JPH1177362A - Laser beam machining method, and its equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent damages of a work and adhesion of molten stuff during the piercing operation by achieving the laser beam machining on the work with a cover member evacuated after the cover member is arranged at the machining position of the work and pierced. SOLUTION: In a condition that a laser beam machining head 1 is lowered and stopped at the piercing position, a tape T supported by guide rollers 37,39 is brought into contact with the surface of a work W in a covering manner. The work is pierced by irradiating the laser beam from the laser beam machining head 1. Even when spatters are scattered by the laser beam and adhered to the tape T and damages are generated, no spatters are adhered to the work W or work is not damaged. When the machining is completed, the laser beam machining head 1 is elevated, the tape T is detached from the surface of the work W, and adhered stuff and damages are removed from the surface of the work W together with the tape T. Support arms 9R, 9L are turned by 90 deg. by a motor 13 for evactuation to evacutate the tape T. When the laser beam machining head 1 is set to the next cutting position, a new part of the tape T is positioned immediately therebeneath.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a laser processing method and apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when cutting a work with a laser processing apparatus, a step called piercing is required. Piercing is a process of locally irradiating a laser beam to a work to melt the work and penetrate a hole.

In piercing, the molten material of the work scatters and adheres to the surface of the work until the hole penetrates. That is, the melt during piercing is scattered and adheres to the surface of the work, which may cause a scratch on the surface of the work or generate unnecessary and harmful swelling (commonly called mustache). There). This phenomenon is particularly noticeable in the processing of aluminum and stainless materials, and when the whisker phenomenon occurs, there is a problem that processing defects are likely to occur.

In order to solve the above problems, when laser processing is performed on a work, particularly a mirror-surfaced stainless steel, vinyl is applied to the surface of the work, and after all piercing processing is performed, the vinyl is removed and laser processing (cutting) is performed. Processing) is known.

[0005]

By the way, sticking or removing vinyl from the above-mentioned conventional work requires a lot of work and is very troublesome.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to prevent the occurrence of scratches, swelling, and the like on a workpiece during piercing when performing automatic laser processing consistently from piercing to cutting. An object of the present invention is to provide a laser processing method and an apparatus therefor that do not require a worker to take time.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser processing method according to the present invention, wherein a piercing process is performed by disposing a cover member at a processing position on a work to be processed during piercing. After that, the cover member is retracted from the processing position to perform laser processing on the work.

Therefore, the cover member is arranged at a processing position on the work during piercing, and the cover member is retracted from the processing position during laser processing, so that spatters generated during the piercing work adhere to the cover member and adhere to the work. Are not attached and are removed.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser machining apparatus which is disposed at a machining position on a workpiece to be machined, and which is capable of moving up and down. It is characterized in that a pair of rotatable support arms provided with a cover member for retreating from the processing position at the time of subsequent laser processing is provided.

Therefore, during piercing, the pair of support arms rotate to place the cover member at the processing position on the workpiece, and during laser processing, the pair of support arms rotate to retract the arm member to the retracted position. Therefore, spatter and the like generated during the piercing process adhere to the cover member and are removed without being attached to the work.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser
3. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cover member is made of a tape, a tape supply reel on which the tape is wound is provided on one of the pair of support arms, and the tape supply reel is provided on the other of the pair of support arms. A tape take-up reel that winds the tape supplied from
A rotatable tape holding arm is provided below each of the support arms, and a guide roller for guiding the running of the tape is provided at a lower end of each of the tape holding arms.

Therefore, at the time of piercing, the pair of support arms are rotated, and the tape wound on the tape take-up reel from the tape supply reel is rotated together with the guide roller provided on the tape holding arm. It is located at the processing position on the work, and during laser processing, the support arm rotates and the tape supply reel and tape take-up reel are also retracted, so spatters generated during piercing work adhere to the tape and attach to the work. Removed without wearing. Moreover, since the tape is sequentially wound up by the tape winding reel, a tape without a hole is always arranged on the work when piercing.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser processing head which performs a laser processing on a work to be processed, and has a vertically extending connecting member provided on both sides of the connecting member. A pair of support arms are provided, and one of the pair of support arms is provided with a tape supply reel wound with a tape provided with holes at appropriate intervals in a longitudinal direction, and the other of the pair of support arms is provided with a tape supply reel. A tape take-up reel for winding the supplied tape is provided.

