I'm selecting laser equipment for our new product line, and salespeople keep talking about how great their beam delivery systems are, but it's all going over my head. Could you explain in simple terms how beam delivery design actually affects a machine's performance?
No problem! Think of the beam delivery system as the machine's "hand and pen." Different designs determine how fast this "hand" can write, how neat the handwriting is, and how large or complex the "writing surface" can be. It directly determines the machine's four core capabilities: speed, precision, processing range, and ability to handle complex shapes.
That makes it much more visual! So what are the main different types of "hands" available on the market?
We can summarize them into four basic categories. Let me use an analogy:
1. Workpiece Motion Mode (Stationary Laser) – "The Steady Paper-Mover"
• How it works: The laser pen stays still, and the "paper" (workpiece) you want to process is moved.
• Pros: Extremely stable, suitable for high-precision "engraving" on heavy and large "cardboard" (like heavy plates).
• Cons: If the "paper" is too big or heavy, it can't be moved easily, and moving it quickly isn't possible.
1. Workpiece Motion Mode (Stationary Laser) – "The Steady Paper-Mover"
• How it works: The laser pen stays still, and the "paper" (workpiece) you want to process is moved.
• Pros: Extremely stable, suitable for high-precision "engraving" on heavy and large "cardboard" (like heavy plates).
• Cons: If the "paper" is too big or heavy, it can't be moved easily, and moving it quickly isn't possible.
Oh, I see. But what if my workpieces aren't large, but I still want very fast processing?
Then it's time to bring out the "Speed Demons" – they move the beam itself:
2. Mirror Set Gantry Motion Mode – "The Robotic Arm Type"
• How it works: The laser head, carrying mirrors, moves mechanically on a gantry frame to scan.
• Performance: Medium speed, but the working area can be very large, like a tireless robotic arm painting on a huge canvas. The downside is that precision isn't its strongest suit, and it struggles with uneven surfaces.
3. Galvanometer Scanning Mode (Two Types) – "The Lightning-Fast Hand Type"
• Core Principle: Uses rapidly vibrating mirrors to reflect the laser, like your eyeballs moving quickly – the beam can instantly point anywhere.
• Post-Scanning Motion: The lens is behind the mirrors. Extremely fast, high precision, but the processing area is relatively smaller.
• Pre-Scanning Motion (3D Scanning): The lens is in front of the mirrors. It also has lightning speed and high precision, but its killer feature is the ability to make the focus jump up and down on 3D curved surfaces, processing directly on uneven surfaces without extra help.
2. Mirror Set Gantry Motion Mode – "The Robotic Arm Type"
• How it works: The laser head, carrying mirrors, moves mechanically on a gantry frame to scan.
• Performance: Medium speed, but the working area can be very large, like a tireless robotic arm painting on a huge canvas. The downside is that precision isn't its strongest suit, and it struggles with uneven surfaces.
3. Galvanometer Scanning Mode (Two Types) – "The Lightning-Fast Hand Type"
• Core Principle: Uses rapidly vibrating mirrors to reflect the laser, like your eyeballs moving quickly – the beam can instantly point anywhere.
• Post-Scanning Motion: The lens is behind the mirrors. Extremely fast, high precision, but the processing area is relatively smaller.
• Pre-Scanning Motion (3D Scanning): The lens is in front of the mirrors. It also has lightning speed and high precision, but its killer feature is the ability to make the focus jump up and down on 3D curved surfaces, processing directly on uneven surfaces without extra help.
"Lightning-Fast Hand" is a great analogy! But what if my material is special, like needing to cut very thick glass or do internal engraving?
You've hit the nail on the head! That's when you need some "Specialty Pens," for example:
4. Special Focusing Methods
• Bessel Beam: Like an "infinitely long pen tip." An ordinary laser pen tip spreads out when passing through thick material, but this one doesn't, so it can perfectly cut glass and perform non-damaging engraving inside transparent materials, with smooth, taper-free edges.
• As for other more cutting-edge "black tech" like multi-focus and adaptive optics, they solve the limits of efficiency, precision, and special effects respectively – we can talk about them specifically next time.
4. Special Focusing Methods
• Bessel Beam: Like an "infinitely long pen tip." An ordinary laser pen tip spreads out when passing through thick material, but this one doesn't, so it can perfectly cut glass and perform non-damaging engraving inside transparent materials, with smooth, taper-free edges.
• As for other more cutting-edge "black tech" like multi-focus and adaptive optics, they solve the limits of efficiency, precision, and special effects respectively – we can talk about them specifically next time.
Thank you so much! After your explanation, I finally have a clear map in my mind. It seems I need to first figure out whether I need the "Paper-Mover," the "Robotic Arm," or the "Lightning-Fast Hand" before deciding on specific equipment.
Exactly! Identifying your core need – whether it's a large working area, extremely high speed, or the ability to handle 3D surfaces – is the first and most important step in choosing a beam delivery solution.
