. The scanning path is the trajectory of the parallel light beam moving on the material surface calculated by the system according to the shape and size of the pattern to be marked. Each light spot in the parallel light beam corresponds to one or more specific positions on the scanning path, and the activation sequence defines the activation and deactivation order of these light spots on the scanning path.

[0032] Please refer to Figure 2 , Figure 2 A schematic diagram showing a marking pattern formed on the surface of a material by a parallel beam composed of multiple light spots. Figure 2 In the process, the parallel light beam moves along a predetermined scanning path, and the light spots in the parallel light beam are activated according to the activation sequence to form a continuous or intermittent marking line. By controlling the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam, the system can mark the target pattern (i.e. the pattern to be marked) on the surface of the material.

[0033] The movement of the parallel beam is controlled by a galvanometer. The galvanometer can quickly change the direction of the parallel beam and move it along the scanning path. The control of the galvanometer is achieved by converting the calculated deflection angle into electrical signals, which are transmitted to the galvanometer driver as control signals to drive the galvanometer for precise deflection.

[0034] It should be noted that the galvanometer is a fast-response reflector based on the electromagnetic principle. It can quickly change the angle of the reflector through the force generated by the current. In the laser marking system, the galvanometer is used to control the direction of the laser beam so that the laser beam moves quickly on the surface of the material, thereby achieving laser marking. The galvanometer is usually composed of one or two independently controllable reflectors, which control the movement of the laser beam in two perpendicular directions (X axis and Y axis).

[0035] The galvanometer driver is an electronic device used to control the movement of the galvanometer. The galvanometer driver receives electrical signals from the system and converts them into currents that can drive the galvanometer. After these electrical signals are transmitted to the galvanometer driver as control signals, the galvanometer driver will generate corresponding currents according to the size and polarity of the input signals. These currents generate magnetic fields in the coils of the galvanometer, thereby driving the reflector of the galvanometer to deflect rapidly.

[0036] Please refer to Figure 3 The multi-spot laser marking method of the second embodiment proposed in the present application includes steps S110 to S150 before step S10: Step S110: converting the pattern to be marked into a dot matrix consisting of pixel coordinates.

[0037] It should be noted that a dot map is a digital image representation method that consists of many small dots or pixels, each of which has its specific position coordinates. The process of converting the pattern to be marked into a dot map involves discretizing the continuous lines and areas of the pattern to be marked, and decomposing the pattern to be marked into pixels that can be recognized and processed by the system.

[0038] In this embodiment, the pattern to be marked is usually in the form of a vector map or a bitmap, wherein the vector map is composed of lines and shapes defined by mathematical formulas, and the bitmap is an image composed of a pixel array. Regardless of the type of image the original pattern to be marked is, the conversion process is intended to convert the pattern to be marked into a dot matrix so that the system can control the activation state of the laser beam according to the pixel coordinates.

[0039] If the image to be marked is a vector image, the conversion process includes rasterizing the image. Rasterization is the process of converting a vector image into a pixel image at a specific resolution. This means that each element in the vector image, such as lines and shapes, will be converted into an image representation consisting of an array of pixels. During the rasterization process, the system determines the position of each pixel according to the set resolution and maps the vector elements to these pixels.

[0040] Specifically, rasterization may involve determining the boundaries of each element in a pattern and converting those boundaries into pixel coordinates. For example, a line in a vector image may be converted into a series of adjacent pixels in a bitmap. Each pixel represents a point on the path of the line, and its coordinates are determined by the resolution used in the rasterization process.

[0041] Rasterization ensures that each element in the vector image is converted into a corresponding point in the pixel map, resulting in a bitmap consisting of pixel coordinates.

[0042] Step S120: Divide the pattern to be marked into at least one scanning area according to a preset scanning method, each of the scanning areas contains pattern elements of the pattern to be marked.

[0043] In this embodiment, after the conversion of the dot matrix is ​​completed, the system divides the complete pattern to be marked into at least one scanning area according to a preset scanning method. The division of the scanning area is to optimize the scanning process, and each scanning area contains a part of the pattern to be marked, which can be called a pattern element.

