Laser cutting is a well-characterized and popular processing technique for sheet goods in many industries, but traditional laser cutting machines are very large, awkward pieces of equipment that use an (x,y) coordinate system to move a flying cutter head over the sheet. But what if you could do this differently?
Well, this machine from JENOPTIK GmbH is a robot with an integrated beam delivery system. It combines the advantages of a coordinate cutting machine with the high speed and work envelope of the robot. Check out our video to see it in action:
You can put multiple robots on one part, or one robot on multiple parts—you never lose the precision or speed of the robot. The robots can also be mounted on tracks to improve reach.
The hollow robot has an integrated beam path, with mirrors in each of the joints. This allows the robot greater flexibility and mobility, as it doesn’t need to carry the mass of a bulky end effector or external cables to supply the laser to the cutter head.
Robot-mounted cutting systems bring laser cutting into the third dimension. With a laser cutter robot, you can trim cast or stamped parts, cut holes in tube, etch three-dimensional objects and more. There are not many metal cutting options for robotic end effectors, and this technology expands the possibilities for metal forming and cutting automation by opening the door to more processes.
This laser cutting system, called JENOPTOK-VOTAN BIM, can cut metal or plastic components using a fiber or CO2 laser up to 4 kW and has obvious applications in the automotive, white goods and aerospace industries.
For more information about the system, visit the JENOPTIK laser machines website.