JP7053233B2 - Laser processing equipment and laser processing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a laser processing apparatus and a laser processing method.

As is well known, a cage for a constant velocity universal joint has a hole for holding a torque transmission member such as a ball, and this hole is a base material of the cage (short tubular work, hereinafter. , Simply referred to as "work") is often formed by punching. However, in punching,
-It is necessary to carefully perform finishing such as grinding around the hole of the work.
・ It is necessary to have a large number of punching dies that correspond to the shape of the holes.
・ It takes time to change the mold.
Processing costs tend to increase for reasons such as. Therefore, the hole may be formed by laser processing (laser cutting) in which a laser beam for cutting the work is irradiated on the outer diameter surface of the work in a predetermined orbit.

When forming the hole portion in the above embodiment, high-temperature cutting pieces and spatter generated by irradiating the laser beam are scattered (dropped) on the inner circumference of the work. Therefore, if laser cutting is performed without interposing anything on the inner circumference of the work, cutting pieces or the like are likely to adhere (weld) to the inner diameter surface of the work. If a cut piece or the like is welded to the inner diameter surface of the work, it is necessary to additionally perform a removal process for removing the cut piece or the like, so that the cost merit of adopting laser cutting is impaired. Therefore, the present inventors have considered adopting, for example, the technical means disclosed in the following Patent Documents 1 to 3 when cutting the work by laser.

The technical means disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 3 is an outer diameter surface of another member (spatter adhesion prevention member) in which cut pieces and spatter generated by irradiating the work with a laser beam are arranged on the inner circumference of the work. It is to capture with. Further, the technical means disclosed in Patent Document 2 irradiates a laser beam with a spatter adhesion prevention member having axial grooves or a large number of through holes opened on both front and back surfaces arranged on the inner circumference of the work to be cut. By doing so, while taking spatter into the inner circumference of the spatter adhesion prevention member, the spatter taken into the inner circumference of the spatter adhesion prevention member is sucked or sprayed from one end side of the spatter adhesion prevention member, and the spatter taken into the inner circumference of the spatter adhesion prevention member is taken into the outside of the pipe material. It is to blow it away.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-237679 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-155584 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-74001

However, in the technical means of Patent Documents 1 and 3, it is necessary to clean and replace the spatter adhesion prevention member within a relatively short period of time, so that maintenance is troublesome and costly. Further, in particular, when the work is largely cut out (when a large cut piece is generated), there is a possibility that the cut piece cannot be captured by the spatter adhesion prevention member.

On the other hand, with the technical means of Patent Document 2, the frequency of cleaning / replacement (maintenance frequency) of the spatter adhesion prevention member can be reduced. However, when the work is largely cut out, it may not be possible to properly take in the cut pieces on the inner circumference of the spatter adhesion prevention member. Further, even if the cut piece can be taken into the inner circumference of the spatter adhesion prevention member, it may not be properly discharged to the outside of the work.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention allows the cut pieces and spatter to adhere to the work and another member arranged on the inner circumference thereof when partially laser cutting the short tubular work. The purpose is to make it possible to prevent laser processing (cutting) efficiently.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is a laser processing device that partially cuts a work by irradiating the outer diameter surface of the short tubular work with a laser beam in a predetermined orbit, and is one end of the work. It has a support mechanism for supporting the work and a discharge guide surface for discharging the cut pieces that fall to the inner circumference of the work due to the partial cutting of the work due to the irradiation of the laser beam to the outside of the work through the other end opening of the work. Laser machining characterized by comprising a cutting piece receiver, a fluid injection mechanism for injecting a fluid flowing from one end side to the other end side of the work on the discharge guide surface, and a cooling mechanism for cooling the discharge guide surface. Provide the device.

