In simplest terms, laser marking is a permanent process that uses a beam of concentrated light to create a lasting mark on a surface. Typically performed with a fiber, pulsed, continuous wave, green, or UV laser machine, laser marking encompasses a wide variety of applications. The most common types of laser marking applications are:
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Laser marking can be automated and processed at high speeds, while leaving permanent traceability marks on a range of materials, including steel, titanium, aluminum, copper, ceramic, plastic, glass, wood, paper, and cardboard. Parts and products can be marked with text (including serial numbers and part numbers); machine-readable data (such as barcodes, Unique ID codes, and 2D Data Matrix codes); or graphics.
Laser marking works by using a focused beam of light to mark the surface of a material. When the beam interacts with the material&#;s surface, it alters the material&#;s properties and appearance. This concentrated beam targets only a specified area, allowing the laser marking machine to create precise, high quality, high-contrast marks that are easy to read or scan on virtually any surface. This feature makes laser marking ideal for applications where accuracy and permanency are critical to success.
The word LASER is actually an acronym for Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation. A laser beam begins as an atom that is stimulated to release particles of light. This light can be concentrated and directed toward a laser marking area. The energy that is released is measured in wavelengths or nanometers (NM). The higher the wavelength, the more powerful the laser beam.
For example, a UV laser marker, which has a wavelength of around 355NM, offers a lower power for marking heat-sensitive materials such as plastic and glass. Because UV laser markers and other machines in the "cold laser" category emit less energy, they are great solutions for many organic or soft products, as they are less likely to burn the material. A fiber laser, on the other hand, operates at NM, delivering significantly higher power to mark harder materials, such as metal.
Compared to other non-permanent marking processes such as printing or labeling, laser marking uses no consumables and requires less maintenance. Our team also offers fast and reliable customer support, including two-hour response times and free marking samples, for maximum up-time and system productivity.
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There are several types of laser marking systems, and each operates slightly differently. The correct process to use the machine also depends on the material you&#;re working with and the application you&#;re using. MECCO offers a list of resources to help you operate your machine and troubleshoot any issues, from how-to videos to detailed documentation.
When using any laser marking machine, it&#;s important to follow all safety guidelines. Thanks to a variety of preventative measures, including Class I laser marking workstations, laser marking is a relatively safe process.
The Benefits of Using a Laser Marker
Manufacturers can gain many benefits from the laser marking process, whether it is basic part identification and branding or complete traceability to track and trace parts from cradle to grave. Direct part marking with a laser marking machine delivers durable, readable marks. The results of these high quality marks include:
Greater operational efficiency and productivity with less waste and downtime
More visibility and accountability throughout the supply chain
Minimized costly threats such as quality and counterfeiting issues
Ensured compliance with industry regulations
Laser marker is a compact high speed machine tool, which applies graphic information in the form of marking and engraving onto various materials, from wood and leather to plastics and metals.
With a laser marker, you can print such information as bar-codes and QR-codes, logos, and serial numbers. It is also used in the jewelry industry and for branding souvenirs and manufacturing microchips.
A laser marker is a durable device that perform its tasks well and lasts for about 10 years, but only if you pay enough attention to the quality of the manufacturer.
In this article, we will tell you how a laser marker works, what the difference between CO2 machine tools and fiber optic markers for metal is, where you can use them, and how to choose such a machine.
First, you need to prepare a vector layout and load it into a special programme that controls the laser marker. In this programme the operating parameters are set to achieve the desired result.
When the layout is ready, you place the workpiece on the worktable where the marker shows the future machining area for easier positioning. Then you press &#;Start&#;, and the machine generates laser emission in the laser marker source.
The machine then sends the laser beam to a galvanometer scanner or 'scanning head', which directs the laser beam to the desired point using two movable mirrors, one operating in the X-axis and the other in the Y-axis.
The scanner is equipped with an F-Theta lens that focuses the laser beam onto the surface of the material to be processed.
