Laser Cutting Edges like a Pro: What is Needed?

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Laser Cutting Edges like a Pro What is Needed?
When it comes to metal fabrication, lasers are a
widely accepted tool. This is because they offer
flawless cutting at an extraordinary pace and
can handle materials just right. No matter how
good the laser cutting tool is, the production
cycle also depends on factors like The time
taken for operators to load and unload sheets,
the duration up to which the machine remains
idleetc. This was about the production cycle of
metal sheets. But what about their edges and
overall quality once the cutting is done?
Whenever a certain part is cut with laser
machine, it needs to have a smooth finishing and
edge. The perspective about a smooth edge is
something that depends on who is analyzing the
laser cut part. To a machinist, it might not be
up to the mark. And to a welder, it might seem
like a well finished and superior quality edge.
Also, the application of the laser cut part
decides whether the cutting job was undertaken
properly or not. Amada laser spare parts are
often preferred by manufacturers and machinists
whenever they want to do a firstrate deburring
job. There are other factors that must be kept
in mind if you want to cut edges of
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a metal part like a professional. Lets take a
look as to what are they 1. Good quality
nozzles If you want your laser machine to be
able to cut thick materials, you need coaxial
flow nozzles. These nozzles cut steel with
oxygen and while the materials are being cut, the
flow of the gas is very low. Approximately 0.5
to 2.0 cubic feet per minute. The gas flowing
from these nozzles is smooth and consistent
providing a superior edge quality in steel which
is 0.5 to 1.25 in thickness. As the technology
advanced, nitrogen assisted cutting also came
into existence due to its potential to cut thin
material at a high speed. The only drawback of
nitrogen gas is that it needs a nozzle having a
bigger diameter with highpressure when it comes
to cutting thick materials at higher speed. In
order to handle this problem and create a
coaxial flow of gas, nozzles of different angles
were created and they rendered a smooth edge.
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• Laser grade materials
• Before few years, highpowered lasers enabled the
  cutting of thick materials. But they always
  lacked a smooth edge which is very much needed.
  The steel manufacturers observed this and
  started producing high quality and laser friendly
  materials. These days, you can find miniscale
  material for processing 0.5 inch and a thicker
  steel.
• Controlled cutting process
• In order to produce drossfree parts with a
  smooth edge, it is important to have a program
  that makes processing more streamlined and
  reliable. Initially, after the materials were
  cut, they needed supervision from operators who
  would remove the bits of dross that lingered on
  the corners. Laser cutting machine manufacturers
  like Mitsubishi observed this and made
  controllers run program without any prompt or
  deburring needed from the operator. These
  automated controllers calculate the amount of
  frequency and power needed to cut the material
  and monitor the movement of machines in real
  time.
• Modernized lasers and beam parameters
• Several OEMs work towards enhancing the quality
  of laser beams. These days, solidstate lasers
  like fiber laser which work on directdiode
  technology are being are being adopted by the
  laser cutting professionals. Fiber lasers ask for
  low maintenance and have a better performance
  potential as compared to Co2 lasers. However, it
  has been observed that as the thickness of
  material increases, the quality of edge

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decreases. To keep the edge quality intact, an
amalgamation of controllers, better beams and
nozzles can be used. Laser technology is quite
dynamic. So you can expect systems to grow and
introduce unique processes. Until then, you know
what is needed to obtain excellent edge for your
materials. All the best! Steve M Glassner is the
General manager of Alternative Parts Inc, the
leading manufacturer and distributor of machine
parts for Amada, Trumpf and various other brand
including amada laser parts. Steve is a Machine
Tools industry enthusiast and frequently writes
about various aspects of the industry.