Laser processing device and laser processing method

Abstract

A laser processing device and a laser processing method. The laser processing device comprises: a laser emitter (1), which is used for emitting a laser; a plurality of laser controllers (2), which are used for controlling the laser to scribe a workpiece; and a switcher (3), which is used for refract, onto the laser controllers (2), the laser emitted by the laser emitter (1) and for controlling the switching, between the plurality of laser controllers (2), of the laser emitted by the laser emitter (1).

Description

Laser processing equipment and laser processing method

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese patent application No. 202311231148.1 filed on September 21, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the technical field of laser processing equipment, and in particular to a laser processing equipment and a laser processing method. Background Art

[0003] Among the relevant production technologies, the application of laser processing is relatively common, especially in the field of new energy lithium battery technology. In order to meet the requirements of battery charging and discharging time, it is necessary to scribe the pole piece before cleaning the substrate coil. The laser scribing equipment mainly irradiates the laser onto the pole piece raw material, and uses the high temperature of the laser to melt or vaporize the material on the surface of the raw material to meet the specific line shape exposed by the raw material, increase the exposed surface area of ​​the pole piece, and thus improve the fast charging capability of the battery. When using laser irradiation, it is necessary to focus the laser through the field mirror, and control the focused laser through the galvanometer to irradiate and scribing. During the scribing process, the temperature of the field mirror and the galvanometer rises too quickly, resulting in the need to shut down the laser processing after a period of time to allow the field mirror and the galvanometer to cool down, which limits the processing efficiency of the equipment. Technical issues

[0004] The present application aims to solve at least one of the technical problems existing in the related art. To this end, the present application proposes a laser processing device to solve the problem that laser processing cannot be performed for a long time. Technical Solutions

[0005] This application also proposes a laser processing method.

[0006] According to the laser processing equipment of the first aspect embodiment of the present application, the laser processing equipment includes: a laser emitter for emitting laser; a plurality of laser controllers, wherein the laser controllers are used to focus the laser so that the focused laser is irradiated onto a workpiece; a switcher for changing the optical path of the laser so that the laser is switched between multiple laser controllers; a switching controller for controlling the switcher to perform a switching action according to the working time and / or working temperature of the current laser controller, wherein the switching action is to switch the optical path of the laser from the current laser controller to the target laser controller.

[0007] The laser processing equipment according to the first embodiment of the present application has at least the following effects: the laser is refracted or reflected to the laser controller through the switch, and the laser can be switched among multiple laser controllers. When the temperature of a laser switcher is too high, the switcher refracts or reflects the laser in this laser controller to another laser controller. At this time, the laser controller with too high temperature has no laser passing through for heat dissipation and cooling, while the laser is processed by another laser controller, so that the laser processing equipment can perform laser processing continuously, and there is no need to shut down and cool the laser processing equipment due to overheating.

[0008] According to some embodiments of the present application, the switch includes: a first mirror, which is used to refract or reflect laser light; and a first control mechanism, which is used to control the rotation of the first mirror so that the laser light refracted or reflected by the first mirror is switched between multiple laser controllers.

[0009] According to some embodiments of the present application, the switch includes: a plurality of second mirrors, each of the second mirrors corresponding one-to-one to the laser controller, and the second mirrors are used to refract or reflect the laser to the respective corresponding laser controllers; a second control mechanism, the second control mechanism is used to control the rotation of the laser emitter so that the laser emitted from the laser emitter is switched between the plurality of second mirrors.

[0010] According to some embodiments of the present application, the rotation axis of the laser emitter is set at an angle to the optical path of the laser when it rotates.

[0011] According to some embodiments of the present application, the rotation axis of the laser emitter is set at 90° to the optical path of the laser when it rotates.

[0012] According to some embodiments of the present application, the switch includes: a plurality of third mirrors, each corresponding one-to-one to the laser controller, and the third mirror is used to refract or reflect the laser to the corresponding laser controller; a plurality of third mirrors are arranged along the optical path of the laser; a plurality of third control mechanisms, each corresponding one-to-one to the third mirror, and the third control mechanism is used to control the third mirror to switch between a first position and a second position; when the third mirror is in the first position, the third mirror is in the optical path; when the third mirror is in the second position, the third mirror is outside the optical path.

