Common Issues and Solutions for Fiber Laser Cutting Machine Laser Heads
As is well known, one of the critical operational components in a laser cutting machine is the laser cutting head. Characterized by high precision and significant cost, this head relies heavily on optical components for its functionality.
Laser cutting machines harness the energy of laser beams to perform cutting tasks. The raw beam emitted by the laser source is focused through optical lenses, creating a high-density spot that cuts through materials such as steel pipes, plates, and metals. Thus, optical lenses are indispensable throughout every critical step of the cutting process. However, inadequate maintenance during routine operation can lead to various issues. Today, Top Optics Laser lists several common problems with fiber laser cutting machine heads and their solutions. Let's explore them together.
1. QBH Section Overheating: If the QBH area overheats, first inspect the protective lens on the collimator. Replace it immediately if damaged. If the protective lens is intact, disconnect the fiber optic cable to examine the collimator and fiber end-face condition.
2. Cutting Head Nozzle or Focusing Chamber Overheating: For nozzle or focusing chamber overheating, first check the protective lens for visible burn marks or moisture/oil contamination on its surface. If burn marks are present, replace the protective lens. If moisture or oil contamination is detected, inspect the air compressor's filtration system and instruct the customer to replace the air filter or service the refrigerated dryer. If the protective lens is intact, examine the condition of the focusing lens and the water flow in the focusing water cooling plate.
3. Automatic Focus Shift During Cutting: If the focusing mechanism shifts automatically during cutting, this is typically caused by a damaged protective lens seal. Air pressure enters the focusing chamber, causing the lens to move upward. Replace the protective lens seal. If replacing the seal is ineffective, verify whether the protective lens thickness used by the customer is within specifications. An overly thin protective lens can also cause seal failure.
4. Low cutting head air pressure with insufficient nitrogen flow: First, pull out the protective lens drawer and inspect the circular vent opening for visible foreign objects. Disassemble the cutting head sensor section, remove the gas path spacer sleeve, reinstall the protective lens drawer, and press the air purge button to expel debris from the gas path outlet. Then reassemble the cutting head. If air pressure still fails to increase after cleaning, inspect the machine tool drag chain for kinked tubing and check the solenoid valve for internal obstructions.
5. Autofocus cutting head fails to return to zero focus after homing or reports homing error: First, open the platform configuration tool and locate the focus control parameters section. Increase the positive and negative limit values to 30. Manually move the focus to the positive and negative limits and observe if the limit switches trigger an alarm. If the limit switches fail to detect, the cutting head requires repair. If the limit switches function normally, return to origin and reset the focus travel range to ±10 for normal operation.
When one internal limit switch fails to detect during homing, causing an alarm, the customer can change the homing direction to utilize the other limit switch as the origin.
The above five points cover common issues and solutions for fiber laser cutting heads. For more knowledge, learn about Wuxi Top Optics Laser.