KR101694491B1

KR101694491B1 - Head of laser processing machine

Info

Publication number: KR101694491B1
Application number: KR1020150064893A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 서정열
Original assignee: 주식회사 엘피텍
Priority date: 2015-05-08
Filing date: 2015-05-08
Publication date: 2017-01-10
Also published as: KR20160131804A

Abstract

There is provided a laser machining apparatus head which prevents penetration of foreign matter such as dust and keeps the optical system clean, thereby increasing the lifetime of the apparatus and improving the welding efficiency. The laser machining apparatus head includes a hollow first body having a beam discharge port through which a laser beam passes, a second hollow body having a hollow portion slidably coupled to the inside of the first body and having an opening communicating with the beam discharge port, A hollow cylindrical lens barrel which is inserted into the second body and has a hollow lens barrel to which a lens which is in turn superimposed on the beam discharge opening and the opening is fixed to one end of the barrel, a purge gas distributor comprising a cylindrical space surrounding the barrel and the second body, And a slit-shaped nozzle portion connected to the purge gas distribution portion and spraying the purge gas toward the surface of the lens. The first purge gas supply pipe is connected to the purge gas distribution portion and supplies the purge gas to the purge gas distribution portion.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a head of a laser processing machine,

More particularly, the present invention relates to a head of a laser machining apparatus having a laser beam optical system therein, and more particularly, to a laser beam machining apparatus capable of preventing the penetration of foreign matter such as dust generated during laser machining and keeping the optical system clean, And to a laser machining apparatus head improved in welding efficiency.

Various machine tools are used to machine the base metal. The base material can be processed by using various kinds of machine tools such as a lathe, a milling machine, and a drilling machine, and one or more machine tools can be used to manufacture more various and suitable products. As a machine tool, not only a contact-type machining apparatus for processing a cutting edge or the like in contact with a base material, but also a non-contact type machining apparatus for irradiating and processing a high-temperature laser beam onto a base material are widely used.

The laser processing apparatus is configured to generate laser light, focus the laser light, and irradiate the laser light toward the processed surface of the base material. The laser machining apparatus has a smooth machined surface, no noise during operation, and can be finely and precisely machined, which is very useful in industrial fields. A head having an optical nozzle is formed at a portion of the laser processing apparatus facing the base material, and an optical system including a plurality of lenses is provided inside the head. Therefore, the focused laser beam can be irradiated from the optical system to the base material through the nozzle.

However, when particulate foreign substances having a small particle size or a small diameter penetrate into the inside of the head of such a laser processing apparatus, the optical system may be damaged and the normal operation of the apparatus may become difficult. Particularly, it is very difficult to shield the fine dust (fume) generated by evaporating instantaneously from the machined surface by the high-temperature laser beam while shielding the machined surface by spraying argon gas or compressed air at the time of processing the base material there is a problem. This causes fine dust or the like to flow into the head and adhere to the surface of the lens, damaging the lens, or scattering the irradiated laser light, thereby significantly reducing the efficiency of the apparatus.

Korean Patent No. 10-0235178, (December 15, 1999)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems and it is an object of the present invention to provide a laser machining apparatus head capable of preventing the penetration of foreign substances such as dust, .

The technical problem of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned problems, and other problems not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

A laser machining apparatus head according to the present invention includes: a first hollow body having a beam discharge port through which a laser beam passes; A hollow second body slidably coupled to the inside of the first body and having an opening communicating with the beam discharge port; A hollow cylindrical lens barrel inserted into the second body and having a lens, which is in turn, superimposed on the beam discharging opening and the opening in one end thereof; A purge gas distribution part having a cylindrical space surrounding the barrel part between the barrel part and the second body; A first purge gas supply pipe formed in the second body and supplying a purge gas to the purge gas distribution unit; And a slit-shaped nozzle unit connected to the purge gas distribution unit and configured to inject purge gas toward the surface of the lens.

Wherein the nozzle unit is formed in a plurality of slit-like shapes which are disposed at positions opposite to each other and emit the purge gas toward the center of the lens and open in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the lens, Can be sprayed in parallel to the surface.

The laser processing apparatus head may further include a second purge gas supply pipe connected to the lens barrel through the second body and supplying the purge gas to the inside of the lens barrel.

The laser processing apparatus head may further include an elastic member installed between the first body and the second body and applying an elastic force in a sliding direction of the second body.

Wherein the second body further comprises a receiving portion that is embedded inwardly from the outside toward the opening and connected to the opening portion, wherein the elastic member is made of a coil spring and at least a part of the elastic member is received in the receiving portion, Gas can pass through the center of the coil spring.