Therefore, the pair of support arms descend synchronously during piercing, and the tape wound on the tape take-up reel from the tape supply reel descends and is arranged at the processing position on the work. Since the laser processing head is returned to the position and the tip of the laser processing head is inserted into the hole formed in the tape, spatters generated at the time of piercing adhere to the tape and are removed without adhering to the work. Moreover, the tape is wound around a take-up reel, and the tip of the laser processing head is inserted into a tapered hole, and the tape is retracted without rotating.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, coupling blocks 3R and 3L are provided on opposing side surfaces of the laser processing head 1 which can move up and down.
Shaft holes 5R and 5L are formed in R and 3L in the horizontal direction. The shaft holes 5R and 5L have support arm rotation shafts 7R and 7R, respectively.
L is attached. This support arm rotation shaft 7R, 7L
The upper portions of a pair of support arms 9R and 9L are rotatably mounted on the.

The supporting arms 9R and 9L are connected by a connecting plate 11 as a connecting body, and an evacuation motor 13 is provided above the supporting arm 9L.

Projections 15R and 15L are outwardly integrated at substantially the center of the support arms 9R and 9L, and a predetermined amount of tape T is wound around the projection 15R by a shaft 17 as a cover member. The tape supply reel 19 is rotatably supported. Further, a tape take-up reel 23 connected to a rotation motor 21 is provided on the protrusion 15L.

Under the support arms 7R, 7L, rotatable guide rollers 25, 27 are provided with pins 29, 3 respectively.
The tape holding arms 33 and 35 are swingably provided on the pins 29 and 31, respectively. Guide rollers 37, 39 are provided at one end of the tape holding arms 33, 35, and springs 41, 43 are provided between the other ends of the tape holding arms 33, 35 and some of the support arms 9R, 9L. It is interposed and is restrained so as not to go inward by the stopper pins 45R and 45L.

With the above configuration, when the evacuation motor 13 is driven, the support arms 9R and 9L are rotated 90 degrees from the state of FIG. 1 in synchronization. When the rotation drive motor 21 is driven, the take-up reel 23 rotates and the tape T wound around the tape supply reel 19 is wound around the tape take-up reel 23 via the guide rollers 25, 37, 39, 27. Things.

Next, the steps of processing by the laser processing apparatus having this configuration will be described step by step.

(Step 1) FIG. 3 shows a state immediately before the start of piercing, in which the tape T is located between the laser irradiation portion of the tip of the processing head 1 and the work W (ie, the operating position).

From this state, the processing head 1 starts descending, stops at a position suitable for piercing, and enters the state shown in FIG. In the stopped state, the tape T supported by the guide rollers 37 and 39 comes into contact with the surface of the work W, and the work W
Is positioned to cover the periphery of the part to be pierced.

At this time, the guide rollers 37, 39 receive an upward reaction force from the surface of the workpiece W, and the tape pressing arms 33, 35 rotate clockwise and counterclockwise from the initial position by a slight angle, respectively. It is desirable that the state be adjusted so as to be in a state of being adjusted.

If necessary, it may be confirmed by a sensor or the like that the tape T is in contact with the surface of the work W. This confirmation may be performed by, for example, a method of detecting the rotation of the tape pressing arms 33 and 35 with a sensor such as a limit switch.

(Step 2) At this position, a laser beam corresponding to the piercing is irradiated from the processing head 1 to perform a known piercing. During this process, as shown in FIG.
Is covered with the tape T, the laser LB
The spatter S heated and melted by the light scatters and the tape T
Even if it adheres or scratches on it, it does not adhere to or damage the surface of the workpiece W.
That is, it is possible to prevent deposits and scratches on the surface of the work W.

(Step 3) When the piercing is completed, the processing head 1 starts to rise, and the tape T separates from the surface of the work W. At this time, the deposits and scratches on the tape T are removed from the surface of the work W together with the tape T as shown in FIG.

