JPH08243776A - Laser beam machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To flatly hold a part irradiated with a laser beam in spite of ruggedness on the surface of an object to be worked by providing a holding part on the lower end of a laser head and thereby holding around the irradiation part of the laser beam. CONSTITUTION: A lens 47 for converging a laser beam is stored between the lower end of the cylinder 44 of a laser head 40 and a step on the inner circumference of a lens fixing tube 46. A holding part 60 with the lower face spherically shaped is connected to the lower end of a protective tube 50 on the outer circumference of the lens fixing tube 46. A hole 62 through which a laser beam is passed is formed on the center of this spherically shaped lower face. This holding part 60 is abutted on a part positioned on the upper face of a laser receiving plate 30 in an object 34 to be worked such as a cloth retained on an embroidery frame or the like. The holding part 60 is pressed on the surface of the object 34 by the elasticity of a coil spring 76. In other words, the object 34 is held by a prescribed load at the circumference (circumference of the irradiation part) of the hole 62 of the holding part 60. As a result, the focused position of the laser beam is coincident with the surface of the object 34.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention uses a frame driving data in an embroidery machine to process a workpiece such as cloth in X and Y directions.
The present invention relates to a laser processing machine that cuts or engraves a workpiece by irradiating the workpiece with a laser beam while controlling movement in both directions.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 6-33550 discloses a technique of an embroidery machine having a laser processing function. That is, in the technique of this publication, a holding frame (embroidery frame) holding a predetermined workpiece (cloth) is controlled to move in both X and Y directions by the movement data, and a laser beam is emitted from the laser head to the surface of the cloth. It is possible to cut this cloth by irradiating with.

[0003]

Between the laser head and the surface of the workpiece (cloth), the focus position of the laser beam emitted from the laser head, the space required for cloth replacement work, or the like. Due to the above relationship, a predetermined distance is maintained. Therefore, even when laser cutting, the cloth is not constrained in the thickness direction, and if the surface of the cloth has irregularities, the focus position of the laser beam does not coincide with the surface of the cloth. Will occur and you will not be able to cut well. The specifications for setting the cloth on the embroidery frame include the case where the cloth is simply placed on the holding sheet stretched over the embroidery frame, or the case where the cloth is adhered with an adhesive that can be easily peeled off.
In either case, the cloth may be partially lifted from the holding sheet, which also causes the focus position of the laser beam and the surface of the cloth not to coincide with each other. The focus position of the laser beam needs to be adjusted by changing the height of the laser head each time the thickness of the cloth changes.

One problem to be solved by the present invention is
By holding the area around the laser beam irradiation point on the surface of the workpiece such as cloth at the time of laser processing with the pressing part, the area irradiated by the laser beam is kept flat even if the surface of the workpiece is uneven. Then, the focus position of the laser beam and the surface of the workpiece are made to coincide with each other. Another problem to be solved by the present invention is
Each time the thickness of the work piece changes by matching the focus position of the laser beam with the surface of the work piece held down by the pressing portion to the surface of the work piece regardless of the change in the thickness of the work piece. It is to save the trouble of adjusting the focus position of the laser beam.

[0005]

The laser beam machine of the present invention is constructed as follows. The invention according to claim 1 is provided with a holding frame whose movement is controlled in both X and Y directions based on predetermined movement data, and a laser head capable of performing laser processing on a workpiece held by the holding frame. In the laser processing machine, the lower end portion of the laser head is provided with a pressing portion that presses around a laser beam irradiation position on the surface of the workpiece with a predetermined load during laser processing. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the laser processing machine according to the first aspect, the laser head includes a protective cylinder that can be lowered to a position close to the surface of the workpiece during laser processing. A pressing portion is provided at the lower end, and a lens for a laser beam is also incorporated inside the protective cylinder.

