Tools for cutting fuel cell electrodes

Abstract

A cutting tool comprises a first vacuum manifold, a second vacuum manifold separated from the first by a gap, a laser, and an actuator. The actuator is configured to move the laser along the gap to cut material held by the cutting tool, essentially flat against it, by the first and second vacuum manifolds. The cutting tool further comprises a plate, with the first and second vacuum manifolds mounted to the plate, and one or more vacuum suction cups for drawing air through the first and second vacuum manifolds to secure the material to the cutting tool. The gap is bounded by the first vacuum manifold, the second vacuum manifold, and the plate.The laser is configured so that when moved along the gap by the actuator, it cuts through the material without causing significant contamination of the material by a second material of the cutting tool.

Description

INTRODUCTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a cutting tool.

[0002] The present disclosure relates generally to methods and tools for laser cutting fuel cell electrodes from a rolled process electrode into individual sheets for the production of fuel cell membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) and battery units without the need for a support substrate.

[0003] For example, German patent application DE 10 2009 031 233 A1 describes a cutting tool according to the preamble of claim 1. German patent applications DE 10 2006 033 296 A1, DE 10 2021 202 644 A1, DE 10 2017 216 133 A1, DE 102 28 294 A1 and DE 10 2014 101 477 A1 describe related tools.

[0004] Some laser cutting systems require that the substrate to be cut be held in place during the cutting process (e.g., by a vacuum table). Vacuum clamps are typically made of steel, which can be damaged during a laser cutting process. Such damage to a vacuum clamp can potentially release harmful particles onto the underside of the substrate.

[0005] Therefore, one object of the invention is to provide an improved tool for cutting a substrate. SUMMARY

[0006] The aforementioned problem is solved by a cutting tool according to independent claim 1.

[0007] Advantageous further developments of the invention are shown in the dependent claims, the description and the drawings.

[0008] An aspect of the invention provides a cutting tool comprising a first vacuum distributor, a second vacuum distributor separated from the first vacuum distributor by a gap, a laser, and an actuator. The actuator is configured to move the laser along the gap to cut a material held by the cutting tool, essentially lying flat against it, by the first and second vacuum distributors. The laser is configured such that, when moved along the gap by the actuator, it cuts through the material without causing significant contamination of the material by a second material of the cutting tool.

[0009] In some implementations, the actuator includes a band configured to move the laser essentially parallel to the slit.

[0010] In some examples, the laser is configured to have a cutting depth, and the gap has a depth that is at least equal to the cutting depth minus the thickness of the material.

[0011] In some implementations, the slit has a width that is greater than the width of a laser beam emitted by the laser.

[0012] In some examples, the laser is configured so that when moved along the gap by the actuator, it cuts through the material without causing significant heating of the cutting tool.

[0013] In some examples not independently claimed, the material comprises a porous carbon material for forming a fuel cell electrode, which may be contaminated by the second material of the cutting tool.

[0014] According to the invention, the cutting tool also comprises a plate, wherein the first and second vacuum distributors are mounted on the plate, and one or more vacuum suction cups for drawing air through the first and second vacuum distributors in order to attach the material to the cutting tool.

[0015] In some implementations, the cutting tool also includes a third vacuum manifold, separated from the second vacuum manifold by a second gap, and a positioner configured to move the laser to the second gap. The actuator is configured to move the laser along the second gap to cut the material held by the cutting tool, and the laser is configured so that, as it is moved along the second gap by the actuator, it cuts through the material without causing significant contamination of the material by any second material of the cutting tool. In some examples, the first gap is essentially parallel to the second gap.

[0016] In some examples, the cutting tool comprises a plurality of vacuum manifolds, including the first and second vacuum manifolds. Each of the plurality of vacuum manifolds is separated from an adjacent vacuum manifold by a corresponding gap, and one pair of the corresponding gaps represents an intended shape of a part to be cut from the material, offset from another pair of corresponding gaps.

