Investigating laser rapid manufacturing for Inconel-625 components

This paper presents an investigation of laser rapid manufacturing (LRM) for Inconel-625 components. LRM is an upcoming rapid manufacturing technology, it is similar to laser cladding at process level with different end applications. In general, laser-cladding technique is used to deposit materials on the substrate either to improve the surface properties or to refurbish the worn out parts, while LRM is capable of near-net shaping the components by layer-by-layer deposition of the material directly from CAD model. In the present study, a high-power continuous wave (CW) CO₂ laser system, integrated with a co-axial powder-feeding system and a three-axis workstation were used. The effect of processing parameters during LRM of Inconel-625 was studied and the optimum set of parameters for the maximum deposition rate was established employing Orthogonal L9 array of Taguchi technique. Results indicated that the powder feed rate and the scan speed contributed about 56% and 26%, respectively to the deposition rate, while the influence of laser power was limited to 10% only. Fabricated components were subjected to non-destructive testing (like—ultrasonic testing, dye-penetrant testing), tensile testing, impact testing, metallographic examinations and micro-hardness measurement. The test results revealed defect-free material deposition with improved mechanical strength without sacrificing the ductility.     

Automated laser fabrication of cemented carbide components

Automated Laser Fabrication (ALFa) is one of the most rapidly growing rapid-manufacturing technologies. It is similar to laser cladding at process level with different end applications. In general, laser cladding technique is used to deposit materials on the substrate either to improve the surface properties or to refurbish the worn-out parts, while ALFa is capable of near net shaping the components by layer-by-layer deposition of the material directly from CAD model. This manufacturing method is very attractive for low volume manufacturing of hard materials, as near net shaping minimizes machining of hard material and subsequently brings significant savings in time and costly material. To date, many researchers have used this technology to fabricate components using various alloy steels, nickel-based alloys and cobalt-based alloys. In the present study, the work is extended to tungsten carbide cobalt (WC–Co) composites. A set of comprehensive experiments was carried out to study the effect of processing parameters during multi-layer fabrication. The process parameters were optimized for the component-level fabrication. Fabricated components were subjected to dye-penetrant testing, three-point flexural testing, hardness measurement, optical and scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. The test results revealed that the laser-fabricated material was defect free and more ductile in nature. Thus, ALFa technology, not only produced the quality components, but also minimized machining of hard material and brought significant saving of time and costly WC–Co material.     

Laser rapid manufacturing of Colmonoy-6 components

This paper introduces a new manufacturing technique for the fabrication of Colmonoy-6 components using laser rapid manufacturing (LRM). LRM is a upcoming rapid manufacturing technology, being developed at various laboratories around the world. It is similar to laser cladding at the process level with different end applications. In general, laser cladding technique is used to deposit material on the substrate either to improve the surface properties or to refurbish the worn out parts, while LRM is capable of near net shaping the components by layer-by-layer deposition of the material directly from CAD model. In the present study, a high power continuous wave (CW) CO₂ laser system, integrated with a co-axial powder-feeding system and three-axis workstation was used. The effect of processing parameters during multi-layer deposition of Colmonoy-6 has been studied and optimized to fabricate about a dozen bushes. Thus fabricated bushes were finally machined and ground to achieve the desired dimensions and surface finish. These bushes were tested for non-destructive testing (like-ultrasonic testing, Dye-penetrant testing), metallographic examinations, micro-hardness measurement, X-ray diffraction and thermal ageing. Results compared well with those fabricated by deposition of Colmonoy-6 on austenitic stainless steel rods using gas Tungsten arc welding (GTAW). Thus, the new manufacturing technique not only produced quality product, but also minimized machining of hard-faced material and brought significant saving of time and costly Colmonoy-6 material.     

