JP5226823B2 - Laser processing condition setting device, laser processing condition setting method, laser processing condition setting program, computer-readable recording medium, recorded device, and laser processing system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention is a laser processing apparatus that performs processing such as printing by irradiating a processing object with laser light, such as a laser marking apparatus, and in particular, the processing surface of the processing object changes in a three-dimensional manner instead of a flat surface. However, the present invention relates to a laser processing condition setting device, a laser processing condition setting method, a laser processing condition setting program, a computer-readable recording medium, a recorded device, and a laser processing device.

The laser processing apparatus scans a laser beam within a predetermined region and irradiates the surface of a processing target (work) such as a component or product with a laser beam to perform processing such as printing or marking. An example of the configuration of the laser processing apparatus is shown in FIG. The laser processing apparatus shown in this figure includes a laser control unit 1, a laser output unit 2, and an input unit 3. The excitation light generated by the laser excitation unit 6 of the laser control unit 1 is irradiated to the laser medium 8 constituting the oscillator by the laser oscillation unit 50 of the laser output unit 2 to cause laser oscillation. The laser oscillation light is emitted from the emission end face of the laser medium 8, the beam diameter is enlarged by the beam expander 53, reflected by the optical member 54, and guided to the scanning unit 9. The scanning unit 9 reflects the laser light L and changes the light in a desired direction, and the laser light L output from the light collecting unit 15 is scanned on the surface of the workpiece W to perform processing such as printing.

The laser processing apparatus includes a scanning unit 9 as shown in FIG. 2 in order to scan the laser output light on the workpiece. The scanning unit 9 includes X / Y-axis scanners 14a and 14b constituting a pair of galvanometer mirrors, and galvano motors 51a and 51b for fixing and rotating the galvanometer mirrors on respective rotation axes. As shown in FIG. 2, the X / Y-axis scanners 14a and 14b are arranged so as to be orthogonal to each other, and can scan the laser beam by reflecting it in the X and Y directions. Further, a condensing unit 15 is provided below the scanning unit 9. The condensing part 15 is comprised with a condensing lens, and an f (theta) lens is used.

When using the laser processing apparatus, it is necessary to set processing parameters such as the scanning speed of the laser beam and the laser output (laser power) to the optimum values as the processing conditions at the time of processing. Further, when the laser beam is pulse-oscillated by Q switching, the Q switch frequency needs to be set as a processing condition. Q-switching means that pumping is performed in a state where the loss of the optical resonator is increased, energy is stored in the excitation level, the loss is reduced at an appropriate time, and laser action is performed. Since the optimal processing conditions vary depending on the material of the processing object, the type and size of the marks to be printed, etc., it is very difficult for the user to set the optimal processing conditions while adjusting these values.

The present applicant has previously developed a laser marking device that can be easily set to optimum printing conditions (see Patent Document 1). In this technique, a plurality of processing conditions in which the scanning speed of laser light and the laser output are automatically changed are set, printing is actually performed under each processing condition, and a plurality of prints having different print densities as shown in FIG. A print list 200 on which the print sample 201 is formed is created. Thus, the user can set the scanning speed VS, the laser output PL, and the Q switch frequency fs corresponding to the printing of the printing sample as processing conditions only by designating the number of the printing sample 201 in the printing list 200. This method can be preferably used for a laser processing apparatus capable of scanning in a two-dimensional plane.

On the other hand, not only a laser processing apparatus that performs processing in such a two-dimensional plane, but also a laser processing apparatus that can adjust the focal length in the height direction, that is, the Z-axis direction, that is, can perform three-dimensional processing. Development is underway. In such a laser processing apparatus capable of three-dimensional processing, it is necessary to set processing parameters such as height information and tilt adjustment in addition to laser beam scanning speed and laser output as processing conditions. For this reason, the setting method described above cannot sufficiently cope with three-dimensional printing. In particular, in 3D printing, it is possible to adjust the focal length of the laser beam so that proper processing is possible even if the processing surface of the workpiece is tilted. Unless it is grasped, it is impossible to adjust the focal length to perform optimum processing. Conventionally, since there was no method for grasping such an inclination, the user did not repeat adjustment operations such as setting, trial, and resetting of machining conditions by measuring the inclination visually or by actual measurement. In particular, since the machining parameters to be determined in the three-dimensional machining are larger than those in the two-dimensional machining, this adjustment operation becomes more difficult.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-28586

The present invention has been made to solve such problems. The main object of the present invention is a laser processing condition setting device, a laser processing condition setting method, a laser processing condition setting program, and a computer reading that can be easily set to optimum processing conditions in a laser processing apparatus capable of three-dimensional processing. It is an object of the present invention to provide a possible recording medium, recorded apparatus, and laser processing apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, a first laser processing condition setting device of the present invention is a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of a laser beam with respect to a three-dimensional processing surface of a workpiece. A laser processing condition setting device for setting processing conditions including laser beam output and / or scanning speed for a laser processing apparatus capable of processing by scanning a laser beam in a predetermined processing pattern, wherein laser beam output In addition to the processing speed including at least the focal length of the laser beam as a processing parameter in addition to the scanning speed, a processing condition setting unit capable of designating at least the focal length of the laser beam within a predetermined range, and a processing condition setting unit Generated by the multiple machining condition generator and the multiple machining condition generator that generates a set of multiple machining conditions that are changed within the specified range. Based on a plurality of processing conditions, the processing target is irradiated with laser light under each processing condition and processed into a predetermined pattern, and the focal length is set according to the processing position by processing at different positions for each processing condition. By selecting a desired machining position from the test machining pattern generating means for generating the changed test machining pattern and the test machining pattern generated by the test machining pattern generating means, the machining conditions adopted at the machining position are selected. And a machining condition selection means that can reset this as a machining condition. Thus, in the laser processing apparatus that can adjust the focal length of the laser beam, by selecting the position where the desired processing is obtained while comparing each position of the test processing pattern processed by changing the focal length , Can be easily reset to the desired processing conditions.

In the second laser processing condition setting apparatus of the present invention, the processing condition selection unit resets at least the focal length range of the laser beam, sets the processing condition setting unit as a new processing condition, and performs a plurality of processings. A plurality of machining conditions are further generated by the condition generating means, and based on this, the test machining pattern generating means is configured to generate a test machining pattern. Thereby, the range of the focal length of the laser beam can be reset to an appropriate condition based on the test processing pattern, and the test processing pattern can be generated again in a more accurate range to confirm the focal length.

Further, the third laser processing condition setting device of the present invention further includes a processing condition output means capable of outputting to a predetermined output destination when a processing condition corresponding to the processing position selected by the processing condition selection means is determined. Is provided. Thereby, the focal position of the laser beam specified based on the test processing pattern can be output and used.

Furthermore, according to the fourth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the test processing pattern generation means continuously changes the focal length of the laser light according to a plurality of processing condition sets generated by the plurality of processing condition generation means. To generate a test machining pattern. Thus, by continuously changing the focal length, it is possible to reliably capture the focal position in the test processing pattern and grasp the focal length more accurately.

Furthermore, in the fifth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the test processing pattern generated by the test processing pattern generation means is linear, and a dividing line is provided at a constant interval along the linear shape, Further, different character strings are attached to the respective dividing lines in order to distinguish the dividing lines. Thus, by processing in a straight line while changing the focal length, the focal position can be reliably determined, and the processing conditions at an arbitrary focal position can be selected as necessary. Note that in this specification, a character string is used in a sense including not only characters such as kanji, hiragana, katakana, and english characters but also numbers, symbols, pictograms, marks, and other figures.

Furthermore, according to the sixth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the test processing pattern generation means discretely changes the focal length of the laser light in accordance with a plurality of processing condition sets generated by the plurality of processing condition generation means. To generate a test machining pattern. Accordingly, it is possible to specify a range for resetting the processing conditions based on the test processing pattern processed at a discrete focal length.

Furthermore, in the seventh laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the predetermined pattern generated by the test processing pattern generation means is a character string that differs for each processing condition, and the test processing pattern includes a plurality of character strings. They are arranged in a matrix. Thereby, a process condition can be easily selected by selecting the character string from which the desired process result is obtained among the character strings arrange | positioned at matrix form.

Furthermore, the eighth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention is configured such that the processing condition setting means can specify processing parameters by an upper limit value, a lower limit value, and a change width. Thereby, the plurality of machining condition generating means can automatically generate a plurality of machining conditions from the designated upper limit value, lower limit value and change width.

Furthermore, in the ninth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the processing condition setting means has a predetermined range for at least one of the laser beam output and / or the scanning speed in addition to the focal length of the laser beam. The multiple processing condition generation means generates the multiple processing conditions by changing the focal length of the laser beam, the output of the laser beam and / or the scanning speed for each predetermined width within the specified range. ing. Thereby, the optimum values of the processing parameters such as the laser beam output and / or the scanning speed and the focal length can be selected based on the processing result.

Furthermore, in the tenth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the test processing pattern is three or more discrete blocks that are not collinear on the processing surface of the processing object, and the laser processing condition setting device further includes: Inclination calculating means for calculating the inclination angle and inclination direction of the machining surface based on the height of each discrete block is provided, and the machining condition output means calculates the inclination angle and inclination direction of the machining surface calculated by the inclination calculation means. Can be output. Thereby, by obtaining the height of each discrete block, the inclination of the machining surface of the workpiece can be calculated, and the inclination state of the machining surface can be known.

Furthermore, in the eleventh laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, each discrete block is configured by arranging a plurality of character strings in a matrix. This makes it easy to obtain the height at each discrete block.

Furthermore, in the twelfth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the processing position is selected by the processing condition selecting means using a character string of the test processing pattern. As a result, the user can select the character string from which the desired processing result is obtained, and the corresponding processing conditions can be extracted. Therefore, the user can obtain the actual processing result without understanding the meaning of the processing parameter. Desired processing conditions can be easily selected.

Furthermore, in the thirteenth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention, the processing position is selected by the processing condition selecting means by specifying the numerical value of the processing parameter. Thus, the user can directly specify the processing parameters by numerical values and specify the processing conditions, which can be suitably used by advanced users.

Furthermore, the fourteenth laser processing condition setting device of the present invention further includes coordinate correction means for eliminating the focal position shift caused by the optical characteristics of the laser beam by correcting the coordinates of the focal position. Prepare. Accordingly, the coordinates are corrected so that the change in height is constant in consideration of the optical characteristics of the laser light, and accurate machining is possible regardless of the machining position.