[0017] Another, not independently claimed, aspect of the disclosure provides a computer-implemented method, executed by data processing hardware, that causes the data processing hardware to perform operations. The operations include activating a vacuum to attach a material to a cutting tool, the cutting tool comprising a first vacuum distributor and a second vacuum distributor separated from the first vacuum distributor by a gap; activating a laser; and moving the laser, while activated, along the gap to cut the material attached to the cutting tool, wherein the movement of the laser to cut the material cuts through the material without causing substantial contamination of the material by any second material of the cutting tool.

[0018] Implementations of the disclosure may include one or more of the following optional features. In some implementations, moving the laser involves activating a band that moves the laser substantially parallel to the slit. In some examples, the laser is configured to have a cutting depth, and the slit has a depth that is at least equal to the cutting depth minus the thickness of the material. In some implementations, the slit has a width greater than the width of a laser beam emitted by the laser. In some examples, moving the laser along the slit causes the laser to cut through the material without causing significant heating of the cutting tool.

[0019] In some examples, the material comprises a porous carbon material to form a fuel cell electrode, which can be contaminated by the second material of the cutting tool. In some implementations, the cut material forms a first fuel cell electrode, and the operations also include assembling the first fuel cell electrode with one or more additional fuel cell electrodes to form a membrane electrode assembly of a fuel cell.

[0020] In some implementations, the cutting tool includes a third vacuum manifold separated from the second vacuum manifold by a second slit, and the operations also include deactivating the laser, moving the laser while deactivated to the second slit, reactivating the laser, and moving the laser while activated along the second slit to cut the material attached to the cutting tool. In some examples, the slit is essentially parallel to the second slit.

[0021] In some examples, the cutting tool comprises a plurality of vacuum manifolds, including the first and second vacuum manifolds. Each of the plurality of vacuum manifolds is separated from an adjacent vacuum manifold by a corresponding gap. The operations also include selecting one or more of the corresponding gaps that correspond to an intended shape of a part to be cut from the material, and for each specific gap of the selected one or more corresponding gaps, deactivating the laser, moving the laser while deactivated to the specific gap, reactivating the laser, and moving the laser while activated along the specific gap to cut the material attached to the cutting tool.

[0022] Another aspect of the disclosure provides a cutting tool comprising a first and a second vacuum distributor, a plate, one or more vacuum suction cups, a laser, a positioner, and an actuator. The second vacuum distributor is separated from the first vacuum distributor by a gap. The first and second vacuum distributors are mounted on the plate. The one or more vacuum suction cups are configured to draw air through the first and second vacuum distributors to secure a material to the cutting tool. The laser is configured to have a cutting depth, with the gap having a depth at least equal to the cutting depth less the thickness of the material and a width greater than the width of a laser beam emitted by the laser.The positioner is configured to move the laser to the gap, and the actuator is configured to move the laser along and substantially parallel to the gap to cut material held substantially flat to it by the cutting tool through the first and second vacuum manifolds. The laser is configured so that, as it is moved along the gap by the actuator, it cuts through the material without causing substantial contamination of the material by a second material from the cutting tool. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] The drawings described herein serve only to illustrate selected configurations. Fig. Figure 1 is a schematic representation of an exemplary cutting tool for cutting fuel cell electrodes. Fig. Figure 2 illustrates an example of fuel cell electrodes produced using the exemplary cutting tool from Fig. 1 cut. Fig. Figure 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary arrangement of operations for a procedure for cutting fuel cell electrodes. Fig. Figure 4 is a schematic view of an exemplary computing device that can be used to implement the systems and procedures described herein.

[0024] The corresponding reference symbols consistently identify the relevant parts in the drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Exemplary configurations are now described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Exemplary configurations are provided to ensure that this disclosure is comprehensive and fully conveys its scope to the person skilled in the art. Specific details are listed, such as examples of specific components, devices, and processes, to provide a thorough understanding of the configurations of this disclosure. The person skilled in the art will recognize that specific details need not be used and that exemplary configurations can be implemented in many different forms.

