4 Types of Laser Cutters That You Need To Know

This article will discuss the 4 types of laser cutters, how they work, and their applications.

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1. Fiber Lasers

Fiber lasers are used principally for cutting and engraving metallic parts. They offer several advantages over other types of lasers, making them a logical choice in industrial applications.

Fiber lasers get their name from the chemically doped optical fiber used to induce the lasing and deliver the energy to the cutting point. The laser source starts with a primer laser, usually a diode type, which injects a low-power beam into the fiber. This beam is then amplified within the optical fiber, which is doped with rare earth elements such as ytterbium (Yb) or erbium (Er). The doping process induces the fiber to act as a gain medium, amplifying the laser beam by cascading excitations/emissions.

Fiber lasers emit a wavelength in the near-infrared spectrum, around 1.06 μm. This wavelength is thoroughly absorbed by metals, making fiber lasers particularly well suited to cutting and engraving this class of materials, even the &#;problem&#; reflective metals. 

One of the particular advantages of fiber lasers is their exceptional beam quality. This beam quality determines the laser's ability to produce a highly focused application of radiation and therefore a smaller and more precise cut path and higher specific energy (energy per unit area). This also entails lower beam divergence, allowing cuts that open less with increased target thickness.

Fiber lasers are renowned for offering higher cutting speeds and productivity. This also contributes to lower power consumption, compared to other types of lasers. Fiber lasers are generally optimized for cutting metals, including stainless steel, carbon steel, aluminum, copper, brass, and various alloys. They are not as effective for cutting non-metallic materials like wood, acrylic, or plastics, which are more effectively cut with CO2 lasers. Fiber lasers with higher power levels can also process thicker metals effectively.

Fiber lasers possess an elegant, simple, and robust construction and a near-solid state characteristic. This results in suppressed maintenance requirements, relative to other laser classifications. The absence of mirrors and some of the more delicate focal components minimizes alignment issues, improves beam quality, and elevates life span. Some models are capable of providing tens of thousands of hours of use, before requiring significant maintenance.

Fiber lasers are, in many regards, the optimal choice for metal cutting/ablation and engraving tasks. Pivotal factors cementing their commercial viability include: delivering high throughput, outstanding precision, operational and power efficiency, and low maintenance. Their capabilities render them a preferred tool in diverse industries, including: automotive, aerospace, electronics, and manufacturing, in which precise and efficient metal processing is crucial.

For more information, see our guide on What is a Fiber Laser.

At present, the fiber laser cutting machine is the most widely used in the metal cutting industry. Today, the development of fiber laser is just 10 years. Prior to this, plasma cutting machine and CO2 laser cutting machines accounted for the vast majority of metal plate cutting in the market. But now fiber laser cutting machine has attracted extensive attention in various fields with its advantages of high speed and high precision. It has 10 years of practical experience, cutting efficiency and low consumption, environmental protection and energy conservation! Save enterprise production costs, solve production and processing problems, cost-effective! But how do we find a suitable high-precision fiber laser cutting machine?

At present, our optical fiber cutter models include AKJF AKJF AKJF AKJFB AKJFR AKJFC AKJF AKJF ETC. Before selecting the fiber laser cutting machine, first of all, you must determine how much power is required, because the power of the fiber laser cutting machine determines its ability to cut metal plates! How to choose the power of industrial fiber laser cutting machine?

Generally, the laser power of the machine used to cut and process metal materials should also reach about W. Especially the continuous laser has a very good cutting effect. If you want to cut 10mm carbon steel, W laser cutting machine is the best choice; if you want to cut 18mm carbon steel, 4KW laser cutting machine is the best choice. Among all the accessories, fiber laser is very important. The core of a metal laser cutting machine is also in the laser The relatively stable fiber laser brands are Raycus, IPG, Max, JPT. For example, when cutting high anti reflective metal materials, we'd better choose JPT or IPG.

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At the same time, in order to ensure stable operation, the metal laser cutting machine's own control system and bed structure are also very important. For the metal cutting system, we use Aultech and Cyput. Generally, Au3tech system is selected for W-W, and Cyput control system is selected for high power.

If the plate cut by the fiber laser cutting machine is very thick, the whole plate will be very heavy, so the stable bed structure has a great impact on the precision of the machine cutting. We choose high temperature quenching for the bed, which is not easy to deform. The heavy plate welding workbench has no deformation in 20 years, and is suitable for ultra-high power W fiber laser cutting machine. The increase of weight is very beneficial to the cutting speed of laser cutting machine.

After knowing the performance of the metal laser cutting machine , let's talk about how to choose a suitable machine. Cutting is divided into cutting plane or pipe cutting. If cutting plane, single platform machine can meet the requirements, but if cutting round or square pipes, a rotation axis is required. The rotating shaft is a fixture design, with electric fixtures on both sides, which can automatically adjust the center. The diagonal line can be adjusted within 20-220mm. Of course, if you just need to cut pipes, you need a professional laser tube cutting machine. For example, we have a professional metal tube cutting machine that can automatically load and unload materials, which greatly improves the efficiency.

For precision cutting, we choose fiber laser cutting machine AKJF, which is small in size and high in precision. It is suitable for relatively precise material cutting. For example, the cutting of gold, silver and copper. Double rail and double driver design. In order to prevent the cutting line deformation caused by the bending of Y-axis screw, the Y-axis on both sides is equipped with two guide rails and double ball drive screw design to ensure the straightness and radian during high-speed cutting operation.

For thinner materials, we suggest to choose a single platform, and for thicker materials, we suggest to choose a single platform plus a switching platform, using up and down switching platforms. The inverter is responsible for controlling the switching motor. The machine can complete the platform exchange within 15 seconds. Because the exchange platform can save manual material handling, convenient, time-saving and labor saving. For example, after the machine finishes cutting a board, it needs to lift the current board and lift up the new board. But with the exchange platform, it is automatically completed by the machine.

In addition, if you are worried about the harm of smoke and dust to your environment, you need to choose a full closed structure, which can effectively prevent the damage caused by laser. Fully enclosed design is adopted, and the observation window is made of European CE standard laser protective glass. The smoke generated by cutting can be filtered internally, which is pollution-free and environmentally friendly AKJFB belongs to Full closed heavy bed structure.

For another example, if the customer wants to cut not only metal, but also nonmetal, we suggest to choose the fiber laser cutting machine with CO2 laser cutting head. It can not only cut metal, but also nonmetal. There are two options: Double Dragon Gate and Double Head.

In a word, the selection of a high-precision laser cutting machine depends on the specific needs of the customer, such as the cutting thickness, cutting materials, and environmental requirements.

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Fiber Laser Uncoiler Production Line.