[0044] It should be noted that the preset scanning methods include but are not limited to sequential scanning, random scanning or partition scanning. Sequential scanning refers to marking the scanning areas one by one in a certain order, such as from left to right, from top to bottom, etc. Random scanning may involve selecting scanning areas for marking in a random order. Partition scanning refers to dividing the pattern into multiple areas and then scanning each area in a certain logical order.

[0045] When dividing the area, multiple factors need to be considered, including the complexity of the pattern to be marked, the marking ability of the parallel beam, and the optimization of the scanning path. For example, if the elements in the pattern to be marked are simple or sparsely distributed, the scanning area can be set larger to improve the scanning efficiency.

[0046] Step S130: for each pattern element in the scanning area, generating at least one scanning line, wherein the scanning line is a path of the parallel light beam during the scanning process.

[0047] In this embodiment, for each scanning area, the system generates at least one scanning line, which defines the movement path of the parallel light beam during the scanning process. The scanning line is a virtual track of the parallel light beam moving on the material surface, and the scanning line determines how the parallel light beam covers the entire pattern area during the scanning process.

[0048] Specifically, the system first determines the direction of the scan line according to the preset scanning strategy and the element characteristics of the pattern to be marked. Generally, the scan line can be horizontal, vertical or diagonal, depending on the shape of the pattern to be marked and the desired marking effect.

[0049] For each scanning area, the system calculates how many scanning lines are needed for each scanning area and the specific position of each scanning line. In order to avoid leaving unscanned gaps during the scanning process, the spacing between adjacent scanning lines needs to be ensured to be small enough, so each scanning area will generate multiple scanning lines to form the pattern to be marked.

[0050] Step S140: Calculate a coordinate sequence of the pattern elements included in each of the scanning lines, wherein each coordinate in the coordinate sequence corresponds to a position of a light spot in the parallel light beam during the scanning process.

[0051] The coordinate sequence is a series of coordinate points, each of which corresponds to a specific position of a light spot in the parallel beam during the scanning process. These coordinate points indicate where the parallel beam should activate or deactivate the light spot during the scanning process to form a pattern.

[0052] In this embodiment, for pattern elements in the scanning area, the system first extracts the pixel coordinates of the pattern elements in the scanning area. The system then records the order of each scan line and identifies the start and end points of the pattern elements on each scan line, as well as any intermediate turning points or feature points. Next, the system determines the spacing distance between pixel coordinates based on the marking height of the parallel beam (equivalent to the length of the parallel beam) and the required marking accuracy. The spacing distance between pixel coordinates is usually matched with the resolution of the system, that is, the spacing between the light spots in the parallel beam is the same as the spacing between the pixel coordinates.

[0053] Next, the system generates coordinate points incrementally along the direction of the scan line, starting from the starting point at a fixed interval until it reaches the end point, completing the confirmation of the coordinate sequence of a scan line. The system then continues this process to confirm the coordinate sequence on the second adjacent scan line, and so on, until the entire pattern element in the scan area is covered.

[0054] In this process, the system will take into account the actual shape of the pattern elements. For the straight line part, the coordinate points will be arranged equidistantly along the straight line; for the curved part, the system can use interpolation algorithms such as linear interpolation, spline interpolation or Bezier curve interpolation to ensure the smoothness and continuity of the curve. The system will generate coordinate points according to the actual shape of the pattern elements. For the straight line part, the coordinate points will be arranged equidistantly along the straight line; for the curved part, the system can use interpolation algorithms such as linear interpolation, spline interpolation or Bezier curve interpolation to ensure the smoothness and continuity of the curve.

[0055] Step S150: Based on the coordinate sequence, the scan lines are combined in a preset scanning direction order to generate a scanning path of the parallel light beam.

[0056] In this embodiment, the system first determines the order of the scan lines, which is usually based on the scanning strategy of the pattern to be marked. For example, if the pattern to be marked is horizontal or vertical, the scan lines may be arranged in a left-to-right or top-to-bottom order.

[0057] Once the order and coordinate sequence of the scan lines are determined, the system will arrange each scan line in the preset scan direction to form a complete scan path. The scan path consists of multiple scan lines, each of which is part of the pattern element. The combination of all scan lines accurately covers the entire pattern element. Whether it is a straight line or a curve, it is accurately represented and marked by these ordered scan lines and the corresponding coordinate point sequence.