[0026] The terminology used herein serves only to describe certain exemplary configurations and is not to be understood as restrictive. As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" can also include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms "comprise," "comprehensive," "contain," and "exhibit" are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of features, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.The procedural steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be interpreted as necessarily having to be carried out in the specific order discussed or illustrated, unless they are expressly designated as the order of execution. Additional or alternative steps may be used.

[0027] When an element or layer is described as being "on" or "interacting with" another element or layer, or as being "connected" or "coupled" or "attached" to the same, it may be directly on or interacting with, connected with, coupled to, or attached to the other element or layer, or there may be intervening elements or layers. However, when an element is described as being "directly on" or "directly interacting with" another element or layer, or as being "directly connected" or "directly coupled" or "directly attached" to the same, there must be no intervening elements or layers. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted similarly (e.g.,B. “between” versus “directly between”, “neighboring” or “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent” or “directly bordering”, etc.). As used herein, the term “and / or” includes all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

[0028] The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., may be used herein to describe different elements, components, regions, layers, and / or sections. These elements, components, regions, layers, and / or sections should not be restricted by these terms. These terms may only be used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer, or section from another. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms do not imply any sequence or order unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.Thus, one could refer to a first element, a first component, a first region, a first layer or a first section discussed below as a second element, second component, second area, second layer or second section, without deviating from the lessons of the exemplary configurations.

[0029] In this application, including the definitions below, the term "module" may be replaced by the term "circuit".The term "module" may refer to, be part of, or include: an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC); a digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital discrete circuit; a digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital integrated circuit; a combinational logic circuit; a field-programmable gate array (FPGA); a (shared, dedicated, or grouped) processor that executes code; a (shared, dedicated, or grouped) memory that stores code executed by a processor; other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality; or a combination of some or all of the above, such as in a system-on-a-chip.

[0030] The term "code," as used above, may include software, firmware, and / or microcode, and may refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, and / or objects. The term "shared processor" includes a single processor that executes all or part of the code from multiple modules. The term "group processor" includes a processor that, in combination with additional processors, executes all or part of the code from one or more modules. The term "shared memory" includes a single memory that stores all or part of the code from multiple modules. The term "group memory" includes memory that, in combination with additional memory, stores all or part of the code from one or more modules. The term "memory" may be a subset of the term "computer-readable medium."The term "computer-readable medium" encompasses non-transient electrical and electromagnetic signals that propagate through a medium and can therefore be considered tangible and non-transient storage. Non-restrictive examples of non-transient storage include tangible computer-readable media, including non-volatile memory, magnetic storage, and optical storage.

[0031] The devices and methods described in this application can be implemented in whole or in part by one or more computer programs executed by one or more processors. The computer programs include processor-executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory, tangible, computer-readable medium. The computer programs may also include and / or be based on stored data.

[0032] A software application (i.e., a software resource) can refer to computer software that causes a computing device to perform a task. In some examples, a software application may be called an "application," "app," or "program." Examples of software applications include, but are not limited to, system diagnostic applications, system management applications, system maintenance applications, word processing applications, spreadsheet applications, messaging applications, media streaming applications, social networking applications, and gaming applications.

[0033] Non-transitory memory can be physical devices used for the temporary or permanent storage of programs (e.g., instruction sequences) or data (e.g., program status information) for use by a computing device. Non-transitory memory can be volatile and / or non-volatile addressable semiconductor memory. Examples of non-volatile memory include flash memory and read-only memory (ROM) / programmable read-only memory (PROM) / erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) / electronically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) (e.g., typically used for firmware, such as boot programs). Examples of volatile memory include random-access memory (RAM), dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), static random-access memory (SRAM), phase-change memory (PCM), and disks or tapes.