[0006]

According to the invention as set forth in claim 1, since a portion of the surface of the workpiece to be irradiated with the laser beam from the laser head during laser processing is pressed by the pressing portion with a predetermined load, Even if the surface of the workpiece has irregularities due to the properties of the workpiece, the portion irradiated with the laser beam is kept flat. As a result, the in-focus position of the laser beam adjusted in advance and the surface of the workpiece are properly matched, and laser processing such as cutting is appropriately performed. In the invention of claim 2, the surface of the workpiece is pressed by a predetermined load by the pressing portion provided at the lower end of the protective cylinder when the protective cylinder descends during laser processing. Moreover, since the lens is incorporated inside the protective cylinder, the distance between the lens and the surface of the workpiece pressed by the pressing portion is always constant. Therefore, the in-focus position of the laser beam will always coincide with the surface of the workpiece even if the thickness of the workpiece changes.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Example 1 FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire laser beam machine. As shown in this drawing, a laser head 40 is provided on the front surface of the frame 14 located above the table 10. On the upper surface of the table 10, an embroidery frame 16 as a holding body capable of holding a work piece (cloth, leather, etc.) described later is X-shaped by using frame driving data (movement data) for embroidery sewing. , Y movement is controllable. A laser receiving plate 30 is fixed to the upper surface of the table 10 below the laser head 40.

2 is an enlarged front view of the laser head 40 and its peripheral portion, FIG. 3 is a side view of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a sectional view of FIG. As is apparent from these drawings, the bracket 1 fixed to the front surface of the frame 14
At the bottom of 8, the support bracket 20 has a plurality of screws 21.
Installed by. The laser head 40 is connected to a support block 42 attached to the support bracket 20, a cylinder 44 vertically penetrating the support block 42, and a lower end of the cylinder 44. A lens fixing cylinder 46 and a protection cylinder 50 that is attached to the outer periphery of the lens fixing cylinder 46 so as to be able to move up and down are provided.

As is apparent from FIG. 4, the support block 42 is supported by the support bracket 20 by a single support pin 22 so as to be rotatable about its axis, and this rotation adjustment is performed. The support block 42 is fixed to the support bracket 20 by tightening the two lock bolts 24 later. On the other hand, the tubular body 44 is vertically slidable with respect to the support block 42, and a plate 45 fixed to the upper end portion of the tubular body 44 is provided with an adjusting bolt 26 whose tip is brought into contact with the upper surface of the support block 42. It is screwed in the contacted state. Therefore, the height of the cylindrical body 44 with respect to the support block 42 is adjusted according to the screwing amount of the adjusting bolt 26. After this height adjustment, the cylinder body 44 is fixed to the support block 42 by tightening the two lock bolts 25 screwed into the support block 42 and locking them with a lock nut.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a part of FIG. 2 in an enlarged manner. As is clear from this drawing, the lens fixing cylinder 46 is connected to the outer circumference of the lower end portion of the cylindrical body 44 by screw connection. A lens 47 for condensing a laser beam is held between the lower end of the cylindrical body 44 and the inner peripheral step of the lens fixing cylinder 46. Therefore, this lens 4
The height of 7 is adjusted by the screwing amount of the adjusting bolt 26, and as a result, the focus position of the laser beam is adjusted. The protective cylinder 50 is formed of a transparent synthetic resin material or the like, and a stopper ring 54 is fixed to the outer periphery of the upper end portion thereof. At the lower end of the protective cylinder 50, a pressing portion 60 having a spherical lower surface is provided.
Is connected to the inner circumference of the lower end of the by screw connection. Like the protective cylinder 50, the pressing portion 60 is also formed of a transparent synthetic resin material or the like, and a through hole 62 for passing a laser beam is formed at the center of the lower surface of the spherical shape.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the stopper ring 54 of the protective cylinder 50 is supported from below by the ring-shaped tip of the elevating arm 74, and the lower surface of the tip of the elevating arm 74 and the protective cylinder. A coil spring 76 is interposed between the outer peripheral step portion of 50. Due to the elasticity of the coil spring 76, the protective cylinder 50 is always urged downward with respect to the elevating arm 74. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an air cylinder 70 is attached to a bracket 72 fixed to the side surface of the support block 42 with its rod 71 protruding downward. The base end of the elevating arm 74 is connected to the lower end of the rod 71. Therefore, when the air cylinder 70 is driven, the protection cylinder 50 moves together with the pressing portion 60 between the raised position (retracted position) shown by the phantom line in FIG. 2 and the lowered position (used position) shown by the solid line. Become.