[0013] According to some embodiments of the present application, a plurality of the third mirrors are arranged in a straight line and spaced apart.

[0014] According to some embodiments of the present application, the third mirror reflects the laser light at 90° to a laser controller corresponding to the third mirror.

[0015] According to some embodiments of the present application, the laser controller includes a field mirror and a galvanometer mirror. The field mirror is used to focus the laser. The field mirror is located on the side of the galvanometer mirror away from the workpiece. The galvanometer mirror is used to refract the focused laser so that the light spot formed by the laser irradiating the workpiece moves on the workpiece.

[0016] According to the laser processing method of the second aspect embodiment of the present application, which is used for the laser processing equipment described in some of the above embodiments, the laser processing method includes: when the current working state of the current laser controller reaches a preset working state, the switching controller controls the switch to perform a switching action; the preset working state is that the working time of the current laser controller reaches a preset time, and / or the working temperature of the current laser controller reaches a preset temperature. Beneficial effects

[0017] Additional aspects and advantages of the present application will be given in part in the description below, and in part will become obvious from the description below, or will be learned through practice of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The present application is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments, wherein:

[0019] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a laser processing device in some embodiments of the present application;

[0020] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a laser processing device including a first mirror in some embodiments of the present application;

[0021] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a laser processing apparatus including a second mirror in some embodiments of the present application;

[0022] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a laser processing device including a third mirror in some embodiments of the present application.

[0023] Reference numerals:

[0024] 1. Laser emitter; 2. Laser controller; 21. Field mirror; 22. Galvanometer; 3. Switcher; 31. First mirror; 32. Second mirror; 33. Third mirror; 41. First control mechanism; 42. Second control mechanism; 43. Third control mechanism. Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0025] The following describes in detail embodiments of the present application. Examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present application and are not to be construed as limiting the present application.

[0026] In the description of this application, it should be understood that descriptions involving orientations, such as up, down, front, back, left, right, etc., indicating orientations or positional relationships, are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they cannot be understood as limitations on this application.

[0027] In the description of this application, "several" means more than one, "plurality" means more than two, "greater than," "less than," and "exceed" are understood to exclude the number itself, while "above," "below," and "within" are understood to include the number itself. The use of "first" and "second" in the description is solely for the purpose of distinguishing technical features and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance, implicitly specifying the number of the indicated technical features, or implicitly specifying the order of the indicated technical features.

[0028] In the description of this application, unless otherwise clearly defined, terms such as setting, installing, and connecting should be understood in a broad sense, and technicians in the relevant technical field can reasonably determine the specific meanings of the above terms in this application based on the specific content of the technical solution.

[0029] The laser processing equipment of the first embodiment of the present application includes: multiple laser controllers 2, a switch 3 and a laser emitter 1, and the laser emitter 1 is used to emit laser light; the laser emitter 1, as a laser light source, can continuously emit laser light, and the laser light at this time is not focused, so the laser energy per unit area is not large. Since the laser energy density is relatively low at this time, the laser emitter 1 does not generate excessive heat. Therefore, the heat dissipation capacity of the laser emitter 1 itself can meet the heat dissipation requirements of the laser emitter 1. Therefore, the laser emitter 1 will not shut down due to overheating. In other words, the laser emitter 1 can provide a stable laser light source for a long time.

[0030] The laser controller 2 is used to focus the laser light so that it irradiates the workpiece. To process the workpiece with the laser, the laser's energy density must be controlled—that is, the laser must be focused. Focusing the laser significantly increases its energy density, causing a significant amount of heat to radiate from the laser controller 2 when controlling the laser's irradiation position. This can cause the laser controller 2 to overheat and become unusable.

[0031] Switcher 3 is used to refract or reflect laser light emitted from the laser emitter onto laser controller 2. Switcher 3 controls the switching of laser light emitted by the laser emitter among multiple laser controllers 2. Switcher 3 can change the direction of laser light emitted from laser emitter 1. Laser light from laser emitter 1 strikes switcher 3, which then refracts or reflects the laser light onto laser controller 2. Finally, laser controller 2 controls the laser light to process the workpiece. During workpiece processing, the temperature of laser controller 2 gradually increases. After reaching a certain temperature, or after operating for a period of time, switcher 3 refracts or reflects the laser light onto another laser controller 2. At this point, a laser controller 2 that is too hot or has been operating for a period of time stops operating, resulting in no laser light passing through it and a gradual decrease in temperature. The laser controller 2 cycles between heating up during marking and cooling down during shutdown. By cycling through multiple laser controllers 2, alternating between marking and cooling, the laser processing equipment can continue marking for extended periods of time.

