WO2023286265A1

WO2023286265A1 - Laser processing device and laser processing method

Info

Publication number: WO2023286265A1
Application number: PCT/JP2021/026743
Authority: WO
Inventors: 恭平石川; 正記瀬口; 正人河▲崎▼; 達也山本; 健太藤井; 智毅桂
Original assignee: 三菱電機株式会社
Priority date: 2021-07-16
Filing date: 2021-07-16
Publication date: 2023-01-19
Also published as: JPWO2023286265A1

Abstract

A laser processing device (100) comprises: a laser oscillator (1) that outputs a laser beam; a processing head (2) that condenses the laser beam by using a condensing optical system (6) and radiates the beam onto an irradiation position on a workpiece (W); a control unit (8) which, on the basis of a drive command, changes a relative position between the processing head (2) and the workpiece (W) and causes the irradiation position to move in a cutting direction; an intensity distribution adjustment unit (5) that includes an optical component (5a) having an intensity distribution conversion characteristic that is rotationally symmetrical with regard to one axis, and changes the intensity distribution of the laser beam on the basis of an intensity distribution adjustment command; and an optical axis adjustment unit (4) that changes the incident position or incident angle of the laser beam incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit (5). On the basis of a numeric parameter pertaining to cutting, the control unit (8) determines an optical axis adjustment command for controlling the optical axis adjustment unit (4) so as to correspond to a portion or all of an oscillator command, the drive command, the intensity distribution adjustment command, the material of the workpiece (W), the sheet thickness of the workpiece (W), and the cutting direction.

Description

LASER PROCESSING APPARATUS AND LASER PROCESSING METHOD

The present disclosure relates to a laser processing apparatus and a laser processing method for irradiating an object to be processed with a laser beam to process the object.

A device for processing a material using a laser beam in the processing direction disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a condensing optical system that converges the laser beam on the object to be processed and defines an optical axis. The apparatus includes an adjustment mechanism comprising a first adjustment device for the laser beam that adjusts the power density distribution of the laser beam perpendicular to the processing direction to be asymmetric and the density distribution of the gas jet perpendicular to the processing direction to be asymmetric. and/or a second adjustment device for the gas jet that adjusts such that

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-508223

In the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, the beam mode of the laser beam irradiated to the workpiece and the energy ratio of the intensity distribution in the beam cross section of the laser beam irradiated in the processing direction are used as processing parameters for cutting processing. There is a problem that it cannot be controlled in response to

The present disclosure has been made in view of the above, and the energy ratio of the intensity distribution in the beam cross section of the laser light irradiated in the processing direction and the beam mode of the laser light irradiated to the workpiece are cut. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a laser processing apparatus that can be controlled in accordance with the processing parameters of .

In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the laser processing apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a laser oscillator that outputs laser light based on an oscillator command, and a laser light that is focused by a focusing optical system for processing. It has a processing head that irradiates an irradiation position on an object, and a control unit that changes the relative position between the object to be processed and the processing head based on a drive command to move the irradiation position in the cutting direction. A laser processing apparatus according to the present disclosure includes an intensity distribution adjustment unit that includes an optical component having an intensity distribution conversion characteristic that is rotationally symmetrical about one axis and changes the intensity distribution of a laser beam based on an intensity distribution adjustment command; and an optical axis adjuster for changing the incident position or the incident angle of the laser beam incident on the intensity distribution adjuster in accordance with the material of the object, the plate thickness of the object to be processed, and the cutting direction partly or wholly. The control unit responds to part or all of the oscillator command, drive command, intensity distribution adjustment command, material of the object to be processed, plate thickness of the object to be processed, and cutting direction based on processing parameters, which are numerical parameters related to cutting. determines an optical axis adjustment command for controlling the optical axis adjustment unit.

In the laser processing apparatus according to the present disclosure, the beam mode of the laser light irradiated to the workpiece and the energy ratio of the intensity distribution in the beam cross section of the laser light irradiated in the processing direction correspond to the processing parameters of the cutting processing. There is an effect that it can be controlled by

1 is a diagram showing an overview of a configuration of a laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1; FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a specific configuration of a laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1; FIG. Diagram for explaining the amount of displacement of the position of the laser beam FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an optical component included in the intensity distribution adjustment unit of the laser processing apparatus in FIG. 2; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an optical component included in the intensity distribution adjustment unit of the laser processing apparatus in FIG. 2; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an optical component included in the intensity distribution adjustment unit of the laser processing apparatus in FIG. 2; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an optical component included in the intensity distribution adjustment unit of the laser processing apparatus in FIG. 2; FIG. 2 shows an example of a specific usage of the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1; FIG. 4 shows another example of a specific usage of the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of part of the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1 for explaining an example of ray tracing calculation results; The beam intensity distribution near the focal point when the angle between the flat substrate of the laser processing apparatus according to the first embodiment and the optical axis of the laser beam is 90° and no optical component is inserted into the optical axis. diagram showing Diagram showing the central axis cross section in the machining direction FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a beam intensity distribution near a focal point when the convex axicon lens of the intensity distribution adjustment unit is inserted into the optical axis in the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a laser beam intensity distribution when the angle formed by the planar substrate and the optical axis of the laser beam is 45° in the laser processing apparatus according to the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the tilt angle of the flat substrate and the peak intensity of the laser beam in the processing progress direction side in the laser processing apparatus according to the first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining functions of the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an overview of the configuration of a laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 2; The figure which shows the structure of the processing condition analyzer which the laser processing apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 3 has. FIG. 11 shows a configuration of a neural network model according to Embodiment 3; The figure which shows the structure of the laser processing apparatus of the modification which concerns on Embodiment 3. 10 shows a processor in which part or all of a processing result determination unit, a feature amount extraction unit, a machine learning device, and a processing condition change unit of a processing condition analyzer of a laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 are realized by a processor; figure A processing circuit in which part or all of the processing result determination unit, the feature amount extraction unit, the machine learning device, and the processing condition change unit of the processing condition analyzer of the laser processing apparatus according to the third embodiment are realized by the processing circuit diagram showing

The laser processing apparatus and laser processing method according to the embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

Embodiment 1.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of the configuration of a laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. A laser processing apparatus 100 is an apparatus for irradiating an object W to be processed with a laser beam to process the object W, and has a laser oscillator 1 that oscillates and outputs a laser beam based on an oscillator command. The laser beam emitted by the laser oscillator 1 may be referred to as a laser beam L hereinafter. A workpiece W and a laser beam L are also shown in FIG. The wavelength of the laser beam L is appropriately selected in consideration of, for example, the absorptivity of the laser beam L to the object W to be processed and the reflectance of the laser beam L to the object W to be processed. For example, the wavelength of the laser beam L is anywhere from 0.193 μm to 11 μm.

