Laser equipment will be popularized in more and more fields, and industrial applications have huge development prospects. In terms of high-power laser cutting and welding equipment, with the transformation and upgrading of the manufacturing industry, new requirements for production processes and quality will continue to increase the penetration rate of laser technology in the future.

The Development Trend of Laser Processing Technology

As a major symbol of the development of science and technology in the 20th century and one of the pillars of optoelectronic technology in the modern information society, the development of laser technology and the laser industry has been highly valued by advanced countries in the world.

Laser processing is the largest project in laser applications abroad and an important means of transforming traditional industries. It mainly involves cutting, welding, drilling, scoring, and heat treatment of various materials using kW to 10kW CO2 lasers and 100 to kW YAG lasers. In the field of laser processing applications, CO2 lasers are most widely used in cutting and welding, accounting for 70% and 20% respectively, while surface treatment accounts for less than 10%. The application of YAG lasers is mainly focused on welding, marking (50%), and cutting (15%). CO2 lasers account for 70-80% in the United States and Europe. In China, 10% of laser processing is mainly focused on cutting, with over 98% of CO2 lasers having a power range of 1.5kW~2kW, while about 15% are mainly focused on heat treatment. Most of them are laser treated cylinder liners of automotive engines. This technology has high economic and social benefits, so it has great market prospects.

In the automotive industry, laser processing technology fully utilizes its advanced, fast, and flexible processing characteristics. If a large number of 3D laser cutting machines are used in car prototypes and small-scale production, not only do they save samples and tooling equipment, but also greatly shorten the production preparation cycle; Laser beams drill small holes on high hardness materials and complex and curved surfaces, with fast speed and no damage; Laser welding has become a standard process in the automotive industry. Toyota in Japan has used laser welding for body panels, welding metal plates with different thicknesses and surface coatings together before stamping. Although laser heat treatment is not as common as welding and cutting abroad, it is still widely used in the automotive industry, such as heat treatment of cylinder liners, crankshafts, piston ring, commutators, gears and other parts. In industrialized countries, the combination of laser processing technology, computer numerical control technology, and flexible manufacturing technology has led to the development of laser rapid prototyping technology. This technology not only allows for rapid manufacturing of models, but also allows for the direct melting of metal powder to produce metal molds.

Laser drilling is mainly applied in industries such as aerospace, automotive manufacturing, electronic instruments, and chemical engineering abroad. The peak power of drilling is as high as 30-50kw, and the pulse width used for drilling is getting narrower and the repetition frequency is getting higher. The increase in laser output parameters greatly improves the drilling quality, improves the drilling speed, and expands the application range of drilling. The relatively mature application of laser drilling in China is in the production of artificial diamond and natural diamond wire drawing dies, as well as in the production of watch gemstone bearings.

The focus of research and development on laser processing technology can be summarized as follows:

The research on the new generation of industrial lasers is in a period of technological updates, marked by the development and application of diode pumped solid-state lasers; Fine laser processing accounted for only 6% of laser processing application statistics in 1996, doubled to 12% in 1997, and increased to 20% in 1998; The intelligentization of machining systems, system integration not only involves the machining itself, but also includes real-time detection and feedback processing. With the establishment of expert systems, the intelligentization of machining systems has become an inevitable development trend.

After more than 30 years of development in China, laser technology has achieved over a thousand scientific and technological achievements, many of which have been used in production practice. The output of laser processing equipment increases at an average annual rate of 20%, solving many problems for the technological transformation and improvement of product quality in traditional industries. For example, laser fiber technology is being promoted in large steel mills such as Baosteel and Benxi Steel, which will change the state of China's complete dependence on imported steel plates for automotive panels, The quality, function, and price of laser marking machines and laser welding machines meet the needs of the domestic market, with a market share of over 90%.
 

About HGTECH

HGTECH is the pioneer and leader of laser industrial application in China, and the authoritative provider of global laser processing solutions. We comprehensively layout the construction of laser intelligent equipment, measurement and automation production lines, and smart factories to provide an overall solution for intelligent manufacturing.

We deeply grasp the development trend of manufacturing industry, constantly enrich products and solutions, adhere to exploring the integration of automation, informatization, intelligence and manufacturing industry, and provide various industries with laser cutting systems, laser welding systems, laser marking series, laser texturing complete equipment, laser heat treatment systems, laser drilling machines, lasers and various supporting devices The overall plan for the construction of special laser processing equipment and plasma cutting equipment, as well as automatic production lines and smart factories.