[0032] The laser processing equipment also includes a switching controller, which includes a temperature sensor and / or a timing device. The temperature sensor is used to detect the operating temperature of the laser controller 2. The timing device is used to measure the length of time the laser controller 2 marks a line on the workpiece, that is, the operating temperature of the laser controller 2. The temperature sensor or timing device is used to determine whether the laser controller 2 meets the switching conditions. When the operating temperature and / or operating time of the current laser controller 2 reaches a preset value, the current laser controller 2 is switched to the next target laser controller 2.

[0033] According to some embodiments of the present application, the laser controller 2 includes a field lens 21 and a galvanometer 22. The field lens 21 is used to focus the laser, and the galvanometer 22 is used to refract the focused laser to mark the workpiece. The laser is focused by the field lens 21, so as to achieve the purpose of controlling the laser energy density. The focused laser is directed to the galvanometer 22, and the galvanometer 22 controls the position of the light spot formed by the laser irradiation on the workpiece, so as to move the light spot, thereby achieving the purpose of marking the workpiece. Specifically, the marking work is performed on the pole piece, and the surface material on the raw material is melted or vaporized by the high temperature of the laser to meet the requirements of exposing a specific line shape on the raw material.

[0034] According to some embodiments of the present application, the switch 3 includes: a first mirror 31, the first mirror 31 is used to refract or reflect laser light; and a first control mechanism 41, the first control mechanism 41 is used to control the rotation of the first mirror 31 so that the laser light refracted or reflected by the first mirror is switched between multiple laser controllers. The first control mechanism 41 is used to control the refraction or reflection angle of the first mirror 31, and the first control mechanism 41 controls the laser light refracted or reflected by the first mirror 31 to switch between multiple laser controllers 2. The first control mechanism 41 is a motor that controls the rotation of the first mirror 31 to adjust the angle of the first mirror 31 relative to the laser emitter 1, thereby changing the reflection or refraction direction of the laser light, so that the laser light is irradiated on different laser controllers 2.

[0035] According to some embodiments of the present application, the switch 3 includes: multiple second mirrors 32, each corresponding to a laser controller 2. The second mirrors 32 are used to refract or reflect laser light to their corresponding laser controllers 2; and a second control mechanism 42 is used to control the rotation of the laser emitter 1 so that the laser light emitted from the laser emitter 2 switches between the multiple second mirrors 32. The angle between the second mirrors 32 and the laser light emitted by the laser emitter is fixed. By irradiating the fixed second mirrors 32 with laser light, the laser light can accurately enter the laser controller 2. By switching between the second mirrors 32 to irradiate the laser light, the laser controller 2 is switched for marking. The second control mechanism 42 is mounted on the laser emitter and is used to control the angle at which the laser emitter 1 emits laser light. By controlling the direction of the laser light emitted by the laser emitter using the second control mechanism 42, the laser light can be switched between the multiple second mirrors 32. The fixed angle and position of the second mirrors 32 ensures a more precise angle of refraction or reflection, avoiding errors caused by the position of the second mirrors 32 and the angle of refraction or reflection. The second control mechanism 42 is a rotating turntable, and the laser emitter is set on the turntable. The position and angle of the second mirror relative to the turntable remain unchanged. Through the rotation of the turntable, the laser emitter will rotate, so that the laser switches from one second mirror 32 to another second mirror 32, thereby completing the switching of the laser controller 2.