Furthermore, in the fifteenth laser processing condition setting method of the present invention, a laser is scanned into a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of the laser beam with respect to the three-dimensional processing surface of the processing object. A laser processing condition setting method for setting processing conditions including laser beam output and / or scanning speed for a laser processing apparatus capable of processing by scanning light, wherein the laser beam output and / or scanning speed is set. In addition, among the processing conditions including at least the focal length of the laser beam as a processing parameter, the step of specifying at least the focal length of the laser beam within a predetermined range, and the processing parameter specified by the range within the specified range Based on the step of generating a set of a plurality of changed processing conditions and the plurality of processing conditions, the processing object is irradiated with laser light under each processing condition and processed into a predetermined pattern. In both cases, by processing to different positions for each processing condition, a step of generating a test processing pattern in which the focal length is changed according to the processing position, and selecting a desired processing position from the test processing pattern, A step of extracting processing conditions adopted at the processing position and resetting the processing conditions as processing conditions. Thus, in the laser processing apparatus that can adjust the focal length of the laser beam, by selecting the position where the desired processing is obtained while comparing each position of the test processing pattern processed by changing the focal length , Can be easily reset to the desired processing conditions.

Furthermore, in the sixteenth laser processing condition setting method of the present invention, a laser is scanned into a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of the laser beam with respect to the three-dimensional processing surface of the processing object. A laser processing condition setting program for setting processing conditions including a laser beam output and / or a scanning speed for a laser processing apparatus capable of processing by scanning light, wherein the laser beam output and / or scanning speed is set. In addition, among the processing conditions that include at least the focal length of the laser beam as a processing parameter, at least the function of specifying the focal length of the laser beam within a predetermined range and the processing parameter specified by the range within the specified range Based on the function to generate a set of multiple machining conditions that have been changed and the multiple machining conditions, the workpiece is irradiated with laser light under each machining condition and processed into a predetermined pattern. By selecting a desired machining position from the test machining pattern, a function for generating a test machining pattern in which the focal length is changed according to the machining position by machining to a different position for each machining condition, The computer realizes a function of extracting the machining conditions adopted at the machining position and resetting the machining conditions as the machining conditions. Thus, in the laser processing apparatus that can adjust the focal length of the laser beam, by selecting the position where the desired processing is obtained while comparing each position of the test processing pattern processed by changing the focal length , Can be easily reset to the desired processing conditions.

The 17th computer-readable recording medium or the recorded device of the present invention stores the program. Recording media include CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, flexible disk, magnetic tape, MO, DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD + R, DVD-RW, DVD + RW, Blu-ray disc, HD
This includes a magnetic disk such as a DVD, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a semiconductor memory, and other media that can store programs. The program includes a program distributed in a download manner through a network line such as the Internet, in addition to a program stored and distributed in the recording medium. Further, the recorded devices include general-purpose or dedicated devices in which the program is implemented in a state where it can be executed in the form of software, firmware, or the like. Furthermore, each process and function included in the program may be executed by computer-executable program software, or each part of the process or hardware may be executed by hardware such as a predetermined gate array (FPGA, ASIC), or program software. And a partial hardware module that realizes a part of hardware elements may be mixed.

Furthermore, the eighteenth laser processing apparatus of the present invention applies a laser beam to a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of the laser beam with respect to the three-dimensional processing surface of the processing object. A laser processing apparatus capable of processing by scanning, laser oscillation means for generating laser light, laser light scanning system capable of scanning laser light in the XYZ plane by the laser oscillation means, and scanning the laser light scanning system In order to process with a desired processing pattern, processing parameters can be set as laser beam output, scanning speed, and laser beam focal length as processing conditions, and at least the focal length of laser beam can be specified within a predetermined range Multiple machining condition generation means for generating a set of a plurality of machining conditions by changing the machining parameters specified in the range by the machining condition setting means and the machining condition setting means within the specified range Based on the means and the plurality of processing conditions generated by the plurality of processing condition generation means, the processing object is irradiated with laser light under each processing condition to be processed into a predetermined pattern and processed at different positions for each processing condition. By selecting the desired machining position from the test machining pattern generating means for generating the test machining pattern in which the focal length is changed according to the machining position and the test machining pattern generated by the test machining pattern generating means. And a machining condition selection means capable of extracting the machining conditions adopted at the machining position and resetting the machining conditions as the machining conditions. Thus, in the laser processing apparatus that can adjust the focal length of the laser beam, by selecting the position where the desired processing is obtained while comparing each position of the test processing pattern processed by changing the focal length , Can be easily reset to the desired processing conditions.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the laser processing apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a transparent perspective view which shows the arrangement | positioning state of the X * Y-axis scanner in a scanning part. It is a top view which shows an example of a printing list. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of the laser excitation part of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the marking head containing the laser beam scanning system of a laser processing apparatus. It is the perspective view which looked at FIG. 5 from the back direction. It is the side view which looked at FIG. 5 from the side. It is a side view which shows the laser beam scanning system in the case of lengthening a focal distance. It is a side view which shows the laser beam scanning system in the case of shortening a focal distance. It is the front view and sectional drawing which show a Z-axis scanner. It is explanatory drawing explaining the state from which the focus position of the laser beam of a laser processing apparatus changes in a work position. It is explanatory drawing explaining that a processing state changes according to the position in a work area. It is explanatory drawing explaining a mode that the focus position of a laser beam is adjusted according to the surface shape of a workpiece | work. It is explanatory drawing explaining a mode that a focus position changes according to the process position in a work area. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which installs the marking head of the conventional laser processing apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which prints explaining the example which inclines and sets a marking head according to the angle of a workpiece | work. It is a block diagram which shows the system configuration | structure of the laser marker which can be three-dimensionally printed. It is a block diagram which shows a laser processing condition setting apparatus. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a three-dimensional machining data setting program. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure which performs adjustment of a height direction in focus position alignment mode. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is a figure which shows a linear test process pattern. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the distance from the center of a work area, and the height from a reference position. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is a figure which shows the test processing pattern which attached the dividing line and the character string. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is a figure which shows the test process pattern finally obtained. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure which detects inclination in inclination correction mode. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the example which made the separation blocks No1-No3 draw by scanning guide light on a workpiece | work. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the state which processed separation block No1-No3. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the distance from the center of a work area, and the height from a reference position. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is a figure explaining the inclination direction and inclination angle of the processed surface of a workpiece | work. It is a vertical sectional view explaining the relation between the processing surface of a work and the printing height of each cell. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure which detects inclination in composite test printing mode. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the example which made the test process pattern draw by scanning guide light in the composite test printing mode. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the distance from the center of a work area, and the height from a reference position. It is an image figure which shows the example which represented three process parameters three-dimensionally by 3 axes | shafts of length, width, and height. It is an image which shows the example which expressed the change of the processing conditions of three processing parameters in two dimensions by arranging the two-dimensional plane of the perspective view drawn for every height up and down. It is an image which shows the example which expressed the change of the processing conditions of three processing parameters in two dimensions by arranging the two-dimensional plane of the perspective view drawn for every speed of laser light up and down. It is an image which shows the example which expressed the change of the processing conditions of three processing parameters in two dimensions by arranging the two-dimensional plane of the perspective view drawn for every power of laser light up and down. It is an image which shows the example which arranged the two-dimensional plane processed for every height in the vertical direction. It is an image which shows the example which arranged the two-dimensional plane processed for every height in the horizontal direction. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program. It is an image figure which shows the user interface screen of a laser processing condition setting program.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiment shown below is a laser processing condition setting device, a laser processing condition setting method, a laser processing condition setting program, a computer-readable recording medium, and a recorded device for embodying the technical idea of the present invention. In addition, the present invention includes a laser processing condition setting device, a laser processing condition setting method, a laser processing condition setting program, a computer-readable recording medium, a recorded device, and a laser processing device. Not specific to anything. Further, the present specification by no means specifies the members shown in the claims to the members of the embodiments. In particular, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, and the like of the component parts described in the embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention unless otherwise specified, and are merely explanations. It's just an example. Note that the size, positional relationship, and the like of the members shown in each drawing may be exaggerated for clarity of explanation. Furthermore, in the following description, the same name and symbol indicate the same or the same members, and detailed description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. Furthermore, each element constituting the present invention may be configured such that a plurality of elements are constituted by the same member and the plurality of elements are shared by one member, and conversely, the function of one member is constituted by a plurality of members. It can also be realized by sharing. In this specification, the connection between the laser processing apparatus and computers, printers, external storage devices and other peripheral devices for operation, control, input / output, display, and other processing connected thereto is, for example, IEEE 1394, RS- 232x, RS-422, RS-423, RS-485, serial connection such as USB, parallel connection, or electrically connected via a network such as 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T . The connection is not limited to a physical connection using a wire, but may be a wireless connection using radio waves such as IEEE802.1x, OFDM, etc., Bluetooth (registered trademark) , infrared rays, optical communication, or the like. Further, a memory card, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a semiconductor memory, or the like can be used as a recording medium for storing observation image data or setting data.

In the following embodiments, a laser marker will be described as an example of a laser processing apparatus embodying the present invention. However, in this specification, the laser processing apparatus can be used for general laser application equipment regardless of its name. For example, laser processing such as laser oscillators and various laser processing apparatuses, drilling, marking, trimming, scribing, surface treatment, and laser processing, Other laser application fields as a light source, for example, a light source for high-density recording / playback of an optical disc such as DVD or Blu-ray (registered trademark) , a light source for communication, a printing device, a light source for illumination, a light source for a display device such as a display, It can be suitably used in medical devices and the like. In this specification, printing will be described as a representative example of processing. However, printing is used in the concept including various types of processing described above in addition to marking of characters, symbols, figures, and the like. Further, in this specification, a print character string and a print pattern are used to include hiragana, katakana, kanji, alphabets and numbers, symbols, pictograms, icons, logos, graphics such as barcodes and two-dimensional codes, and the like.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the laser processing apparatus 100. A laser processing apparatus 100 shown in this figure includes a laser control unit 1, a laser output unit 2, and an input unit 3.

(Input unit 3)
The input unit 3 is connected to the laser control unit 1, inputs necessary settings for operating the laser processing apparatus, and transmits them to the laser control unit 1. The setting contents are operating conditions of the laser processing apparatus, specific printing contents, and the like. The input unit 3 is an input device such as a keyboard, a mouse, or a console. In addition, a display unit for confirming input information input by the input unit 3 and displaying the state of the laser control unit 1 and the like can be separately provided (not shown in FIG. 1). The display unit is a monitor such as an LCD or a cathode ray tube, and the input unit and the display unit can also be used as a touch panel system. Accordingly, the necessary setting of the laser processing apparatus can be performed at the input unit without externally connecting a computer or the like.