[0058] This scanning path is the path that the parallel light beam needs to follow during the entire marking process, which ensures that the parallel light beam can cover the entire scanning area in the correct order and direction.

[0059] It should be noted that all the scanning lines in the scanning area are parallel, and the intervals between the scanning lines are also fixed.

[0060] Furthermore, step S150 further includes step S151: Step S151: Associating the coordinate sequence of the pattern elements contained in the scanning line with the light spots in the parallel light beam to determine the activation state of each light spot during the scanning process.

[0061] In this embodiment, the system associates the coordinate sequence calculated in step S140 with each light spot in the parallel light beam. This association is to determine the activation state of each light spot during the scanning process, that is, which light spots need to be activated to emit laser light and which light spots need to remain inactivated at each specific position. The activation state is determined by the dot pattern of the pattern to be marked, and the activation or inactivation of each light spot corresponds precisely to a pixel in the pattern to be marked.

[0062] During the scanning process, the parallel light beam is equivalent to matching each scanning line in sequence according to the preset scanning direction. Therefore, by associating each light spot in the parallel light beam with the coordinate sequence, it is possible to determine whether the coordinate sequence associated with each light spot has a pattern element, and thus determine whether the corresponding light spot needs to be activated.

[0063] Optionally, the coordinate sequence may include pixel coordinates involved on all scan lines. In this case, when the light spot is associated with the coordinate sequence, it is necessary to determine which coordinate sequences are coordinate sequences corresponding to pattern elements. The system will only activate the pixel coordinates that directly correspond to the pattern elements, and ignore those pixel coordinates that are on the scan line but not belonging to the pattern elements.

[0064] Optionally, the coordinate sequence only contains the pixel coordinates of the actual pattern elements on the scan line. In this case, only those light spots associated with the pattern elements need to be activated, while those light spots that are not associated with the corresponding pattern elements remain inactivated.

[0065] Furthermore, before step S120, steps S121 to S122 are also included: Step S121: acquiring the height or width of the pattern to be marked, and the marking height or marking width of the parallel light beam.

[0066] It should be noted that the height or width of the pattern to be marked usually refers to the vertical height or horizontal width, as well as the marking height or marking width of the parallel light beam. These parameters are key factors in determining the maximum size of the scanning area, ensuring that each scanning area can be completely covered by the parallel light beam in a single scanning operation. The vertical height refers to the height of the pattern to be marked in the vertical direction, that is, the distance from the top to the bottom of the pattern to be marked. The horizontal width refers to the size of the pattern to be marked in the horizontal direction, that is, the distance from the leftmost to the rightmost side of the pattern to be marked. The marking height refers to the size of the area that can be effectively marked by the parallel light beam in the vertical direction, usually the focusing range of the laser beam in the vertical direction. The marking width refers to the size of the area that can be effectively marked by the parallel light beam in the horizontal direction, which can be the diameter of a single light spot or the expansion range of the laser beam in the horizontal direction.

[0067] Step S122: when dividing the pattern to be marked into scanning areas, the height or width of each scanning area is less than or equal to the marking height or width of the parallel light beam.

[0068] The system logically divides the pattern to be marked according to the parameters obtained in step S121 to form multiple scanning areas, ensuring that the size of each scanning area is adapted to the marking capability of the parallel light beam.

[0069] Specifically, the height or width of each scanning area must be less than or equal to the marking height or width of the parallel beam. This is done to ensure that during the scanning process, the parallel beam can completely cover the pattern elements in the scanning area in a single pass, avoiding missing or overlapping patterns during the marking process. In this way, the system can optimize the scanning path, improve marking efficiency, and ensure marking quality.

[0070] Please refer to Figure 4 In the multi-spot laser marking method of the third embodiment proposed in the present application, step S20 further includes steps S210 to S220: Step S210: Calculate the activation time and deactivation time of each light spot according to the order of each scanning line in the scanning path, the activation state of the light spot in the parallel light beam and the preset activation duration.