The laser machining apparatus head may further include an O-ring inserted in contact with the outer circumferential surface of the second body and the inner circumferential surface of the first body to seal the first body and the second body and provide frictional force.

According to the present invention, it is possible to maintain the lens surface inside the head clean, thereby increasing the life of the apparatus, greatly improving the welding efficiency, and easily detaching and attaching the lens, Can be reduced. Further, it is possible to reduce the position error of the lens caused by attaching / detaching, thereby eliminating the need for additional lens alignment. With the effective structure design, it is possible to obtain a very useful effect in which focus adjustment is easy while keeping the lens surface inside the head clean.

1 is a perspective view and an exploded perspective view of a laser machining apparatus head according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a second body and a lens barrel of the laser processing apparatus head of FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a view illustrating a process in which the barrel portion of FIG. 2 is coupled to the second body.
Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a part of the laser machining apparatus head of Fig. 1 cut in the longitudinal direction; Fig.
Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the purge gas supply structure of the laser machining apparatus head of Fig. 1;
Fig. 6 is an operation diagram showing a purge gas supply process of the laser machining apparatus head of Fig. 1; Fig.
FIG. 7 is an operation diagram showing the focus adjustment process of the laser machining apparatus head of FIG. 1;

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The advantages and features of the present invention and methods for achieving them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Is provided to fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art, and the present invention is only defined by the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout the specification.

Hereinafter, a laser processing apparatus head according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. FIG.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view and an exploded perspective view of a laser machining apparatus head according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a second body and a lens barrel of the laser machining apparatus head of FIG. FIG. 3 is a view showing a process in which the barrel portion of FIG. 2 is coupled to the second body, and FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a part of the laser processing device head of FIG.

1 and 4, a laser machining apparatus head 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a hollow first body 100 formed with a beam discharge port (see 101 in FIG. 4), a first body 100 The second body 200 is slidably coupled to the inside of the first body 100 and has an opening (see 201 in FIG. 4) communicating with the beam ejection opening 101. The second body 200 is inserted into the second body 200, A hollow cylindrical lens barrel 300 to which a lens (see 301 in FIG. 4) superimposed in order on the discharge port 101 and the opening 201 is fixed and a lens barrel 300 between the lens barrel 300 and the second body 200 A first purge gas supply pipe 211 formed in the second body 200 and supplying a purge gas to the purge gas distribution portion 11, and a second purge gas supply pipe 211 formed in the second body 200 to supply purge gas to the purge gas distribution portion 11, And a slit-shaped nozzle portion (refer to 12 in Fig. 4) connected to the purge gas distribution portion 11 to eject purge gas toward the surface of the lens 301. [

The laser machining apparatus head 1 can very effectively distribute the injected purge gas by using the purge gas distributor 11 which is a cylindrical space formed therein. The distributed purge gas is supplied to a plurality of nozzle units 12 disposed at positions opposed to each other around the lens 301 so that the flow of the purge gas opposed to each other projected from the nozzle unit 12 is transmitted to the surface of the lens 301 And is provided between the lens 301 and the beam discharge port 101, so that foreign matter such as fine dust can be very easily blocked.

Particularly, the nozzle unit 12 is formed in a slit shape which is opened in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the lens 301, and a purge gas is injected toward the center of the lens 301 at a position facing each other, And a flow of fluid (purge gas) highly aligned in the inner space from the lens 301 toward the beam discharge port 101 can be produced. This makes it possible to very easily block fine dusts generated between operations. Particularly, while the purge gas is jetted in parallel to the lens surface, it is possible to prevent the generation of a vortex between the lens surface and the purge gas, thereby preventing the fine dust from damaging the lens surface.

The purge gas supply structure is formed between the second body 200 and the barrel 300 independently of the first body 100. Therefore, even when the purge gas is supplied without affecting the sliding structure of the first body 100 and the second body 200, the positions of the first body 100 and the second body 200 are changed, The focus of the beam can be adjusted very easily. In addition, since the barrel 300 is easily separated from the second body 200, the maintenance and repair work can be performed very quickly and efficiently.

Hereinafter, each component of the laser machining apparatus head 1 having the above-described features and the operation process thereof will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

The first body 100 may have a hollow shape and may receive the second body 200 through an empty space. The outer surface of the first body 100 may be formed in a three-dimensional shape as shown in FIG. 1, and the inner surface in contact with the second body 200 may include a smooth curved surface. The first body 100 may be formed in the form of a hollow manifold having various coupling holes or grooves formed on the outer side thereof.