The laser processing apparatus 100 further has a processing head 2 to which the laser beam L output from the laser oscillator 1 is supplied. A laser beam L output from a laser oscillator 1 is supplied to a processing head 2 via an optical path. The processing head 2 converges the laser beam L output from the laser oscillator 1 by a condensing optical system 6, which will be described later, and irradiates the irradiation position of the object W to be processed. The irradiation position is a position on the workpiece W where the laser beam L is irradiated. A processing gas is also supplied to the inside of the processing head 2, and the processing gas is jetted to the processing object W when the laser beam L is irradiated onto the processing object W. As shown in FIG.

The laser processing apparatus 100 further has a collimator lens 3 for collimating the laser beam L output from the laser oscillator 1 . The collimating lens 3 is composed of one or more lenses. The laser processing apparatus 100 further has an optical axis adjusting section 4 that adjusts the optical axis of the laser beam L collimated by the collimator lens 3 . The collimating lens 3 and the optical axis adjusting section 4 are located inside the processing head 2 .

The laser processing apparatus 100 includes an intensity distribution adjusting unit 5 that adjusts the intensity distribution of the laser beam L whose optical axis has been adjusted by the optical axis adjusting unit 4, and the laser beam L whose intensity distribution has been adjusted by the intensity distribution adjusting unit 5. It further has a condensing optical system 6 for condensing light. A workpiece W is irradiated with the laser beam L condensed by the condensing optical system 6 . The intensity distribution adjusting section 5 and the condensing optical system 6 are located inside the processing head 2 .

For example, the laser processing apparatus 100 cuts the workpiece W by condensing the laser beam L and irradiating the workpiece W with the laser beam L. Also shown in FIG. 1 are arrows indicating the cutting direction. The optical axis adjustment unit 4 corresponds to the material of the object W to be processed, the plate thickness of the object W to be processed, and a part or all of the cutting direction, and the incident position or angle of incidence of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5. to change The machining head 2 has a machining nozzle 7 . An opening is formed in the processing nozzle 7 at a position between the condensing optical system 6 and the workpiece W and a part of the optical path of the laser beam L. As shown in FIG. The laser beam L and processing gas pass through the opening.

The laser processing apparatus 100 changes the relative position between the workpiece W and the processing head 2 based on the drive command, and moves the irradiation position, which is the position at which the laser beam L is irradiated onto the workpiece W, in the cutting direction. It further has a control unit 8 . A motor and a motor driving device (not shown) are provided on the shaft on which the processing head 2 is installed or on the processing table on which the workpiece W is arranged. , the laser processing apparatus 100 can change the relative position between the processing head 2 and the workpiece W. FIG. The processing head 2 collimates a condensing diameter changing portion 3a that changes the condensing diameter of the laser beam L applied to the workpiece W by changing the beam diameter of the laser beam L incident on the condensing optical system 6. It may be replaced with the lens 3.

The type of laser oscillator 1 is not limited. An example of the laser oscillator 1 is a fiber laser oscillator. The laser oscillator 1 may be a direct diode laser, a carbon dioxide laser, a copper vapor laser, various ion lasers, or a solid-state laser. An example of a solid-state laser is a laser that uses a YAG (Yttrium-Aluminum-Garnet) crystal as an excitation medium. The laser processing apparatus 100 may have a wavelength conversion section that converts the wavelength of the laser light output from the laser oscillator 1 .

The control unit 8 controls the output of the laser beam output from the laser oscillator 1, the pulse frequency of the laser beam L, and the pulse frequency so that the laser beam L scans the machining path on the workpiece W according to the machining program and the machining parameters indicating the machining conditions. , an oscillator command that commands the pulse duty and oscillation timing, and a drive command that commands the feed speed and positioning of the motor drive device. Depending on the type of laser light used and the functions of the laser processing apparatus 100, what processing parameters to use are appropriately determined.

The optical axis adjustment unit 4 will be explained. The optical axis adjustment unit 4 has an optical component and a driving unit that displaces the optical component with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L. As shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of the laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 2, the optical component of the optical axis adjusting section 4 is the planar substrate 4a, and the driving section is the hollow rotating stage 4b and the angle adjusting mechanism 4c. The laser beam L is transmitted through the planar substrate 4a. The hollow rotary stage 4b and the angle adjustment mechanism 4c are components for changing the tilt angle of the plane substrate 4a with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L. As shown in FIG. The hollow rotary stage 4b is a rotating mechanism that rotates the planar substrate 4a around the optical axis of the laser beam L corresponding to the material of the workpiece W, the plate thickness of the workpiece W, and the cutting direction partially or entirely. is. The angle adjustment mechanism 4c is a mechanism for changing the relative angle between the flat substrate 4a and the optical axis of the laser beam L. FIG.

For example, the hollow rotary stage 4b is a direct drive motor. Since the rotation stage has a higher acceleration than the displacement stage, the laser processing apparatus 100 can change the beam mode by following the processing speed. By tilting the plane substrate 4a with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L, the incident position of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 is changed. A laser oscillator 1 included in the laser processing apparatus 100 of FIG. 2 is a fiber laser. A laser processing apparatus 100 in FIG. 2 has an optical fiber 9 for transmitting a laser beam L output from a laser oscillator 1 to a processing head 2 .