[0034] These computer programs (also referred to as programs, software, software applications, or code) contain machine instructions for a programmable processor and may be implemented in a procedural and / or object-oriented high-level programming language and / or in assembly / machine language. The terms "machine-readable medium" and "computer-readable medium" as used herein refer to any computer program product, non-transitory computer-readable medium, device, and / or apparatus (e.g., magnetic disks, optical disks, memory, programmable logic devices (PLDs)) that serves to provide machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal.The term "machine-readable signal" refers to any signal that serves to provide machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor.

[0035] Various implementations of the systems and techniques described herein may be realized in digital electronic and / or optical circuits, integrated circuits, specially designed ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits), computer hardware, firmware, software, and / or combinations thereof. These various implementations may include implementation in one or more computer programs that are executable and / or interpretable on a programmable system that includes at least one programmable processor, which can be used as a special-purpose or general-purpose processor and is coupled such that it receives data and instructions from and transmits data and instructions to a storage system, as well as at least one input device and at least one output device.

[0036] The processes and logic sequences described in this description can be performed by one or more programmable processors, also known as data processing hardware, which execute one or more computer programs to perform functions by working on input data and producing outputs. The processes and logic sequences can also be performed by specialized logic circuits, such as an FPGA or an ASIC. Processors suitable for executing a computer program include, for example, both general-purpose and specialized microprocessors, as well as one or more processors from digital computers of any type. Generally, a processor receives instructions and data from read-only memory, random-access memory, or both.The essential elements of a computer are a processor for executing instructions and one or more storage devices for storing instructions and data. Generally, a computer also includes one or more mass storage devices for storing data, such as magnetic, magneto-optical, or optical disks, or is functionally coupled to them to receive data from or transmit data to them, or both. However, a computer does not necessarily have to have such devices. Computer-readable media suitable for storing computer program instructions and data include all forms of non-volatile memory, media, and storage devices, including, for example, semiconductor memory devices such as EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks such as internal hard disks or removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks.The processor and memory can be supplemented or integrated with special logic circuits.

[0037] To enable interaction with a user, one or more aspects of the revelation can be implemented on a computer that has a display device, such as a CRT (cathode ray tube), LCD (liquid crystal display), or touchscreen, to show information to the user, and optionally a keyboard and pointing device, such as a mouse or trackball, with which the user can input information into the computer. Other types of devices can also be used to enable interaction with the user; for example, the user can receive any form of sensory feedback, such as visual, auditory, or tactile feedback, and user input can be received in any form, including auditory, verbal, or tactile input.Furthermore, a computer can interact with a user by sending and receiving documents to and from a device used by the user, for example, by sending web pages to a web browser on a user's client device in response to requests received from the web browser.

[0038] Unless expressly stated otherwise, the phrase "at least one of A, B, or C" shall refer to any combination or subset of A, B, or C, such as: (1) at least one A alone; (2) at least one B alone; (3) at least one C alone; (4) at least one A with at least one B; (5) at least one A with at least one C; (6) at least one B with at least one C; and (7) at least one A with at least one B and at least one C. Furthermore, unless expressly stated otherwise, the phrase "at least one of A, B, and C" shall refer to any combination or subset of A, B, and C, such as: (1) at least one A alone; (2) at least one B alone; (3) at least one C alone; (4) at least one A with at least one B; (5) at least one A with at least one C; (6) at least one B with at least one C; and (7) at least one A with at least one B and at least one C.Unless expressly stated otherwise, the term “A or B” shall continue to refer to any combination of A and B, such as: (1) A alone; (2) B alone; and (3) A and B.

[0039] The present disclosure relates generally to methods and tools for laser cutting fuel cell electrodes from a rolled process electrode into individual sheets for the production of fuel cell membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) and battery units without the need for a support substrate. Such fuel cell electrodes, fuel cell MEAs, and battery assemblies can be used to power vehicles (e.g., cars, trucks, trains, aircraft, bicycles, etc.) and other non-vehicle-related devices and systems.