(Laser controller 1)
The laser control unit 1 includes a control unit 4, a memory unit 5, a laser excitation unit 6, and a power source 7. The setting contents input from the input unit 3 are recorded in the memory unit 5. The control unit 4 reads the setting contents from the memory when necessary, and operates the laser excitation unit 6 based on the print signal corresponding to the printing contents to excite the laser medium 8 of the laser output unit 2. The memory unit 5 can use a semiconductor memory such as a RAM or a ROM. The memory unit 5 can be incorporated in the laser control unit 1, or a semiconductor memory card such as a PC card or SD card that can be inserted and removed, or a memory card such as a card-type hard disk. The memory unit 5 composed of a memory card can be easily rewritten by an external device such as a computer. The contents set by the computer are written in the memory card and set in the laser control unit 1 so that the input unit is laser controlled. Settings can be made without connecting to the unit. In particular, a semiconductor memory is fast in reading and writing data and has no mechanical operation part, so it is resistant to vibrations and can prevent data loss accidents due to a crash like a hard disk.

Further, the control unit 4 scans the laser light L oscillated by the laser medium 8 on the print object (work) W so as to perform the set printing, and thus the scanning signal for operating the scanning unit 9 of the laser output unit 2. Is output to the scanning unit 9. The power source 7 applies a predetermined voltage to the laser excitation unit 6 as a constant voltage power source. The print signal for controlling the print operation is a PWM signal corresponding to one pulse of the laser light L that is oscillated by switching on / off of the laser light L according to the HIGH / LOW. Although the laser intensity of the PWM signal is determined based on a duty ratio corresponding to the frequency, the laser intensity may be changed depending on the scanning speed based on the frequency.

(Laser excitation unit 6)
The laser excitation unit 6 includes a laser excitation light source 10 and a laser excitation light source condensing unit 11 that are optically bonded. An example of the inside of the laser excitation unit 6 is shown in the perspective view of FIG. The laser excitation unit 6 shown in this figure has a laser excitation light source 10 and a laser excitation light source condensing unit 11 fixed in a laser excitation unit casing 12. The laser excitation unit casing is made of a metal such as brass having good thermal conductivity, and efficiently radiates the laser excitation light source 10 to the outside. The laser excitation light source 10 is composed of a semiconductor laser, a lamp or the like. In the example of FIG. 4, a laser diode array in which a plurality of semiconductor laser diode elements are arranged in a straight line is used, and laser oscillation from each element is output in a line. Laser oscillation enters the incident surface of the laser excitation light source condensing unit 11 and is output as laser excitation light condensed from the emission surface. The laser excitation light source condensing unit 11 is composed of a focusing lens or the like. Laser excitation light from the laser excitation light source condensing unit 11 is incident on the laser medium 8 of the laser output unit 2 through an optical fiber cable 13 or the like. The laser excitation light source 10, the laser excitation light source condensing unit 11, and the optical fiber cable 13 are optically coupled via a space or an optical fiber.

(Laser output unit 2)
The laser output unit 2 includes a laser oscillation unit 50. The laser oscillation unit 50 that generates the laser light L includes a laser medium 8, an output mirror and a total reflection mirror that are arranged to face each other at a predetermined distance along the optical path of the stimulated emission light emitted from the laser medium 8, and Apertures, Q switches, etc. arranged between The stimulated emission light emitted from the laser medium 8 is amplified by multiple reflection between the output mirror and the total reflection mirror, and the mode is selected by the aperture while being cut off in a short period by the operation of the Q switch, and the output mirror The laser beam L is output through The laser output unit 2 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a laser medium 8 and a scanning unit 9. The laser medium 8 is excited by the laser excitation light incident from the laser excitation unit 6 via the optical fiber cable 13 and is oscillated. The laser medium 8 employs a so-called end pumping excitation method in which laser excitation light is input from one end surface of the rod shape and is excited, and laser light L is emitted from the other end surface.

(Laser medium 8)
In the above example, a rod-shaped Nd: YVO 4 solid laser medium is used as the laser medium 8. The wavelength of the pumping semiconductor laser of the solid laser medium was set to 809 nm, which is the central wavelength of the absorption spectrum of Nd: YVO4. However, the present invention is not limited to this example, and other solid-state laser media such as rare earth doped YAG, LiSrF, LiCaF, YLF, NAB, KNP, LNP, NYAB, NPP, GGG, etc. can also be used. Moreover, the wavelength of the laser beam L to be output can be converted into an arbitrary wavelength by combining a wavelength conversion element with the solid laser medium.

Furthermore, it is also possible to use a wavelength conversion element that does not use a solid laser medium, in other words, does not constitute a resonator that oscillates laser light, and performs only wavelength conversion. In this case, wavelength conversion is performed on the output light of the semiconductor laser. Examples of the wavelength conversion element include KTP (KTiPO4), organic nonlinear optical materials and other inorganic nonlinear optical materials such as KN (KNbO3), KAP (KAsPO4), BBO, LBO, and bulk polarization inversion elements (LiNbO3 (Periodically). Polled Lithium Niobate (PPLN), LiTaO3, etc.) can be used. Further, a semiconductor laser for an excitation light source of a laser by up-conversion using a fluoride fiber doped with rare earth such as Ho, Er, Tm, Sm, and Nd can be used. Thus, in this embodiment, various types can be appropriately used as a laser generation source.

Furthermore, the laser oscillation unit is not limited to a solid-state laser, and a gas laser using a gas such as CO2, helium-neon, argon, or nitrogen as a medium can be used. For example, when a carbon dioxide laser is used, the laser oscillation unit is filled with carbon dioxide (CO2) inside the laser oscillation unit and has an electrode built therein. Based on the print signal given from the laser control unit, the laser oscillation unit The carbon dioxide gas is excited to cause laser oscillation.

(Scanning system)
Next, the laser beam scanning system of the laser processing apparatus is shown in FIGS. In these drawings, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the laser beam scanning system of the laser processing apparatus, FIG. 6 is a perspective view of FIG. 5 viewed from the reverse direction, and FIG. 7 is a side view. . The laser processing apparatus shown in these drawings is orthogonal to a beam expander 53 having a Z-axis scanner in which the optical path coincides with a laser oscillation unit that generates laser light L, an X-axis scanner 14a, and an X-axis scanner 14a. And a Y-axis scanner 14b arranged as described above. In this laser beam scanning system, the laser beam L emitted from the laser oscillation unit is scanned two-dimensionally in the work area WS by the X-axis scanner 14a and the Y-axis scanner 14b, and further in the height direction by the Z-axis scanner 14c. The working distance, that is, the focal length can be adjusted, and printing can be performed in a three-dimensional manner. In the figure, the fθ lens, which is a condensing lens, is not shown.

Each scanner has a galvano mirror which is a total reflection mirror as a reflecting surface for reflecting light, a galvano motor for rotating with the galvano mirror fixed to the rotating shaft, and a position where the rotating shaft rotates. A position detector for outputting as a signal is provided. The scanner is connected to a scanner driving unit that drives the scanner. The scanner driving unit is connected to the scanner control unit, receives a control signal for controlling the scanner from the scanner control unit, and drives the scanner based on the control signal. For example, the scanner driving unit adjusts the driving current for driving the scanner based on the control signal. The scanner driving unit includes an adjustment mechanism that adjusts a temporal change in the rotation angle of each scanner with respect to the control signal. The adjustment mechanism is constituted by a semiconductor component such as a variable resistor that adjusts each parameter of the scanner driving unit.

(Distance pointer)
Further, the laser beam scanning system includes a guide light source 60 as a distance pointer and a half mirror 62 as one form of the guide light optical system, and a pointer light source 64 for irradiating the pointer light P as a pointer light adjustment system. The pointer scanner mirror 14d as a third mirror formed on the back surface of the Y-axis scanner 14b and the pointer light P reflected from the pointer light source 64 reflected by the pointer scanner mirror 14d are further reflected to the focal position. And a fixed mirror 66 for irradiating the light. The distance pointer is adjusted to irradiate the pointer light P to the center of the guide pattern GP drawn with the guide light G, as will be described later, thereby instructing the focal position of the laser light L.

(Operation of Z-axis scanner 14c)
In recent years, not only a laser processing apparatus capable of scanning in a two-dimensional plane but also a laser processing apparatus capable of adjusting the focal length in the height direction, that is, capable of processing in a three-dimensional shape has been developed. However, the conventional laser marker capable of three-dimensional printing can only change the height level of two-dimensional planar printing stepwise. That is, there is no laser marker that can print on a curved surface or an inclined surface. On the other hand, there has been a demand for a laser marker capable of printing a curved surface such as a can with high quality. Accordingly, the present inventors can adjust the focal position by providing a Z-axis scanner as a variable-focus optical system in addition to the X-axis scanner and the Y-axis scanner, thereby making it three-dimensional along the surface shape of the workpiece. A laser processing machine capable of processing was realized.

The Z-axis scanner 14c constitutes a beam expander 53 that adjusts the spot diameter of the laser light L and thereby adjusts the focal length. The beam expander 53 is arranged in front of the galvanometer mirror as shown in FIG. 5 and adjusts the beam diameter of the laser light L output from the laser oscillating unit, in order to effectively collect light on a small spot. At the same time, the focal position of the laser beam L can be adjusted. A method for adjusting the working distance by the Z-axis scanner 14c will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9 are side views of the laser beam scanning system. FIG. 8 shows a case where the focal length of the laser beam L is increased, and FIG. 9 shows a case where the focal length is reduced. FIG. 10 shows a front view and a sectional view of the Z-axis scanner 14c. As shown in these figures, the Z-axis scanner 14c includes an incident lens 16 facing the laser oscillating unit and an exit lens 18 facing the laser emitting side, and the distance between these lenses changes relatively. It is possible. 8 to 10, the exit lens 18 is fixed, and the entrance lens 16 can be slid along the optical axis direction by a drive motor or the like. FIG. 10 omits the illustration of the exit lens 18 and shows the drive mechanism of the entrance lens 16. The movable element can be slid in the axial direction by a coil and a magnet, and the incident lens 16 is fixed to the movable element. However, the incident lens side can be fixed and the exit lens side can be moved, or both the entrance lens and the exit lens can be moved.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the distance between the entrance lens 16 and the exit lens 18 is made closer, the focal position becomes farther and the focal distance (working distance) becomes larger. Conversely, as shown in FIG. 9, when the distance between the incident lens 16 and the outgoing lens 18 is increased, the focal position approaches and the focal length decreases.

