6 Factors To Consider When Choosing a Laser Marking ...

The laser marking machine industry has grown in recent years, with great options and unreliable ones surfacing. It can be difficult to sift through all your choices and come up with a high-quality machine, but we&#;re here to help.

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This decision is important, because the best laser marking machines will stay with you for several years. If you purchase the wrong one, you may need to choose whether to stick with longer production times or bite the bullet and buy a better machine.

We&#;ll start by discussing the applications of laser marking machines. Then, we&#;ll get into the essential qualities that all reliable laser markers should have. We&#;ll cover everything from maintenance considerations to achieving your desired results. So read on to learn six factors to consider when choosing a laser marking machine.

What Is a Laser Marking Machine?

Laser marking machines are devices that do exactly what their name suggests&#;add marks to surfaces. A few different types of laser marking machines exist, as there are several ways to mark surfaces.

• UV laser marking: When you think about laser marking machines, this is the device you picture. A laser cuts deep marks into your material through the process of disintegration.
• Laser etching: Laser etching is a quicker process that can cut high-contrast marks quickly. The laser melts a portion of the surface material and creates easily readable high and low bumps.
• Laser annealing: Annealing is a chemical process that occurs under the surface of your material. The laser doesn&#;t melt your material. Instead, it causes a chemical change under the surface. This is a non-destructive process for precise applications.
• Laser ablation: Laser ablation is a weaker process that removes paint from a material rather than the material itself.

Laser marking machines of all types have applications in the military, automotive, medical, and pharmaceutical fields, to name a few.

Marking Speed

The first factor to look for when choosing a laser marking machine is the marking speed. While laser marking is one of the fastest available marking processes, there&#;s still a high variance between high- and low-end models.

In addition to model quality, the material you want to mark and the size of your markings will determine your marking speed. Depending on the type of marking you&#;re after, you may enjoy a faster or slower process. For example, laser annealing takes much longer than etching. However, it produces an indelible mark without harming the surface of your material.

UV Laser Marking Accuracy

Not all industries have the same requirements for accuracy. Some fields may need to carve in identification numbers quickly. Others may require higher precision, such as the medical or pharmaceutical fields.

Industrial laser marking machines have a few factors that can influence accuracy. One is the size of the beam spot on your material. The smaller that spot is, the more precise the laser can get. Another is the quality of the optical system and thermal control. Even slight variations could produce consistently disappointing results.

The Materials You&#;re Using

Work with a laser manufacturer to determine what type of laser you need based on the material you&#;re planning to mark. Many industries plan to mark metal. In that case, blue lasers are often the best choice.

Optic Properties of the Material

Different materials have a wide range of optic properties. These differences can cause the same laser to interact with various materials in unusual ways. Most of the time, people require their lasers to etch or mark opaque materials. When someone needs to mark a translucent or transparent material, they must do a little extra work to make their laser perform properly.

Because translucent materials allow light to pass through them, scattering the light, laser marking can get a bit tricky. One thing you can do is to add a dark layer beneath your translucent material and recalibrate the working distance of the laser.

Additionally, the color of your material may come into play when marking. For example, black acrylic is easier to mark than green acrylic. That&#;s because black materials absorb all light while green materials absorb all but green wavelengths. This slight difference can change the UV laser marking time of your project.

The True Cost of Ownership

Some companies want to convince you that a laser marking machine is a one-time purchase, but that just isn&#;t true. No one plans to buy a laser marking machine and throw it away after it performs at peak efficiency for a year. When you purchase a machine, you want to know how long it will last and what sort of maintenance you need to plan for during its lifespan.

Good machines should function for around a decade and should not require excessive maintenance. Be wary of companies that advertise their machines as being &#;easy to fix&#; because you can expect that you&#;ll need to fix them often.

The Mix of Functionality, Reliability, and Affordability

The best laser marking systems balance their function, reliability, and affordability. When you start to sacrifice any of the three, you set yourself up for a situation you don&#;t want to be in. It&#;s better to research a ton and buy once rather than take a shot in the dark and regret it. Our laser marking systems strike a better balance than any others.