Since the laser processing apparatus according to the present invention is provided with the above-mentioned fluid injection mechanism, the cut pieces and spatter that fall (scatter) on the inner circumference of the work due to the irradiation of the laser beam are discharged from the cut piece receiver. (For example, the inclined surface gradually shifted downward from one end side to the other end side of the work) can be smoothly discharged to the outside of the work. Further, since the laser processing device is provided with a cooling mechanism for cooling the discharge guide surface, it becomes difficult for cut pieces or the like to adhere (weld) to the discharge guide surface. Therefore, according to the laser processing apparatus according to the present invention, it is possible to effectively reduce the possibility that the cut piece or the like adheres to the work and the discharge guide surface of the cut piece receiver. As a result, it is possible to obtain a high-quality processed work piece without foreign matter adhering to it, and it is possible to efficiently carry out laser processing by reducing the maintenance frequency of the cutting piece receiver.

The cooling mechanism may be provided with a cooling fluid flow passage formed inside the cut piece receiver and having a guide surface cooling portion arranged along the discharge guide surface. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the cooling fluid for cooling the discharge guide surface from interfering with the fluid flowing on the discharge guide surface. Therefore, the cut pieces and the like can be efficiently discharged to the outside of the work.

The fluid injection mechanism may be provided with a fluid flow passage formed inside the cutting piece receiver. In this case, if the fluid flow passage has one inlet and a plurality of injection ports having an opening area smaller than the opening area of the inlet, the fluid supply pressure (fluid supply amount) to the fluid flow passage. ) Can be secured for the fluid injected from the injection port without unnecessarily increasing.

The cut piece receiver has a receiving portion having a discharge guiding surface and a back plate portion arranged adjacent to one side in the axial direction of the receiving portion and extending in the radial direction of the work, and an injection port is provided on the other end surface of the back plate portion. An open one can be adopted.

The cut piece receiver may be provided with a guide passage for guiding the free fall of the cut piece discharged to the outside of the work through the other end opening of the work. By providing such a guide passage, it is possible to prevent the cut pieces discharged to the outside of the work (along the discharge guide surface) from being scattered in all directions through the other end opening of the work. The cut pieces can be easily and appropriately collected. At this time, if the cooling fluid flow passage constituting the cooling mechanism is provided with a guide passage cooling portion arranged along the defined surface of the guide passage, the cut pieces adhere (weld) to the defined surface of the guide passage. ) Can be prevented as much as possible, and the cut pieces can be smoothly dropped freely. As a result, the maintenance frequency of the cut piece holder can be reduced (the cut piece holder can be continuously used), so that the processing efficiency can be improved.

Further, in the present invention, when the work is partially cut by irradiating the outer diameter surface of the short tubular work having one end supported with a laser beam in a predetermined orbit, the work is irradiated with the laser beam. A cutting piece receiver having a discharge guiding surface for discharging the cutting piece falling to the inner circumference to the outside of the work through the other end opening of the work is arranged, and the other side from one end side of the work while cooling the discharge guiding surface. Provided is a laser processing method characterized by injecting a fluid flowing on a discharge guide surface toward an end side.

According to such a laser processing method, it is possible to enjoy the same effects as in the case of adopting the above-mentioned laser processing apparatus according to the present invention.

In the above laser processing method, the work can be rotatably supported around the central axis (horizontal axis) in an upright posture with its central axis along the horizontal direction. By doing so, when laser machining is performed at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction of the work, the laser machining can be performed efficiently and accurately.

From the above, according to the present invention, when a short cylindrical work is partially laser-cut, the possibility that cut pieces and spatter adhere to the work can be effectively reduced, so that a high-quality processed work can be used. Can be obtained at low cost. In addition, the cutting pieces and the like are less likely to adhere to the cutting piece receiver arranged on the inner circumference of the work, and the maintenance frequency of the cutting piece receiving can be reduced, so that continuous use is possible and processing efficiency can be improved. Will be.