(Focus correction function)
In this way, the laser beam L can be scanned by adjusting the working distance, and a laser processing apparatus capable of three-dimensional scanning is realized, and the focal length is also applied to the curved or stepped workpiece W surface. Can be printed with high accuracy in the combined state. This situation will be described with reference to FIG. 11. In the conventional laser processing apparatus, the focal position of the laser beam L is fixed as shown by the solid line in FIG. Even if the workpiece W is set so as to be in focus, when the laser beam L is scanned, the deviation between the focal point and the workpiece W increases as the distance from the center increases (laser beam L ′ shown on the right in FIG. 11), and the printing quality is stable. There was a problem of not doing. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12A, the width of printing differs depending on the printing position in the work area WS (printable area). That is, near the center of the work area WS, the focus position is almost the same as the working distance, so high-quality printing with a narrow print width is possible. On the other hand, the print width becomes thicker near the periphery of the work area WS. Quality will deteriorate.

On the other hand, the laser processing apparatus according to the present embodiment has a focus correction function capable of adjusting the focus position with the Z-axis scanner 14c as described above, and therefore, as indicated by a broken line L on the left side of FIG. The focal position of the laser beam L can be adjusted at any position in the printable area, and as a result of enabling the printing process with the minimum spot, as shown in FIG. High-quality printing with reduced quality is possible.

In this way, printing can be performed with a minimum spot at any position in the printable area, and printing quality can be stably obtained with high quality in operations such as pallet printing and large nameplate marking. In addition, even when used in processing applications, the processing state can be maintained uniformly. As a result, uniform processing can be performed regardless of the shape of the workpiece W. For example, the workpiece W having a step as shown in FIG. 13A or the surface of the workpiece W as shown in FIG. Even if the shape is curved or inclined as shown in FIG. 13C, uniform and high-quality processing can be performed. As described above, the focus correction function enables optimum printing for various shapes of the workpiece W, and also enables a fine finish with high accuracy even in processing such as a deep gate cut.

Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to perform precise processing in the region while taking a wide working region WS of the laser light L irradiated from the marking head 150 constituting the laser output unit of the laser marker. As shown in FIG. 14A, in the conventional laser processing apparatus, since the change in the focal position is large according to the processing position in the work area WS, the change increases as the work area WS is increased. Since the focal position of 'is away from the processing position, it is not suitable for widening the work area WS. On the other hand, in the laser processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the work position WS can be adjusted according to each position even if the work area WS is widened as shown in FIG. It has the excellent feature that the spot diameter is stabilized and the processing quality can be secured while taking a wider area than the conventional one.

(Installation support function)
Furthermore, according to the laser processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, it is possible to simplify the positioning work at the time of installation or changeover. FIG. 15A shows an example in which the marking head 150 of the conventional laser processing apparatus is installed, and FIG. 15B shows an example in which the marking head 150 of the laser processing apparatus according to the present embodiment is installed. Since the focus position of the laser beam L ′ is fixed to the marking head 150 of the conventional laser processing apparatus, the working distance between the workpiece and the marking head 150 matches the focus position as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, an adjustment mechanism 160 for adjusting the installation height of the marking head 150 itself is necessary, and the adjustment work is very troublesome. For example, when the marking head is slightly tilted, it must be corrected horizontally by screw adjustment or the like in order to increase the processing accuracy, and must be adjusted so as to coincide with the focal position. For this reason, an up-and-down mechanism for finely adjusting the installation height is required for each marking head 150, and adjustment work is required, the installation mechanism is complicated, and extremely complicated work is required.

On the other hand, according to the laser processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, the focal position of the laser beam L can be adjusted as shown in FIG. It is only necessary to set 170 as a standard working distance. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare a vertical mechanism for the marking head 150 and such adjustment work is required. For this reason, a laser processing apparatus capable of three-dimensional printing is easy to align even when used for two-dimensional printing, and can be adjusted even if the focal length is slightly shifted or the marking head is tilted. Can do.

In the actual installation state, the focus position setting can be optimally adjusted only by selecting an optimum print state pattern by executing the test print mode. In the test print mode, a plurality of different conditions in which the laser scanning speed and the laser output are changed are set, and a print sample is created by performing test printing on the workpiece. Since one test sample has a plurality of test processing patterns printed under different conditions, the user can select desired conditions based on the sharpness, density, thickness, depth, etc. from characters printed under various conditions. Can be selected. This makes it easy to find conditions for obtaining the optimum print result desired by the user. Details of the test print mode will be described later. In the present specification, the printing density is used in a sense including concepts such as the printing depth, thickness, color development degree, and the like.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 16 (a), conventionally, the marking head 150 itself has to be installed with an adjustment mechanism 160B or the like according to the angle of the workpiece, but the laser processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 16, even a workpiece having an angle, such as an inclined surface, can be accurately processed while maintaining the marking head 150 horizontal as shown in FIG. 16B. In this way, it is possible to respond to various applications very flexibly, and it is possible to exhibit extremely excellent features such as easy installation and high printing accuracy.

(System configuration of laser marker)
Next, FIG. 17 shows a system configuration of a laser marker capable of three-dimensional printing. The laser processing system shown in this figure is connected to a marking head 150, a controller 1A that is connected to the marking head 150 and controls the marking head 150, and the controller 1A so that data communication is possible. A laser processing condition setting device 300 for setting a test processing pattern as three-dimensional three-dimensional processing data and setting processing conditions for a laser marker is provided. In the example of FIG. 17, the laser processing condition setting apparatus 300 installs a laser processing condition setting program in a computer to realize a laser processing condition setting function. The laser processing condition setting device can use a programmable logic controller (PLC) connected with a touch panel, other dedicated hardware, etc. in addition to a computer. The laser processing condition setting device can also function as a control device that controls the operation of the laser processing device. For example, the functions of the laser processing condition setting device and the controller may be integrated into one computer. On the other hand, in this example, the function of the three-dimensional machining data setting device for setting three-dimensional machining data for printing planar print data in three dimensions is integrated into the laser machining condition setting device. It goes without saying that the dimension processing data setting device can be provided individually.

Furthermore, various external devices 190 can be connected to the controller 1A as necessary. For example, an image recognition device such as an image sensor for confirming the type and position of a workpiece conveyed on the line, a distance measuring device such as a displacement meter for obtaining information on the distance between the workpiece and the marking head 150, and a device according to a predetermined sequence It is possible to install a PLC that controls the above, a PD sensor that detects the passage of a workpiece, and other various sensors, and to be connected so that data communication is possible.

(Setting of 3D machining data)
FIG. 18 shows a block diagram as an example of a laser processing condition setting device. A laser processing condition setting device 300 shown in this figure includes an input unit 3 for inputting various settings, and a calculation unit 80 for setting processing conditions and calculating an inclination angle based on information input from the input unit 3. And a display unit 82 for displaying setting contents, calculation results, and the like, and a storage unit 5A for storing various setting data. The input unit 3 realizes the functions of a machining condition setting unit 3D that sets machining parameters for machining conditions, and a machining condition selection unit 3E that selects a desired machining position from a test machining pattern and resets the machining conditions. . The processing parameters include the laser beam output, the scanning speed, the focal position of the laser beam, that is, the distance (height) from the workpiece to the laser beam emission surface, and the like. In the test printing mode, the processing condition setting unit 3D performs test printing in which the height is changed within this range by setting the height within the range. The storage unit 5A corresponds to the memory unit 5 in FIG. 1 and is a member that stores information such as processing parameters set by the input unit 3, and a storage medium such as a fixed storage device or a semiconductor memory can be used.

The calculation unit 80 also includes a plurality of processing condition generation means 80D that generates a set of a plurality of processing conditions changed by the specified range and width from the processing parameters specified by the range by the processing condition setting means 3D. The machining condition output means 80E for outputting the set machining conditions to a predetermined output destination, and the function of the inclination calculation means 80F for calculating the inclination angle and the inclination direction of the machining surface based on the height of the discrete block are realized. Further, the calculation unit 80 also functions as a test processing pattern generation unit 80G that controls to generate a test processing pattern by irradiating the processing target with laser light for each of a plurality of generated processing conditions. Furthermore, the calculation unit 80 also has a function of a coordinate correction unit 80H that corrects a coordinate shift caused by the optical characteristics of the laser light before test printing. The calculation unit 80 is configured by an LSI, an IC, or the like. In addition to providing a dedicated display, the display unit 82 may use a computer monitor.

In the example of FIG. 18, the laser processing condition setting device is configured by dedicated hardware, but these members can also be executed by software. In particular, as shown in FIG. 17, a laser processing condition setting program can be installed in a general-purpose computer so as to function as a laser processing condition setting device. In the example of FIG. 18, the laser processing condition setting device and the laser processing device are separate devices, but they can also be integrated. For example, a laser processing condition setting function can be added to the laser processing apparatus.

(3D machining data setting procedure)
Here, FIG. 19 shows a user interface screen of the three-dimensional machining data setting program 200 for generating three-dimensional machining data from the test machining pattern printed on the print surface of the workpiece and setting the data in the laser machining apparatus. In this example, an edit display column 202 for displaying the edit state of the three-dimensional print data is provided on the left side of the screen, and a test processing pattern input column 204 for a print character string or the like to be described later is provided on the right side of the screen. The edit display column 202 displays a preview of the edit state. In the example of FIG. 19, a two-dimensional view of the workpiece W (here, a plan view of a horizontally oriented cylinder) is displayed, and the user arbitrarily changes the display magnification, posture, arrangement, etc. of the workpiece by operating the mouse or specifying coordinates. it can. The edit display field 202 can scroll the screen according to the displayed size. Further, a three-dimensional viewer column 206 that three-dimensionally shows the three-dimensional processed data is displayed at the lower right of the edit display column 202. In the example of FIG. 19, the three-dimensional viewer column 206 shows a perspective view of a cylinder that is the workpiece W. The workpiece W displayed in the three-dimensional viewer column 206 preferably enables operations such as changing the posture and angle, rotating, and changing the magnification. For example, the work W is directly dragged from the three-dimensional viewer column 206 to rotate and move.

