Compact Laser Sheet Cutting With Beam Steering and Dust Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laser cutting machines for stiff materials like corrugated cardboard are large, expensive, and lack flexibility and safety for use in public environments, leading to inefficiencies in space utilization and increased costs due to high energy consumption and safety concerns.
Innovation Solution
A compact laser cutting machine with a transporting system that moves sheets in both directions and a cutting system with movable laser beams that operate in one dimension, allowing for precise control and minimal waste, integrated with a suction system for dust and smoke removal, enabling safe and efficient cutting in limited spaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a conventional laser cutting machine is used for stiff materials, then cutting capability is achieved, but the machine size becomes large and requires extensive space
Solution Approach 1:
The laser cutting system is divided into separate functional modules: a laser source unit, a movable carriage assembly with galvonomers for beam steering, and a独立的 suction system. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and arranged compactly, reducing the overall machine footprint while maintaining cutting functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a traditional planar laser cutting arrangement to a three-dimensional configuration where the laser beam is steered in multiple dimensions using galvonomers. The beam can move vertically and horizontally independently, allowing the cutting head to access different positions on the material without requiring a large two-dimensional travel space, thus compacting the machine structure.
2Productivity
If high power laser beams are used for cutting, then cutting speed and efficiency improve, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The laser operates in periodic pulses rather than continuous mode. The control system activates the laser only when the beam is positioned over the material to be cut, and deactivates it during beam movement or positioning phases. This periodic operation maintains high cutting speed when active while significantly reducing average energy consumption compared to continuous operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback control through position sensors and beam tracking mechanisms that monitor the laser beam position and material characteristics. This feedback allows the control system to adjust laser power dynamically, using higher power only when and where needed for effective cutting, and reducing or eliminating power during positioning, thereby optimizing the balance between cutting speed and energy consumption.
3Ease of operation
If laser cutting is performed in public environments, then accessibility improves, but safety concerns arise from dust and smoke generation
Solution Approach 1:
A suction system with a suction head positioned near the cutting zone acts as an intermediary between the laser cutting process and the surrounding environment. This intermediary captures dust and smoke particles generated during cutting and removes them through a filtration system, preventing harmful particles from dispersing into the public environment while allowing the cutting operation to proceed in accessible locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system converts the harmful dust and smoke generated by laser cutting into a controlled, removable stream. By positioning the suction head to capture particles at their source and channeling them through a filtration system, the harmful byproducts are transformed from an environmental hazard into a manageable waste stream that can be filtered and disposed of safely, enabling public environment operation.
4Manufacturing precision
If precise beam positioning is achieved using movable optical systems, then cutting precision improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical positioning systems with electromagnetic field-based galvonomers for beam steering. Instead of physically moving the entire laser source or cutting head through complex mechanical assemblies, the system uses galvonomers to deflect the laser beam electronically with high precision. This substitution reduces mechanical complexity while maintaining or improving positioning accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The system achieves precise beam positioning by changing the electrical parameters (voltage, current) supplied to the galvonomers rather than physically reconfiguring the optical path. By controlling the deflection angles of the laser beam through electrical signals, the system achieves high positioning precision with simpler mechanical components compared to traditional mechanical positioning systems.
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 provides a cost-effective, flexible, and safe cutting solution for a variety of materials, reducing energy consumption and waste while allowing for precise cutting patterns, suitable for use in public environments like post offices without the need for extensive space or industrial settings.
Implementation Method 1
a cutting system for processing the sheets, in which the cutting system comprises one or more lasers for producing one or more laser beams and comprises one or more optical system for controlling one or more of the laser beams so that at least a part of the one or more of the laser beams cuts the transport plane along a beam direction
Implementation Method 2
integrated with a suction system for dust and smoke removal
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to an improved cutting device and an improved cutting method, specifically For processing and cutting sheets of a stiff material, such as cardboard and others, in which the sheets are supplied and moved In a stable way along a first direction, and a laser cutting unit (or at least the resulting laser beams) is moved along a second, substantially perpendicular direction, in which by coordinating the two movements, a desired cut is executed in the sheets.