[0040] Some laser cutting systems require that the substrate to be cut be held in place during the cutting process (e.g., by a vacuum table). Vacuum clamps are typically made of steel, which can be damaged during a laser cutting process. Cutting such a vacuum clamp can potentially release harmful particles onto the underside of the substrate. These particles can be particularly problematic if they can alter a property of the substrate. For example, if a porous carbon material is laser-cut to manufacture a fuel cell electrode, the porous carbon material can be contaminated by such particles. A fuel cell containing a contaminated fuel cell electrode may not function as intended. Therefore, there is a need for improved methods and tools for cutting fuel cell electrodes.The implementations disclosed herein eliminate the need to support a cutting area with a carrier material, which improves the quality of the cuts and reduces the possibility of decomposing materials being burned into an electrode.

[0041] Fig. Figure 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary cutting tool 100 for cutting fuel cell electrodes 202 (see Fig. 2) from a rolled process electrode material 110. The cutting tool 100 comprises a plurality of vacuum manifolds 102, 102a-n mounted on a support surface or plate 104. Here, each of the plurality of vacuum manifolds 102 is separated from an adjacent vacuum manifold 102 by a corresponding gap 106, 106an. For example, vacuum manifolds 102a and 102b are separated by a corresponding gap 106a. In the illustrated example, the gaps 106 are essentially parallel and can correspond to cutting different lengths of the material 110. However, the gaps 106 can also be arranged in other patterns (e.g., perpendicular) to cut the material 110 into other shapes.

[0042] In some implementations, the columns 106 are spaced to allow material 110 to be skipped during cutting, thus discarding defective areas of the material 110. That is, one pair of columns 106, representing an intended shape of a part to be cut from the material 110, is offset from another pair of columns 106. In this case, each pair of columns 106 can be used to cut the same shape of the material 110. For example, the columns 106 might be spaced X millimeters apart, while the material 110 is to be cut in lengths of X*Y millimeters.

[0043] The cutting tool 100 also includes one or more vacuum suction cups 108 for drawing in air through the vacuum distributors 102 for securing the material 110 (see Fig. 2) which is to be cut with the cutting tool 100. Here, the material 110 comprises a porous carbon material for forming a fuel cell electrode, which can be contaminated by a material of the cutting tool 100. In some examples, the material 110 is taken from a roll of porous carbon material, and the vacuum distributors 102 are configured such that, when the vacuum suction cups 108 are active, they attach the material 110 to the cutting tool 100, essentially lying flat against it.

[0044] Fig. Figure 2 shows an exemplary fuel cell electrode 202, which is cut with the exemplary cutting tool of Fig. 1 was cut from the material 110. As shown, the material 110 is attached to the cutting tool by the vacuum distributors 102.

[0045] Returning to Fig. In the illustrated example, a computer system 120 can selectively activate the vacuum(s) 108 to attach the material 110 to the cutting tool 100, and selectively deactivate the vacuum(s) 108 to detach the material 110 from the cutting tool 100. The computer system 120 can correspond to any type of computing device, such as a process control system. The computer system 120 comprises data processing hardware 122 and storage hardware 124, which communicates with the data processing hardware 122. Here, the storage hardware 124 stores instructions which, when executed by the data processing hardware 122, cause the data processing hardware 122 to perform one or more operations, such as those disclosed herein.

[0046] For cutting material 110, the cutting tool 100 comprises a laser 130, an actuator 140, and a positioner 150, which can also be selectively controlled by the computer system 120. The laser 130 is configured to emit a laser beam for cutting the material 110. Here, the laser 130 is configured, controlled by the computer system 120, to emit a laser beam whose cutting depth is at least equal to the thickness of the material 110 and whose width is less than the width of the gap 106 (e.g., two millimeters). In some examples, the gap 106 has a depth that is at least equal to the cutting depth of the laser beam minus the thickness of the material 110.