In the example of the user interface screen of the program, it goes without saying that the arrangement, shape, display method, size, color scheme, pattern, etc. of each input field and each button can be changed as appropriate. By changing the design, the layout can be made easier to display, easier to evaluate and judge, and easy to operate. For example, the detailed setting screen can be displayed as a separate window, or a plurality of screens can be displayed within the same display screen. On the user interface screens of these programs, ON / OFF operations for numerically provided buttons and input fields, designation of numerical values and command inputs, etc. are performed by the input unit 3 connected to the computer in which the program is incorporated. . In this specification, “pressing” includes not only physically touching and operating buttons, but also clicking or selecting with an input unit and pseudo-pressing. Input / output devices constituting the input unit are connected to a computer by wire or wirelessly, or are fixed to the computer or the like. Examples of general input units include various pointing devices such as a mouse, keyboard, slide pad, track point, tablet, joystick, console, jog dial, digitizer, light pen, numeric keypad, touch pad, and accu point. These input / output devices are not limited to program operations, but can also be used for hardware operations such as laser processing equipment. Furthermore, a touch screen or a touch panel is used for the display itself of the display unit 82 that displays the interface screen, so that the user can directly input or operate the screen by hand, or voice input or other existing input is possible. Means can be used, or these can be used in combination.

(Test print mode)
Next, the procedure in which the arithmetic unit 80 shown in the block diagram of FIG. 18 executes the test print mode as the test processing pattern generation unit 80G will be described in detail. The test print function is roughly divided into the following three modes.

(1) Focus position alignment mode The focus position alignment mode is a mode for grasping the height of the print surface of the work by drawing a continuous line. This mode is used when the printing conditions need to be changed on a block-by-block basis, such as when correcting the installation position of the marking head and workpiece, or when the printing surface of the workpiece contains different materials. This is used for setting each block, adjusting the Z-axis coordinate in the height direction, and the like.

(2) Inclination correction mode The inclination correction mode is a mode in which the inclination calculating means 80F detects the inclination of the printing surface or the laser marker by performing test printing on three or more separated blocks (points) that are not on the same straight line. . This mode is used for installation position correction when installing a laser marker, setting of each block when there are a plurality of regions to be processed on the processing surface, setting of the inclination angle of the printing surface, and the like.

(3) Processing condition extraction mode The processing condition extraction mode is a mode for setting the scanning speed and laser output of the laser beam for each block by performing test printing in a two-dimensional matrix. This operation mode is used for setting processing conditions for laser light, which has been conventionally used for two-dimensional printing or the like.
(4) Marking condition extraction and focus alignment mode The marking condition extraction and focus alignment mode changes the processing parameters of height in addition to the above two-dimensional matrix printing in which the laser beam scanning speed and output are changed. In this mode, test printing is performed. In this mode, processing parameters such as the scanning speed, output, and height of the laser beam at the time of block setting are collectively set.

Hereinafter, each mode will be described in detail.

(Focus alignment mode)
First, the procedure for performing test printing of the designated continuous line S in the focus alignment mode and adjusting the height direction (z coordinate) will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 20 and the user interface of the laser processing condition setting program shown in FIGS. This will be described based on the screen. In this method, a straight line is printed while continuously changing the height, and focus position, that is, height information is obtained based on the printing result.

First, in step S11, printing conditions are set. Here, the scanning speed of the scanner that scans the laser beam, the output of the laser light source, the coordinates to be printed, and the height range are designated. The setting is performed from a processing parameter setting screen 301 which is one form of the processing condition setting unit 3D shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 21, “height (continuous line)” is selected in the processing parameter setting field 310, and the laser power (laser output) setting field 312 and the scan speed (scanning speed) setting field 314 are entered numerically. Further, the X and Y coordinates of the start point and end point for printing the designated continuous line S, which is a line segment of a predetermined length, are input from the start point / end point setting column 316 and the height range from the height range specifying column 318, respectively. To do. Here, the laser power and the scanning speed are constant as the processing conditions, and the plurality of processing conditions generating means 80D automatically generates a plurality of processing conditions by changing only the height range. The height range specifies the maximum and minimum values.

In this state, the printing laser is turned off to turn on only the guide light source 60, and the guide light is scanned by the guide light optical system. Guide light is scanned at a high speed, and a test processing pattern is drawn in the work area by the afterimage effect. As a result, the designated continuous line S is drawn in the work area WS as shown in FIG. As a result, the user can visually check and confirm the print position. In this figure, only a straight line is displayed. However, if necessary, in addition to a continuous line, a delimiter line and characters similar to an actual test processing pattern described later may be added and drawn. However, it is sufficient if the printing position can be confirmed at the stage of scanning the guide light. For this reason, the print position in the height direction (Z coordinate) may not be set in detail. Also, since printing is not actually performed, there is no need to set a work. However, it goes without saying that positioning can be performed in a state in which the workpiece is arranged.

In step S12, a work is set and test printing is performed. The workpiece is positioned with reference to the laser irradiation position shown in step S11. Here, an example in which a flat workpiece is installed in a horizontal plane is considered.

(Coordinate correction)
Before the test printing, the coordinate correction means 80H of the calculation unit 80 performs coordinate correction in consideration of the optical characteristics of the laser beam. Originally, when data with a constant rate of change in height is input, the coordinates output by the optical characteristics indicate the relationship between the distance from the center of the work area WS and the height from the reference position, as shown in FIG. In the graph, it should be linear as shown by the dashed line L1 in FIG. However, in a state in which the focal length of the laser beam is fixed, when the focal position is aligned with the center of the work area WS as indicated by the solid line L in FIG. The position moves away, and the laser beam is out of focus at the peripheral portion of the work area as indicated by the solid line L ′. As a result, as indicated by the thick line L2 in FIG. 23, the height from the reference position is shifted from the straight line as the distance from the center of the work area WS increases. In this state, since a high-quality printing result cannot be obtained, the focal length is corrected, and the focal length is set longer in the peripheral portion of the work area WS as indicated by the broken line L in FIG. When this state is shown in FIG. 23, as indicated by a thin line L3, input data whose optical characteristics are corrected is designated so that the change in output height is constant. Thus, by setting the input data so that the locus is intentionally bent in the opposite direction, the input data is corrected to a straight line as indicated by the broken line L1, and the intended print result can be obtained. As described above, since the height information varies depending on the printing place depending on the optical characteristics of the laser beam, the coordinates are generated so that the change in height is constant in consideration of the optical characteristics.

Although such coordinate correction is performed before test printing, it may be performed at any timing before or after setting the printing conditions. Alternatively, it can be performed at the stage of initial setting of the laser marker.

(Test printing)
In order to execute printing with the input data corrected in this way, the scanning light is switched from the guide light to the laser light. Here, as shown in FIG. 24, the radio button is changed from the guide laser (guide light source 60) to the print laser in the laser selection column 320. Thus, test printing is performed by irradiating laser light in accordance with the processing conditions set on the processing parameter setting screen 301 of FIG. As for the machining conditions, the plurality of machining condition generation means 80D automatically generates a plurality of sets of machining conditions according to the range specified in FIG. Laser processing is performed according to the plurality of generated processing conditions. That is, laser processing is performed under different processing conditions for each laser processing position. Further, here, the designated continuous line S is printed in a straight line by laser processing, and as the position information indicating the position on the designated continuous line S as shown in FIG. 25, the separation lines K and K are separated at predetermined intervals. Along with this, the letter E is printed.

When printing is performed, as shown in FIG. 11 described above, the focus position is aligned at the center portion of the print area, so that the print is darker. The further away from the center, the focus position shifts and the print becomes unclear. As a result, as shown in FIG. 25, printing is dark at the central portion and becomes lighter toward the periphery.

Next, in step S13, it is determined whether or not a desired printing result has been obtained. If not, the process proceeds to step S14 to reset the printing conditions. Specifically, the range is narrowed down until a darkly printed portion can be specified with one point. In the example of FIG. 25, since the density is constant between “D” and “E” which are the English characters E of the separator K, printing is performed again between “D” and “E”. Specifically, in the laser processing condition setting program shown in FIG. A height range designation field 318 for designating a print height range includes a character string selection field 318B that can be designated by a character string, in addition to a numeric value field 318A for directly inputting a minimum value and a maximum value by numerical values. ing. The character string selection field 318B functions as processing condition selection means 3E for selecting a desired processing condition from the print result. That is, when the English character E of the separator K is selected from the character string selection field 318B, the height data corresponding to this English character E is automatically input to the numerical value field 318A. In the example of FIG. 26, “D” of English letters E as the minimum value and “E” as the maximum value are specified in the character string selection column 318B of the height range specification column 318 according to FIG. Then, in FIG. 21, the minimum height value specified in the numerical value column 318A as −5 mm and the maximum value as 5 mm corresponds to −0.5 mm and “E” as the height corresponding to “D”. A height of 0.2 mm is automatically set as a numerical value. As a result, printing in a narrower height range where “D” is minimum and “E” is maximum is performed again at a predetermined interval. In this way, the desired processing parameter value is automatically set by designating a desired English character from the actual printing result without being aware of the numerical value of the processing parameter. Needless to say, the English character can be a character string including numbers.

As a result of returning to step S12 in this reset state and performing test printing again, if the final print result required in step S13 cannot be obtained, the printing conditions are reset in step S14. The process of printing is repeated, and this process is executed until a desired printing result is obtained. When a desired print result is obtained, the process proceeds from step S13 to step S15, and height information is output.

If the finally obtained test processing pattern is as shown in FIG. 27, the darkly printed portion is specified as the point of the English character E “E” of the separator K, and therefore the high level corresponding to this printing is shown. Is output as the final result. Here, as shown in FIG. 28, “E” is designated in the pattern selection field 324 of the height range designation field 318, and the confirmation button 326 is pushed to confirm. Then, the machining parameter setting screen changes to a machining parameter output screen 302 as shown in FIG. 29, and “0.1 mm” is displayed in the output display field 328 as the height corresponding to “E”. In this case, it is not always necessary to specify the darkest printed portion. For example, when the user desires weak printing intentionally defocused, the English character E having a desired density is selected. That's fine.

When the height information is finally determined in this way, the machining condition output means 80E outputs the position height information as necessary in step S15. For example, as shown in FIG. 29, when the link destination for setting the finally determined height information is designated in the link destination setting column 330, the processing condition output means 80E sends the information to the designated link destination. In this example, the “device setting height” is the height of the laser marker. The “block condition height” is used to match the plane of the print surface. Further, in the block condition height setting, a plurality of blocks can be registered. Furthermore, a plurality of output link destinations can be designated. On the other hand, there can be no link destination, and for example, the height information can be displayed on the display unit for confirmation.