After the tape T separates from the surface of the work W,
Alternatively, after the processing head 1 is sufficiently raised, the evacuation motor 13 is operated, and the support arms 9R and 9L are rotated. When the support arms 9R and 9L are rotated by 90 degrees, the evacuation motor 13 is stopped, and the evacuation position shown in FIG. .

(Step 4) In the state shown in FIG. 7, since the tape T is far from the processing head 1 and above the processing head 1, the function of the laser processing head 1 is different from that of the conventional laser processing head. , And can enter the conventional cutting process. That is, the processing head 1 is lowered to a position suitable for the cutting step, and the work W is irradiated with the laser light to perform the cutting.

(Step 5) After the completion of the cutting, the processing head 1
Rise, the evacuation motor 13 operates again, and returns the support arms 9R and 9L to the operating position. Tape take-up reel 1
9 is driven to rotate by a step motor 21, and the tape T is wound up by an appropriate length. This winding length is set to be larger than the diameter of the range of the attachments and flaws expected to be generated on the tape T by piercing. Due to the winding, the deposits and scratches on the tape T move together with the tape T and are carried away, and a new part of the tape T is located directly below the laser beam irradiation part of the processing head 1.
The whole returns to the state of FIG. 3, and (Step 1) can be started again.

The winding of the tape T is not limited to the time of the (step 5), but may be performed in the (step 3) from the time when the raising of the processing head 1 is completed to the time when the (step 5) is completed. It may be.

According to the embodiment of the present invention described above, it is possible to prevent the melt from scattering and adhering to the surface of the work W during piercing and damage to the surface.
In addition, since the cutting process can be performed under the same conditions as in the past, everything from piercing to cutting can be automatically performed.

In the embodiment of the present invention, in the form of retracting the tape T in (Step 3), the support arms 9R, 9L, etc. are rotated about 90 degrees around the shaft holes 5R, 5L, and the entire tape T is rotated. Although the embodiment has been described as being separated from the leading end of the processing head 1, other embodiments provide a function completely different from that of the retracting mode of the tape T.

FIG. 8 shows another embodiment.
In FIG. 8, the mechanism for supplying, supporting, and winding the tape-shaped cover member T supported by the support arms 9R, 9L is exactly the same as the mechanism shown in the above-described example. Description is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 9 on the tape T,
A sufficiently large circular hole 47 is previously formed at a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction of the tape T on the center line of the width. The distance between the pits 47 is set to be larger than the diameter of the area of the adhesion or flaw expected to be generated on the tape T by piercing.

As shown in FIG. 8, the support arms 9R and 9L are integrally connected and supported by a connecting body 49. The connecting body 49 is formed by a one-axis actuator.
The processing head 1 can be moved in parallel with the optical axis of the laser beam emitted from the processing head 1. The connection body 49 and the supply, support, and winding mechanisms of the connecting body 49 and the support arms 9R and 9L and the tape T supported by the connection body 49 can take two predetermined positional relationships with respect to the processing head 1. In the first positional relationship, the tape T is located between the tip of the processing head 1 and the surface of the workpiece W, and the laser optical axis LB is disposed so as to pass substantially through the center of the width of the tape T. This positional relationship is called an operation position. In the second positional relationship, the surface of the tape T is located above the leading end of the processing head 1 and is referred to as a retreat position.

The supply, support and winding mechanism of the tape T
It has a mechanism for detecting the position of the blind hole 47 of the tape T.

The processing steps of the laser processing apparatus having this configuration will be described below in order. The number of each step corresponds to the step of the same number in the above-described embodiment.

(Step 1) This is a step of preparing for piercing, and is in the operating position shown in FIG. The stepping motor 21 takes up the tape T by a necessary length while confirming the position of the blind hole 47 by the blind hole detection mechanism. The laser optical axes LB are made to intersect. The processing head 1 descends and stops at a position suitable for piercing, and the tape T covers the periphery of the portion of the workpiece W to be pierced.
The workpiece W is held in contact with the surface of the workpiece W.