[0047] The actuator 140 is configured to move the laser 130, controlled by the computer system 120, along a gap 106 to cut material 110, which is held by the cutting tool 100, essentially flat against it, by one or more of the vacuum distributors 102. In this case, when activated, the laser 130 is configured to cut through the material 110 as it is moved along a gap 106 by the actuator 140, without causing significant contamination of the material 110 by any material from the cutting tool 100. This ensures, for example, that any contaminating material 110 has a dimension of less than 50 micrometers. Furthermore, it does not cause significant heating of the cutting tool 100, so that essentially no material from the cutting tool 100 is released.In some implementations, the cutting tool 100 is a vacuum belt cutter, and the actuator 140 comprises a belt configured to move the laser 130 essentially parallel to a gap 106.

[0048] The positioner 150 is configured to move the laser 130 between the columns 106, controlled by the computer system 120. For example, to move the laser 130 from a first slit 106a to a second slit 106b.

[0049] Fig. Figure 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary sequence of operations for a computer-implemented procedure 300 for cutting fuel cell electrodes. The operations can be performed by data processing hardware 410 ( Fig. 4) (e.g. the data processing hardware 122 of computer system 120) based on the execution of instructions stored on the memory hardware 420 (e.g. the memory hardware 124 of computer system 120).

[0050] In Operation 302, the method 300 comprises activating the vacuum 108 to secure the material 110 to the cutting tool 100. The cutting tool 100 comprises a first vacuum distributor 102a and a second vacuum distributor 102b, which is separated from the first vacuum distributor 102a by a gap 106a. In Operation 304, the method 300 comprises activating the laser 130. In Operation 306, the method 300 comprises moving the laser 130, while activated, along the gap 106a to cut the material 110 secured to the cutting tool 100, wherein the movement of the laser 130 to cut the material 110 cuts through the material 110 without causing substantial contamination of the material 110 by any second material of the cutting tool 100.

[0051] Fig.Figure 4 is a schematic view of an exemplary computing device 400 that can be used to implement the systems and methods described herein. The computing device 400 is intended to represent various types of digital computers, such as laptops, desktops, workstations, personal digital assistants, servers, blade servers, mainframes, and other suitable computers. The components shown herein, their connections and relationships, and their functions are to be understood as examples only and are not intended to represent limitations on the implementations of the inventions described and / or claimed in this document.

[0052] The computing device 400 comprises a processor 410 (i.e., data processing hardware) that can be used to implement the data processing hardware 122, a memory 420 (i.e., memory hardware) that can be used to implement the memory hardware 124, a memory device 430 (i.e., memory hardware) that can be used to implement the memory hardware 124, a high-speed interface / control 440 that is connected to the memory 420 and high-speed expansion ports 450, and a low-speed interface / control 460 that is connected to a low-speed bus 470 and a memory device 430. The individual components 410, 420, 430, 440, 450, and 460 are interconnected via various buses and can be mounted on a common mainboard or in another suitable manner.The processor 410 can process instructions for execution within the computing device 400, including instructions stored in memory 420 or on storage device 430 to display graphical information for a graphical user interface (GUI) on an external input / output device, such as a display 480 coupled with the high-speed interface 440. In other implementations, multiple processors and / or multiple buses can be used appropriately, along with multiple memories and memory types. Multiple computing devices 400 can also be connected, with each device providing portions of the required operations (e.g., as a server bank, a group of blade servers, or a multiprocessor system).

[0053] The memory 420 stores information non-transiently within the computing device 400. The memory 420 can be a computer-readable medium, a volatile memory arrangement, or a non-volatile memory arrangement. The non-transient memory 420 can be physical devices used to temporarily or permanently store programs (e.g., instruction sequences) or data (e.g., program status information) for use by the computing device 400.

[0054] The storage device 430 is capable of providing mass storage for the computing device 400. In some implementations, the storage device 430 is a computer-readable medium. In various implementations, the storage device 430 may be a floppy disk device, a hard disk device, an optical disk device or tape device, flash memory or similar solid-state storage device, or an array of devices, including devices in a storage network or other configurations. In other implementations, a computer program product is tangibly embodied in an information carrier. The computer program product contains instructions that, when executed, perform one or more procedures such as those described above. The information carrier is a computer- or machine-readable medium, such as the memory 420, the storage device 430, or the memory of the processor 410.