Remember to remove the protective cover from the lens before work. A closed protective cover causes damage to the lens during operation.
When the beam reaches the material, it thermally affects the top layer. If the impact is strong, it engraves; if it is weak, it marks.
Engraving is more resistant to various mechanical impacts and the influence of aggressive environments because it burns off the top layer of the material to a sufficient depth.
Marking, on the other hand, is not perceptible under the fingers, because it changes the properties of the top layer through rapid and intense heating without damaging the material and allowing for colour marking of stainless steel and titanium &#; temper colours (only with a fiber optic marker).
Most modern production materials can be engraved and marked:
Install an exhaust system to work with plastics and other toxic materials!
Which material you machine can process depends on the emitter type. CO2 markers work with non-metallic materials, and fiber markers can process metals. Read more about this a little further on.
Laser Engraving Machine - How to Choose
For wood we recommend to use a laser engraving machines.
The main product of a laser marking machine is an image or inscription on a desired surface. Since lasers engrave and mark almost all materials, there is a wide range of applications:
Do not use a laser marker to cut thick materials! This causes the mirrors of the scanner to overheat and fail. It is acceptable to cut thin foil on fiber markers or paper on CO2 machines.
To choose a laser marker, you should consider the main parameters:
First, you should understand what materials you will engrave or mark. All selection criteria depend on this.
There are two main types of emitters: carbon dioxide (CO2) and fiber optic. Carbon dioxide (CO2) emitters have a wavelength of nm or nm, far-infrared radiation, and the fiber optic emitters &#; nm, near IR radiation.
The wavelength determines which materials the emitter is able to work with.
&#;&#;2 emitters engrave and mark organic materials:
Fiber optic emitters engrave and mark:
To engrave metals with a CO2 laser, a special paste is used that is applied to the material in a thin layer. With this method, it is impossible to achieve high quality deep engraving of metals even if the operation is repeated several times.
Fiber markers are air-cooled whereas CO2 machines need water-cooling and therefore require additional equipment &#; a chiller.
Generally, large laser tube manufacturers such as Lasea and Reci do not produce emitters for CO2 markers. They specialise in large CO2 laser machines, engravers and cutters.
JCZ supply professional and honest service.
How to select a laser cutting machine?
For this reason, most laser markers are often equipped with a no-name emitter, which is essentially a pig in a poke. It can immediately come out of order or lose the declared power after only a month of use.
There is only one brand of emitters for CO2 markers that is rapidly gaining popularity - Yongli. These tubes last up to 10,000 hours and have low beam divergence and a small laser beam diameter.
Be sure to use a chiller to cool the laser tube for it to last the entire stated period. We recommend using S&A chillers.
A correctly adjusted high voltage unit also affects service life. Virmer engineers adjust the high voltage unit of the machine to the power of the laser tube before it is shipped to the customer.
As a CO2 laser tube is made of glass, it is very fragile. Be sure to check it upon receipt and choose a supplier who gives a warranty and conditions for replacing the laser tube if it arrives in a faulty condition.
Virmer guarantees the delivery of machines in fully operating condition.
Order a demonstration, and we will show how the emitter you are interested in works with the desired material. Contact our managers by + or &#;-mail: .
Laser markers usually have a power of 20-50 W, in rare cases up to 100 W. It would seem that the more power, the faster the machine runs, and in some cases this is indeed the case, but there are nuances. It all depends on the task at hand.
More power makes sense in 3 cases:
However, if your main task is marking, including coloured marking, then the maximum required power is 30 W. Otherwise it is difficult to choose the correct parameters for the machine to mark evenly and not to burn through the material.
For coloured metal marking other parameters must also be considered: pulse frequency and stability, laser spot size, and Gaussian distribution. To find the right laser marker for your applications, please contact our managers, : + or &#;-mail: ..
The speed, depth of work, and final result are also influenced by the lens.