[0036] According to some embodiments of the present application, the rotation axis of the laser emitter 1 is set at an angle to the optical path of the laser when it rotates. In one embodiment, the angle is 90°, so that when the laser emitter 2 rotates, the laser can be confined to one plane. Therefore, the second mirror 32 and the laser emitter are both set in the same plane. After the second mirror 32 and the laser emitter are set in the same plane and the second mirror 32 is surrounded by the laser emitter, it is only necessary to control the laser emitter to rotate in one plane. Specifically, a turntable can be set to control the laser emission angle of the laser emitter, thereby switching the second mirror 32 irradiated by the laser. The purpose of switching the laser controller 2 is achieved by switching the second mirror 32. Furthermore, the laser controller 2 can also be surrounded by the periphery of the laser emitter, so as to make the structure of the laser processing equipment more compact.

[0037] According to some embodiments of the present application, the switch 3 includes: a plurality of third mirrors 33, each corresponding to a laser controller 2, and configured to reflect laser light to the corresponding laser controller 2; the plurality of third mirrors 33 are arranged along the laser light path, which is a straight line. The laser emitter 1 emits laser light along the light path, and the third mirrors 33 are all arranged along the light path; a plurality of third control mechanisms 43, each corresponding to the third mirrors 33, and configured to control the third mirrors 33 to switch between a first position and a second position; the third control mechanism 43 can be a mechanism such as a cylinder or an electric push rod capable of driving the third mirror to move; the third mirror 33 in the first position is configured to reflect laser light to the corresponding laser controller 2; the third mirror 33 in the second position is configured to avoid the laser light; and the third mirrors 33 arranged between the third mirror 33 in the first position and the laser emitter 1 are all switched to the second position. The laser light emitted by the laser emitter 1 is fixed on a straight line to avoid errors that may occur due to movement of the laser emitter 1. The third mirrors 33 are arranged at intervals along the laser light path. When the third mirror 33 falls, that is, when the third mirror 33 is in the first position, the third mirror 33 blocks the light path, the laser is irradiated on the third mirror 33, and the third mirror 33 reflects the laser to the laser marking device corresponding to it. At this time, the other third mirrors 33 are all in the second position, that is, avoiding the light path of the laser. When the laser controller 2 reaches a certain temperature, the third mirror 33 corresponding to the laser controller 2 is switched to the second position, avoiding the light path of the laser, so that the laser controller 2 stops marking and starts to cool. At this time, the third mirror 33 corresponding to the next laser controller 2 is switched to the first position, thereby achieving the purpose of switching the laser controller 2 for marking. The third mirrors 33 in Figure 4 are all in the first position. At this time, the third mirror 33 closest to the laser emitter 1 reflects the laser to the laser controller 2 corresponding to it. When another laser controller 2, i.e., the second laser controller 2 from top to bottom, is subsequently selected for operation, the third mirror 33 corresponding to the second laser controller 2 is switched to the first position, and all other third mirrors 33 between the third mirror 33 corresponding to the second laser controller 2 and the laser emitter 1 are switched to the second position, thereby avoiding the laser light, so that the laser light is reflected by the third mirror 33 corresponding to the laser controller 2, and can be irradiated on the laser controller 2 that needs to be irradiated by the laser light. Specifically, the position of the third mirror 33 corresponding to the laser controller 2 that needs to be switched to is the reflection point, the third mirror 33 at the reflection point needs to be switched to the first position, and the third mirror between the reflection point and the laser emitter 1 needs to be switched to the second position to avoid the laser light path.

[0038] According to some embodiments of the present application, the laser controllers 2 are spaced apart along the optical path, and the reflection angle of the third mirrors 33 is 90°. The laser controllers 2 are spaced apart along the optical path, so that there is a one-to-one correspondence between the laser controllers 2 and the third mirrors 33. The reflection angles of the mirrors are all set to 90°, so that after reflection, the irradiation direction of the laser is perpendicular to the original optical path direction. This makes the layout of the laser controllers 2 more reasonable and avoids interference that may occur when setting up the laser controllers 2.

[0039] According to the laser processing method of the second embodiment of the present application, it is used for the laser processing equipment of any of the above embodiments; the laser processing method includes that when the current working state of the laser controller 2 reaches the preset working state, the switching controller controls the switch 3 to perform the switching action, and the switch 3 refracts or reflects the laser to another laser controller 2. By presetting the working state, that is, the preset working time or working temperature, the laser controller 2 is switched when the laser controller 2 reaches the set temperature, so that the laser controller 2 with too high temperature starts to cool down. The temperature of the laser controller 2 is detected by a temperature sensor, especially the temperature on the field mirror and the galvanometer. When the temperature at any point is higher than the preset temperature value, the switch 3 switches the laser controller 2 used to receive the laser. Alternatively, a timing device is set, and after the laser controller 2 has worked for a period of time, the switch 3 switches the laser controller 2 used to receive the laser, wherein the working time of the laser controller 2 is a preset value.