(Tilt correction mode)
Next, as an inclination correction mode for correcting the inclination of the laser marker and the machining surface, the test printing of three separated blocks that are not on the same straight line is shown in the flowchart of FIG. 30 and the laser machining condition setting program of FIGS. A description will be given based on the user interface screen. In the tilt correction mode, instead of printing a straight line with the height continuously changed as described above, the height is changed stepwise while maintaining the scanning speed and laser output of the laser beam constant, and characters and The combination of numbers / symbols is printed in a matrix, and the inclination calculating means 80F determines the height, inclination angle, and inclination direction of the printing surface.

First, in step S21, printing conditions are set for the three separated blocks No1 to No3. These separated blocks are set at positions that are not on the same straight line. FIG. 32 shows an example in which the separation blocks No1 to No3 are drawn by scanning the work with guide light. As shown in this figure, in order to improve the detection accuracy of height and inclination, it is preferable to arrange each separation block at a position as separated as possible such as a corner of the printing surface. In the example of FIG. 32, the separation block No1 is arranged near the left center of the printing surface, the separation block No2 is arranged in the upper right corner, and the separation block No3 is arranged in the lower right corner. Each separation block includes a plurality of cells C. A plurality of cells C are provided in order to set the height condition. The height condition can be specified by the maximum and minimum values of the height, the center value and the interval of the height, and the like. Since the number of cells C is the set number of the height condition, the number is set to a number that can appropriately determine the height condition in each separated block, and is 9 in this example. That is, the height is changed in nine steps in each separation block.

The printing conditions for each separation block are set from the processing parameter setting screen 303 in FIG. In this example, “height (three points)” that is an inclination correction mode is selected in the machining parameter setting field 310. From this screen, the scanning speed of the scanner that scans the laser beam, the output of the laser light source, the print coordinates, and the height range are set as processing conditions. In the screen of FIG. 31, a separation block selection field 332 for selecting a separation block is provided, and a separation block to be set is selected from here. In this example, the first separated block (No. 1) is selected. The processing conditions are set in the same procedure for each separation block. In this example, the plane inclination is detected by designating three points that are not on the same straight line, but it goes without saying that it is possible to increase the accuracy of inclination detection by setting four or more points. Absent.

In the example of FIG. 31, 50% of the maximum output is specified as the laser power in the laser power setting column 312 and 1000 mm / s is specified as the scanning speed in the scanning speed setting column 314. This value is constant for all cells and spaced blocks. Also, the X and Y coordinates of the start point and end point are designated in the start point / end point setting field 316. Here, the coordinates of the start point and the end point are coordinates on the diagonal lines of the matrix constituting each separation block (for example, upper left and lower right corners). Further, the height information designates a range to be changed in the separated block from the height range designation column 318. In the separation block No1, the height is changed in nine steps (9 cells) in the range from the minimum value −5 mm to 5 mm. For specifying such a range, a numerical value is directly input to a desired item, such as specifying a maximum value and a minimum value, and specifying a center value and an interval. For example, when the heights of the maximum value and the minimum value are input, the interval is automatically calculated by dividing by the number of prints (number of cells). Alternatively, when either the height of the center value and the maximum value / minimum value are designated, the difference is divided by half of the number of prints to obtain the interval. Furthermore, in addition to specifying by an interval, it can also be specified by a change rate such as after / before change.

Next, in step S22, test printing is performed. Prior to execution of test printing, the printing position is confirmed by scanning guide light as necessary. When the guide laser (guide light source 60) is selected from the laser selection column 320 on the screen of FIG. 31 and the print start button 322 is pressed, scanning as shown in FIG. 32 is started, and the cells of each separated block are printed on the print surface. Rendered above. In this step, since actual printing is not yet performed, the detailed focal position (height data) of the laser does not have to be matched, and it is sufficient if the portion of the printing position can be confirmed on the workpiece. The pattern drawn by the guide light may be a rectangular shape as shown in FIG. 32, or a character or number pattern may be drawn.

Next, set the work and perform test printing. In the screen of FIG. 33, when the laser selection column 320 is switched from the guide laser to the printing laser (processing laser) and the printing start button 322 is pressed, printing as shown in FIG. 34 is performed.

(Coordinate correction)
Printing in the tilt correction mode is performed so that the height is uniform within the same cell. However, as described above, the height information varies depending on the printing position depending on the optical characteristics of the laser light, so that the change in the height is made constant in consideration of the optical characteristics of the laser light, and the height becomes uniform in the same cell. Thus, the coordinate correction means 80H corrects the coordinates. That is, as shown in FIG. 35, when data with a constant change in height is input, the coordinates output by the optical characteristics indicate a curved curve that is curved upward as indicated by a thick line. Convert to coordinates. This thin line shows data corrected in consideration of optical characteristics so that the change in output height is constant within the same cell. As a result of using such correction data, a certain coordinate as shown by a broken line in FIG. 35 can be obtained also by the optical characteristics of the laser beam, and correct height information can be obtained regardless of the position.

It is assumed that printing is performed after such coordinate correction, and as a result, a printing result as shown in FIG. 34 is obtained. In the example of FIG. 34, nine character strings with letters A, B, and C, 1, 2, and 3 in the vertical direction and numbers are arranged in a matrix as the separation block No1. That is, the matrix elements are A1, B1, C1 in the first row, A2, B2, C2 in the first row, A3, B3, C3 in the third row. Similarly, in the separation block No 2, D, E, F in the horizontal direction, a matrix shape with 1, 2, 3 in the vertical direction, and in the separation block No 3, G, H, I in the horizontal direction, 1, 2, 3 in the vertical direction. Is printed in a matrix.

Next, based on this printing result, it is determined whether or not the height information of each separation block can be determined. If it cannot be determined, the printing conditions are reset in step S24, and the test printing in step S22 is repeated. On the other hand, if it can be determined, the process proceeds to step S25, and the inclination of the processed surface is calculated. In this example, as shown in FIG. 34, since printing is performed with the three separation blocks No1 to No3, a strongly printed position is selected in each separation block. Here, as described above, the maximum value, the minimum value, the interval, etc. may be directly input as numerical values from the numerical value column 318A, or a character string may be selected from the character string selection column 318B with reference to the print result. . When the printing result is selected, the interval and the like can be automatically calculated and set. FIG. 36 shows an example of the processing parameter setting screen 303 for the separation block No1. Here, since the cell A1 indicates the darkest print from the result of FIG. 34, “A1” is designated in the character string selection column 318B of the center value column 318a of the height range designation column 318. Then, the height data corresponding to “A1” is automatically input to the numerical value column 318A of the center value column 318a. Further, referring to this numerical value, the user designates the interval and / or the minimum value / maximum value as a numerical value as necessary. Similarly, FIG. 37 shows an example of the processing parameter setting screen 303 for the separation block No2. Here, referring to the print result of FIG. 34, the user directly designates an appropriate height range with a numerical value. For example, the height at which darkest printing is likely to be performed is input to the numerical value column 318A as the center value (here, 7 mm), and an interval for changing the height stepwise (here, 0.5 mm) is designated. Further, FIG. 38 shows an example of the processing parameter setting screen 303 of the separation block No3, and here, the height range is designated from the character string of the cell. That is, if the minimum value is set to “H3” and the maximum value is set to “I1” from the character string selection column 318B of the height range specification column 318, the corresponding height data is displayed in the numerical value column 318A. Is automatically entered. When the processing parameter setting for each separation block is completed in this way, the print start button 322 is pressed again to perform test printing. The user further repeats the test printing while resetting the machining parameters as necessary while referring to the printing result. By repeating this operation, the darkest printed pattern is finally designated for each separation block, and the height in each separation block is determined. This situation will be described with reference to FIG. 39. When the character string B1 is printed most darkly in the separation block No1 in the test print result with a certain processing parameter, “B1” is selected by the pattern selection 324 and the “OK” button is selected. Is pressed, and the focal position in the separation block No1 is determined as the position corresponding to B1.

Thereafter, in step S25, based on the finally determined height information, the inclination calculation means 80F of the calculation unit 80 calculates and outputs the inclination of the machining surface. This example will be described based on the processing parameter setting screen 303 in FIG. Here, for each separation block, it is assumed that the cell of the character string B1 is selected as described above in the separation block No1, D2 is selected in the separation block No2, and G3 is selected in the separation block No3. Thus, each height is calculated by determining the cell of each separation block. Therefore, three heights that are not on the same straight line on the inclined plane can be obtained, and the inclination of this plane can be calculated by the inclination calculating means 80F of the calculating unit 80. In the example of FIG. 40, as the calculation result, the inclination direction indicating the reference direction of inclination is indicated by an angle α (100 ° in this example) with the reference axis, and the inclination angle θ from the horizontal position in the inclination direction is shown. (12 ° in this example). Similarly to the above, the link destination that reflects the calculation result is designated in the link destination setting column 330. In this example, as the “block plane condition”, plane inclination information can be registered for each block when there are a plurality of blocks. A block can be selected from a block selection field 334, and a drop-down list or the like can be used for this selection.

In FIG. 41, the inclination direction and the inclination angle will be described. FIG. 41A shows a plan view of the work area WS, which is inclined with the direction indicated by the alternate long and short dash line as an axis. This axis is represented by the rotation angle α from the horizontal position in the plan view. On the other hand, FIG. 41B is a cross-sectional view taken along the axis (line B-B ′) of FIG. 41A, and represents an inclination with an inclination angle θ from the horizontal position in this cross-sectional view.

Note that the darkest printed cell in each separation block should be one cell as long as the height is changed in each cell, but depending on the inclination of the printing surface and the height interval between each cell A plurality of cells may be printed with the same density. This will be described with reference to FIG. For example, as shown in FIG. 42A, when the print surface of the work is horizontal, the cell closest to the height of the print surface (B1 in the example of FIG. 42A) may be specified. On the other hand, when the printing surface is inclined as shown in FIG. 42B and cells that are separated in the height direction are located on the inclined surface, a plurality of cells are printed with the same density. It will be. In such a case, any cell may be specified. In the example of FIG. 42 (b), the calculation result in the inclination calculating means 80F is the same regardless of which cell of A1, B1, and C1 is selected.