[0055] The high-speed controller 440 manages bandwidth-intensive operations for the computing device 400, while the low-speed controller 460 manages less bandwidth-intensive operations. Such a task assignment is only an example. In some implementations, the high-speed controller 440 is coupled to the memory 420, the display 480 (e.g., via a graphics processor or accelerator), and to the high-speed expansion ports 450, which can accommodate various expansion cards (not shown). In some implementations, the low-speed controller 460 is coupled to the memory device 430 and a low-speed expansion port 490. The low-speed expansion port 490, which provides various communication ports (e.g.,USB, Bluetooth, Ethernet, wireless Ethernet) can be paired with one or more input / output devices such as a keyboard, pointing device, scanner or network device such as a switch or router, e.g. via a network adapter.

[0056] The computing device 400 can be implemented in a number of different forms, as shown in the figure. For example, it can be implemented as a standard server 400a or multiple servers 400a together, as a laptop computer 400b, or as part of a rack server system 400c.

[0057] Several implementations have been described. However, it is understood that various modifications can be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the revelation.

[0058] The foregoing description is provided for illustrative purposes only. Individual elements or features of a particular configuration are generally not limited to that specific configuration, but are interchangeable and can be used in a selected configuration even if they are not specifically shown or described. These can also be varied in many ways.

Claims

[1] Cutting tool (100), comprising: a first vacuum distributor (102a); a second vacuum distributor (102b) which is separated from the first vacuum distributor (102a) by a gap (106); a laser (130); an actuator (140) configured to move the laser (130) along the gap (106) to cut a material (110) held by the cutting tool (100), substantially flat against it, by the first and second vacuum distributors (102a, 102b); a plate (104), wherein the first and second vacuum distributors (102a, 102b) are mounted on the plate (104); and one or more vacuum suction cups (108) for drawing in air through the first and second vacuum distributors (102a, 102b) for attaching the material (110) to the cutting tool (100), characterized by , that the gap (106) is limited by the first vacuum distributor (102a), the second vacuum distributor (102b) and the plate (104), wherein the laser (130) is configured such that when moved by the actuator (140) along the gap (106) it cuts through the material (110) without causing significant contamination of the material (110) by a second material of the cutting tool (100). [2] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 1, wherein the actuator (140) comprises a band configured to move the laser (130) substantially parallel to the gap (106). [3] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 1, wherein: the laser (130) is configured to have a cutting depth; and the gap (106) has a depth that is at least equal to the cutting depth minus a thickness of the material (110). [4] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 1, wherein the gap (106) has a width that is greater than the width of a laser beam emitted by the laser (130). [5] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 1, wherein the laser (130) is configured such that when moved along the gap (106) by the actuator (140) it cuts through the material (100) without causing significant heating of the cutting tool (100). [6] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 1, further comprising: a third vacuum distributor, which is separated from the second vacuum distributor (102b) by a second gap (106); and a positioner (150) configured to move the laser (130) to the second slit (106), wherein the actuator (140) is further configured to move the laser (130) along the second slit (106) to cut the material (110) held on the cutting tool (100), and wherein the laser (130) is configured such that when moved by the actuator (140) along the second slit (106) it cuts through the material (110) without causing significant contamination of the material (110) by a second material of the cutting tool (100). [7] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 6, wherein the gap (106) runs substantially parallel to the second gap (106). [8] Cutting tool (100) according to claim 1, wherein: the cutting tool (100) comprises a plurality of vacuum distributors (102n) including the first and second vacuum distributors (102a, 102b), each of the plurality of vacuum distributors (102n) being separated from an adjacent vacuum distributor (102) by a corresponding gap (106); and a pair of the corresponding column (106) represent an intended shape of a part to be cut from the material (110) which is offset from another pair of the corresponding column (106).

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