You just detailed various precise laser beam delivery technologies – it's eye-opening. Besides these technologies aimed at precision micro-processing, what different technical approaches are there in the "heavy-duty" macro-processing field, like cutting very thick steel plates?
Great question! This is indeed a different technical field. High-power macro-processing primarily pursues cutting capability, speed, and efficiency.
• Core Technology: Primarily uses multi-kilowatt to tens-of-kilowatt continuous wave fiber lasers, combined with gantry-based flying optics or robotic arms for large-scale processing.
• Technical Focus: The core challenge in its beam delivery design is how to stably transmit extremely high laser power over long distances and manage the immense heat generated, ensuring vertical, smooth, and dross-free cut sections.
• Difference from the LMS focus: As you observed, LMS's R&D focus is on precise, ultrafast, and intelligent micro-processing solutions, while high-power macro-processing is another important industrial branch we only briefly touch upon here.
• Core Technology: Primarily uses multi-kilowatt to tens-of-kilowatt continuous wave fiber lasers, combined with gantry-based flying optics or robotic arms for large-scale processing.
• Technical Focus: The core challenge in its beam delivery design is how to stably transmit extremely high laser power over long distances and manage the immense heat generated, ensuring vertical, smooth, and dross-free cut sections.
• Difference from the LMS focus: As you observed, LMS's R&D focus is on precise, ultrafast, and intelligent micro-processing solutions, while high-power macro-processing is another important industrial branch we only briefly touch upon here.
Understood, it's like different worlds! So, let's return to the precision processing field. Besides the basic optical paths, I've heard there are some "black tech" things like "multi-focus" and "adaptive optics." Could you introduce what practical problems they solve?
Of course! These were born precisely to break through the bottlenecks of traditional processing. Let me give you a few examples, and you'll understand:
Multi-Focus System: Solves the "Efficiency" Problem
• Imagine: Instead of one pen writing one character at a time, it becomes ten pens writing ten characters simultaneously.
• Practical Application: Use it for large-area hydrophobic coating treatment on mobile phone cover glass, or use a femtosecond laser focus array to instantly create hundreds of cooling film holes on turbine blades, boosting efficiency by tens of times.
Adaptive Optics: Solves the "Precision" Problem
• Imagine: Being able to steadily aim a pen tip at a moving pinhole while running at high speed.
• Practical Application: Integrate Fast Steering Mirrors (FSM) and Position Sensitive Detectors (PSD) into a mirror gantry system, achieving microsecond-level real-time error correction. Even with slight machine vibration, it ensures ultra-high precision welding and repair in processes like chip packaging.
Diffractive Optical Elements (DOE): Solves the "Effect" Problem
• Imagine: An optical "stamp" – laser light shines down, and a complex spot pattern forms directly.
• Practical Application: Customize special DOEs to laser-mark anti-counterfeiting codes in one shot, or shape the laser into a uniform "flat-top" beam for even coating removal on glass surfaces, perfectly replacing chemical etching.
Bessel Beam: Solves the "Depth" Problem
• Imagine: An "infinitely long" pen tip that can penetrate very thick materials without getting thicker.
• Practical Application: Perfect for cutting specialty glass and performing 3D engraving inside transparent materials, with almost no taper and smooth edges.
In simple terms, you can choose based on your needs: for efficiency, look to multi-focus; for ultimate precision, adaptive optics; for special effects, DOE; and for processing thick/transparent materials, Bessel beam is the first choice.
Multi-Focus System: Solves the "Efficiency" Problem
• Imagine: Instead of one pen writing one character at a time, it becomes ten pens writing ten characters simultaneously.
• Practical Application: Use it for large-area hydrophobic coating treatment on mobile phone cover glass, or use a femtosecond laser focus array to instantly create hundreds of cooling film holes on turbine blades, boosting efficiency by tens of times.
Adaptive Optics: Solves the "Precision" Problem
• Imagine: Being able to steadily aim a pen tip at a moving pinhole while running at high speed.
• Practical Application: Integrate Fast Steering Mirrors (FSM) and Position Sensitive Detectors (PSD) into a mirror gantry system, achieving microsecond-level real-time error correction. Even with slight machine vibration, it ensures ultra-high precision welding and repair in processes like chip packaging.
Diffractive Optical Elements (DOE): Solves the "Effect" Problem
• Imagine: An optical "stamp" – laser light shines down, and a complex spot pattern forms directly.
• Practical Application: Customize special DOEs to laser-mark anti-counterfeiting codes in one shot, or shape the laser into a uniform "flat-top" beam for even coating removal on glass surfaces, perfectly replacing chemical etching.
Bessel Beam: Solves the "Depth" Problem
• Imagine: An "infinitely long" pen tip that can penetrate very thick materials without getting thicker.
• Practical Application: Perfect for cutting specialty glass and performing 3D engraving inside transparent materials, with almost no taper and smooth edges.
In simple terms, you can choose based on your needs: for efficiency, look to multi-focus; for ultimate precision, adaptive optics; for special effects, DOE; and for processing thick/transparent materials, Bessel beam is the first choice.