激光快速成型技术在产品设计中的应用研究

基于三维CAD的激光快速成型技术,根据三维模型,可在短时间内制造出用于验证、评价所设计的产品模型。三维CAD和激光快速成型技术共同组成了一套快速开发系统。     

A structured light-based system for human heads

The 3-D modeling of heads by using optical triangulation techniques is of great interest in the context of virtual reality, telecommunication and computer animation. This paper presents a structured light-based system mainly for human heads. It is named “3-D Laser Color Scanner” (3DLCS). A 3-D model is obtained with a cylindrical scan. The laser beam is switched on and off using a “light valve” and two successive CCD frames are captured, one with the laser line showing and one without. We can simplify the laser line extracting by subtracting these two images.In this system, two CCD cameras are used to avoid occlusion problems. Color information is read from the CCD when the laser light is absent. Since traditional laser scanner will miss the range data in the low-reflectance areas such as the hair area of human head, a shape from silhouette algorithm is presented to overcome this problem. Finally, we give some results using our system. The resulting model is suitable for many applications.     

Optimization of the wallplug-efficiency of laser diodes by an electro-optical-thermal black-box model

A black-box model for the optimization of the wallplug efficiency by choosing appropriate “external” parameters of an edge emitting laser – resonator length, operating current – is presented and applied to a high-power laser and a communication laser.     

Real-time focus control in broad flat field laser material processing

Broad flat field laser scanning is critical to the success of laser material processing, used in techniques such as rapid prototyping & manufacturing (RP&M) and micro-machining. For these techniques it is necessary to produce high-performance optical systems that can fulfill the need for a smaller focused spot size over broad, flat field scanning areas. This paper concentrates on the issues of defocus error compensation. A dynamic focusing system is designed, intended primarily for broad flat field galvanometric laser scanning applications. Key technologies are described in detail; corresponding solutions have been used to design and produce a CO₂ infrared optical focusing system, which is capable of scanning a focused spot size of 120 μm or less over areas up to 500 mm².     

Two-dimensional differential adherence of neuroblasts in laser micromachined CAD/CAM agarose channels

Laser micromachining of hydrophobic gels into CAD/CAM patterns was used to develop differentially adherent surfaces and induce the attachment of B35 rat neuroblasts that would later form engineered nerve bundles. Narrow channels, 60-400 μm wide, were micromachined in a 2% agarose gel using an ArF laser, and subsequently filled with an extracellular matrix gel. Upon the addition of 1 ml of a 2 × 104 cells/ml neuroblast suspension, the cells selectively adhered to the ECM-lined channels in a non-confluent manner and we monitored their growth at various time points. The adherent neuroblasts were fluorescently imaged with a propidium iodide live/dead assay, which revealed that the cells were alive within the channels. After 72 h growth, the neuroblasts grew, proliferated, and differentiated into nerve bundles. The fully grown 1 cm long nerve bundle organoids maintained an aspect ratio on the order of 100. The results presented in this paper provide the foundation for laser micromachining technique to develop bioactive substrates for development of three-dimensional tissues. Laser micromachining offers rapid prototyping of substrates, excellent resolution, control of pattern depth and dimensions, and ease of fabrication.     

Investigation of laser via formation technology for the manufacturing of high density substrates

Fabrication of micro-vias is one of the critical processes in manufacturing high-density printed circuit boards. The conventional mechanical drilling technique becomes expensive for vias smaller than 200 μm in diameter due to the frequent breakage of the drill bits and machine downtime. The inability to produce blind vias renders the mechanical drilling method of limited use in providing vertical interconnections needed for multi-layer boards. Laser micro-drilling has emerged as one of the most feasible technologies for forming micro-vias. It offers greater resolution over the mechanical technique and is capable of producing vias well below 70 μm, consistently. The feasibility of being able to laser drill depends on the laser characteristics such as wavelength, energy density and pulse shape of the laser beam on the one hand, and on the type, structure configuration and thickness of the PCB substrate on the other hand. As most of the PCB materials have finite absorption characteristics with respect to the laser wavelength, only certain laser types are compatible with the common substrate materials. Laser via-drilling can either be a serial process with one via drilled at a time, or a mask imaging process with many vias drilled simultaneously. In this paper, the issues involved in the laser micro-drilling of PCB vias, including beam characteristics and processing mechanisms, for different substrates are investigated. A brief comparison with the other two emerging technologies, i.e. photo-vias and plasma etching is also discussed.     