It is a figure which conceptually shows the whole structure of the laser processing apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a partially enlarged front view of a cut piece receiver, FIG. 3A is a diagram conceptually showing an example of an injection port provided in the cut piece receiver, and FIGS. It is a figure which shows the injection port conceptually. It is a vertical sectional view of the cut piece receiver which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a partial schematic perspective view of the cut piece receiver which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic perspective view of the cut piece receiver which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which conceptually shows the whole structure of the laser processing apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a partial perspective view of the cut piece receiver shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. 1 is a cross-sectional view conceptually showing the overall structure of the laser processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2A to 2C are partially enlarged front views of the cut piece receiver. 3 to 5 are a vertical cross-sectional view of the cut piece holder according to the first embodiment, a partial schematic perspective view of the cut piece holder when viewed from the other end side in the axial direction of the work, and the cut piece, respectively. It is a schematic perspective view when the one-sided support is seen from one end side in the axial direction of a work. In addition, in FIG. 4, in order to simplify the figure, the illustration of the fluid flow passage 22 shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 is omitted.

The laser machining apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 is used to form an endless hole (through hole) Wc opened on both front and back surfaces (outer diameter surface and inner diameter surface) of a short cylindrical work W. It includes a laser machine 2, a support mechanism 4, a cutting piece receiver 10, a fluid injection mechanism 20, and a cooling mechanism 30 (see FIG. 4).

Examples of the work W include a base material of a cage for a constant velocity universal joint. In this case, the hole portion Wc functions as a pocket portion for accommodating and holding a torque transmission member such as a ball.

The laser machining machine 2 is a work W (work W to be machined supported by the support mechanism 4; hereinafter referred to as “work W” after condensing a laser oscillator (not shown) and a laser beam LB generated by the laser oscillator. The case is also basically the same.) The laser processing head 3 for irradiating the outer diameter surface is provided. The laser machining head 3 is arranged on the upper side of the work W and can be moved in the triaxial direction of the XYZ by a drive mechanism (not shown). In the present embodiment, the axial direction (horizontal direction) of the work W is the X-axis direction, the vertical direction is the Y-axis direction, and the direction orthogonal to the XY plane (the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. 1) is Z. Axial (see FIGS. 1 and 3-5).

As long as the work W can be cut with a predetermined accuracy, the type of laser beam LB generated by the laser oscillator is not particularly limited, and known gas lasers such as carbon dioxide lasers, solid state lasers such as YAG lasers, liquid lasers, semiconductor lasers and the like are known. Various lasers can be used.

The support mechanism 4 of the illustrated example rotatably supports the work W in an upright position with its central axis along the horizontal direction, and is a rotary table that can rotate around the horizontal axis (X axis). 5. A plurality of chuck claws 6 arranged at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction of the work W, and a drive mechanism (not shown) for applying a rotational drive force around a horizontal axis to the rotary table 5 are provided.

Each chuck claw 6 is attached to the rotary table 5 so as to be reciprocating in the radial direction of the work W. Therefore, when supporting the work W by the support mechanism 4, first, each chuck claw 6 is slid inward in the radial direction of the work W, and the claw portion of each chuck claw 6 is inserted into the inner circumference of one end of the work W. Make it possible. Next, after inserting the claw portion of the chuck claw 6 into the inner circumference of one end of the work W, each chuck claw 6 is slid outward in the radial direction of the work W, and the claw portion of each chuck claw 6 is moved to one end Wa of the work W. Engage in. As a result, one end of the work W is supported by the support mechanism 4. On the other hand, when the laser processing on the work W is completed and the work W is removed from the support mechanism 4, each chuck claw 6 is slid inward in the radial direction, and the claw portion of each chuck claw 6 and the work W are engaged with each other. After releasing, the work W and the support mechanism 4 are relatively separated from each other.

The cutting piece receiving portion 10 is a receiving portion that receives the cutting piece A and the spatter B (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “cutting piece A and the like”) generated by irradiating the outer diameter surface of the work W with the laser beam LB. 11 is provided with a back plate portion 12 arranged on one side in the axial direction of the receiving portion 11 (one end Wa inner circumference of the work W), and a base portion 13 arranged on the other side in the axial direction of the receiving portion 11. As shown in FIG. 1, during laser machining on the work W, the receiving portion 11 (most of) and the back plate portion 12 are arranged on the inner circumference of the work W, while the base portion 13 is arranged on the outside of the work W. To. In FIG. 1, the receiving portion 11, the back plate portion 12, and the base portion 13 are integrally drawn, but in reality, the fluid flow passage 22 and the cooling fluid flow passage 32, which will be described later, are formed inside the cut piece receiver 10. For the convenience of the above, each of the above parts 11 to 13 is a separate member, and is coupled and integrated by using an appropriate means (for example, a fastening member such as a bolt).

The receiving portion 11 has a discharge guide surface 14 for discharging the cut piece A or the like to the outside of the work W through the opening on the other end Wb side of the work W. The discharge guide surface 14 is composed of an inclined surface that gradually shifts vertically downward from one end Wa side to the other end Wb side of the work W, and the other end side partial region is formed of the work W through the other end opening of the work W. It protrudes to the outside of. The inclination angle of the discharge guide surface 14 made of an inclined surface can be arbitrarily set as long as the cut pieces A and the like can be smoothly discharged, and can be, for example, in the range of 10 ° to 60 °.

The fluid injection mechanism 20 is for injecting the fluid 23 flowing on the discharge guide surface 14 from one end side to the other end side of the work W, and is a fluid flow passage 22 formed inside the cut piece receiver 10. And a fluid supply source 21 installed outside the work W and supplying the fluid 23 to the fluid flow passage 22. As the fluid supply source 21, for example, a blower, a blower, a compressor, a pump, or the like can be used. Therefore, as the fluid 23, for example, air (compressed air), water, or a mixture of air and water is used.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the fluid flow passage 22 is formed so that the inflow port 22a and the injection port 22b are opened at one end surface of the base portion 13 and the other end surface 12a of the back plate portion 12, respectively. There is. Therefore, the fluid flow passage 22 is connected to the first flow passage formed in the base portion 13, the second flow passage formed in the receiving portion 11, and the third flow passage formed in the back plate portion 12. It is formed. The injection port 22b is directed toward the discharge guide surface 14 so that the fluid 23 flows along the discharge guide surface 14.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the injection port 22b can be formed of a slit-shaped elongated hole extending in the width direction (Z-axis direction) of the back plate portion 12, and also in FIG. 2B and FIG. It can be configured with a round hole as shown in 2 (c). FIG. 2B is an example of a case where the injection ports 22b made of round holes are arranged at predetermined intervals along the width direction of the back plate portion 12, and FIG. 2C is made of round holes. This is an example of a case where the injection ports 22b are randomly arranged in the width direction and the height direction (Y-axis direction) of the back plate portion 12.

When the injection port 22b is formed of a slit-shaped elongated hole as shown in FIG. 2A, the fluid from the fluid supply source 21 is used to secure a desired flow rate for the fluid 23 flowing on the discharge guide surface 14. It is inefficient because it is necessary to supply a large amount of fluid 23 (increase the fluid supply pressure) to the flow passage 22. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 2 (b) and 2 (c), the injection port 22b is preferably formed of a round hole or the like whose opening area is smaller than the opening area of the inflow port 22a, and it is preferable to provide a plurality of the injection port 22b. ..

The cooling mechanism 30 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is provided to cool at least the discharge guide surface 14 of the cutting piece receiver 10 during the laser processing of the work W (see FIG. 1), and the cooling mechanism 30 is provided for cutting. A cooling fluid flow passage 32 formed inside the piece receiver 10 and a cooling fluid supply source 31 for supplying the cooling fluid 33 to the cooling fluid flow passage 32 are provided. As shown in FIG. 5, the cooling fluid flow passage 32 has a guide surface cooling portion 32c arranged along the discharge guide surface 14 (arranged in parallel with the discharge guide surface 14).

The cooling fluid 33 may be a gas such as a cooling gas or a cooling liquid such as water or oil, but a cooling liquid is preferable. Therefore, as the cooling fluid supply source 31, a pump capable of pumping the coolant toward the cooling fluid flow passage 32 is preferably used.

Since the above-mentioned fluid passage 22 is also formed inside the cutting piece receiver 10 of the present embodiment in addition to the cooling fluid flow passage 32, both passages 22 and 32 are prevented from interfering with each other. The formation mode of is devised. Briefly with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the fluid flow passage 22 is a single flow passage (a single flow passage) formed at the center of the base portion 13, the receiving portion 11 and the back plate portion 12 in the width direction (Z-axis direction), respectively. It is formed by connecting the first to third flow passages). On the other hand, the cooling fluid flow passage 32 has two flow passages formed on both sides of the first flow passage of the base 13 and the second flow passage of the receiving portion 11 constituting the fluid flow passage 22 in the width direction of the receiving portion 11. It is formed by connecting through a flow path extending to.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, in the present embodiment, the inlet 32a and the outlet 32b of the cooling fluid flow passage 32 are opened on one side surface and the other side surface of the base 13, respectively, but the cooling fluid flow passage is opened. As long as the cooling fluid 33 can be smoothly circulated along the 32, the surfaces for opening the inflow port 32a and the discharge port 32b can be arbitrarily selected. For example, either one or both of the inflow port 32a and the discharge port 32b may be opened at one end surface of the base 13 in the same manner as the inflow port 22a of the fluid flow path 22.

An embodiment of laser processing (forming processing of the hole Wc) by the laser processing apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described below.

First, as shown in FIG. 1, one end Wa of the work W is supported by the support mechanism 4, and the cut piece receiver 10 is arranged on the inner circumference of the work W. Next, the laser beam LB is transferred from the laser machining head 3 while rotating the work W around its central axis (X axis) by rotating the rotary table 5 of the support mechanism 4 while moving the laser machining head 3 in a predetermined orbit. By irradiating the outer diameter surface of the work W, a hole Wc having a predetermined shape is formed in the work W.

When irradiating the laser beam LB, the fluid injection mechanism 20 is operated. That is, the fluid supply source 21 is operated to supply the fluid 23 such as air to the fluid flow passage 22 formed inside the cutting piece receiver 10. The fluid 23 supplied to the fluid flow passage 22 is injected onto the inclined discharge guide surface 14 through the fluid injection port 22b of the fluid flow passage 22, and the injected fluid 23 works on the discharge guide surface 14. It flows from one end Wa side to the other end Wb side of W (flows from the upper end portion to the lower end portion of the discharge guide surface 14 made of an inclined surface).

The cut pieces A and spatter B generated when the work W is irradiated with the laser beam LB (the hole Wc is formed) fall to the inner circumference of the work W. A cutting piece receiver 10 having the discharge guide surface 14 is arranged on the inner circumference of the work W, and since the fluid 23 flows on the discharge guide surface 14 in the above manner, it falls to the inner circumference of the work W. The cut pieces A and spatter B that have been cut flow together with the fluid 23 toward the lower side (the other end Wb side of the work W) along the discharge guide surface 14, and are discharged to the outside of the work W through the other end opening of the work W. ..

Further, when performing laser machining in the above embodiment (when irradiating the work W with the laser beam LB), the cooling mechanism 30 for cooling the discharge guide surface 14 is operated. That is, the cooling fluid supply source 31 (see FIG. 4) is operated to supply the cooling fluid 33 to the cooling fluid flow passage 32 formed inside the cutting piece receiver 10. As a result, the discharge guide surface 14 is cooled, and excessive temperature rise of the discharge guide surface 14 is prevented as much as possible. Therefore, even when the cut piece A or the like comes into contact with the discharge guide surface 14, it is possible to prevent the cut piece A or the like from being welded to the discharge guide surface 14 as much as possible. In particular, when a large cut piece A is generated, even if the fluid 23 is flowing from the one end Wa side to the other end Wb side of the work W on the discharge guide surface 14, the cut piece A is placed on the outside of the work W. Since it is difficult to discharge smoothly, it can be said that there is a relatively high possibility that the cut piece A is welded to the discharge guide surface 14. On the other hand, if the cooling mechanism 30 is provided, the possibility that the cut piece A is welded to the discharge guide surface 14 is effectively reduced.

From the above, according to the laser processing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the work W is partially laser-cut, the possibility that the cut pieces A and the spatter B adhere to the inner diameter surface of the work W is effectively prevented. Since it can be reduced, high quality work W (processed work) can be obtained at low cost. Further, the cutting piece A or the like is less likely to be welded to the cutting piece receiving 10 arranged on the inner circumference of the work W, and the maintenance frequency of the cutting piece receiving 10 can be reduced, so that the cutting piece receiving 10 can be used continuously. Therefore, the processing efficiency can be improved.

Although not shown, in the laser processing apparatus 1 described above, the cutting piece receiver 10 is attached and fixed to an actuator (not shown), and the cutting piece receiving 10 can be moved closer to and away from the support mechanism 4. It is preferable to do. As a result, the setup work including the replacement of the work W to be machined (attachment / detachment of the work W to the support mechanism 4) can be smoothly performed.

FIG. 6 conceptually shows the overall structure of the laser processing apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 shows a partial perspective view of the cutting piece receiver 10 constituting the laser processing apparatus 1.

The laser processing device 1 shown in FIG. 6 is substantially different from the laser processing device 1 shown in FIG. 1 in that the structure of the cutting piece receiver 10 and the cooling mechanism 30 is different from that of the laser processing device 1 shown in FIG. Is the same as. That is, although detailed illustration is omitted in FIG. 6, the laser processing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 6 also has the same fluid injection mechanism 20 and cooling mechanism 30 as the laser processing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. Hereinafter, in the laser processing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 6, only the configuration different from that of the laser processing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 will be described in detail.

The cut piece receiver 10 of this embodiment includes a guide passage 15 that guides the free fall of the cut piece A or the like discharged to the outside of the work W through the other end opening of the work W. The guide passage 15 is formed at the base 13 and extends in the vertical direction. Although not shown, a collection box for collecting the cut pieces A and the like is arranged on the lower side of the guide passage 15. Since the cut piece receiver 10 is provided with the above-mentioned guide passage 15, the cut piece A or the like discharged to the outside of the work W through the other end opening of the work W (along the discharge guide surface 14) is discharged in all directions. Since it can be prevented from being scattered in the space, it is possible to facilitate the work of collecting the cut pieces A and the like and the work of maintaining the laser processing apparatus 1.

Further, the cooling fluid flow passage 32 constituting the cooling mechanism 30 of this embodiment is arranged along the image plane of the guide passage 15 in addition to the guide surface cooling unit 32c shown in FIGS. 3 to 5. A passage cooling unit 32d is provided. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the cutting piece receiver 10 has a terminal wall 16 (erected so as to intersect the extension line of the discharge guide surface 14) arranged to face the back plate portion 12. A pair of side walls 17 and 17 interposed between the back plate portion 12 and the terminal wall 16 are provided, and a guide passage cooling unit 32d is provided inside the terminal wall 16. As shown in FIG. 7, in the present embodiment, the guide passage cooling unit 32d is arranged along the width direction (Z-axis direction) of the terminal wall 16, but the guide passage cooling unit 32d is the terminal wall 16. It may be arranged along the height direction (Y-axis direction) of. Further, the guide passage cooling portion 32d may be provided inside the side wall 17.

As described above, the cooling fluid flow passage 32 constituting the cooling mechanism 30 is arranged along the image plane of the guide passage 15 (the inner wall surface of the terminal wall 16 and the inner wall surface of the side wall 17). If the 32d is provided, the cutting piece A or the like can be prevented from being welded to the image plane of the guide passage 15 as much as possible, and the cutting piece A or the like can be smoothly and freely dropped. As a result, the cut piece A and the like can be easily and appropriately collected, and the maintenance frequency of the cut piece receiver 10 can be effectively reduced. In the present invention, the fluid 23 flowing on the discharge guide surface 14 urges the cut piece A or the like on the front side in the injection direction of the fluid 23, so that the cut piece A or the like discharged to the outside of the work W is the guide passage 15. Of the drawing surfaces of the above, it is particularly easy to weld to the inner wall surface (one end surface) of the terminal wall 16, but if the guide passage cooling unit 32d is provided inside the terminal wall 16 as in the present embodiment, the terminal wall Since the inner wall surface of 16 can be efficiently cooled, it is possible to effectively prevent the cut pieces A and the like from being welded to the inner wall surface of the terminal wall 16.

As shown in FIG. 7, in the present embodiment, the terminal wall 16 and the pair of side walls 17 are integrally provided, and the inner wall surface of the terminal wall 16 and the inner wall surface of the side wall 17 are connected via the R portion. As a result, the connection portion between the end wall 16 and the side wall 17 is prevented from being clogged with the cut pieces A and the spatter B. Therefore, the maintenance frequency of the cutting piece receiver 10 can be further reduced, that is, the cutting piece receiving 10 can be continuously used, so that the processing efficiency can be improved.

Further, in order to prevent the cut piece A or the like from being welded to the inner wall surface of the end wall 16 as much as possible, the temperature of the cut piece A or the like when the cut piece A or the like reaches the inner wall surface of the end wall 16 and the temperature of the cut piece A or the like. It is effective to reduce the speed as much as possible. From this point of view, the separation distance L between the other end surface 12a (injection port 22b of the fluid 23) of the back plate portion 12 and the inner wall surface (one end surface) of the end wall 16 is, for example, 105 mm or more (L ≧ 115 mm). preferable. However, if the value of the separation distance L becomes excessively large, the size of the cutting piece receiver 10 and the entire laser processing device 1 will increase, and the cutting piece A and the like will be appropriately discharged to the outside of the work W (reaching the guide passage 15). It may be difficult to make it. Therefore, the upper limit of the separation distance L is preferably 125 mm (L ≦ 125 mm), although it depends on the size of the work W to be machined.

The laser processing apparatus 1 (and the laser processing method using the same) according to the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the laser processing apparatus 1 described above is appropriately used as long as it does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. It is possible to make changes.

For example, although not shown, the cut piece receiver 10 can be configured to be fitted to the support mechanism 4 (rotary table 5). That is, for example, the back plate portion 12 constituting the cutting piece receiver 10 is provided with a protruding portion protruding to one side in the axial direction, and the laser processing is performed in a state where the protruding portion is fitted (freely fitted) to the rotary table 5. If this is done, the relative movement between the support mechanism 4 (work W supported by the support mechanism 4) and the cutting piece receiver 10 during laser processing can be restricted, which is advantageous in maintaining the ejection accuracy of the cutting piece A or the like. be.

Further, the formation mode of the fluid flow passage 22 and the cooling fluid flow passage 32 described above is merely an example. That is, if both passages 22 and 32 formed inside the cutting piece receiver 10 do not interfere with each other and can fulfill the functions required for both passages 22 and 32 (fluid injection mechanism 20 and cooling mechanism 30), both passages 22 and 32 can be fulfilled. The formation (arrangement) mode of the passages 22 and 32 can be appropriately changed. For example, the cooling fluid flow passage 32 may be provided with not only one system but also two or more systems as in the embodiment described above. When two or more cooling fluid flow passages 32 are provided, only one cooling fluid supply source 31 may be provided, or two or more cooling fluid supply sources 31 may be provided. Further, regarding the fluid flow passage 22, for example, the second flow passage provided in the receiving portion 11 may be bent or branched by a plurality of times along the inclined discharge guide surface 14. ..

Further, in the embodiment described above, the fluid supply source 21 constituting the fluid injection mechanism 20 and the cooling fluid supply source 31 constituting the cooling mechanism 30 are separately provided, but the fluid is injected by the fluid injection mechanism 20. If the fluid 23 and the fluid 33 flowing through the cooling fluid flow passage 32 are the same, either one of the two supply sources 21 and 31 may be omitted. That is, when the same fluid (for example, water) is used as the fluids 23 and 33, the fluid may be supplied from one supply source to the fluid flow passage 22 and the cooling fluid flow passage 32.