When the plane substrate 4a is perpendicular to the optical axis of the laser beam L and the central axis of rotation of the hollow rotary stage 4b coincides with the optical axis of the laser beam L, the plane substrate 4a is as shown in FIG. When the thickness of the substrate 4a is t, the refractive index of the planar substrate is n, and the angle of the planar substrate 4a with respect to the laser beam L changes to α, the displacement amount Δ of the position of the laser beam L is expressed by the following equation ( 1). FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the amount of displacement Δ of the position of the laser beam L. In FIG.

The laser processing apparatus 100 can change the incident position of the laser beam L on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 by changing the angle α of the plane substrate 4a with respect to the laser beam L.

The laser processing apparatus 100 needs to process not only straight lines but also circular or angular shapes. The laser processing apparatus 100 rotates the planar substrate 4a with respect to the processing direction by the hollow rotary stage 4b, so that the displacement amount Δ of the incident position of the laser beam L on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 with respect to the processing direction is kept constant. The direction of displacement of the position can be changed while maintaining.

When the laser processing apparatus 100 performs shape processing, the optical axis adjustment unit 4 may receive processing direction change information from the control unit 8 during processing, or may determine the timing of changing the processing direction before processing. You can leave it.

The angle adjustment mechanism 4c may be any component as long as it can change the angle α of the flat substrate 4a with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L. A tilting stage or a positioning stage may be used as the angle adjusting mechanism 4c. The angle α of the flat substrate 4a with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L may be changed during processing or may be set before processing.

The optical component of the optical axis adjusting section 4 is not limited to the planar substrate 4a. The optical component of the optical axis adjustment unit 4 may be a wedge substrate or a refractive optical element having a plurality of wedge angles, or may be a reflective optical element having the same function as the wedge substrate or the refractive optical element.

An optical axis adjustment command for determining the amount of displacement of the hollow rotary stage 4b of the optical axis adjustment unit 4 and the value of the tilt angle of the angle adjustment mechanism 4c is issued by the control unit 8.

The intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 will be explained. In the example of FIG. 2, the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 has an optical component 5a and an optical path switching mechanism 5b that drives the optical component 5a. The optical component 5 a is arranged between the optical axis adjusting section 4 and the condensing optical system 6 . The optical component 5a has an intensity distribution conversion characteristic that is rotationally symmetric about one axis. The intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 includes an optical component 5a and changes the intensity distribution of the laser beam L based on an intensity distribution adjustment command.

For example, the optical component 5a is a component in which an axicon lens and a lens capable of generating spherical aberration to change the relationship between the circle of least confusion and the paraxial focus are combined, It is a component that makes the beam intensity distribution of the laser beam L in the vicinity of the object W not uniform. A beam intensity distribution that is “not a uniform intensity distribution” is, for example, a ring mode distribution. A diffractive optical element DOE (Diffractive Optical Element) may be used as the optical component 5a.

Each of FIGS. 4 to 7 is a diagram showing an example of the optical component 5a included in the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 of the laser processing apparatus 100 of FIG. FIG. 4 shows a convex axicon lens, and the convex axicon lens can generate a ring mode on the processing head 2 side from the converging position. FIG. 5 shows a concave axicon lens, and the concave axicon lens can generate a ring mode on the workpiece W side from the condensing position.

FIG. 6 shows an optical component combined with a plurality of lenses capable of generating spherical aberration and adjusting the relationship between the circle of least confusion and the paraxial focus. The optics of FIG. 6 can transform the distribution of the laser beam L into a distribution such that the outside of the beam mode has a higher intensity distribution than the inside. FIG. 7 shows an optical component in which a concave axicon lens and a convex axicon lens are combined, and the optical component in FIG. can be generated. The optical component 5a may be an optical component in which two or more optical components shown in FIGS. 4 to 7 are combined.

An intensity distribution adjustment command for determining whether or not to insert the optical component 5a into the optical path is issued by the control unit 8. The control unit 8 controls part or all of the oscillator command, the drive command, the intensity distribution adjustment command, the material of the workpiece W, the plate thickness of the workpiece W, and the cutting direction based on the machining parameters, which are numerical parameters related to the cutting process. , an optical axis adjustment command for controlling the optical axis adjustment unit 4 is determined.

The incident position of the laser beam L on the optical component 5a is adjusted by the optical axis adjusting section 4. When the optical axis of the laser beam L before entering the optical axis adjusting unit 4 is the same as the optical axis of the optical component 5a of the intensity distribution adjusting unit 5, let d be the beam diameter of the laser beam L entering the optical component 5a. , where k is the ratio of the intensity distribution of the laser beam L to the center of the optical axis of the intensity distribution adjusting unit 5, the ratio k can be expressed by the following equation (2). Δ is the amount of displacement of the position of the laser beam L adjusted by the optical axis adjuster 4 .

The laser processing apparatus 100 can change the energy ratio of the intensity distribution of the laser beam L irradiated in the processing direction by adjusting the displacement amount Δ of the position of the laser beam L using the optical axis adjustment unit 4 .

The optical axis of the optical axis adjusting section 4 may be the central axis of the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 . The position with respect to the optical axis or the angle with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 may be changed.

When welding or cutting a metal, the laser processing apparatus 100 adjusts the beam diameter, beam intensity, and divergence angle of the laser beam L to irradiate the workpiece W for each thickness and material of the workpiece W. Adjust and process. An example of a metal is iron. A user of the laser processing apparatus 100 needs to take out the cut object from the workpiece W as a product in the cutting process. When the beam diameter is large and the cutting groove is widened for processing, it becomes easier to take out the product. When the cross-sectional shape of the laser beam L is symmetrical with respect to the workpiece W, the intensity and beam diameter of the laser beam L are uniquely determined. In order to increase the beam diameter and increase the beam intensity during processing, the output of the laser oscillator 1 must be increased.