高功率激光光束特性对激光加工的影响

决定光与物质相互作用的激光束的波长、入射角、偏振特性以及时间和空间特性是激光材料加工的主要光束特性。激光束的光束质量是其空间特性的量化反映。通过对两种不同激光加工系统输出激光光束质量进行测量和计算,根据多模激光束的聚焦理论,以及对激光深熔焊接实验结果的分析,研究了光束质量对深熔焊接焊缝成形的影响。结果表明,光束质量对聚焦光束的焦斑、聚焦角和焦深的影响不仅体现了激光源的可聚焦性,而且也标志了激光源的可加工能力,这是聚焦系统和焦点位置在选择过程中应该考虑的重要因素。     

A scribing laser marking system using DSP controller

Laser marking is an important branch of laser processing technology, and has been widely used in many fields of industry. Digital signal processor (DSP) is an incredibly fast and powerful microprocessor that can deal with signals in real time. Not only it is portable but has the ability to integrate the processing signals of subsystems. In this research, it is emphasized that we designed a scribing laser marking system based on a DSP in galvanometric marking method. To control the rotating angle of the galvanometric scanning mirrors more accurately, we combine the D/A converter of the DSP with the human–machine interface successfully. The whole marking system is not only inexpensive, but also miniaturized.     

Laser prototyping of printed circuit boards

This paper describes the application of laser micromachining to rapid prototyping of printed circuit boards (PCB) using nano-second lasers: the solid-state Nd:YAG (532/1064 nm) laser and the Yb:glass fiber laser (1060 nm). Our investigations included tests for various mask types (synthetic lacquer, light-sensitive emulsion and tin). The purpose of these tests was to determine some of the basic parameters such as the resolution of PCB prototyping, speed of processing and quality of PCB mapping with commonly available laser systems. Optimization of process parameters and the proposed conversion algorithm have allowed us to produce circuit boards with a resolution similar to that of the Laser Direct Imaging (LDI) technology.     

Diffractive multi-beam surface micro-processing using 10 ps laser pulses

A high repetition rate picosecond laser system is combined with a spatial light modulator (SLM) for diffractive multiple beam processing. The effect of the zero order beam is eliminated by adding a Fresnel zone lens (FZL) to defocus the un-diffracted beam at the processing plane. Chromatic dispersion, which is evident with a large bandwidth femtosecond pulses leading to the problem of distorted hole shape is eliminated due to the much narrower spectral bandwidth, 0.1 nm at 10 ps pulselength, resulting in highly uniform intensity spots, independent of diffraction angle. In addition, high-throughput processing is demonstrated by combining the high power laser output, 2.5 W at λ ≈ 1064 nm and fast repetition rate, f ≈ 20 kHz with P > 1.2 W diffracted into 25 parallel beams. This has the effect of creating an “effective” repetition rate of 500 kHz without restrictive scan speeds.     

Real Time Gas Flow Control and Analysis for High Power Infrared Gas Lasers

The composition of various gas effluents and their flow parameters viz. flow rate, pressure and Mach number are very crucial in determining the output of high power infrared gas lasers. PC based real time gas Flow Control and Analysis (FCA) System which is the heart of the high power infrared gas lasers such as CO₂ Gas Dynamic Laser (10.6m), Hydrogen Fluoride-Deuterium Fluoride (2.7–3.4m) and Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (1.315m) has been developed and successfully tested for its applications in Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (COIL). The system has been realized using the state of the art PCI bus based high-speed data processing electronics, a personal computer and electro-pneumatic components. The system has demonstrated its capability of controlling the flow rates in the range of 1-6500 lpm (in case of nitrogen) with a response time of 50 msec which is mainly limited by the response of the electro-pneumatic valves and pressure reducers used in the present system. The developed system also has the potential to monitor, estimate and display various flow parameters at critical locations of the laser system. More than 600 successful power runs of the COIL have been given using the developed FCA system.     