In addition, in the example of the inclination correction mode, it is unclear whether or not a completely focused printing result can be obtained unlike the continuous line printing described above. That is, in continuous line printing, the focus position is always passed as a result of continuously changing the height, so the just focus position can be included within a predetermined range (may not be located on the dividing line K). Anyway, as a result, an accurate height can be detected. In addition, since an accurate height can be detected, the defocus position can be set intentionally. On the other hand, in the example of the inclination correction mode, printing is performed at a discrete height within a predetermined range, so it is not guaranteed whether the discrete height just includes the focal position. For this reason, the height of the discrete cells is adjusted so as to coincide with the focal position by narrowing the height by repeating resetting and test printing a plurality of times. Also, in order to detect an accurate inclination angle, only the focal position is designated, and the defocus position is not intentionally designated. Thus, accurate height information can be obtained even by measurement by discrete sampling.

(Processing condition extraction mode)
The processing condition extraction mode is used for setting processing conditions for laser light. Specifically, each cell is printed under a plurality of processing conditions in which the scanning speed of laser light and the laser output are changed. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the cells are printed in a two-dimensional matrix, and the processing conditions of each cell are changed so that the laser output gradually decreases in the horizontal direction, and the scanning speed gradually increases in the vertical direction. Change it to be faster. As a result, printing is performed such that the print result becomes lighter as the print progresses from the upper left to the lower right. The user selects a cell from which a desired printing result is obtained from this matrix, and sets the scanning speed and laser output of the corresponding laser beam. This operation mode has been conventionally used for two-dimensional printing or the like. For example, the technique described in Patent Document 1 can be used.

(Composite test printing mode)
Finally, a combined test print mode in which both the marking condition extraction and the focus alignment mode are performed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 43 and FIGS. 44 to 56. In this mode, in addition to the two-dimensional matrix printing in which the laser beam scanning speed and output are changed in the processing condition extraction mode, the height printing parameter is also changed to perform test printing. In this mode, processing parameters such as the scanning speed, output, and height of the laser beam at the time of block setting are collectively set. Hereinafter, description will be made in order according to the flowchart of FIG.

First, printing conditions are set in step S31. In the examples of the focus alignment mode and the tilt correction mode, the laser light output and the scanning speed are constant, but in the combined test printing mode, the laser light output and the scanning speed are changed within a predetermined range. FIG. 44 shows an example of the processing parameter setting screen 304 in the combined test printing. As shown in FIG. 44, when “composite (power, speed, height)” is selected in the processing parameter setting field 310, the laser beam output and the scanning speed range are specified accordingly, as shown in FIG. The screen for setting the printing conditions including it is displayed. The laser power setting field 312B for setting the change in the laser light output and the scan speed setting field 314B for setting the change in the scanning speed of the laser light are both specified by the range, similar to the height range specifying field etc. . For example, the change width is set by a maximum value, a minimum value, an interval, or a center value. Here, the laser output (power) is specified as a percentage with the maximum value being 100%, and in the example of FIG. 44, the minimum value is 30%, the maximum value is 70%, and the interval is 10%. The scanning speed (speed) of the laser beam is set to a minimum value of 1000 mm / s, a maximum value of 4000 mm / s, and an interval of 500 mm / s. Further, the height range designation field 318 designates a minimum value of −20 mm, a maximum value of 10 mm, an interval of 5 mm, etc., as in the tilt correction mode.

In these ranges, numerical values are directly input here. However, as will be described later, it is also possible to specify in English characters, and the number of times of changing the machining parameters can be appropriately defined. In this example, the power is changed in five steps, the speed is changed in seven steps, and the height is changed in seven steps, and a total of 245 machining conditions are generated. Further, the printing start point and end point are similarly designated by the X and Y coordinates. A function that automatically adjusts the size of each cell to fit within the area from the start point to the end point of printing according to the number of processing conditions, or automatically prints a print page when it does not fit within a single workpiece. A method of increasing the number of processing conditions or causing the user to confirm the number of processing conditions can also be used as appropriate.

When the setting of printing conditions is completed in this way, test printing is performed in step S32. Prior to actual printing, the printing position is confirmed by scanning guide laser light as necessary. Specifically, when a workpiece is set, when a guide laser is selected from the laser selection column 320 on the screen of FIG. 44 and the print start button is pressed, the guide laser beam is actually scanned on the workpiece, and the guide laser beam is scanned. The after-printing effect confirms the print position. FIG. 45 shows an example in which a matrix-like test machining pattern M is drawn on the work area WS of the workpiece by scanning the guide laser beam. Thus, by displaying the test machining pattern M, the actual print position can be confirmed, and the workpiece can be positioned and adjusted as necessary. When scanning with the guide laser, actual printing is not performed, and it is sufficient if the printing position can be confirmed. Therefore, the height (focus position) data need not be set in detail.

The work is set and test printing is performed. Specifically, in the laser selection field 320 of the processing parameter setting screen 304 shown in FIG. 46, a print laser is selected with a radio button, and a print start button 322 is pressed. As a result, irradiation of laser light is started, and cells are printed in a matrix for each processing condition such as laser output, scanning speed, and focal position according to the processing conditions specified on the processing parameter setting screen 304. Also at this time, coordinate conversion is performed by the coordinate correction means 80H of the calculation unit 80 as described above. That is, as shown in FIG. 47, considering that the information on the height (focal position) varies depending on the printing position due to the optical characteristics of the laser beam, the data is changed for each location even under the same height condition, that is, the position The coordinates are adjusted, and control is performed so as to result in printing at the same height.

(Modification of test machining pattern M)
Here, an example of forming a test processing pattern M in which a plurality of cells are arranged by changing three printing conditions for each cell in composite test printing in which cells are displayed by a guide laser or a printing laser will be considered. In the example of FIG. 45, a plurality of cells to be printed by changing the printing conditions are arranged in a matrix. In this case, if the arrangement is such that the cells are arranged side by side in the vertical or horizontal direction, the printing is easy, but the change in all the processing parameters cannot be made to correspond to the vertical and horizontal directions of the matrix.

In the conventional processing condition extraction mode, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, when only two parameters of the laser output and the scanning speed are changed, if cells are arranged in a matrix shape in which the processing parameters are changed vertically and horizontally, It is easy to grasp the relationship between changes in processing parameters and changes in print density. In the example of FIG. 3, the scanning speed is changed on the vertical axis of the matrix, and the laser output is changed on the horizontal axis so that the scanning power is changed downward. As it goes, the print density decreases.

On the other hand, in the composite test printing according to the present embodiment, since it is necessary to change three processing parameters, the three-dimensional representation is essentially performed by three axes of vertical, horizontal, and height as shown in FIG. As a result, the change in print density can be compared between adjacent cells, and the relationship between the increase / decrease of each parameter and the print density can be easily grasped visually. In FIG. 48, cells are arranged in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, the power in the vertical direction (5 stages of A to E), the speed in the horizontal direction (7 stages of a to g), and the height in the height direction (7 of 1 to 7). The processing parameters are changed by taking each of the processing parameters of the stage), and the print characters corresponding to each processing condition are displayed.

However, since the work to be actually printed is planar, the cells cannot be arranged three-dimensionally. In view of this, it is possible to use a cell arrangement that makes it easy for the user to visually recognize a change in print density by expressing a three-dimensional cell arrangement on a two-dimensional plane in a pseudo manner. For example, in Fig. 49, a rectangular parallelepiped is sliced along a horizontal plane, a two-dimensional plane is drawn for each height, and a plurality of them are arranged vertically. Can be expressed in the form. Moreover, since each plane is quasi-three-dimensionally arranged, not only changes in vertical and horizontal parameters but also changes in vertical parameters make it easy to visually grasp the positional relationship of the corresponding cells. , Relative change contrast becomes easier. Similarly, such disassembly is not limited to the height direction, but can be realized in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction. For example, FIG. 50 shows an example in which a rectangular parallelepiped is expressed by a plane decomposed in the horizontal direction, and cells are arranged in a matrix on one plane for each laser beam speed (scanning speed). This also allows the user to visually grasp the relationship between the change in each parameter including the change in speed and the print density. Further, FIG. 51 shows an example in which one plane is configured for each power of laser light, and the change in power can be compared for each plane. In these disassembled displays, the frame lines and coordinate axes constituting the plane, the processing parameters thereof, and the like may be printed as appropriate, thereby making it easier for the user to understand the test print information. For example, axes such as “power”, “speed”, and “height” and scales on the axes can be printed together.

In addition to the perspective arrangement as described above, the planes decomposed in one direction as shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 52, the change in height is expressed for each plane by arranging the planes with different heights on the top and bottom with reference to the plane in which the power and speed are changed as in FIG. Even with this method, it is possible to relatively easily understand the contrast between changes in the machining parameters in the vertical direction. In addition, since the test machining pattern M of FIG. 52 does not require a perspective drawing as shown in FIG. 49, the amount of calculation for generating the test machining pattern M by the laser machining apparatus is small, and the processing is easy. In addition, if the cells are arranged in a rectangular shape, cells can be efficiently filled into a limited space, eliminating the parts that are not printed in the perspective view and improving the work surface of the workpiece. There is also an advantage that it can be used automatically. Furthermore, as a partition between the planes, a solid line or a broken line can be attached, so that each plane can be surely divided.

In the example of FIG. 52, the example in which the planes with varying power and speed are arranged in the vertical direction is shown, but it goes without saying that the planes may be arranged in the horizontal direction as shown in FIG. Further, as in the examples of FIGS. 50 and 51, it is natural that the same effect can be obtained by including height instead of power or speed as processing parameters constituting the plane and arranging these planes vertically and horizontally. It is. Further, in addition to arranging the planes vertically and horizontally, it is also possible to form a matrix in which cells printed by changing each processing parameter are arranged vertically and horizontally without forming such a plane.

Further, as shown in FIG. 48, a perspective view of a rectangular parallelepiped that three-dimensionally represents changes in three parameters may be directly printed. However, in this case, although the cells located on the surfaces of the surfaces constituting the rectangular parallelepiped are surely printed, the cells located inside the rectangular parallelepiped may overlap with other cells and cannot be confirmed in the perspective view. For this reason, the size of the perspective view, adjustment of the observation viewpoint by tilting, rotation, enlargement / reduction, etc., or the size of the print character string constituting the cell, etc. can be confirmed so that all cells can be confirmed from the perspective view. adjust. Alternatively, printing can be omitted as appropriate for a portion where cells overlap.

