Laser Machine Guard Viewing With Camera-Screen Safety Isolation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current laser processing machines face challenges in providing both operator safety and visibility due to the need for thicker, narrower windows, which reduce visibility and require frequent updates to comply with stringent safety regulations, leading to increased costs and reduced production efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A machine with a protective body equipped with an optical acquisition device and a display screen that allows for real-time image acquisition and display of the work area, enabling operators to monitor the process safely without direct exposure to laser radiation, while adjustable components ensure high flexibility and accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If thicker windows are used to comply with safety regulations, then operator safety is improved, but visibility and viewing area are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the copying principle by using optical acquisition devices (cameras) to capture images of the work area and displaying them on screens mounted on the protective body. This creates a visual copy of the interior view, allowing operators to monitor the laser processing without directly viewing through thick safety windows, thereby maintaining both safety and visibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses an intermediary system consisting of optical acquisition devices, image processing units, and display screens. This intermediary technology mediates between the hazardous work area and the operator, providing indirect visual access that maintains safety requirements while overcoming the visibility limitations imposed by thick protective windows.
2Reliability
If safety regulations become more stringent, then operator protection is improved, but the protective body becomes obsolete requiring replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by implementing an adjustable and reconfigurable optical monitoring system. The optical acquisition devices, display screens, and illumination systems can be adjusted, repositioned, and reconfigured to adapt to different safety regulation requirements and work area configurations, preventing the protective body from becoming obsolete when regulations change.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements universality by designing a multi-functional protective body that integrates not only radiation protection but also optical monitoring, illumination, and imaging capabilities. This universal design allows the same protective body to comply with varying safety regulations through software and system configuration changes rather than physical replacement.
3Ease of operation
If direct viewing through windows is used, then operator control is improved, but operator exposure to laser radiation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses optical acquisition devices to create real-time visual copies of the work area and displays them on screens positioned on the protective body. This allows operators to maintain full control and monitoring capability while completely eliminating direct line-of-sight exposure to laser radiation, as they view the work area through screened images rather than direct optical paths.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/optical direct viewing system with an electronic imaging and display system. Instead of relying on physical windows and direct optical paths, the system uses cameras, image processors, and electronic displays to provide operator control, substituting electronic technology for traditional mechanical optical systems to eliminate radiation exposure risks.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enhances operator safety and visibility, allowing for high-precision monitoring of the laser processing operation without direct exposure to hazardous radiation, while also being adaptable to changing safety regulations without the need for frequent replacements, thus improving production efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
at least one optical acquisition device (6) configured to acquire at least one image representative of the work area
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
Machine (1) for laser processing an object comprising: a processing unit (2) defining a work area (A) adapted to house at least partially an object during a laser processing; a protective body (3), connected to the processing unit (2) and configured to protect a user, having an inner surface (4), at least partially facing the work area (A), and an outer surface (5), at least partially facing an environment outside the machine (1); at least one optical acquisition device (6) configured to acquire at least one image representative of the work area; and at least one display screen (8) connected to the outer surface (5) of the protective body (3) so as to make visible to a user the aforementioned at least one image during an operating condition of the machine (1).