Using Raman spectroscopy to monitor surface finish and roughness of components manufactured by selective laser sintering

Selective laser sintering (SLS) is an additive manufacturing process used to realise fully functional component manufacture. Numerous parameters are used in the process to control variables such as laser power, scan speed, laser spot size and overlap of scan vectors. All of these parameters can dramatically alter the sintering process and therefore final component properties. This paper presents how Raman spectroscopy intensity effects, caused by the surface roughness of the components produced, can be used to monitor the degree of sintering between particles in the SLS process. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Micromould based laser shock embossing of thin metal sheets for MEMS applications

Laser shock forming is a new material processing technology. Micro-channel with dimension of 260 μm × 59 μm was successfully fabricated on metallic foil surface using laser-generated shock wave. The work piece has a high spatial resolution at the micron-level. A series of experiments was conducted to validate the finite element model. An analysis procedure including dynamic analysis performed by ANSYS/LS-DYNA and static analysis performed by ANSYS is presented in detail to attain the simulation of laser shock embossing to predict the surface deformation. Micromould based laser shock embossing holds promise for achieving precise, well-controlled, low-cost, high efficiency of three-dimensional metallic microstructures. In addition, this technique can fabricate complex 3D microstructures directly by single pulse.     

The application of high-speed TV-holography to time-resolved vibration measurements

We describe an electronic speckle pattern interferometer (ESPI) system that has enabled non-harmonic vibrations to be measured with μs temporal resolution. The short exposure period and high framing rate of a high-speed camera at up to 40,500 frames per second allow low-power CW laser illumination and fibre-optic beam delivery to be used, rather than the high peak power pulsed lasers normally used in ESPI for transient measurement. The technique has been demonstrated in the laboratory and tested in preliminary industrial trials. The ability to measure vibration with high spatial and temporal resolution, which is not provided by techniques such as scanning laser vibrometry, has many applications in manufacturing design, and in an illustrative application described here revealed previously unmeasured “rocking” vibrations of a car door. It has been possible to make the measurement on the door as part of a complete vehicle standing on its own tyres, wheels and suspension, and where the excitation was generated by the running of the vehicle's own engine.     

Finite element analysis of laser irradiated metal heating and melting processes

Laser technology has shown fast growth due to its demands in material processing and manufacturing. Laser material processing includes various applications like cutting, welding, drilling, cladding and surface treatment. In laser surface treatment, the material properties at the surface are altered through surface alloying and transformation hardening. In this study, an enthalpy-based computational model is developed for analyzing laser heating and melting of metals. The solution to the problem is obtained by using a finite element method and validated by comparing the results with that given by an analytical solution to a limiting case problem. A solution algorithm and a computational code are developed to estimate the temperature distribution, solid-liquid interface location and shape and size of the molten pool. The computational model is validated by comparing results with a limiting case analytical model. The study is conducted to analyze the heating rate, the heat affected zone, and the shape and size of the molten pool using a Gaussian laser beam.     

Analysis of laser micro drilled holes through aluminium for micro-manufacturing applications

Conventional laser machining of aluminium with long wavelength lasers has its inherent problems due to the high reflectivity of aluminium to laser radiation (Handbook of Optics, vol 1, 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1995). Laser processing at shorter wavelengths reduces the reflectivity of the workpiece to the incident laser radiation and can also reduce the dimensions of the obtainable machining geometries. This paper reviews the limiting factors in the micro machining of aluminium using a diode pumped solid state (DPSS) Nd:YAG laser operated at 1064, 532, and 355 nm. The geometries of the laser-machined samples were investigated using interferometric, and optical methods to assess how the processing fluence and wavelength will affect the obtainable precision for successful integration of the laser in a micromachining CAD/CAM system.     

Asymptotic description of solitary wave trains in fully nonlinear shallow-water theory

We derive an asymptotic formula for the amplitude distribution in a fully nonlinear shallow-water solitary wave train which is formed as the long-time outcome of the initial-value problem for the Su–Gardner (or one-dimensional Green–Naghdi) system. Our analysis is based on the properties of the characteristics of the associated Whitham modulation system which describes an intermediate “undular bore” stage of the evolution. The resulting formula represents a “non-integrable” analogue of the well-known semi-classical distribution for the Korteweg–de Vries equation, which is usually obtained through the inverse scattering transform. Our analytical results are shown to agree with the results of direct numerical simulations of the Su–Gardner system. Our analysis can be generalised to other weakly dispersive, fully nonlinear systems which are not necessarily completely integrable.