A beam discharge port 101 through which the laser beam L passes is formed on one side of the first body 100 as shown in FIG. The beam discharge port 101 may be formed in a direction toward the base material of the first body 100 and may include a first body 100 located around the beam discharge port 101 and the beam discharge port 101, That is, the light nozzle 102, to which the laser beam L is irradiated. The laser beam L is irradiated to the outside of the first body 100 through the beam discharge port 101 after passing through the barrel section 300.

The second body 200 is slidably coupled to the inside of the first body 100. As shown in FIG. 1 (b), the second body 200 may be inserted into the first body 100 to be slidably coupled. As shown in FIG. 1, the second body 200 may have a cylindrical outer shape, and the interior of the second body 200 may be hollow as in the case of the first body 100, and may have a hollow shape. The empty space formed in the first body 100 may be formed in a shape corresponding to the outer shape of the second body 200.

As shown in FIG. 4, the second body 200 is formed with an opening 201 communicating with the beam discharge port 101 of the first body 100. The opening 201 may be formed by opening the end of the second body 200 in the direction in which the beam ejection opening 101 is located and may be formed inward from the outside of the second body 200 toward the opening 201 And may be connected to the receiving portion 204. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, an opening 201 connected to the receiving portion 204 and the receiving portion 204 may be formed continuously at the end of the second body 200. At least a part of the elastic member 130 formed of a coil spring may be accommodated in the accommodating portion 204 and the purge gas G may be supplied between the lens 301 and the beam ejection opening 101 by using the accommodating portion 204 The space for flowing can be suitably secured. The laser beam and the purge gas are discharged through the center of the coil spring. Although the coil spring moves in the receiving part 204 to make fine dust, the purge gas can quickly suck the fine dust while discharging the fine dust while passing through the center of the coil spring.

As shown in FIG. 1 (b), coupling holes 211a and 212a may be formed on one side of the second body 200. The first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 are coupled to the second body 200 through the coupling holes 211a and 212a, . The first purge gas supply pipe 211 is connected to the purge gas distribution unit 11 to be described later and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 is connected to the inner space of the barrel 300 through the connection flow path 303 to be described later . The second purge gas supply pipe 212 may be connected to the lens barrel 300 through the second body 200.

The first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 are coupled through the guide grooves 110 and 120 of the first body 100 as shown in FIGS. . That is, the guide grooves 110 and 120 are formed in the first body 100, and the first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 pass through the first body 100, (200). The guide grooves 110 and 120 are formed in the shape of a slot so that the first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 are formed to flow in the longitudinal direction of the guide grooves 110 and 120 .

The first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 may be formed as a cylindrical block having a passage formed therein, and a pipe may be additionally connected to each of them to supply purge gas. However, the first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212 may be variously modified in different shapes to facilitate the supply of the purge gas. The purge gas supplied through each purge gas supply line may be a high-pressure fluid, for example, compressed air.

The barrel 300 is inserted into the second body 200. The lens barrel 300 may be formed as an hollow hollow body and may constitute an optical system including one or more lenses in the inner space. Particularly, as shown in FIG. 4, the lens 301 is fixedly coupled to one end of the barrel 300 so that the lens 301 can be sequentially superimposed on the beam ejection opening 101 and the opening 201. In this case, the overlapping means that the laser beam is placed in a straight line when viewed from one direction and is in a state capable of forming a light path through which a laser beam or the like is continuously passed, and does not necessarily mean a contact state. The laser beam L can be successively passed through the lens 301 of the barrel section 300, the opening 201 and the beam ejection port 101 and irradiated onto the base material.

The barrel 300 can be easily combined with or separated from the second body 200 with the structure shown in FIG. An insertion port 205 is formed in the opposite end of the second body 200 on the side where the opening 201 is formed and is opened to a size corresponding to the diameter of the barrel portion 300. On the circumference of the insertion port 205, At least one coupling claw 230 may be engaged. A locking protrusion 310 may be formed at an end of the barrel 300 to extend in the radial direction of the barrel 300 to be inserted between the coupling ring 230 and the second body 200. At least one of the coupling ring 230 and the second body 200 may have a tongue 320 to elastically support the locking protrusion 310.

The coupling ring 230 may be configured such that one side thereof is in close contact with the barrel portion 300 and the other side thereof is spaced apart from the barrel portion 300 to form an insertion space. The elastic part 320 may be formed of a ball ball and a ball plunger formed of an elastic member for elastically supporting the bearing ball. The locking protrusion 310 may be formed in a curved shape so as to be extended in the radial direction of the barrel 300, at least part of which is easy to grasp.