The laser processing apparatus 100 adjusts the intensity distribution of the laser beam L applied to the workpiece W by adjusting the displacement amount of the incident position of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 by the optical axis adjustment unit 4. It is possible to generate an intensity distribution of the laser beam L that is asymmetric for tuning. Furthermore, the laser processing apparatus 100 can change the intensity of the laser beam L with the same laser output and beam diameter. In addition, the laser processing apparatus 100 generates an asymmetrical laser beam intensity distribution that increases the intensity of the laser beam L in the processing progress direction, thereby comparing the laser beam intensity distribution symmetrical with respect to the output of the laser oscillator 1. As a result, processing can be performed with a high laser beam intensity.

Patent Document 1 discloses a technique of arranging an optical element between a collimating lens and a beam source, but in Embodiment 1, the optical element is arranged between the collimating lens and the condensing optical system 6. ing. In the collimated portion, the size of the beam is constant and the distance can be set freely.

In Embodiment 1, it is not necessary to displace the optical axis adjusting section 4 in the optical axis direction and the direction perpendicular to the optical axis, so it is easy to add a mechanism for removing or inserting the optical axis adjusting section 4 from the optical path. . Similarly, since it is not necessary to displace the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 in the direction of the optical axis and in the direction perpendicular to the optical axis, it is easy to add a mechanism for removing or inserting the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 from the optical path.

When the object W to be processed is a plate having a thickness of 3.2 mm or more, the laser processing apparatus 100 adjusts the angle of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 when processing the object W to be processed. By changing in the part 4, the laser beam intensity and energy ratio in the processing direction are adjusted and processing is performed.

When the object W to be processed is a plate having a thickness of 3.2 mm or less, the processing speed is relatively high when the laser processing apparatus 100 processes the object W to be processed. is difficult to follow. Since the user wants to perform processing with a small beam diameter, the user may want to perform processing without the optical component 5a. In that case, as shown in FIG. 8, the user sets the angle formed by the flat substrate 4a and the optical axis of the laser beam L to 90° without tilting the flat substrate 4a, and operates the optical path switching mechanism 5b. The optical component 5a may be removed from the optical path by using the optical component 5a. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a specific example of how to use the laser processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. The optical path switching mechanism 5b is a component that inserts the optical part 5a into the optical axis of the laser beam L or removes it from the optical axis.

As shown in FIG. 9, the user sets the angle formed by the flat substrate 4a and the optical axis of the laser beam L to 90° without tilting the flat substrate 4a, and adjusts the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 to the laser beam. Processing may be performed without removing from the optical path of L. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing another example of a specific usage of the laser processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment.

The processing method for plates with different thicknesses is not limited to the above method.

The processing head 2 may have both a convex axicon lens and a concave axicon lens. A convex axicon lens and a concave axicon lens may be used depending on one or both of the plate thickness and the type of processing gas.

For example, oxygen, nitrogen or air is used as the processing gas. However, the processing gas may be gas other than oxygen, nitrogen, or air, and may contain two or more types of gases.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a partial configuration of the laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1 for explaining an example of ray tracing calculation results. In the example of FIG. 10, the laser oscillator 1 is a fiber laser with a laser output of 5 kW. The fiber core diameter Φ is 0.1 mm, and NA (Numerical Aperture) is 0.08. The focal length of the collimating lens 3 is 100 mm, the condensing optical system 6 is a condensing lens, the focal length of the condensing lens is 200 mm, and the thickness of the planar substrate 4a of the optical axis adjustment unit 4 is 10 mm. and the apex angle of the convex axicon lens of the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 is 179.5°.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the case where the angle formed by the flat substrate 4a of the laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1 and the optical axis of the laser beam L is 90° and the optical component 5a is not inserted into the optical axis. It is a figure which shows beam intensity distribution near a light spot. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a cross section of the center axis XX' in the processing direction. FIG. 11 shows the intensity distribution of the laser beam L in the cross section along the central axis XX' in the processing direction of FIG.

When the optical component 5a is not inserted into the optical axis, a uniform distribution called top hat beam is formed as shown in FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the beam intensity distribution near the focal point when the convex axicon lens of the intensity distribution adjusting unit 5 is inserted into the optical axis in the laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1. FIG. When the convex axicon lens of the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 is inserted into the optical axis, the beam diameter becomes larger than that of the top hat beam in FIG. is formed, there are two regions in the cross-section. The machining direction in FIG. 13 is the positive direction of the X-axis shown in FIG. The area a in FIG. 13 is the intensity distribution area of the laser beam L in the processing direction, and the area b in FIG. 13 is the intensity distribution area of the laser beam L irradiated in the opposite direction to the processing direction. The laser beam intensity of the area a on the processing progress side is equal to the laser beam intensity of the area b on the opposite side.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the laser beam intensity distribution when the angle α between the flat substrate 4a and the optical axis of the laser beam L is 45° in the laser processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. In the laser beam intensity distribution of FIG. 14, the two peak intensities of the laser beam L with respect to the processing direction are different. That is, the area a in the processing progress direction is larger than the area b.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the relationship between the tilt angle of the planar substrate 4a and the peak intensity of the laser beam L in the processing advancing direction side of the region a in the laser processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. From FIG. 15, it can be seen that the laser beam intensity can be adjusted by tilting the plane substrate 4a with respect to the optical axis of the laser beam L. FIG. FIG. 15 shows that the peak intensity can be changed up to 1.8 times as much as when the tilt angle of the plane substrate 4a is 0°. Since the laser processing apparatus 100 can adjust the peak intensity by adjusting the tilt angle of the plane substrate 4a, it is possible to adjust the beam diameter d of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 to be small. The beam diameter d can be changed by the focal length of the collimating lens 3.

The beam diameter at the imaging point can be changed by changing the relationship between the fiber core diameter, the focal lengths of the collimating lens 3 and the condensing optical system 6, and the apex angle of the axicon lens.

FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining functions of the laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1. FIG. When the collimating lens 3 is composed of a plurality of lenses, as shown in FIG. 16, the laser processing apparatus 100 drives each of the plurality of lenses independently to change the effective focal length of the collimating lens 3, A condensed diameter changing part 3a for changing the condensed diameter with which the workpiece W is irradiated may be provided. When the laser processing apparatus 100 has the condensing diameter changing unit, the condensing diameter and the divergence angle of the laser beam L irradiated to the workpiece W are adjusted when the focal length of the condensing optical system 6 does not change. It becomes possible to change the beam intensity. Since the laser processing apparatus 100 can adjust the beam diameter, the divergence angle, and the beam intensity according to the plate thickness, the processing performance can be further improved.

When the laser processing apparatus 100 processes sheet metal, and the laser oscillator 1 is a fiber laser, the fiber core diameter is anywhere from 100 μm to 300 μm. In actual processing, the laser processing apparatus 100 not only processes the object W by irradiating the object W with the laser beam L with the focal point aligned with the surface of the object W, but also in the z-direction, and the beam diameter is preferably anywhere from 0.1 mm to 2 mm. Desirably, the axicon angle is anywhere from 179.0° to 179.9°. The z-direction is the thickness direction of the object W to be processed.

There may be a plurality of flat substrates 4a of the optical axis adjustment unit 4, and the tilt angle of each of the plurality of flat substrates 4a may be adjusted independently. When the tilt angles of the plurality of planar substrates 4a are independently adjusted, the laser processing apparatus 100 can adjust the intensity distribution of the laser beam L to any of the plurality of distributions.

The condensing optical system 6 only needs to be able to condense the laser beam L, so it may be composed of a single lens, or may be a component in which a plurality of lenses are combined. As the condensing optical system 6, an aspherical lens with spherical aberration removed may be used, or a reflective optical system may be used.

As described above, the laser processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment includes the laser oscillator 1 that outputs the laser beam L based on the oscillator command, and the processing head 2 that irradiates the laser beam L to the irradiation position of the workpiece W. and a control unit 8 for changing the relative position between the workpiece W and the processing head 2 based on a drive command to move the irradiation position in the cutting direction. The laser processing apparatus 100 includes an intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 that changes the intensity distribution of the laser beam L based on an intensity distribution adjustment command, and light that changes the incident position or the incident angle of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5. It further has an axis adjustment part 4 . The control unit 8 controls part or all of the oscillator command, the drive command, the intensity distribution adjustment command, the material of the workpiece W, the plate thickness of the workpiece W, and the cutting direction based on the machining parameters, which are numerical parameters related to the cutting process. , an optical axis adjustment command for controlling the optical axis adjustment unit 4 is determined. The laser processing apparatus 100 controls the beam mode of the laser beam L irradiated to the workpiece W and the energy ratio of the intensity distribution in the beam cross section of the laser beam L irradiated in the processing direction in accordance with the processing parameters of the cutting processing. can do. The laser processing apparatus 100 can appropriately adjust the beam intensity of the laser beam L with which the workpiece W is irradiated. The laser processing apparatus 100 can appropriately adjust the beam intensity of the laser beam L with which the groove width of the workpiece W is irradiated. As a result, productivity is improved.

Embodiment 2.
FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an overview of the configuration of a laser processing apparatus 200 according to Embodiment 2. As shown in FIG. The laser processing device 200 has components other than the optical axis adjusting unit 4 among all the components of the laser processing device 100 according to the first embodiment. The laser processing device 200 has a galvanometer scanner 4d instead of the optical axis adjusting section 4 of the laser processing device 100 according to the first embodiment. The galvanometer scanner 4d is an example of an optical axis adjusting section. A difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is that the optical axis adjustment unit 4 of the first embodiment is replaced with a galvanometer scanner 4d. In Embodiment 2, differences from Embodiment 1 will be mainly described.

As shown in FIG. 17, the galvanometer scanner 4d is preferably inserted between the collimating lens 3 and the intensity distribution adjusting section 5 and arranged at the entrance pupil position of the condensing optical system 6. The arrow in FIG. 17 means that the galvanometer scanner 4d is rotatable. A galvanometer scanner 4 d deflects the laser beam L collimated by the collimating lens 3 . As a result, the incident position and incident angle of the laser beam L to the optical component 5a of the intensity distribution adjusting unit 5 are adjusted, and the laser processing apparatus 200 can adjust the beam intensity distribution in the processing direction with respect to the workpiece W. be possible. In addition, the laser processing device 200 can adjust the intensity of the laser beam L that irradiates the cutting front. Thereby, the laser processing apparatus 200 can improve the processing efficiency even if the laser output is the same.

Assuming that the focal length of the condensing optical system 6 is f and the deflection angle of the galvano scanner 4d is θ, the scanning position of the laser beam L is f×tan θ, and the laser processing apparatus 200 scans at a frequency of several hundred Hz or higher. , it becomes possible to adjust the beam diameter of the laser beam L with which the workpiece W is irradiated. In that case, the laser processing apparatus 200 can further improve processing performance.

The galvanometer scanner 4d only needs to be able to deflect the laser beam L, so an acoustooptic deflector using acoustooptic modulation may be used as the galvanoscanner 4d. The galvanometer scanner 4d may be replaced with a MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) mirror. The galvanometer scanner 4d or MEMS mirror is controlled by the controller 8. FIG. The laser processing apparatus 200 according to Embodiment 2 can appropriately adjust the groove width to be processed. As a result, productivity is improved.

As described in Embodiment 1, when the collimating lens 3 is composed of a plurality of lenses, the laser processing apparatus 200 drives each of the plurality of lenses independently to set the effective focal length of the collimating lens 3 to It may have a zoom function to change. In this case, when the focal length of the condensing optical system 6 does not change, the laser processing apparatus 200 can adjust the beam diameter, divergence angle, and beam intensity of the laser beam L with which the workpiece W is irradiated. As a result, the laser processing apparatus 200 can contribute to improvement in processing performance.

Although only one galvano-scanner 4d is shown in FIG. 17, two galvano-scanners 4d need to be arranged when two-dimensional scanning is required.