Now, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 2 and FIG. 5, the holding portion 60 in the state where the protective cylinder 50 is lowered to the use position has a work piece 34 such as cloth held by the embroidery frame 16. In contact with the portion of the laser receiving plate 30 located on the upper surface. That is, the elevating arm 74 at this time is located at a position slightly downward from the stopper ring 54 and compresses the coil spring 76. Therefore, the pressing portion 60 is pressed against the surface of the work piece 34 by the elastic force of the coil spring 76, and the work piece 34 surrounds the through hole 62 of the pressing portion 60 (that is, around the irradiation portion of the laser beam). ) Will be pressed with a predetermined load. The coil spring 76 may be omitted and the surface of the workpiece 34 may be held by the holding portion 60 by the weight of the protective cylinder 50 and the holding portion 60.

As is apparent from FIG. 5, an air hole 52 is formed in the side wall of the protective cylinder 50 near the lower end, and one end of an air pipe 56 is connected to this.
The other end of the air pipe 56 is connected to an air supply source (not shown) so that air can be blown into the protective cylinder 50 from the air hole 52. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a pipe 66 extending from the lower surface of the frame 14 toward the laser head 40 is arranged at the rear portion of the laser head 40. A suction nozzle 64 is connected to the tip of the pipe 66, and a rear end of the pipe 66 is connected to a duct 68 provided in the frame 14. The duct 68 is connected to a suction blower (not shown) so that air around the lower end of the laser head 40 can be sucked.

A beam guide 80 is arranged above the laser head 40. This beam guide 80
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the mirror support block 82 fixed to the bracket 18 and two guide tubes 86 and 87 connected thereto are provided. One guide tube 86 extends downward from the mirror support block 82, and its tip is inserted into the upper end opening of the cylindrical body 44 of the laser head 40, while the other guide tube 8 is provided.
Numeral 7 extends rearward from the mirror support block 82.
The holes of the mirror support block 82 into which the guide tubes 86 and 87 are inserted are orthogonal to each other in the inside thereof, and a holding plate 89 having a mirror 88 inside is provided at the orthogonal position to adjust the inclination of the mirror 88. Installed as possible. Further, on the front surface side of the mirror support block 82, a protective cover 84 is attached to protect the worker from the laser beam when the holding plate 89 is detached from the mirror support block 82.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a laser oscillator 100 is arranged at the rear position of the laser head 40 in the front-back direction. This laser oscillator 100
Is a type that uses a gas laser (CO ₂ laser) capable of continuously irradiating a laser beam, and the laser beam emitted from the irradiation nozzle (not shown) passes through a conduit 106 fixed to the upper surface of the frame 14. The beam guide body 80 is guided to the guide tube 87. Then, the laser beam entering the beam guide body 80 strikes the mirror 88 and is guided into the cylindrical body 44 of the laser head 40, passes through the lens 47, and laser-processes (cuts, etc.) the workpiece 34 at the in-focus position. )can do.

The laser oscillator 100 has a support plate horizontally supported by a support frame 102 fixed to the frame 14 and a support frame 103 fixed to the rear end of the table 10, as shown in FIG. 104
It is fixed on the upper surface of. A chiller box 108 is provided below the table 10, and a pipe (not shown) for circulating cooling water is provided between the chiller box 108 and the laser oscillator 100. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a blocking device 110 capable of blocking the laser beam is provided at the end of the conduit 106 near the laser oscillator 100.
This interrupting device 110 is provided as a safety measure in the case where the laser beam is erroneously irradiated due to a malfunction of the laser oscillator 100, and when a laser beam irradiation command is not issued, it is operated by a latching solenoid or the like (not shown). The passage of the conduit 106 is blocked.

In FIG. 1, an operation panel box 118 is provided on the right front surface of the frame 14. Figure 6
The operation panel box 118 is shown enlarged in FIG. As is apparent from this drawing, the operation panel box 1
18 is a control panel 120 of the laser head 40.
In addition to this, a floppy disk drive device for inputting data for laser processing configured by using embroidery data, a processing data editing device, and the like are also incorporated. The control panel 12
0 is a test switch 122 for instructing laser beam irradiation when adjusting the power of the laser beam,
Up / down switches 123 and 124 for adjusting the power at the time of laser beam irradiation, a display unit 126 for displaying the power of the laser beam, and a command to drive the air cylinder 70 to move up and down the protective cylinder 50 of the laser head 40. An elevating switch 125 is provided together with other switches.