The lens focuses the laser beam, and its characteristics determine the size of the working area; the most popular are 110&#;110, 200&#;200 and 300&#;300 mm.
The lens determines not only the size of the working area but also the energy density per area.
The smaller the working area, the smaller the laser beam spot, i.e. the larger the energy density per area. This means the intensity of the treatment will be higher. And vice versa - the larger the size of the working area, the lower the energy density per area.
A 110x110 lens will work better in depth, e.g. you can do deep engraving and even volumetric engraving faster. This type of treatment removes the material layer by layer, and as a result a three-dimensional image is obtained. This is how souvenir coins and pendants are made.The more powerful your emitter is, the faster you can do this task.
The 200x200 and especially the 300x300 mm lenses have a correspondingly large working area, but lower impact intensity. These lenses are better suited for marking and are particularly often used when large objects and workpieces need to be engraved.
You can see a direct correlation between the result of performance and the correct combination of lens and emitter power.
If you need fast and/or deep engraving, then you should choose a 110x110 mm lens and the most powerful emitter.
Using a 300x300 mm lens with 20 W power is pointless for engraving. But this is a good option for marking, e.g. coloured shades, if the emitter has a wide frequency range.
It is worth having several lenses for different tasks. If you have a laser marker with 3 lenses, this means you have 3 different markers, as they can perform different tasks.
Laser marking machines work on the same principle, but they can have different designs and different focusing methods.
To focus, you need to adjust the distance between the scanner and the material. There are 3 ways to do this.
There is also dynamic autofocus, which is capable of changing the focal length during the operation and is used for engraving materials of complex shapes. This option costs significantly more and is rarely used. If you need such a solution, please contact our managers: + or &#;-mail: .
Let us go back to the machine design; different solutions are used for different tasks.
The sino-galvo high-speed galvanometer directs the laser beam by means of two moving mirrors; the speed and, most importantly, the accuracy of the operation depend on it. And the controller is the board that manages the whole process and controls the laser source and scanner.
These machine parts are not easy to determine the parameters for selection especially if you are not technically versed in the matter. Therefore, the most important thing to know about the scanner and controller is that they must be original. This is necessary in order to exploit the emitter's potential and use the full functionality of the software.
Wattsan only uses original controllers and scanners on its laser marking machines.
The manufacturer supplies its laser markers with the EZ CAD software, which offers a wide range of functions:
The last thing to consider when choosing a laser marker is the supplier.
You need to make sure you get:
This is all offered by Virmer. If you need help choosing a laser marker or you would like to know more about working with us, contact our managers for detailed advice, : + or &#;-mail: .
See our website for a complete list of laser marking machines.
The cost of the marking equipment depends on the intended use of the machine, its power, and options. Price ranges from &#;3,650 to &#;7,550, see more details on our website.
It is a permanent image resistant to mechanical damage, acidic and alkaline media, high and low temperatures.
It depends on your application. The main selection criterion is the emitter power and the lens. For quick deep engraving or working on highly reflective metals, it is better to use emitters with a power of 50W and a lens with a working area of 110x100mm. For high quality marking a 20-30W emitter and a 200x200 or 300x300 mm lens will do the trick. For more details, please contact Virmer managers: + or &#;-mail: .
How to choose a laser engraving machine for home
For the hobby, budget markers with MaxPhotonics or Raycus emitters are suitable. However, if your hobby is jewellery making, you should consider machines with IPG emitters from 50W. For more details, please contact Virmer managers: + or &#;-mail: .
CO2 laser sources mark and engrave organic materials: plywood and all types of wood-based materials, paper and cardboard, leather and faux leather, fabric, glass and mirror, plastics and rubber, stone and ceramics. Fiber emitters mark and engrave metals (ferrous metals, stainless steel, aluminium, titanium, etc), plastics and rubber, leather and faux leather.
The company is the world’s best portable laser marking machine for metal supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.