(Step 2) Piercing is performed. During this process, as shown in FIG. 5, the surface of the work W is covered with the tape T, so that the material S heated and melted by the laser beam LB scatters and adheres to the surface of the work W or damages the surface. No. That is, it is possible to prevent the attached portion and the scratch on the surface of the work W.

(Step 3) When the piercing is completed, the processing head 1 starts to rise, and the tape T separates from the surface of the work W. At this time, the attached matter and the scratches of the tape T are removed from the surface of the work W together with the tape T as in FIG.

After the tape T is separated from the surface of the work W,
Alternatively, after the processing head 1 is sufficiently raised, the stepping motor 21 is rotated, and while confirming the position of the hole 47 of the tape T by the detection mechanism, the hole 47 is just below the laser optical axis LB. Wind the tape T so that it is positioned. Thereafter, the actuator 51 operates to raise the actuator 51 to the retracted position as shown in FIG.

In this state, as shown in FIG. 9, the leading end of the processing head 1 enters the blind hole 47 of the tape T, so that the tape T does not cross the laser optical axis.

(Step 4) Since the tape T does not cut the laser beam axis LB of the processing head 1 and is kept away from the work W, the function of the processing apparatus is not different from that of the conventional processing apparatus. Cutting process can be started. That is, the processing head 1 descends to a position suitable for the cutting step, and emits laser light to start cutting.

(Step 5) After the completion of the cutting, the processing head 1
Rises, and the actuator operates to set the operating position again.

According to the other embodiment of the present invention described above, it is possible to prevent the melt from scattering and adhering to the surface of the work W during piercing, or to prevent the surface from being damaged.
In addition, since the cutting process can be performed under the same conditions as in the past, everything from piercing to cutting can be automatically performed.

Although the two embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be embodied in other forms by making appropriate changes. .

[0048]

As can be understood from the above description of the embodiments of the present invention,
Since it is possible to prevent the adhesion of molten material to the workpiece during piercing and the occurrence of scratches, and to perform cutting under the same conditions as before, the entire process from piercing to cutting is automatically performed. You can proceed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a laser processing head embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a side view in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the present invention, showing an initial state of (step 1).

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the present invention, showing a state of (step 2).

FIG. 5 is a view for explaining the operation of the present invention, and is a view showing a state in which a melt adheres to the surface of the tape-shaped cover member in a (piercing) step (step 2).

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining the operation of the present invention, and is a view showing a state in which the deposit on the tape-shaped cover member is removed from the surface of the workpiece together with the tape-shaped cover member 3 in (Step 3). is there.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the present invention, showing an initial state of (step 4).

FIG. 8 is a front view of a laser processing head according to another embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a retracted state of a tape-shaped cover member in another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 laser processing head 9L, 9R support arm 11 connecting plate (connecting body) 19 tape supply reel 21 rotation motor 23 tape take-up reel 25, 27 guide roller 33, 35 tape holding arm 37, 39 guide roller 41, 43 spring 45L , 45R Stopper pin

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. After piercing by placing a cover member at a processing position on a workpiece to be processed during piercing, performing laser processing on the workpiece by retracting the cover member from the processing position. Characteristic laser processing method. 2. A laser processing head capable of performing laser processing on a work to be processed, which is disposed at a processing position on the work during piercing and retracted from the processing position during laser processing after piercing. A laser processing apparatus comprising a pair of rotatable support arms provided with a cover member to be tightened. 3. A tape supply reel, wherein the cover member is made of a tape, a tape supply reel on which the tape is wound is provided on one of the pair of support arms, and the tape supply reel is supplied with the other of the pair of support arms from the tape supply reel. A tape take-up reel for winding the tape is provided, a rotatable tape holding arm is provided below each of the support arms, and a guide roller for guiding the running of the tape is provided at a lower end of each of the tape holding arms. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein: 4. A vertically extending laser processing head for performing laser processing on a workpiece to be processed is provided with a connecting body extending in a horizontal direction, and a pair of support arms is provided on both sides of the connecting body. One of the support arms is provided with a tape supply reel wound with a tape provided with holes at appropriate intervals in the longitudinal direction, and the other of the pair of support arms is wound with a tape supplied with the tape supplied from the tape supply reel. A laser processing apparatus comprising a reel.