[0040] According to some embodiments of the present application, a plurality of laser controllers 2 are sorted, and a switching controller controls the switch 3 to switch the laser to the laser controller 2 in sequence according to the sorting. Sorting the laser controllers 2 and switching them in sequence avoids some laser controllers 2 being switched back to work before they have finished cooling down. By switching in sequence through sorting, all laser scribing equipment is utilized to the maximum extent, thereby improving the efficiency of the laser processing equipment. Specifically, the laser controllers 2 are sorted from serial number one, and after serial number one reaches a preset working state, the switching controller controls the switch 3 to switch the laser controller 2 to serial number two, and then switches to the laser controller 2 with the last serial number in sequence. After the laser controller 2 with the last serial number reaches a preset working state, the laser controller 2 is switched to serial number one, and the cycle is repeated. As a result, each switched laser controller 2 has the longest cooling time.

[0041] In the description of this application, reference to the terms "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiments," "examples," "specific examples," or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of this application. In this specification, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described can be combined in any appropriate manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

Claims

1. A laser processing device, wherein: The laser processing equipment comprises: A laser transmitter, used for emitting laser; A plurality of laser controllers, wherein the laser controller is used to focus the laser so that the focused laser is irradiated onto a workpiece; A switch, used for changing the optical path of the laser so that the laser is switched between a plurality of laser controllers; The switching controller is used to control the switch to perform a switching action according to the working time and / or working temperature of the current laser controller, wherein the switching action is to switch the optical path of the laser from the current laser controller to the target laser controller.

2. The laser processing equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The switch comprises: a first mirror, the first mirror being used to refract or reflect laser light; A first control mechanism is used to control the rotation of the first mirror so that the laser light refracted or reflected by the first mirror is switched among the plurality of laser controllers.

3. The laser processing equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The switch comprises: A plurality of second mirrors, each of the second mirrors corresponds to the laser controller one by one, and the second mirrors are used to refract or reflect the laser to the corresponding laser controller; A second control mechanism, wherein the second control mechanism is used to control the rotation of the laser emitter so that the laser emitted from the laser emitter is switched between the plurality of second mirrors.

4. The laser processing equipment according to claim 3, wherein: The rotation axis of the laser emitter is arranged at an angle with the optical path of the laser when the laser emitter rotates.

5. The laser processing equipment according to claim 4, wherein: The rotation axis of the laser emitter is arranged at 90 degrees to the optical path of the laser when the laser emitter rotates.

6. The laser processing equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The switch comprises: A plurality of third mirrors, each of the third mirrors corresponds to the laser controller one by one, and the third mirrors are used to refract or reflect the laser to the corresponding laser controller; A plurality of the third mirrors are arranged along the optical path of the laser; A plurality of third control mechanisms, each of the third control mechanisms corresponds to the third mirror one by one, and the third control mechanism is used to control the third mirror to switch between a first position and a second position; when the third mirror is located at the first position, the third mirror is located on the optical path; when the third mirror is located at the second position, the third mirror is located outside the optical path.

7. The laser processing equipment according to claim 6, wherein: The plurality of third mirrors are arranged in a straight line and spaced apart from each other.

8. The laser processing equipment according to claim 7, wherein: The third mirror reflects the laser by 90° to the laser controller corresponding to the third mirror.

9. The laser processing equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The laser controller includes a field mirror and a galvanometer. The field mirror is used to focus the laser. The field mirror is located on a side of the galvanometer away from the workpiece. The galvanometer is used to refract the focused laser so that a light spot formed by the laser irradiating the workpiece moves on the workpiece.

10. A laser processing method, wherein: For the laser processing equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the laser processing method comprises: When the current working state of the current laser controller reaches a preset working state, the switching controller controls the switch to perform a switching action; The preset working state is that the working time of the current laser controller reaches the preset time, and / or the working temperature of the current laser controller reaches the preset temperature.

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