The user can insert the barrel section 300 into the second body 200 through the insertion port 205 as shown in FIG. When the barrel portion 300 is completely inserted, the engaging protrusion 310 is gripped as shown in FIG. 3 (b), and the entire barrel portion 300 is rotated. As a result, as shown in FIG. The lens barrel 300 and the second body 200 can be completely engaged with each other. In the engaged state, the latching protrusion 310 is elastically supported by the elastic portion 320. In this way, it is possible to very easily combine and separate the lens barrel 300 from the second body 200.

Hereinafter, the purge gas supply structure and the purge gas supply process will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 4 and 6. FIG. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a purge gas supply structure of the laser machining apparatus head of Fig. 1, and Fig. 6 is an operational view showing a purge gas supply process of the laser machining apparatus head of Fig.

The purge gas distribution portion 11 is formed between the barrel portion 300 and the second body 200 as shown in FIG. 5, the purge gas distribution part 11 is formed as a cylindrical space surrounding the barrel part 300, and can easily distribute the supplied purge gas G around the barrel part 300 . The purge gas distributor 11 may be formed as an isolated space between the outer indent 302 formed on the outer side of the barrel 300 and the inner indent 202 formed on the inner side of the second body 200 And may be formed as a cylindrical space corresponding to the shape of the barrel 300.

The nozzle unit 12 is connected to the purge gas distribution unit 11 to receive the purge gas G and to inject the supplied purge gas G toward the surface of the lens 301. The nozzle unit 12 may be formed around the opening 201 overlapping the lens 301 and may include a guide flange 203 connected to the receiving unit 204 and projecting inward of the second body 200, And may be formed between the barrel portion 300. As shown in FIG. 5, the plurality of nozzle units 12 may be disposed at positions facing each other.

The plurality of nozzle units 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d facing each other jet the supplied purge gas G toward the center of the lens 301. [ That is, a plurality of nozzle units 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d arranged in pairs facing each other around the lens 301 are purged in the direction opposite to each other toward the center of the lens 301 as shown in Fig. The gas G can be injected. The purge gas G is circulated and distributed very easily while rotating along the purge gas distribution portion 11 formed in a cylindrical shape as described above and is discharged by the plurality of nozzle portions 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d The lens 301 is centered again.

At this time, each of the nozzle portions 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d is formed in a slit shape that is opened in the direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the lens 301 (the longitudinal direction in Fig. Therefore, the purge gas G injected from the nozzle portions 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d flows along the surface of the lens 301 and contacts the lens 301, thereby forming a flexible flow with minimal friction . At this time, the purge gas G sufficiently circulated through the purge gas distribution portion 11 can be injected at the same pressure through the respective nozzle portions 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d, Can be refracted in the direction from the center of the lens 301 to the beam discharge port 101 through the opening 201 as shown in Fig.

That is, a plurality of slit-like nozzle portions 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d are formed so as to face each other and are connected to the purge gas distribution portion 11 which is a cylindrical space that is easily circulated. The flow of the purge gas G from the center of the lens 301 to the beam discharge port 101 can be continuously formed through the surface of the lens 301 as shown in the figure. Accordingly, even when fine dust or the like generated from the outside of the laser processing apparatus head 1 flows into the inside, the surface of the lens 301 can be protected by using the flow of the purge gas G and can be discharged naturally . In addition, by keeping the flow of the purge gas G uniformly, irregular airflow that can be formed inside the laser processing apparatus head 1 can be removed. As a result, even when fine dust or the like is introduced into the laser processing apparatus head 1, it is only discharged along the flow of the purge gas G, and it is difficult to hit the irregular flow of other air, so that the residence time can be greatly reduced.

Meanwhile, the purge gas G can also flow through the inner space of the barrel 300 as shown in FIG. The second purge gas supply pipe 212 can inject the purge gas G into the inner space of the barrel section 300 through the connection channel 303 formed in the barrel section 300 as described above. The connection channel 303 may be formed to penetrate at least a part of the barrel section 300 and a plurality of purge gas G may be provided around the barrel section 300 to supply the purge gas G to the inside of the barrel section 300 in different directions have. 6, the purge gas G supplied to the inside of the lens barrel 300 is circulated through the inner space of the lens barrel 300 by the upper or lower portion of the lens barrel 300, So that it can be kept clean.