[0071] In this embodiment, the system first considers the order of each scan line in the scan path, because laser marking is a serialized process that needs to be performed line by line in a certain order to ensure the continuity and integrity of the pattern. At the same time, the system also considers the activation state of each light point in the parallel beam on the scan line. This means that for each position on the scan line, the system decides which light points should be activated to form part of the pattern and which light points should remain inactivated.

[0072] The system also needs to consider the length of time each light spot is activated, which is the activation duration. This duration is preset based on the specific needs of the laser marking, including factors such as marking speed, material absorption rate of the laser, required marking depth and clarity. For example, if the parallel beam is currently on a scan line, the activation duration of the light spot in the parallel beam is set to the same interval time as the parallel beam moves to the next scan line. Then, during the entire scan cycle, the laser beam can continuously form a pattern on the material, thereby creating a continuous line or filled area.

[0073] The activation duration of a spot is the time that the laser beam acts on a specific point during the scanning process, that is, the length of time that the laser beam remains on to illuminate a certain position. The interval between the switching of two scan lines usually refers to the time required for the scan head to move to the starting position of the next scan line after completing the marking of one scan line. When the activation duration of a spot is the same as the interval between the switching of two adjacent scan lines, it means that the laser beam illuminates each point on a scan line for exactly the same time as the time it takes the scan head to move from one scan line to the next. This ensures that the laser beam is evenly distributed across the entire pattern during the scanning process, and there are no unmarked blank areas.

[0074] It should be noted that, generally speaking, the activation duration of a light spot is the same as the interval between the switching of two adjacent scan lines. However, the activation duration of a light spot may also be affected by other factors, such as laser power, material absorption rate of laser light, required marking depth or color, etc. Therefore, the activation duration may be adjusted according to specific scanning needs and may not always be the same as the interval between scanning line switching. In addition, since light spots are usually used to create a continuous marking line or part of a pattern on the same scan line, the activation duration of light spots on the same scan line (parallel beam) is usually consistent. However, according to specific marking needs, the activation duration of certain light spots can be adjusted individually to adapt to different marking depths or pattern details.

[0075] Specifically, the activation time of the light spot is determined according to the moving speed of the parallel light beam and the position of the scan line where the parallel light beam is currently located, that is, the time when the parallel light beam reaches the scan line and the light spot corresponds to the position of the pattern element. The deactivation time of the light spot is usually when the activation duration after the light spot is activated ends. If the activation duration of the light spot is the same as the interval time when the scanning head moves from one scan line to the next scan line, then the deactivation time of the light spot is the time when the scanning head starts to move to the next scan line.

[0076] Step S220: generating an activation sequence of the parallel light beam according to the activation time and the deactivation time.

[0077] First, a time series is constructed based on the activation and deactivation time data of the light spots, which will serve as the basis for the activation sequence. In this time series, each time point corresponds to the state of the corresponding light spot, that is, activated or deactivated. Then, these states and the corresponding light spots are filled into the sequence in chronological order to ensure that the state of the light spot can correctly change from activated to deactivated, or from deactivated to activated at the correct time point.

[0078] When generating the activation sequence, it is also necessary to take into account the switching between scan lines. This means that the state transition of the light spot between the end of one scan line and the beginning of the next scan line must be smooth and accurate.

[0079] The generated activation sequence will be converted into instructions that can be directly executed by the system. These instructions include not only the activation and deactivation times of the light points, but may also include the index or identifier of the light point to ensure that the system can recognize and control each light point.

[0080] The activation sequence is a set of instructions that specifies when each spot of the parallel light beam is activated and deactivated during the scanning process. The activation sequence is key in the laser marking process because it directly controls the behavior of the parallel light beam and determines the shape and quality of the final pattern to be marked.

[0081] Please refer to Figure 5 The multi-spot laser marking method of the fourth embodiment proposed in the present application further includes steps S310 to S330 before step S30: Step S310: Calculate the first deflection angle of the galvanometer in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction according to the size of the scanning area and the distance between two adjacent scanning lines in the scanning path.