When the main switch (not shown) of the laser processing machine having the above structure is turned on, the laser oscillator 100 and the chiller box 108 are turned on,
Preheating of the laser oscillator 100 is started, and circulation of cooling water from the chiller box 108 to the laser oscillator 100 is started. Therefore, laser oscillator 100
Various adjustments of the laser beam emitted from the device will be described.

Position adjustment of laser beam 1. Lift switch 12 of the control panel 120
5, the protective cylinder 50 is lowered from the retracted position to the use position. 2. The test switch 1 of the control panel 120
22 and the up switch 123 are simultaneously pressed for a moment.
As a result, a test mode is set, and an extremely low level laser beam is emitted for a predetermined time. 3. It is confirmed whether the laser beam passes through the center of the hole 32 of the laser receiving plate 30, and if the laser beam is deviated, the tilt adjustment of the cylindrical body 44 or the mirror 88 is performed.

3. Regarding the adjustment of the power of the laser beam, after performing the operations 1 to 3 above, Test switch 1 of the control panel 120
When 22 is pressed, the laser beam is emitted only during that time. Therefore, a test cloth is placed on the laser receiving plate 30 to check the cutting condition by the laser beam. The laser beam gradually powers up by continuously pressing the test switch 122 and the up switch 123 at the same time, and gradually powers down by continuously pressing the test switch 122 and the down switch 124 at the same time.

Regarding the adjustment of the in-focus position, after performing the operations 1 to 4 above, 5. The height of the cylindrical body 44 of the laser head 40 is changed by the adjusting bolt 26 to adjust the focus position of the lens 47. Depending on the work piece 34, the lens 47
In some cases, it may be better to replace with a different focal length. In that case, the laser head 40 itself may be removed from the bracket 18 and replaced with another laser head having a lens with a different focal length.

Next, a case where the workpiece 34 such as cloth is laser-processed (cut) according to a predetermined pattern will be described. When starting this laser processing,
First, as described above, the protective cylinder 50 is lowered to the use position, and accordingly, the holding portion 60 causes the embroidery frame 1 to move.
The surface of the workpiece 34 held by 6 is pressed. Here, at the same time when the laser beam irradiation from the laser head 40 is started, the movement of the embroidery frame 16 is controlled based on the movement data, and the workpiece 34 is cut according to the pattern. During the laser cutting, air is blown into the protective cylinder 50 through the air pipe 56 and is sucked by the suction nozzle 64. By the air blown into the inside of the protective cylinder 50, the workpiece 3 is processed by the laser beam.
The flame generated when 4 is burned is blown out, and the smoke is sucked by the suction nozzle 64 and discharged through the duct 68.

Further, the workpiece 34 at the time of laser cutting is
Since the pressing portion 60 constantly presses the periphery of the portion irradiated with the laser beam from the laser head 40, even if the surface of the workpiece 34 is uneven, the portion irradiated with the laser beam is flat. It is cut in the state where it was set. Therefore, the surface of the workpiece 34 always coincides with the focus position of the laser beam, and the laser cutting is properly performed. In this embodiment, the pressing portion 60 is connected to the protective cylinder 50. However, the pressing portion 60 can be operated independently of the protective cylinder 50 or can be moved up and down together with its dedicated retainer to be processed at the time of laser cutting. It may be configured to press the surface of the object 34.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 7 is a front view showing a laser head 40 of Embodiment 2 and its peripheral portion, FIG. 8 is a sectional view of FIG. 7 seen from the side, and FIG.
Is the laser head 4 during laser processing (cutting)
It is sectional drawing which expanded and represented a part of 0. As is clear from these drawings, in this embodiment, the laser head 40
A lens 47 for condensing a laser beam is held in the protective cylinder 90. That is, in the second embodiment, the guide cylinder 91 is provided so as to be vertically movable along the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder body 44.
A protective tube 90 is attached to the lower end of the
The lens 47 is fixed to the joint between the guide cylinder 91 and the protective cylinder 90. Also, at the lower end of the protective tube 90,
As in the case of the first embodiment, the holding portion 60 is connected.

