Laser cutting machines enable metal fabricators to make high-quality parts, which require little finishing work. As the high-powered laser is cutting, the excess materials either burn, vaporize or melt away. High gas pressure jet blows away any debris, which results in the well-done surface cut.
Two kinds of laser cutting machines that are used these days are CO2 and YAG. The well-known CO2 laser cutting machines were some of the gas lasers as well as the most common laser cutting machine. They provide an incomparable power output input ratio as efficient as twenty percent. YAG lasers use crystals as their lasing means and these are solid state. These cut steel and some alloys in metal working industry.
Mechanical Cutting VS Laser Cutting
A laser cutting machine is distinct from a traditional mechanical cutter. Since lasers never make physical contact with metal, there’s little to no wear on equipment and there’s less opportunity for materials to be contaminated. A laser cutting machine also cut metals with high precision than mechanical means.
In terms of mechanical cutting, there’s typically wide affected zone of heat, which may cause material warping. Thanks to a laser cutting machine, heat affected zone is kept small, which reduce the warped material’s possibility. Even if laser cutting provides some benefits, it consumes high energy level, making it much harder for the conventional machine shops to incorporate into their metal fabrication system.
Advantages of the Laser Cutting Machines
The laser cutting machines provide a substantial number of advantages for considerations when choosing a cutting device. Aside from its benefits over the conventional mechanical cutting system, laser cutting involves a silent process. Safety is also crucial and the majority of the laser machines are enclosed completely to prevent any accident.
The lasers are also equipped with computer touch screens, so the workers may plot out the design alterations for big part runs and prototypes. The lasers quickly progress due to equipment speed and high feed rates. The workers may also cut different jobs in one run through storing inventory on the site.
Considerations of Laser Cutting Machines
While incomparable for cutting steels and some hard metals, the laser cutting machines usually don’t function well on reflective metals including aluminum and copper. Since such metals reflect easily the light of the laser and absorb its heat, the high powered beams should be cut. Laser cutting machines make tapered holes slightly when piercing because of hole entry being bigger slightly in diameter than the hole exit.
Since the laser cutting melts materials in the path of the beam, the metals may harden and puncture, particularly in the heat treated materials. While it may be advantageous for several applications, this problem may be detrimental to those that require further work including threading.
For laser cutting, there are different CNC laser cutters available in the market. When finding one, make sure to consider some factors like the applications and type of laser cutter you are looking for as this can make a huge difference. See this for more