The condensing optical system 6 only needs to be able to condense the laser beam L, so it may be composed of one lens, or may be a component in which a plurality of lenses are combined. When the focal length of the condensing optical system 6 is f and the deflection angle of the laser beam L is defined as θ, an fθ lens that maintains the relationship that the scanning position of the condensing optical system 6 is fθ is may be used, or reflective optics may be used.

Embodiment 3.
A laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 has all the components of laser processing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1, and a processing condition analyzer 12 shown in FIG. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing the configuration of the processing condition analyzer 12 included in the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3. As shown in FIG. In Embodiment 3, differences from Embodiment 1 will be mainly described. Note that the laser processing apparatus according to the third embodiment is a laser processing apparatus having all the components of the laser processing apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment and the processing condition analyzer 12 shown in FIG. good too.

The machining condition analyzer 12 has a machining result determination unit 13, a feature amount extraction unit 14, a machine learning unit 15, and a machining condition change unit 16. The machine learning device 15 learns by associating the feature amount extracted by the feature amount extraction unit 14 with the evaluation value created by the operator. The evaluation value created by the worker is the evaluation value by the worker. The evaluation value by the worker may be input from, for example, input means (not shown), or may be transmitted from another device.

The machine learning device 15 has a learning unit 17 and a data acquisition unit 18. The data acquisition unit 18 acquires state quantities including processing conditions for cutting, oscillator commands, drive commands, intensity distribution adjustment commands, and processing parameters. The learning unit 17 learns processing conditions for obtaining good processing based on the state quantities acquired by the data acquisition unit 18 .

The learning unit 17 learns pairs of inputs and results by machine learning. Any algorithm may be used as the machine learning algorithm of the learning unit 17. For example, a supervised learning algorithm is used. The data acquisition unit 18 acquires the feature amount from the feature amount extraction unit 14 as an input to the learning unit 17 and inputs the acquired feature amount to the learning unit 17 . An evaluation value by the worker is also input to the learning unit 17 . The evaluation value by the operator is the result of judging the quality of the machining result, and may be a value indicating a stepwise level or a continuous numerical value. In other words, the evaluation value by the worker is a value determined by the worker corresponding to the combination pattern of the defective processing items.

The data acquisition unit 18 may acquire the processing conditions as an input to the learning unit 17. The data acquisition unit 18 acquires the processing condition or the feature amount output from the feature amount extraction unit 14 as a state variable, and provides it to the learning unit 17 . The learning unit 17 machine-learns processing conditions and processing results, or pass/fail results of defective processing items, using a data set composed of state variables and evaluation values. A data set is data in which state variables and evaluation values are associated.

For example, the processing conditions include processing speed, laser output, processing gas pressure, the positional relationship between the condensing position of the condensing optical system 6 and the workpiece W, and the laser beam after being condensed by the condensing optical system 6. L beam diameter, laser pulse frequency, laser pulse duty ratio, magnification of condensing optical system 6, nozzle diameter, distance between workpiece W and machining nozzle 7, type of laser beam mode, center of nozzle hole and the laser beam L, the displacement amount Δ of the position of the laser beam L incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit 5 displaced by the optical axis adjustment unit 4, the optical axis adjustment unit 4 changes the laser beam L with respect to the change in the processing direction These are the conditions for specifying the timing for adjusting the optical axis of the beam L and a part or all of the deflection angle of the galvanometer scanner 4d.

The learning unit 17 uses a machine-learned model to output processing conditions corresponding to feature amounts. Thereby, the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 can adjust the conditions with higher accuracy. The learning unit 17 may have both a function of machine-learning the relationship between the quality of the machining result and the machining conditions and a function of a learned model. An inference unit that outputs an evaluation value using a trained model may be provided separately from the learning unit 17 . That is, the processing condition analyzer 12 may have an inference unit that calculates a combination pattern of processing conditions processed by the data processing unit using a learned model trained by the learning unit 17 .

In the example shown in FIG. 18, the machine learning device 15 is provided inside the machining condition analyzer 12, but the machine learning device 15 may be a separate device from the machining condition analyzer 12. For example, the machining condition analyzer 12 and the machine learning device 15 may be connected via a communication network. The machine learner 15 may reside on a cloud server.

If the determination result by the processing result determination unit 13 is corrected after learning progresses to some extent using the above-described data set, the learning unit 17 may learn the corrected determination result. For example, the machining result judging unit 13 calculates a combination pattern composed of a plurality of evaluation values corresponding to each of a plurality of items for judging a machining defect, the operator corrects the evaluation values, and the corrected result is used by the machine. It is input to the learning device 15 . In this case, the algorithm for determining the evaluation value in the processing result determination unit 13 and the threshold value for determination may be changed as appropriate by the operator.

Examples of items that determine processing defects are items that indicate the phenomenon of dross occurring from the lower end of the cut surface, which is a symptom of molten metal adhering to the cut surface during laser cutting, or items that periodically occur at the top of the cut surface. This item indicates roughness. When roughening occurs, the depth of unevenness of streaks becomes deeper than when roughening does not occur. Streaks are produced when the processing gas used for cutting is oxygen, and the unevenness of the streaks may be determined based on the presence or absence of the symptom of peeling of the oxide film produced on the cut surface.

Items for determining processing defects are not limited to the above examples. For example, processing defects may be determined by including discoloration of the workpiece W, the presence or absence of a vibrating surface, and other items of processing defects. Alternatively, other items for determining processing defects may be determined. The items for determining defective processing may be changed depending on some or all of the processing parameters such as the combination of laser output, processing speed, processing plate thickness, and type of processing gas.

The learning unit 17 uses, for example, a neural network model to learn processing conditions and processing results through so-called supervised learning. Supervised learning is machine learning that learns features in multiple data sets, which are multiple pairs of input and result data, and estimates the result from the input. The result is a label.