Choosing a Reputable Seller

You should make every large investment with confidence. While you may hope that all laser marking machine providers understand their products, you can&#;t be sure until you see for yourself. When you get on a call with a salesperson, you must make sure they can explain to you how the machine functions and ensure they have a good sense of the machine&#;s applications.

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If you notice that a salesperson doesn&#;t have a grasp on the products they&#;re selling, how can you expect them to recommend the best system for you?

Now that you know these six factors to consider when choosing a laser marking machine, you should look over all your options before you make a decision. Contact us at Tri-Star Technologies to ask any questions you may have&#;we&#;re confident in our products, and we know they&#;ll get the job done for you well.

Laser part marking technology is becoming more and more important in all realms of manufacturing, from automotive to aerospace and medical industries. This is because of the growing demand from manufacturers and federal regulations to be able to track and trace products throughout their lifecycle.

One of the most common questions we get at MECCO is &#;How do I choose the right marking technology for my application?&#; The truth is, marking and engraving technology is not a one-size-fits-all solution, and there are a number of factors that go into choosing the best solution for your application.

So, before you invest in marking equipment for your plant, here are three main considerations to help you in choosing the best laser technology:

1. Materials
Your first consideration is the type of material you&#;re going to be marking. We like to break materials down into two main classifications: Organic or non-organic.

Organic materials are those like wood, glass, plastic or paper products. Metals, steel, cast aluminum&#;anything that will spark when you put it into a microwave (although we don&#;t recommend doing that!)&#;is considered non-organic material.  
 

2. Type of Mark

Now that you&#;ve determined your material, what do you want the mark to look like? Are you looking for deep marks? Do you want more contrast in your marks?

Depending on the type of marking technology, you can create either a dark or a frosted mark. For instance, if you&#;re doing barcode technology and struggling with your vision systems&#; ability to read the code, you&#;d want to use frosted backgrounds and dark marks. It&#;s all about your particular situation and how you want your final product to look.
 

3. Safety Considerations
Think about where your engraving machine is going to be placed. Will it be on the plant floor near operators, or do you have a dedicated, enclosed space for it? Will this machine be replacing another type of technology such as ink jet?

You should know that if your laser marker will be located on an open shop floor, your laser supplier should help you install a Class I laser safety system. This includes a laser-safe enclosure and warning lights, curtains to form safe entryways and other safety considerations. You can also opt for a laser workstation that includes a Class I safety enclosure and laser source in one compact unit. 

If you have a Class IV laser, you would need a dedicated room that meets certain safety conditions, such as area posting, protective eyewear and a key switch so that it still meets safety requirements.

What&#;s Next?

When to go with CO2 Lasers

In general, if you want to mark product information on organic materials and looking for a non-contrast mark, you may be looking for a CO2 laser marking technology. With a wavelength of 10.6 microns, it is generally safe to use in an open floor situation with Plexiglas shielding. A CO2 marking machine is a good solution in situations when you&#;re replacing other marking technologies, such as ink jet, dot peen or labeling.

Bottom line: CO2 lasers give you high mark quality and are a cost-effective solution for marking date codes, serial numbers and other product identification on wood, glass, rubber, plastics, cardboard, and product packaging.

When to go with Fiber Lasers

On the other hand, if you&#;re marking non-organic materials like metal or plastic and want contrast in your mark, fiber laser marking technology may be the best choice for your application. Fiber lasers, at 1 micron wavelength, must be in a separate room or enclosure with doors and must also follow the CDRH (Center for Devices and Radiological Health) safety considerations to make sure anyone working around it is safe.

Bottom line: Fiber mark lasers offer a wide range of capabilities and produce a high-quality mark to engrave serial numbers, bar codes, 2D Data Matrix and graphics on the widest variety of materials, including metals, plastics and ceramics.

LightWriter&#; Desktop Fiber Laser Marking Workstation on Aluminum & Plastic Materials
 

When to go with Diode Pumped Lasers

If you&#;re marking on plastic or anodized aluminum and are looking for a higher contrast mark, look at the diode pumped laser technology. With as much as three times the power of conventional fiber lasers, this laser delivers short pulses that create clean, crisp marks with minimal surface disruption.

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