A stopper ring 94 is fixed to the outer periphery of the guide cylinder 91, and the stopper ring 94 is located at the lower end of the lifting arm 74 fixed to the rod 71 of the air cylinder 70 as shown in FIG. The coil spring 76 is interposed between the lower surface of the tip of the elevating arm 74 and the outer peripheral step of the protective cylinder 90. Therefore, the driving of the air cylinder 70 causes the guide cylinder 91 to move up and down, and as a result, the protection cylinder 90 and the pressing portion 60 move between the retracted position shown by a virtual line in FIG. 7 and the use position shown by a solid line. To do. Then, the pressing portion 6 in a state where the protective cylinder 90 is lowered to the use position.
0 is in contact with the surface of the workpiece 34, as shown in FIG. 9, and the elevating arm 74 at this time is the same as in the first embodiment.
In the same manner as in the above case, the coil spring 76 is compressed at a position separated downward from the stopper ring 94. Therefore, the pressing portion 60 presses the surface of the workpiece 34 with a predetermined load by the elastic force of the coil spring 76.

As shown in FIG. 9, air holes 92, 93 are formed in the sidewall of the protective cylinder 90 at two positions, upper and lower, at intervals of about 90.degree. In the circumferential direction. Is connected to an air pipe 96 leading to the suction blower, and the other air hole 93 is connected to an air pipe 97 leading to a blower blower. Therefore, at the time of laser cutting, the lens 47 is prevented from being contaminated by the flow of air blown into the protective cylinder 90 from the air holes 93, and the smoke produced at the time of laser cutting is air holes 92.
Sucked out from. However, the structure of the air hole 92 and the air pipe 96 communicating with the suction blower may be replaced with the structure of the suction nozzle 64 and the pipe 66 of the first embodiment.

In the second embodiment, when the protective cylinder 90 is lowered to the use position and the surface of the workpiece 34 is pressed by the pressing portion 60, the protective cylinder 90 is protected.
The distance between the lens 47 built into the inside of the workpiece and the surface of the workpiece 34 held by the holding portion 60 is always constant. Therefore, even if the distance from the upper surface of the laser receiving plate 30 to the surface of the workpiece 34 is different, the focus position of the laser beam emitted from the laser head 40 matches the surface of the workpiece 34. For example, in FIG.
As shown in (A), the workpiece 3 is placed on the laser receiving plate 30.
In the case where only 4 is positioned, or when the workpiece 34 is positioned on the laser receiving plate 30 via a cloth 36 which is not laser processed as shown in FIG. 9B. Also, only the workpiece 34 can be appropriately laser-processed without adjusting the focus position of the laser beam. In the second embodiment, the above-mentioned first embodiment
The members which are considered to have the same or equivalent configuration as those of FIG.

[0028]

According to the present invention, even when the surface of a workpiece such as a cloth has irregularities, the portion irradiated with the laser beam is kept flat, so the focus position of the laser beam and the surface of the workpiece. The laser processing is properly performed with and being properly matched. When the distance between the surface of the work piece pressed by the holding section and the lens is always constant, the focus position of the laser beam is always on the surface of the work piece even if the thickness of the work piece changes. Since they match, it is possible to save the trouble of adjusting the focus position of the laser beam each time the thickness of the workpiece changes.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire laser processing machine.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged front view of a laser head and its peripheral portion.

FIG. 3 is a side view of FIG.

4 is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing an enlarged part of FIG.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged configuration diagram showing an operation panel box.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a laser head of Example 2 and its peripheral portion.

8 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 7 viewed from the side.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing an enlarged part of a laser head during laser processing.

[Explanation of symbols]

 16 Holding Frame (Embroidery Frame) 34 Workpiece 40 Laser Head 47 Lens 60 Holding Section 90 Protective Tube

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A laser processing machine comprising a holding frame whose movement is controlled in both X and Y directions based on predetermined movement data, and a laser head capable of performing laser processing on a workpiece held by the holding frame. 2. The laser processing machine according to claim 1, wherein a lower end portion of the laser head is provided with a pressing portion that presses around a laser beam irradiation position on the surface of the workpiece with a predetermined load during laser processing. 2. The laser processing machine according to claim 1, wherein the laser head is provided with a protective cylinder that can be lowered to a position close to the surface of the workpiece during laser processing, and a lower end portion of the protective cylinder is provided. A laser beam machine equipped with a holding section and a laser beam lens inside the protective cylinder.