A neural network consists of an input layer made up of multiple neurons, an intermediate layer made up of multiple neurons called a hidden layer, and an output layer made up of multiple neurons. As for the intermediate layer, only one intermediate layer may be present, or two or more intermediate layers may be present.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing the configuration of a neural network model according to Embodiment 3. FIG. X1, X2 and X3 are input layer neurons, Y1 and Y2 are intermediate layer neurons, and Z1, Z2 and Z3 are output layer neurons. In the case of a three-layer neural network model as shown in FIG. It is multiplied and input to each of Y1 and Y2, which are intermediate layer neurons.

The output values from Y1 and Y2 are multiplied by any of the corresponding weights w21 to w26 and input to each of the output layer neurons Z1, Z2 and Z3. The output layer adds the input values and outputs the result of addition as an output result. For example, the results output from each of Z1, Z2, and Z3 can be made to correspond to the evaluation results corresponding to the items for determining each processing defect. The output result varies depending on each value from weight w11 to weight w16 and each value from weight w21 to weight w26.

In the third embodiment, using the above data set, each value from weight w11 to weight w16 and weight w21 to weight w26 are adjusted so that the output result of the above neural network approaches the correct evaluation result of processing quality. Learning is performed by adjusting each value of . FIG. 19 shows an example of a neural network model, and the number of layers of the neural network model and the number of neurons belonging to each layer are not limited to the example of FIG.

The learning unit 17 can also learn the processing conditions and the processing quality evaluation results by so-called unsupervised learning using a neural network model. Unsupervised learning is learning how the input data is distributed based only on a large amount of input data, and even if the corresponding supervised output data is not given, the input data can be compressed, It is a technique for learning how to do some or all of the classification and shaping.

For example, in unsupervised learning, it is possible to cluster data with similar features in the input data. Prediction of the evaluation result can be achieved by assigning the evaluation result to the clustering result so as to optimize the clustering result by providing some criteria.

As an intermediate problem setting between unsupervised learning and supervised learning, there is also what is called semi-supervised learning. Semi-supervised learning is learning where there are only some input and output data pairs and the rest are input-only data. The learning unit 17 may implement machine learning by semi-supervised learning.

The machine learning device 15 may acquire data sets from a plurality of processing condition analyzers 12 and learn evaluation results of processing conditions and processing results. Each of the plurality of machining condition analyzers 12 may have the same function as the machining condition analyzer 12 of the third embodiment. The machine learning device 15 may acquire data sets from a plurality of processing condition analyzers 12 used at the same site, or acquire data sets from the processing condition analyzers 12 operating at different sites. good too. The processing condition analyzer 12 from which the data set is acquired may be added in the middle, or the processing condition analyzer 12 from which the data set may be acquired may be removed in the middle. A machine learning device is provided separately from the processing condition analyzer 12, and after the machine learning device learns from a data set acquired from a processing condition analyzer 12, it is connected to another processing condition analyzer 12 to perform another processing. A data set may be acquired from the processing condition analyzer 12 and re-learned.

The data acquisition unit 18 receives, as input to the learning unit 17, not only the processing conditions or the feature amount output from the feature amount extraction unit 14, but also, for example, information indicating the thickness of the workpiece W and the material of the workpiece W. One or both of the indicated information may also be taken as input.

As a learning algorithm used in the learning unit 17, it is possible to use deep learning for learning to extract the feature amount itself, and the learning unit 17 uses other known methods such as genetic programming, functional logic programming, etc. , support vector machines, Fisher's discriminant, subspace methods, or discriminant analysis using Mahalanobis space.

Examples of learning algorithms used in the learning unit 17 include decision trees, random forests, logistic regression, k-nearest neighbor method, subspace method, CLAFIC method (CLAss-Featuring Information Compression method), Isolation Forest, LOF (Local Outlier Factor), Boosting, AdaBoost, LogitBoost, One-Class SVM (Support Vector Machine), or Gaussian Mixture Mode may be used.

For example, when learning to extract feature values from an image is performed, such as deep learning or a convolution neural network, the feature value extraction unit 14 may not be provided. The machine learning device 15 may be provided for each item for determining defective processing, or one machine learning device 15 may correspond to a plurality of items for determining defective processing. A search for the parameters may be performed using a search algorithm of reinforcement learning or Bayesian search.

Since the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 has the optical axis adjustment unit 4, the number of processing parameters increases compared to a conventional laser processing machine. By searching for the machining parameters, the machining parameters can be adjusted with relatively high accuracy.

The quality of processing may be judged by the worker after processing. As shown in FIG. 20 , a machining state monitoring sensor 19 may be provided to monitor the machining state during machining, and the monitoring result may be input to the machining result determination unit 13 . FIG. 20 is a diagram showing the configuration of a modified laser processing apparatus 300 according to the third embodiment. For example, as the processing state monitoring sensor 19, an optical sensor that detects processing light, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) camera that captures an image of a processing point, or a sound sensor that detects processing sound may be used. Examples of light sensors are photodiodes and examples of sound sensors are microphones.

Since the laser processing apparatus 300 can detect the processing state during processing, it is possible to adjust the processing conditions according to the state change during processing. Furthermore, the laser processing apparatus 300 can determine the processing state and adjust the processing conditions, and can obtain the effect of suppressing defective processing.

One type of machining state monitoring sensor 19 may be used, or two types of machining state monitoring sensor 19 may be used. The machining state monitoring sensor 19 may be arranged inside the machining head 2 or may be arranged outside the machining head 2 . The time-series data acquired by the machining state monitoring sensor 19 may be input to the feature quantity extraction unit 14 .

FIG. 21 shows that part or all of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning unit 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 of the processing condition analyzer 12 of the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 are processors. 9 shows a processor 91 as implemented by 91; FIG. That is, some or all of the functions of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 may be realized by the processor 91 that executes the program stored in the memory 92. good. The processor 91 is a CPU (Central Processing Unit), processing device, arithmetic device, microprocessor, or DSP (Digital Signal Processor). Memory 92 is also shown in FIG.