[0082] In this embodiment, the system first needs to determine the size of the scanning area in order to determine the area that the galvanometer needs to cover. At the same time, the system also considers the distance between two adjacent scan lines in the scanning path, which is the distance the galvanometer needs to move after each scan. Based on the size of the scanning area and the distance between two adjacent scan lines, the system can calculate the first deflection angle of the galvanometer in the horizontal and vertical directions, which is the angle required for the galvanometer to move from one scan line to the next adjacent scan line.

[0083] Specifically, measure or obtain the width (W) and height ( ), and the horizontal distance between two adjacent scan lines in the same scan area in the scan path ( ) and vertical distance ( ). If the deflection of the galvanometer is set to be linearly related to the movement of the scanning line, the horizontal deflection angle can be calculated by the following formula ( ) and vertical deflection angle ( ):

[0084]

[0085] in, is the field angle of the galvanometer, that is, the maximum angle that the galvanometer can cover.

[0086] When the calculated angle is in degrees, convert the degrees into a format that the galvanometer driver can understand, such as a number of pulses or a specific electrical signal.

[0087] Step S320: converting the first deflection angle into an electrical signal to generate a galvanometer control signal.

[0088] In this embodiment, when the first deflection angle calculated in step S310 is quantized into a digital code, an analog to digital converter (ADC) can be used to convert the analog angle signal into a digital signal. According to the input requirements of the galvanometer driver, the quantized angle value is converted into a corresponding electrical signal in proportion. The proportion is determined by the input range of the galvanometer driver, that is, the maximum and minimum electrical signal values ​​that the driver can accept correspond to the maximum and minimum deflection angles of the galvanometer. The conversion process may include amplifying the electrical signal to ensure that the strength of the electrical signal is sufficient to drive the galvanometer.

[0089] Optionally, the electrical signal is shaped, such as using a filter to remove noise or using pulse width modulation (PWM) to generate the desired signal waveform. After the signal conversion is completed, the electrical signal is sent to the galvanometer driver through an appropriate interface, such as PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) or PCIe (PCI Express) interface.

[0090] Step S330: transmitting the galvanometer control signal to the galvanometer driver to drive the galvanometer to deflect according to the first deflection angle, so as to control the parallel light beam to move to the next adjacent scanning line in the scanning area according to a preset scanning direction.

[0091] The galvanometer driver is an electronic device used to control the movement of the galvanometer. The galvanometer driver receives electrical signals from the system and converts the electrical signals into currents that can drive the galvanometer. After the electrical signals are transmitted to the galvanometer driver as control signals, the galvanometer driver will generate corresponding currents according to the size and polarity of the input signals. These currents generate magnetic fields in the coils of the galvanometer, pushing the reflector of the galvanometer to deflect quickly, thereby controlling the parallel light beam to move to the next scanning line in the preset scanning direction.

[0092] Furthermore, step S330 further includes steps S331-S332: Step S331: after completing the scanning process of the current scanning area, calculating the second deflection angle of the galvanometer from the current scanning area to the starting position of the adjacent scanning area, and generating a positioning control signal of the parallel light beam.

[0093] In this embodiment, the second deflection angle is to position the parallel light beam to the starting position of the next scanning area.

[0094] Step S332: after the positioning control signal reaches the starting position of the adjacent scanning area, readjust the galvanometer to the first deflection angle and continue the scanning process.

[0095] In this embodiment, after the galvanometer moves to the starting position of the adjacent scanning area according to the positioning control signal, the system will readjust the galvanometer to the first deflection angle. Usually, in different scanning areas, the preset scanning direction of the parallel light beam and the interval between two adjacent scanning lines are consistent.

[0096] Furthermore, step S30 also includes steps S340 to S350: Step S340: receiving a control instruction generated based on the scan path and the activation sequence.

[0097] In this embodiment, the system receives pre-calculated control instructions, which are generated based on the scanning path (i.e., the movement trajectory of the parallel light beam on the material surface, matched according to the order of the scanning lines) and the activation sequence of each light point (i.e., the activation sequence of when each light point is activated or deactivated). These control instructions are digital signals that ensure that the parallel light beam can form the required marking pattern at the right time and position.

[0098] Step S350: Synchronously controlling the activation state of the light spot in the parallel light beam and the deflection of the galvanometer according to the control instruction.