As described above, the purge gas G is supplied to the inside of the laser processing apparatus head 1 through the first purge gas supply pipe 211 and the second purge gas supply pipe 212, It is possible to form a flow of purge gas (G) circulating to another internal space. At this time, the O-rings 240 and 330 are inserted between the first body 100 and the second body 200 and between the second body 200 and the barrel 300 to prevent leakage of the purge gas G And can form a closed structure.

Particularly, the O-ring 240, which is inserted into contact with the outer circumferential surface of the second body 200 and the inner circumferential surface of the first body 100, seals between the first and second bodies 100 and 200, And the elastic member 130 installed between the first body 100 and the second body 200 acts as an elastic force in the sliding direction of the second body 200 to attenuate the vibration. That is, as the purge gas G flows into the laser processing apparatus head 1, vibration may occur throughout the head. As shown in FIG. 6, the first body 100 and the second body 200 The elastic member 130 provided between the elastic members 130 can elastically vibrate correspondingly. At this time, the O-ring 240 interposed between the first body 100 and the second body 200 attenuates the O-rings 240 by the frictional force, thereby reducing the overall vibration. By using the purge gas G in this manner, the vibration that may occur in the apparatus can be reduced.

FIG. 7 is an operation diagram showing the focus adjustment process of the laser machining apparatus head of FIG. 1;

The laser processing apparatus head 1 can very easily adjust the focus of the laser beam L even in the state where the purge gas is injected. 7 (a), the second body 200 and the barrel 300 can be entirely separated from the first body 100 by using the adjustment handle 220, and conversely, The entire body 200 and the barrel 300 can be brought close to the first body 100 as shown in FIG. As described above, since the purge gas supply structure is formed between the second body 200 and the barrel 300 independently of the first body 100, the first body 100 and the second body 200, Even when the positions are mutually adjusted, the purge gas can very smoothly block external contaminants. Accordingly, it is possible to control the focal point or the like depending on the position of the base material, and to progress the machining operation very efficiently even during the machining operation such as cutting, welding, or the like.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken in conjunction with the present invention. You will understand. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive.

1: Laser machining apparatus head 11: Purge gas distributor
12, 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d:
100: first body
101: discharge port 102: light nozzle
130: elastic member 110, 120: guide groove
200: second body 201: opening
202: Inner indentation part 203: Guide flange
204: accommodating portion 205:
211: first purge gas supply pipe 212: second purge gas supply pipe
211a, 212a: coupling hole 220: adjustment handle
230: coupling ring 240, 330: o-ring
300: lens barrel 301: lens
302: Outside indentation 303: Connection channel
310: engaging protrusion 320:
G: purge gas L: laser beam

Claims

A hollow first body having a beam discharge port through which a laser beam passes on one side;
A hollow second body slidably coupled to the inside of the first body and having an opening communicating with the beam discharge port;
A hollow cylindrical lens barrel to which a lens, which is inserted into and coupled to the second body and separated from the first body, and is superimposed on the beam discharging opening and the opening in turn, is fixed to one end thereof;
A purge gas distribution part having a cylindrical space surrounding the barrel part between the barrel part and the second body;
A first purge gas supply pipe coupled to the second body to supply a purge gas to the purge gas distribution unit;
A second purge gas supply pipe penetrating the second body and connected to the barrel section and supplying the purge gas to the inside of the barrel section; And
And a slit-shaped nozzle portion connected to the purge gas distribution portion to inject purge gas toward the surface of the lens,
The first purge gas supply pipe and the second purge gas supply pipe are formed in the first body in the shape of a long groove,
The second body is formed with a coupling hole to which the first purge gas supply pipe and the second purge gas supply pipe are coupled,
Wherein the barrel portion has at least a part of the barrel portion, and the second purge gas supply pipe is connected to the inner space of the barrel portion to inject purge gas.

The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the nozzle unit is formed in a plurality of slit-like shapes which are disposed at positions opposite to each other and emit the purge gas toward the center of the lens and open in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the lens, Of the laser processing apparatus.

delete

The method according to claim 1,
And an elastic member provided between the first body and the second body to apply an elastic force in a sliding direction of the second body.

5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the second body further comprises a receiving portion that is embedded inwardly from the outside toward the opening and connected to the opening portion, wherein the elastic member is made of a coil spring and at least a part of the elastic member is received in the receiving portion, Wherein the gas passes through the center of the coil spring.

The method according to claim 1,
And an O-ring inserted in contact with an outer circumferential surface of the second body and an inner circumferential surface of the first body to seal between the first body and the second body and to provide frictional force.