When some or all of the functions of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 are realized by the processor 91, the functions include the processor 91, software, firmware, Alternatively, it is implemented by a combination of software and firmware. Software or firmware is written as a program and stored in memory 92 . The processor 91 reads out and executes the programs stored in the memory 92, thereby implementing some or all of the functions of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16. do.

When some or all of the functions of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 are realized by the processor 91, the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 performs processing A memory for storing a program in which part or all of a plurality of steps executed by the result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 are executed as a result has 92. It can be said that the program stored in the memory 92 causes the computer to execute part or all of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning unit 15, and the processing condition change unit 16.

The memory 92 is non-volatile such as RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), flash memory, EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), EEPROM (registered trademark) (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory). Or a volatile semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, a flexible disk, an optical disk, a compact disk, a mini disk, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), or the like.

FIG. 22 shows that part or all of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning unit 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 of the processing condition analyzer 12 of the laser processing apparatus according to Embodiment 3 are processed. FIG. 9 illustrates processing circuitry 93 as implemented by circuitry 93; That is, part or all of the processing result determination unit 13 , the feature quantity extraction unit 14 , the machine learning device 15 and the processing condition change unit 16 may be realized by the processing circuit 93 .

The processing circuit 93 is dedicated hardware. The processing circuit 93 is, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a combination thereof. is. A part of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 may be implemented by dedicated hardware separate from the rest.

For the plurality of functions of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature amount extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16, some of the functions are realized by software or firmware, and the rest of the functions are It may be realized by dedicated hardware. Thus, the multiple functions of the processing result determination unit 13, the feature quantity extraction unit 14, the machine learning device 15, and the processing condition change unit 16 can be realized by hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.

The configurations shown in the above embodiments are only examples, and can be combined with other known techniques, or can be combined with other embodiments, without departing from the scope of the invention. It is also possible to omit or change part of the configuration.

1 Laser oscillator, 2 Processing head, 3 Collimating lens, 3a Condensing diameter changing part, 4 Optical axis adjusting part, 4a Planar substrate, 4b Hollow rotary stage, 4c Angle adjusting mechanism, 4d Galvano scanner, 5 Intensity distribution adjusting part, 5a Optical component 5b Optical path switching mechanism 6 Condensing optical system 7 Processing nozzle 8 Control unit 9 Optical fiber 12 Processing condition analyzer 13 Processing result determination unit 14 Feature quantity extraction unit 15 Machine learning device 16 Machining condition change unit, 17 learning unit, 18 data acquisition unit, 19 machining state monitoring sensor, 91 processor, 92 memory, 93 processing circuit, 100, 200, 300 laser processing device, L laser beam, W object to be processed.

Claims

a laser oscillator that outputs laser light based on an oscillator command;
a processing head for condensing the laser beam with a condensing optical system and irradiating the irradiation position of the object to be processed;
a control unit that changes the relative position between the workpiece and the processing head based on a drive command to move the irradiation position in the cutting direction;
an intensity distribution adjustment unit that includes an optical component having an intensity distribution conversion characteristic that is rotationally symmetric about one axis and that changes the intensity distribution of the laser beam based on an intensity distribution adjustment command;
Optical axis adjustment for changing the incident position or the incident angle of the laser beam incident on the intensity distribution adjustment unit corresponding to a part or all of the material of the workpiece, the plate thickness of the workpiece, and the cutting direction. and
The control unit responds to some or all of the oscillator command, the drive command, the intensity distribution adjustment command, the material, the plate thickness, and the cutting direction based on processing parameters, which are numerical parameters related to cutting. A laser processing apparatus that determines an optical axis adjustment command for controlling the optical axis adjustment unit.
2. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical axis adjustment unit is a galvanometer scanner or a microelectromechanical system mirror that adjusts the position and angle at which the laser light enters the intensity distribution adjustment unit. .
The optical axis adjusting section is
a planar substrate through which the laser beam is transmitted;
a mechanism for changing the relative angle between the planar substrate and the optical axis of the laser beam;
2. The laser processing according to claim 1, further comprising a rotating mechanism that rotates the planar substrate about the optical axis corresponding to part or all of the material, the plate thickness, and the cutting direction. Device.
4. The intensity distribution adjusting unit further includes an optical path switching mechanism that inserts or removes the optical component from the optical axis of the laser beam. The laser processing device according to .
The laser processing apparatus according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the optical component is an axicon lens.
5. The optical component is an optical component combining a plurality of lenses capable of generating spherical aberration and changing the relationship between the circle of least confusion and the paraxial focus. The laser processing apparatus according to any one of 1.
The processing head has a condensing diameter changing section that changes a condensing diameter of the laser beam irradiated onto the object to be processed by changing a beam diameter of the laser beam incident on the condensing optical system. The laser processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized by:
a data acquisition unit for acquiring state quantities including the processing conditions for the cutting process, the oscillator command, the drive command, the intensity distribution adjustment command, and the processing parameters; 8. The laser processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a machine learning device that has a learning unit that learns processing conditions for obtaining good processing.
A laser processing method using a laser processing apparatus having a laser oscillator for outputting a laser beam based on an oscillator command, and a processing head for condensing the laser beam with a condensing optical system and irradiating it onto an irradiation position of an object to be processed. There is
moving the irradiation position in the cutting direction by changing the relative position between the workpiece and the processing head based on a drive command;
changing the intensity distribution of the laser light based on an intensity distribution adjustment command using an optical component having an intensity distribution conversion characteristic that is rotationally symmetric about one axis;
The light enters an intensity distribution adjustment unit that includes the optical component and changes the intensity distribution of the laser beam corresponding to the material of the object to be processed, the plate thickness of the object to be processed, and part or all of the cutting direction. changing the incident position or incident angle of the laser light;
The strength distribution adjustment unit corresponding to part or all of the oscillator command, the drive command, the strength distribution adjustment command, the material, the plate thickness, and the cutting direction based on processing parameters, which are numerical parameters related to cutting. determining an optical axis adjustment command for controlling an optical axis adjusting unit that changes the incident position or incident angle of the laser beam incident on the laser beam.