Further, in the above, the laser processing device 1 was used in performing the so-called drilling process for forming through holes opened on both the front and back surfaces of the work W, but the laser processing device 1 is used for processing other than the drilling process (for example,). It can also be used for slit forming processing and partial cutting processing for forming a notch).

Further, in the above, the work W to be machined by the laser machining device 1 is used as the cage (base material) for the constant velocity universal joint, but the laser machining device 1 is, for example, a cage for rolling bearings or the like. It can also be used when laser processing is applied to the short tubular work W.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be further implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention. That is, the scope of the present invention is indicated by the scope of claims, and further includes the meaning of equality described in the scope of claims, and all modifications within the scope.

1 Laser processing device 2 Laser processing machine 4 Support mechanism 10 Cutting piece receiver 11 Receiving part 12 Back plate part 14 Discharge guide surface 15 Guide passage 16 Termination wall 20 Fluid injection mechanism 21 Fluid supply source 22 Fluid flow passage 22b Injection port 23 Fluid 30 Cooling mechanism 31 Cooling fluid supply source 32 Cooling fluid flow passage 32c Induction surface Cooling part 32d Guide passage Cooling part 33 Cooling fluid A Sliced piece B Spatter LB Laser beam W Work Wa One end Wb One end Wc Hole

Claims (8)

A laser processing device that partially cuts a work by irradiating the outer diameter surface of the short cylindrical work with a laser beam in a predetermined orbit.
A support mechanism that supports one end of the work and
A cutting piece receiver having a discharge guiding surface for discharging the cutting pieces that fall to the inner circumference of the work due to the partial cutting of the work due to the irradiation of the laser beam to the outside of the work through the other end opening of the work.
A fluid injection mechanism that injects a fluid that flows from one end side to the other end side of the work on the discharge guide surface.
A cooling mechanism for cooling the discharge guide surface is provided .
The cooling mechanism causes a cooling fluid supplied from a cooling fluid supply source provided separately from the fluid supply source injected from the fluid injection mechanism to a cooling fluid flow passage formed inside the cutting piece receiver. A laser processing apparatus characterized in that the discharge guide surface is cooled by supplying the fluid . The laser processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cooling fluid flow passage has a guide surface cooling portion arranged along the discharge guide surface. The fluid injection mechanism includes a fluid flow passage formed inside the cut piece receiver, and the fluid flow passage includes one inflow port and a plurality of openings having an opening area smaller than the opening area of the inflow port. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, which has an injection port. The cut piece receiver has a receiving portion having the discharge guide surface and a back plate portion arranged adjacent to one side in the axial direction of the receiving portion and extending in the radial direction of the work, and other than the back plate portion. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the injection port is open on the end face. The laser processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the cut piece receiver has a guide passage for guiding the free fall of the cut piece discharged to the outside of the work through the other end opening of the work. .. The cooling mechanism comprises a cooling fluid flow passage formed inside the cut piece receiver, and the cooling fluid flow passage has a guide passage cooling portion arranged along a defined surface of the guide passage. Item 5. The laser processing apparatus according to Item 5. By irradiating the outer diameter surface of a short cylindrical work with one end supported by a laser beam in a predetermined orbit, the work is partially cut.
A cutting piece receiver having a discharge guiding surface for discharging the cutting pieces that fall on the inner circumference of the work due to the irradiation of the laser beam to the outside of the work through the other end opening of the work is arranged, and the discharge guidance is provided. While cooling the surface, a fluid flowing from one end side to the other end side of the work is injected on the discharge guide surface.
A cooling fluid flow formed inside the cutting piece receiver to cool the discharge guide surface and to supply a cooling fluid supplied from a cooling fluid supply source provided separately from the fluid supply source flowing on the discharge guide surface. A laser processing method characterized by supplying the fluid to a road . The laser processing method according to claim 7, wherein the work is rotatably supported around the central axis in a standing posture with the central axis along the horizontal direction.

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