[0099] In this embodiment, the system uses the received control instructions to synchronize two key operations: one is to activate or deactivate specific light spots within the parallel light beam to form the desired pattern to be marked on the surface of the material; the other is to control the deflection of the galvanometer to ensure that the parallel light beam moves according to the predetermined scanning path. Synchronization is critical because it ensures that the activation of the light spot matches the precise deflection of the galvanometer to form the mark in the correct position.

[0100] Step S360: After completing the scanning of all scanning areas, stop sending the control instruction.

[0101] After all divided scanning areas have been scanned by parallel light beams according to the established scanning path and activation sequence, the system will stop sending control instructions and the laser marking process will be completed.

[0102] The present application provides a multi-spot laser marking device, which includes: at least one processor; and a memory that is communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein the memory stores instructions that can be executed by the at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor so that the at least one processor can execute the multi-spot laser marking method in the above-mentioned embodiment one.

[0103] Reference below Figure 6 , which shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a multi-spot laser marking device suitable for implementing the embodiment of the present application. The multi-spot laser marking device in the embodiment of the present application may include various hardware and software components for implementing the scheduling method of the inspection task. Figure 6 The multi-spot laser marking device shown is merely an example and should not bring any limitation to the functions and scope of use of the embodiments of the present application.

[0104] like Figure 6As shown, the multi-spot laser marking device may include a processing device 1001 (e.g., a central processing unit, a graphics processor, etc.), which can perform various appropriate actions and processes according to a program stored in a read-only memory (ROM: Read Only Memory) 1002 or a program loaded from a storage device 1003 to a random access memory (RAM: Random Access Memory) 1004. In the RAM 1004, various programs and data required for the operation of the multi-spot laser marking device are also stored. The processing device 1001, the ROM 1002, and the RAM 1004 are connected to each other through a bus 1005. An input / output (I / O) interface 1006 is also connected to the bus. Generally, the following systems can be connected to the I / O interface 1006: an input device 1007 including, for example, a touch screen, a touch pad, a keyboard, etc.; an output device 1008 including, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD: Liquid Crystal Display), a speaker, a vibrator, etc.; a storage device 1003 including, for example, a magnetic tape, a hard disk, etc.; and a communication device 1009. The communication device 1009 can allow the multi-spot laser marking device to communicate with other devices wirelessly or by wire to exchange data. Although the multi-spot laser marking device with various systems is shown in the figure, it should be understood that it is not required to implement or have all the systems shown. More or fewer systems can be implemented or have alternatively.

[0105] In particular, according to the embodiments disclosed in the present application, the process described above with reference to the flowchart can be implemented as a computer software program. For example, the embodiments disclosed in the present application include a computer program product, which includes a computer program carried on a computer-readable medium, and the computer program includes a program code for executing the method shown in the flowchart. In such an embodiment, the computer program can be downloaded and installed from a network through a communication device, or installed from a storage device 1003, or installed from a ROM 1002. When the computer program is executed by the processing device 1001, the above-mentioned functions defined in the method of the embodiment disclosed in the present application are executed.

[0106] The multi-spot laser marking device provided by the present application adopts the multi-spot laser marking device method in the above embodiment, which can solve the technical problem of how to improve the marking efficiency of laser marking. Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the multi-spot laser marking device provided by the present application are the same as the beneficial effects of the multi-spot laser marking method provided by the above embodiment, and other technical features in the multi-spot laser marking device are the same as the features disclosed in the method of the previous embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0107] It should be understood that the various parts disclosed in this application can be implemented by hardware, software, firmware or a combination thereof. In the description of the above embodiments, specific features, structures, materials or characteristics can be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0108] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the present technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

[0109] The above are only preferred embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present application. Any equivalent structure or equivalent process transformation made using the contents of the present application specification and drawings, or directly or indirectly applied in other related technical fields, are also included in the patent processing scope of the present application.

[0110] It should be noted that, in this article, the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or system including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or system. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or system including the element.

[0111] Through the description of the above implementation methods, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above embodiment methods can be implemented by means of software plus a necessary general hardware platform, and of course by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method.

[0112] The above are only preferred embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present application. Any equivalent structure or equivalent process transformation made using the contents of the present application specification and drawings, or directly or indirectly applied in other related technical fields, are also included in the patent protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A multi-spot laser marking method, characterized in that: The multi-spot laser marking method comprises: Acquire the scanning path of the parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam; Determining an activation sequence of each of the parallel light beams according to the scanning path and the activation state; When scanning starts, the parallel light beam is controlled to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence, and the light spots in the parallel light beam are activated or deactivated at predetermined positions according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked.

2. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Before the step of acquiring the scanning path of the parallel light beam and the activation state of each light spot in the parallel light beam, the method includes: Converting the pattern to be marked into a dot matrix consisting of pixel coordinates; According to a preset scanning method, the pattern to be marked is divided into at least one scanning area, each of which contains pattern elements of the pattern to be marked; For each pattern element in the scanning area, generating at least one scanning line, wherein the scanning line is a path of the parallel light beam during the scanning process; Calculating a coordinate sequence of the pattern elements contained in each of the scanning lines, each coordinate in the coordinate sequence corresponds to a position of a light spot in the parallel light beam during the scanning process; Based on the coordinate sequence, the scan lines are combined in a preset scanning direction order to generate a scanning path of the parallel light beam.

3. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 2, characterized in that: After the step of combining the scan lines according to a preset scan direction sequence based on the coordinate sequence to generate the scan path of the parallel light beam, the method further includes: The coordinate sequence of the pattern elements contained in the scan line is associated with the light spots in the parallel light beam to determine the activation state of each light spot during the scanning process.

4. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 2, characterized in that: Before the step of dividing the pattern to be marked into at least one scanning area according to a preset scanning mode, wherein each scanning area contains pattern elements of the pattern to be marked, the method further includes: Acquire the height or width of the pattern to be marked, and the marking height or marking width of the parallel light beam; When the pattern to be marked is divided into scanning areas, the height or width of each scanning area is less than or equal to the marking height or width of the parallel light beam.

5. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of determining the activation sequence of each of the parallel light beams according to the scanning path and the activation state comprises: Calculating the activation time and the deactivation time of each light spot according to the order of each scan line in the scan path, and the activation state and the preset activation duration of the light spot in the parallel light beam; An activation sequence of the parallel light beams is generated according to the activation time and the deactivation time.

6. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Before the step of controlling the parallel light beam to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence when starting scanning, and activating or deactivating the light spot in the parallel light beam at a predetermined position according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked, the method comprises: Calculating a first deflection angle of the galvanometer in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction according to the size of the scanning area and the distance between two adjacent scanning lines in the scanning path; Converting the first deflection angle into an electrical signal to generate a galvanometer control signal; The galvanometer control signal is transmitted to the galvanometer driver to drive the galvanometer to deflect according to the first deflection angle, so as to control the parallel light beam to move to the next adjacent scanning line in the scanning area according to a preset scanning direction.

7. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 6, characterized in that: After the step of transmitting the galvanometer control signal to the galvanometer driver to drive the galvanometer to deflect according to the first deflection angle to control the parallel light beam to move to the next adjacent scanning line in the scanning area according to a preset scanning direction, the method further includes: After completing the scanning process of the current scanning area, calculating the second deflection angle of the galvanometer from the current scanning area to the starting position of the adjacent scanning area, and generating a positioning control signal of the parallel light beam; After the positioning control signal reaches the starting position of the adjacent scanning area, the galvanometer is readjusted to the first deflection angle to continue the scanning process.

8. The multi-spot laser marking method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of controlling the parallel light beam to move along the scanning path according to the activation sequence when starting scanning, and activating or deactivating the light spot in the parallel light beam at a predetermined position according to the activation sequence to form a pattern to be marked includes: receiving a control instruction generated based on the scan path and the activation sequence; According to the control instruction, synchronously controlling the activation state of the light spot in the parallel light beam and the deflection of the galvanometer; After completing the scanning of all scanning areas, stop sending the control instruction.

9. A multi-spot laser marking device, characterized in that: The multi-spot laser marking device comprises: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the computer program is configured to implement the steps of the multi-spot laser marking method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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