In the above figure, according to the example of FIG. 44, the case where the power is changed to 5 steps, the speed is changed to 7 steps, and the height is changed to 7 steps as the processing conditions is shown. Of course, dimensions such as height and shape may be changed.

By associating the change in the processing parameter and the cell arrangement in this way, it is possible to compare the densities of visually adjacent cells and relatively select which print is the darkest, thereby facilitating the determination. . In step S33, it is determined whether a desired print result is obtained. If not obtained, the printing conditions are reset in step S34, and test printing is performed in step S32. Thus, resetting of printing conditions and test printing are repeated until a desired printing result is obtained. When a desired printing result is obtained, the process proceeds to step S35 and output is performed. In resetting the printing conditions, numerical values may be directly input for the maximum value, the minimum value, and the interval in order to specify the range as described above, or a character string may be selected from the printing result. For example, FIG. 54 shows an example of the processing parameter setting screen 304 for performing such resetting. In this example, the power and height of the laser beam are selected from the print result, while the speed is set. (Scanning speed) is entered directly as a numerical value.

If the user can finally obtain a desired printing result by repeating this operation, the processing conditions are determined. For example, in FIG. 55, the power, speed, and height of the laser beam are input as the character string of the cell printed with the darkest color, and the numerical values corresponding to these are set in each processing parameter. When the confirm button 326 is pressed in this state, the screen shown in FIG. 56 is displayed, and the set height information is displayed in the link destination setting field 330B. From this state, the user can designate a link destination for outputting height information by the machining condition output means 80E. Also in this example, when there are a plurality of blocks, the height information can be registered as “the height of the block condition” for each block. The link destination block is selected from the block selection field 334B using a drop-down list or the like. Similarly, the power and speed of the laser are also displayed in the power / speed display column 336, and the output destination for outputting the power / speed information by the machining condition output means 80E can be designated. Further, here, when there are a plurality of blocks, the power / speed information can be registered for each block from the block selection column 334C.

Laser processing condition setting device, laser processing condition setting method, laser processing condition setting program, computer-readable recording medium and recorded device, and laser processing device of the present invention include, for example, marking, drilling, trimming, scribing, surface treatment, etc. This laser processing can be suitably used for processing setting of a three-dimensional workpiece.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Laser processing apparatus 300 ... Laser processing condition setting apparatus 1 ... Laser control part; 1A ... Controller 2 ... Laser output part 3 ... Input part; 3D ... Processing condition setting means; 3E ... Processing condition selection means 4 ... Control part 5 ... Memory unit; 5A ... Storage unit 6 ... Laser excitation unit 7 ... Power source 8 ... Laser medium 9 ... Scanning unit 10 ... Laser excitation light source 11 ... Laser excitation light source condensing unit 12 ... Laser excitation unit casing 13 ... Optical fiber cable 14 ... Scanner 14a ... X-axis scanner; 14b ... Y-axis scanner; 14c ... Z-axis scanner 14d ... Pointer scanner mirror 15 ... Condensing unit 16 ... Incident lens 18 ... Outgoing lens 50 ... Laser oscillators 51, 51a, 51b ... Galvano motor 52 ... Scanner drive circuit 53 ... Beam expander 54 ... Optical member 60 ... Guide light source 62 ... Half mirror 64 ... Pointer light 66 ... Fixed mirror 80 ... Calculation unit 80D ... Multiple machining condition generation means; 80E ... Machining condition output means; 80F ... Inclination calculation means 80G ... Test machining pattern generation means; 80H ... Coordinate correction means 82 ... Display unit 150 ... Marking head 160 160B ... Adjusting mechanism 170 ... Installation table 190 ... External device 200 ... 3D shape setting program 202 ... Edit display column 204 ... Test machining pattern input column 206 ... 3D viewer columns 301, 303, 304 ... Processing parameter setting screen 302 ... Processing parameter output screen 310 ... Processing parameter setting column 312, 312B ... Laser power setting column 314, 314B ... Scan speed setting column 316 ... Start point / end point setting column 318 ... Height range specification column 318A ... Numerical value column; 318B ... Character string selection Column: 318a ... center value column 320 ... laser selection column 22 ... Print start button 324 ... Pattern selection field 326 ... Confirm button 328 ... Output display field 330, 330B ... Link destination setting field 332 ... Separation block selection field 334, 334B, 334C ... Block selection field 336 ... Power / Speed display field 400 ... Print list; 401 ... Print sample L, L '... Laser beam; L1 ... Dash line; L2 ... Bold line; L3 ... Thin line; W ... Work P ... Pointer beam; G ... Guide beam; WS ... Work area; Line E ... English letter; K ... Separator line; C ... Cell; M ... Test pattern

Claims (13)

A laser processing apparatus capable of processing a laser beam by scanning a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of the laser beam with respect to a three-dimensional processing surface of a processing object. A laser processing condition setting device for setting processing conditions including output and / or scanning speed,
Processing condition setting means capable of designating a processing condition including a focal length of the laser light as a processing parameter in a predetermined range in addition to the output of the laser light and / or the scanning speed;
A plurality of processing condition generating means for generating a set of a plurality of processing conditions in which the processing parameters specified in the range by the processing condition setting means are changed within the specified range;
The laser beam scanning system can two-dimensionally scan a plurality of machining patterns in which the output and / or scanning speed of the laser beam is changed in accordance with a set of a plurality of machining conditions generated by the plurality of machining condition generation means. Test processing pattern generating means for generating a plurality of test processing patterns arranged at different positions in the same plane with different focal lengths;
Accepting selection of a desired machining position from the test machining pattern generated by the test machining pattern generation means, and extracting the laser beam output and / or scanning speed and focal length employed at the selected machining position And machining condition selection means that can be reset as machining conditions,
A laser processing condition setting device comprising: The laser processing condition setting device according to claim 1,
The processing condition selection unit resets at least the range of the focal length of the laser beam, sets the processing condition setting unit as a new processing condition, and further generates a plurality of processing conditions by the multiple processing condition generation unit, Based on this, the laser processing condition setting device is configured such that the test processing pattern generating means generates a test processing pattern. The laser processing condition setting device according to claim 1, further comprising:
A laser processing condition setting device comprising processing condition output means capable of outputting to a predetermined output destination when a processing condition corresponding to a processing position selected by the processing condition selection means is determined. The laser processing condition setting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The predetermined pattern generated by the test processing pattern generation means is a character string that differs for each processing condition,
The laser processing condition setting device, wherein the test processing pattern is a plurality of character strings arranged in a matrix. The laser processing condition setting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The laser processing condition setting device, wherein the processing condition setting means is configured so that processing parameters can be specified by an upper limit value, a lower limit value, and a change width. The laser processing condition setting device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
The plurality of processing condition generating means is generated by changing the focal length of the laser beam, the output of the laser beam and / or the scanning speed for each predetermined width within a specified range as a plurality of processing conditions. A laser processing condition setting device. The laser processing condition setting device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The laser machining condition setting device, wherein the machining position is selected by the machining condition selection means using a character string of the test machining pattern. The laser processing condition setting device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The laser processing condition setting device, wherein the processing position is selected by the processing condition selection means by specifying a numerical value of a processing parameter. The laser processing condition setting device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising:
A laser processing condition setting device comprising coordinate correction means for eliminating a focal position shift caused by optical characteristics of laser light by correcting the coordinates of the focal position. A laser processing apparatus capable of processing a laser beam by scanning a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of the laser beam with respect to a three-dimensional processing surface of a processing object. A laser processing condition setting method for setting processing conditions including output and / or scanning speed,
In addition to the output of the laser beam and / or the scanning speed, a step of designating a processing condition including the focal length of the laser beam as a processing parameter within a predetermined range;
Generating a set of a plurality of machining conditions in which the machining parameters specified in the range are changed within the specified range;
A test in which a plurality of processing patterns whose laser beam output and / or scanning speed is changed based on a plurality of processing conditions are arranged at different positions in the same plane where two-dimensional scanning can be performed by the laser beam scanning system. A step of generating a plurality of processing patterns with different focal lengths;
A selection of a desired processing position is received from the test processing pattern, and the laser beam output and / or scanning speed and focal length employed at the selected processing position are extracted and reset as processing conditions. Process,
Including a laser processing condition setting method. A laser processing apparatus capable of processing a laser beam by scanning a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting the focal length of the laser beam with respect to a three-dimensional processing surface of a processing object. A laser processing condition setting program for setting processing conditions including output and / or scanning speed,
In addition to the output of the laser beam and / or the scanning speed, a function for designating a processing condition including the focal length of the laser beam as a processing parameter within a predetermined range;
A function for generating a set of a plurality of machining conditions obtained by changing the machining parameters specified in the range within the specified range;
A test in which a plurality of processing patterns whose laser beam output and / or scanning speed is changed based on a plurality of processing conditions are arranged at different positions in the same plane where two-dimensional scanning can be performed by the laser beam scanning system. The ability to generate multiple machining patterns with different focal lengths;
A selection of a desired processing position is received from the test processing pattern, and the laser beam output and / or scanning speed and focal length employed at the selected processing position are extracted and reset as processing conditions. A laser processing condition setting program that causes a computer to realize the process. A computer-readable recording medium or a recorded device storing the program according to claim 11. A laser processing system capable of processing a laser beam by scanning a predetermined processing pattern with a laser beam scanning system capable of adjusting a focal length of the laser beam on a three-dimensional processing surface of a processing object,
Laser oscillation means for generating laser light;
A laser beam scanning system capable of scanning a laser beam in an XYZ plane by the laser oscillation means;
Processing condition setting means capable of designating a processing condition including a focal length of the laser light as a processing parameter in a predetermined range in addition to the output of the laser light and / or the scanning speed;
A plurality of processing condition generating means for generating a set of a plurality of processing conditions in which the processing parameters specified in the range by the processing condition setting means are changed within the specified range;
The laser beam scanning system can two-dimensionally scan a plurality of machining patterns in which the output and / or scanning speed of the laser beam is changed in accordance with a set of a plurality of machining conditions generated by the plurality of machining condition generation means. Test processing pattern generating means for generating a plurality of test processing patterns arranged at different positions in the same plane with different focal lengths;
Accepting selection of a desired machining position from the test machining pattern generated by the test machining pattern generation means, and extracting the laser beam output and / or scanning speed and focal length employed at the selected machining position And machining condition selection means that can be reset as machining conditions,
A laser processing system comprising: